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“And talking to your food?”
“No.” Luke laughed. “I want to go to The Crab and talk to Hannah about something important but I don’t want to offend her. It’s kind of big so I wanted to rehearse it before I put my foot in my mouth.”
“Ah.” Sandy went on her tiptoes and grabbed a mug from the cabinet. “Hannah’s a sweet girl. I’m sure she won’t be offended if you’re kind and thoughtful. And I know you will be.”
That made his shoulders release tension he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. Sandy was right. He flipped the omelet onto a plate.
“Do you want an omelet?” he asked.
“No, I’m good.” Sandy poured Luke a cup of coffee too. “What were you going to talk to Hannah about?”
“Have you heard her play the piano before?” Luke took his coffee and his food to the small table on the far side of the kitchen.
“I think so? Not in a long time.” Sandy wandered in his direction, but didn’t sit. “Is she still playing?”
“Yeah, she is. I stumbled upon her playing the piano at The Crab the other day. She’s incredible. Super talented,” Luke said. “I think she should follow her passion for it. Maybe go to school or something. I asked her about it and she said she hadn’t really thought about it seriously. So maybe she just needs some encouragement. I know she can do it.”
Sandy gave him a knowing smile and his cheeks warmed up. He hadn’t hidden his crush on her whatsoever, had he? Then again, he didn’t want to hide it now. They had kissed and he hoped that they could see where their feelings went.
“Just be honest and be yourself. Everything will work out just fine,” Sandy said.
She gave him a side hug before going back to their home office. Luke dug into his omelet, his courage to talk to Hannah rising. Sandy was right. He just had to be himself and it would all be okay.
* * *
Hannah fell into the steady rhythm of wrapping up silverware behind the counter. The breakfast rush had died down, giving her the chance to breathe. She glanced up at the lingering customers, enjoying their breakfast sandwiches and iced coffee. Just as she looked back down at the silverware, the bell above the door chimed and Luke walked in.
Her heart did a flip in her chest twice, first at the sight of Luke, and the second at her surprise that seeing him made her have such a strong reaction. She smiled and gave him a shy wave, which he returned along with a lopsided smile. His smile made his whole face light up in a way that she adored.
“Hey,” she said when he got to the counter, her cheeks warming. She wasn’t sure what to do with her hands all of a sudden, so she tucked them into the pockets of the apron around her hips. “What’s up?”
“Not much. How are you?”
“Good.” Hannah bit her bottom lip, resisting the urge to fidget.
“You look really pretty today,” he said, his voice shy.
Hannah didn’t feel that way. Something about rushing around and handling a lot of greasy food made her feel rumpled at all times. And today she hadn’t bothered with much makeup at all beyond some concealer and chapstick. But Luke was so earnest about it that she had to smile.
“Thank you,” she said, her whole body heating up. “Can I get you anything?”
“Um…” Luke looked up at the menu, his expression lost. “What do you suggest?”
“Depends on what you’re after. Something sweet? Something savory? Something big or something small?”
“Hm. Would it be weird to get a coffee and chocolate milkshake at this hour?” he asked.
“Nope, there’s coffee in it.” Hannah grinned and rang it up. “I’ll have it ready in a second.”
After Luke paid, she made the milkshake, the first of the day. She handed it over to him and watched him take his first sip.
“It’s really good,” he said. “I want to chug it but I’ll get brain freeze.”
“Yeah, it’s all in the ice cream. We get it from a guy who has a dairy farm nearby.”
Luke took another long sip despite just saying that he wanted to avoid brain freeze. “Do you have a second for a break? I wanted to talk to you about something.”
“Yeah, sure.” Hannah’s heart soared up like a bird caught on a breeze. Did he want to talk about starting a relationship like she had been thinking about too?
