“You in trouble?” his gruff voice crackled.
“No, nothing like that. I actually need a huge favor from you.”
“Name it.”
“I have a very important appointment in Denver tomorrow afternoon and I don’t want to drive up there alone. I was wondering if you’d mind going with me.”
“If you got an appointment, we need to leave today. That’s about a seven-hour drive.”
“So you’ll go? I mean, just like that?”
“Fuck yeah. Did you think I’d say no?”
“I wasn’t sure.” She laughed, lightness replacing the heaviness she’d felt before she’d called him.
“You can always count on me. I told you I have your back. Can you leave at noon? I gotta finish up with this car, then clean up. I’ll be ready to roll after that.”
“Noon’s fine. We can drive my car. Should I meet you at the clubhouse?”
“Yeah. See you then.”
“Fuck yeah!” she yelled after ending the call, raising her fist as high as she could in her car. Not wanting to return home and face Shanna and the society ladies, she decided to buy a few things before she drove to Alina. She’d need toiletries, a nightgown, and maybe even a new dress. Giddy with excitement, she switched on the ignition and headed toward downtown. After she bought a few items, she went over to the diner to kill some time before she headed to Alina.
The diner was packed, the only place to sit was a two-seat table in the middle of the room. The hostess led her to the table and handed her a grease-stained menu. Fallon shrugged off her cardigan and glanced at the menu. Her stomach was sour from having only coffee in it; she hadn’t eaten since she’d had the cheeseburger the day before.
“Ready to order?” the waitress asked as she looked around the room.
“A turkey swiss sandwich on light rye. And I’d like fruit instead of the potato chips.” Fallon handed her the menu. The waitress rushed away.
Sitting in the middle of the restaurant made her feel conspicuous and, even though she knew it wasn’t true, she felt like everyone was watching and talking about her. She pulled up a game of solitaire on her phone, glancing up when the waitress refilled her water. Before Fallon could thank her, she dashed off. Fallon looked back down at her phone. The scrape of the chair opposite her against the floor made her jerk her head up. A woman a little older than her stood next to the table with a shy smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
“Do you mind if I share this table with you? I’ve spent ten minutes of my lunch break waiting for a table to open up. I have to get back in a half hour, and I’m so hungry.”
The clatter of dishes and loud voices surrounded her, and she could barely hear what the woman was saying. “Are you asking to sit down?” she said loudly.
The young woman nodded, and Fallon reluctantly gestured for her to sit at the table. The woman slid onto the red vinyl seat and scooted the chair in toward the table. The waitress came over with Fallon’s sandwich and did a double take at the woman who was now seated across from her customer. “You joining her?” she asked.
“I’m sharing a table,” the woman answered.
“You got a menu?” The waitress handed her one before the woman had a chance to reply. “I’ll be back in a second.”
Fallon put down her phone and squeezed a small amount of mayonnaise on her sandwich. The woman watched her intently, making Fallon self-conscious. She hated when people watched her eat. If she were honest, she’d admit that she hated when any attention was focused on her.Years of bullying and feeling like I don’t belong are probably the reasons.
“I’m Annie.” The woman extended her hand.
Fallon wiped her hand on her napkin, then shook Annie’s. “Fallon.” She went back to concentrating on her sandwich.
“You from Tula?” Annie asked.
Fallon groaned inwardly.She wants to chat.She nodded, keeping her eyes on her plate.
“I’m new to the area. I just moved here a few months ago. I really like it so far.”
Sighing, Fallon looked up. “Where were you living before?”
“New Mexico. A small town in the desert. It was so boring. My boyfriend’s dragged me all over the west.” She laughed.
“Where do you work?”
