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He stares at me for a beat, looking into my eyes. “No. It’s a personal trip.”
Even though I sense that he wants me to ask for more details, I don’t. We barely know each other, and besides, he’s on a breakfast date with someone else. “I’ll be discussing the exhibit in class on Monday night, so you’ll hear all about it then.”
“I can’t wait.” He leans in to lower his voice. “It’s always a pleasure seeing you, Piper. Always a pleasure.”
The last word hangs in the air between us as he walks back to his table and the woman I have no right to envy, but I do.
Chapter 20
Piper
Jo swipes a towel over the top of the counter chasing away the crumbs left behind by my bagel. “Your breakfast special is coming right up, Piper. You should count your lucky stars that Jerry is back from his break.”
“Who’s Jerry?” I ask with a tilt of my head.
?
??The cook,” she says as she refills my coffee. “He’s been with me since day one, but lately he spends more time taking breaks than he does behind the stove. I have to fill in and it’s not my favorite place to be.”
“When was day one? How long have you owned this place?”
“Coming up on fifteen years now.” She purses her lips. “I started as a waitress. When the owner was ready to sell, I jumped at the chance.”
I don’t see how I can segue this conversation into one about Lana, so I stay on topic. “That’s a big leap. You’re a brave woman.”
“I didn’t move across the country to a city where I didn’t know a soul.” She chuckles. “That takes courage, Piper. You’ve got it in spades.”
I dump the contents of another packet of sugar in my coffee mug before swirling it around with a small silver spoon. “I’ve never considered myself brave.”
“You’re fearless.”
I decide to test her theory by asking the one question that’s been dancing on the tip of my tongue since Griffin and Lana left the diner five minutes ago. I didn’t glance over at them as they ate and when they got up to leave, I tapped out a text message to my dad. I couldn’t risk looking at Griffin only to find him holding hands with Lana.
“From where I was standing, it looked like you and Lana’s friend get along well,” Jo says before I have a chance to ask how she knows Griffin’s breakfast date.
Since I still don’t know her connection to Lana, I answer simply and truthfully. “Griffin is one of my students.”
Her brows go up. “He’s in your art class? Good for him. I wish Lana would take time for herself like that.”
I jump at the opportunity to finally broach the topic of the woman Griffin spent the night with last night. “I could see how much you and Lana care about each other. She seemed really happy to see you too.”
“She’s a good girl.” A smile teases the corners of her lips. “She first started coming here when she was living on campus. I’d feed her breakfast every morning in exchange for dishwashing on Saturdays. She told me today it helped her get through law school.”
“Lana’s a lawyer?”
“Just like your student. They came here from court.” She looks back toward the kitchen. “She ordered him the breakfast tacos. It’s a cure-all for a hangover.”
“They drank too much last night?” I ask before I give any thought to it. It doesn’t matter if they both got falling down drunk. It’s not my business. I shouldn’t even be having this discussion with Jo.
“He drank too much,” she corrects me with a sly smile. “I jumped to the same conclusion, but Lana told me she noticed he looked off when she saw him in court this morning, so she was doing him a friendly favor by buying him breakfast.”
A friendly favor? They were in court together, not in bed together.
“I’m going to check on your food, Piper. When I get back, I want to hear more about the mountains.”
I nod. I felt a glimmer of relief, but it’s gone now. Griffin may not have slept with Lana last night, but that doesn’t mean he spent the night alone.
I swallow another mouthful of coffee, wishing the hot liquid would chase away this growing need I feel inside me to know everything there is to know about Griffin Kent.
