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May gives me a knowing wink looking at Sky. Sky’s shy smile darts between the three of us.
“May, Clay, this is Sky Alexander, Jay’s daughter.”
May’s eyes light up. And I feel nervous all of a sudden. These are my people, what if they don’t like her?
“Welcome, dear,” she says, taking Sky’s hands in hers.
“Your diner is awesome,” she tells May, checking out the place. The old jukebox in the corner is playing Elvis Presley tunes on repeat. Everywhere you look there is chrome, and neon art hangs on the wall. May guides us to the only empty booth.
“I’ll be right back with your regular. You want a vanilla shake, Sky?” Clay asks.
She nods. “Sure.”
“Coming right up,” Clay says, shuffling to the counter and giving the order to one of the girls there. The whole diner is filled with locals, people I recognize. Meeting their gaze, I smile, and some nod.
May beams at me and then at Sky. “You two make a handsome couple.”
Sky is the first one to talk. “We are not a…”
“Shush, dear. Let me enjoy the fantasy. This boy needs a good girl to keep him out of trouble. The black ink and funny hair doesn’t appeal to everyone you know.” She winks at me. I know Clay was in the Navy during World War II and has enough tats to prove it. I can’t believe the guy is still working at ninety-four.
Sky grins at May, her dark eyes meet mine, and my mind immediately goes back to the truck, the way she kissed me, held me, damn it. “Thank you, May.” I swallow. “For that.”
May leans against the red leather booth. Grinning, she turns to Sky. “You know he used to come in here with a bloody nose, oh, and a black eye, almost every week. Eating pancakes like his life depended on it.” She shakes her head, pinning her locks of grey hair in a bun. “I called Jay once; he said the boy was always on the track riding his bike, and crashing it more times than he could count on his two hands. What a long way you’ve come.”
I nod, silently praying she isn’t going to tell some awkward story from my teenage years.
“I also remember you carrying …” She pauses, tapping her chin, as if searching for the memory. “What was it…oh, gosh, a little teddy bear! You carried it in your backpack everywhere you went.”
My cheeks heat with embarrassment. “Thanks, May.”
Sky laughs. I fucking love that sound.
“Well, enough of this,” May says, brushing her hands on her apron as Clay brings us two vanilla shakes. “I’ll leave you kids alone. I’ll come by in a couple minutes, give you enough time to look over the menu.”
She shoos Clay away as well, who takes her hand and kisses it.
Sky chuckles, and I’m praying the ground will open up and swallow me hole.
“A teddy bear, when you were a hellraising teenager?”
I drop my forehead on the table, brushing my hands through my hair. “Ahh come on, your dad gave it to me,” I say, watching her take a sip from the shake. “I’d never gotten a fucking toy in my life, and the little guy is still our mascot. Last year Drew gave him a little shirt with my sponsors on it to wear, and I’m not making it better, am I?”
“Hunter, don’t you dare lie to your sweet girl,” May yells from behind the counter.
Sky laughs again.
“I shouldn’t have brought you here,” I murmur, but I’m not getting off the hook so easy. She takes my hand in hers and squeezes, and I let her.
“Thank you,” she whispers, “for taking me here, and taking my mind off things.”
We keep staring at each other until she lets go of my hand. Why would she want to take her mind off things?
“I didn’t picture you as a vanilla man though,” she says, before sucking on the straw.
“I’m not, don’t you agree?” I deadpan, and she almost chokes on her drink. “Are you okay?” I laugh. “I mean with what happened between us in the truck?”
She nods, her eyes sparkling, wiping the vanilla from her chin with her thumb. What I would give to lick it off her.
