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“It will be difficult,” Nikki admitted, her throat tight.
“Because you’re in love with him?”
“Mom!” Aghast, Nikki turned to look down the hall, making sure Emma hadn’t picked up on the adult conversation. “She’ll hear you.”
“So it’s true?”
“No, Mother,” Nikki lied. “Jake and I are friends who share a child. That’s all we’ll ever be, and I’m okay with that.”
She waited for the lightning to strike or for a huge sinkhole to open up and swallow her for telling such a whopper.
Roberta seemed disappointed. “Okay then. I believe you.”
“I have to finish getting ready.”
Nikki fled the room, telling herself she absolutely would not break down and cry. She was a grown woman. Not some fragile schoolgirl fixated on romantic fantasies that had no base in reality.
She made it to work with ten minutes to spare, so she grabbed a cup of coffee and took it to the storeroom. This place, this small restaurant, had become a familiar home. She liked her coworkers, and she liked her customers. The days had a comfortable routine.
Everybody needed to eat. And, surprisingly, a lot of people needed someone to talk to when their lives were empty. Nikki could do worse than stay here at the cozy retro diner indefinitely.
But the truth was, the salary for assistant manager wasn’t all that great. When Emma was older and her needs were more expensive, Nikki would need a different job. Perhaps one that made use of her degree in communications.
She had thought about working for an ad agency. Maybe doing PR for a local business. She was a decent writer, and she didn’t mind speaking in public.
Her moment of quiet time ended abruptly when one of the line cooks swung open the door and grabbed a can of baked beans. He glanced at the clock with a grin. “You hiding out in here, Nikki? Rough morning?”
Her face must have looked worse than she thought. She managed a smile. “Not enough sleep. You know. Kids...”
“Don’t I ever.”
The door closed, and she took a deep breath. Nothing had to be decided today. She would stay the course until after Christmas. January was a good month for resolutions and starting over. Maybe Falling Brook was the answer. Maybe Joshua really would offer Nikki and her mother a lifeline. Who knew what the future held?
The only certainty was that Nikki’s future didn’t include Jake Lowell.
