“I’ll be there,” she said. “Oh.”
“Yeah?” He stopped and looked at her with a hopeful expression on his face. Like he was expecting her to say something. Or wishing that she would.
“That chicken corn chowder was really good. I hope you’re planning on adding that to the menu.”
From the expression on his face, that wasn’t what he wanted her to say. But he smiled a little at her and nodded. “I’ll do that.”
“And homemade bread,” she said.
“You got it,” he said. He gave her a searching look, and she couldn’t pull her eyes from his. Then he turned and walked away. She wished he wouldn’t. She felt oddly bereft as he left.
Chapter 16
Griff walked down the steps, his heart hammering.
He hadn’t seen Chi since he dropped her off at the diner after they’d come home from being stranded together at his cabin.
He’d thought their relationship was progressing, but he’d had a lot of time to allow the doubts in, and now he wasn’t sure where they stood.
Would Chi look at him and smile like she’d been doing in the cabin?
Or was she thinking about her lawyer again?
Surely, now that she knew he was married, she wouldn’t be going back to him. She’d said as much, but sometimes people changed their minds.
Just because she knew the lawyer was married didn’t mean she could turn her emotions off like they were on a switch. He knew that much about people anyway. Even if his emotions weren’t that complicated. He liked Chi, had for a long time, and...he supposed if he found out she was secretly married, he would have to get away from her. Because he wouldn’t be able to stop liking her that easily.
Surely she was the same. But, she seemed like the lawyer being married was a real turnoff. Maybe she was just using Griff as a rebound relationship.
He wasn’t knowledgeable enough about relationships to know whether that was true or not, or what he could do to avoid it. He just knew he wanted to be with her, couldn’t stop thinking about her, and couldn’t wait to see her this morning. Even if he was nervous.
He’d come in the front door of the diner, locking it behind him, and had gone through the kitchen and into the hall to grab a fresh apron when his eye caught on a face staring at him through the back door window.
It was unexpected, and he almost stumbled, but caught himself in time. In the dark, he couldn’t be sure, but it looked like Rodney.
Odd, that he would show up at this time of morning. He quickly went to the door, unlocking it and opening it.