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She shrugged. “With you, I’m used to it. I guess I never realized how deep your hatred of nonlocals went.”
That’s what she’s taking away from this?I would hate any man who bailed on my pregnant sister, no matter where they lived. The only difference was if the man was local, I’d be able to make his life a living hell. On the other hand, maybe it was better for Lyra not to run into the jackass at the grocery store or gas station.
I frowned. “I don’t hate them.”
“But you want nothing to do with them.”
“Aside from taking their money at the Brew Company, no. But that doesn’t mean I hate them.” Tourists were like zoo animals—entertaining to watch from behind safety glass and at a distance.
Lyra picked up a piece of printed paper from a stack and folded it in thirds before tucking it into a display. “That’s too bad.”
I put my hands up before she could say anything else. “We’re going to have to agree to disagree.”
I didn’t want to talk about it further and wind up in another argument. She’d lived here as long as I had, so I didn’t understand why she didn’t see things my way. To me, it was clear that people acted differently when they were on vacation, so you could never be sure of who they really were.
“If you’ll answer just one question for me, I’ll forgive you, and we never have to talk about this again.”
That seemed too easy. Lyra might be kind at her core, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t devious when it suited her. “What question?”
Smiling, she cocked her head. “It’s an easy one—yes or no. Did you bring Claire saltines and ginger ale?”
I blinked. That was the last question I’d expected. I wondered how the hell she even knew about that. She was looking at me expectantly, but I was too caught off guard to come up with a suitable lie.
“I will neither confirm nor deny—”
“Hey! That’s not an answer.”
“Sure it is.” I grinned, pleased with my quick response. That was much better than a lie, because the fact that she was asking meant she already knew the truth. I was sure to hear about it later, but for the moment, I’d dodged a bullet. “Do I still get to go to Dads and Doughnuts Day with Sophia?”
She sighed. “You know you do. It’ll break her heart if you don’t.”
“Then we’re done here.” I skated out of the office before she could ask me any more questions I’d have to use fancy language to avoid. I climbed into my truck with a smile on my face. All was right in my world.
CHAPTER 11
Bennett
DECLAN WATCHED INTENTLYas I prepared an old-fashioned. I still wasn’t sold on the idea of him tending bar, but I was willing to give him a shot, if only for Grandpa Charlie’s sake. In any event, it was the off-season, so he could only do so much damage.
“Do people order those often?” he asked.
“No.” I pushed the glass toward him so he could taste it. “But the ones who do are very particular, so you have to get it right.”
Declan took a sip. “It’s not bad. But why order this when you could order one of those?” He gestured to the brew we had on tap.
Maybe there was hope for him yet. His good taste in beverages didn’t mean I was cutting him any slack, though. “Go refill the drinks on table seven and then bus table twelve.” At his grumbling, I grinned. “You can keep the tip.”
He shot me a look that told me he had some choice words lined up for me, but to his credit, he kept them to himself. Perhaps Grandpa Charlie had given him a talking-to. Whatever the reason, I liked this new-and-improved version of Declan. I hedged my bets on how long it would last. Whatever the answer, I wasn’t letting up. He’d have to learn to put up with me giving him orders if we were going to work the same shifts.
The door opened, and I smiled at the couple who entered—Jon and Cici Zook. I’d been meaning to go see them since Bob White had mentioned Markham wanted their property, so this was perfect timing. They seated themselves, and I headed over with menus.
“How are you folks doing?” I asked.
Jon shook my hand. “Pretty good. I would say we don’t need menus because I have it memorized, but it’s been a while since we’ve been in. It’s probably changed.”
I scratched my chin. Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen them in quite a while. When I first started tending bar, they would come in nearly every weekend for a date night. They were about ten years older than I was, so we didn’t run in the same social circles. Cici actually used to babysit me and my siblings.
“Have a look,” I said. “We updated it last year.”
