Page 6 of Peaks and Promises

She shook her head. “That man has a crush on you. I’d bet today’s tips on it.”

The line cook plated table five’s food and set it on the counter. “Order up. And I’ll take that bet.”

“You don’t think the big guy has a crush on Summer?” Tess asked.

He shrugged. “How would I know? I’m always back here.”

With a laugh, Tess waved off his comment. “If he had a thing for me, I’d have closed the deal on that a long time ago. That man is fire.”

I grabbed the plates. “I’m a single mom. I’m not closing the deal with anyone.”

“Oh, come on. He’d be worth it. Even just once.”

Laughing a little, I shook my head and turned to go back to the dining room. “I’m ending this conversation now.”

“Fine. But you know I’m right.”

I didn’t answer.

But I’d have been lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it.

Who could blame me? Tess was right, Reese Haven was fire. Big, intimidating. Handsome in a rough sort of way. Even the scar on his chin was sexy.

Thinking about Reese and his rugged good looks sent a swirl of pleasant heat through my body. How was it possible he was still single? Even the memory of him was a turn-on.

Or maybe it had just been such a long time since—

“Here you go.” I placed table five’s orders down in front of them. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”

“Nope, looks good,” one of the men said.

The next couple hours flew by. We had a steady stream of customers, which, to be honest, was a little bit surprising. The food wasn’t that great. But we were located on the main road through town, right next to a gas station, so people tended to stop for a bite. I did my best to give them fast and friendly service, hoping it would help make up for the mediocre food quality.

Things began to wind down as the afternoon wore on. I only had two tables left when the roar of motorcycle engines returned.

A wave of dread flowed through me. They were back? Already?

I finished pouring ice water for the customers at table three and glanced out one of the front windows, hoping against hope it wasn’t them.

It was. Buzz and Hammer stood outside next to their bikes, lighting up cigarettes. I took the pitcher back to the kitchen, my shoulders tense. Maybe they wouldn’t come in.

But did that mean they were going to wait outside for me? I didn’t know what was worse.

You’d think I would have wished for another group of cops to come in. A lot of them were regulars. But it wasn’t law enforcement I was hoping for.

It was Reese Haven.

What did I think he’d be able to do? Cops would probably discourage Buzz and Hammer from hanging around. Mayhem members avoided the police as a general rule, even when they weren’t up to anything. Reese was just a guy. A big guy to be sure, but club members wouldn’t be intimidated by his size.

Still. I felt safe when he was around.

For the next ten minutes or so, I kept busy, occasionally casting anxious glances out the window. The Mayhem guys stayed out there, smoking.

Don’t come in again. Please don’t come in again.

I ducked into the kitchen to grab a side of ranch for table three, and when I came out, the bikes were still there, parked out front. But the Mayhem guys weren’t next to them.

A second later, the door opened, and they strolled inside.