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That wasn’t what she wanted, and if there was one thing Griff had figured out in his life, it was that he couldn’t control what someone else wanted. He could only control himself. And he was limited at that. After all, he couldn’t keep his eyes from drifting to her every time she walked around. Couldn’t keep from watching her hands as she wrote down orders and picked up dishes. Couldn’t keep from looking at the expressions that flitted across her face. Couldn’t keep from wanting to help her every chance he could.
Of course, if she were successful in catching the eye of the lawyer, she’d probably close the diner and move to the big city with him.
He’d put her up somewhere, somewhere where his wife wouldn’t find out about her, and she’d be his booty call.
Griff hated that. Chi was worth so much more. He supposed she’d find out a little more about the lifestyle that she thought she already was experienced in and all the pain that came with it.
She gave him a smile and said, “Wish me luck,” before she turned, grabbing her tray and her notepad at the last minute, stuffing it into her pocket, smoothing her hair down one more time, and walking out.
He hated that he did it, but he picked up a rag and a tray, waited ten seconds, and then walked out behind her. Unable to just let things happen without watching out for her.
He didn’t trust the fancy lawyer and didn’t want Chi to be hurt.
She stood at the table of the liar, smiling and talking as he pulled his phone up and glanced down.
Her smile dimmed just a bit as his fingers flew across the screen, answering whatever text or email came in before he set it back down and looked back up at her.
When he did, it was like the sun came out from behind the clouds and shone on her face as it brightened and she glowed again.
Griff tried hard not to wish that she glowed like that for him, but he did.
And he knew that she didn’t. She didn’t even notice him. Or maybe she just saw the tats and the rings and dismissed him as a drifter she wouldn’t be interested in.
And that was all he was. Anymore anyway. He’d left the life that he built a few years ago because it was empty and unfulfilling. Of course, he had his share of other empty and unfulfilling things as well.
Stopping here in Strawberry Sands, the sense of community, and working with Chi every day had given his life new meaning.
The bell jingled, and the little girl that had been around periodically stepped inside.
She always had a closed, serious look on her face as she walked to the corner table, her usual one, and sat down. Chi didn’t even look over, too engrossed in conversation with the lawyer to pay any attention.
There were only two other tables with customers, and he’d already cooked the food for them. So he walked over and stopped at the little girl’s table.
“You want your usual?” he asked, knowing that she typically got a grilled cheese sandwich, mac and cheese, and a burger. He’d never been successful in seeing her when she left, but he suspected that she didn’t eat the grilled cheese right away. He wasn’t sure what she did with it. Maybe she took it home to feed her dog.
He probably shouldn’t care, but there was just something about her that made him think that things weren’t quite what they seemed. It wasn’t just because she was a little girl coming into a diner and eating by herself, either.
“Yeah. My usual,” she said, and he could be mistaken, but he thought she made her voice sound a little deeper than what it naturally might be.
“Remind me of what you drink.”
“I’ll have a Coke.”
“I’ll have it right out for you.”
She nodded, then looked out the window, like she didn’t want to watch him, didn’t want to make eye contact, didn’t want him looking at her any more than what he had to.
He could read a dismissal when he saw one, and it made him even more curious. There was something going on there.
Normally he would talk to Chi about it, but she was still over at the lawyer’s table. Her laughter rang out, and maybe he just wanted it to sound that way, but it seemed fake and shrill.
Not her normal belly laugh, but something she forced out to make a man feel good.
He’d been around women like that. Women who pretended to be something they weren’t in order to get something they wanted. He hadn’t figured Chi to be that kind of woman. Except, he thought the only thing she wanted was the lawyer. He couldn’t imagine she was after his money, which probably made her even more appealing to the man.
What in the world did she see in him?
Griff wanted to stop and study him, to try to figure out what it was that attracted Chi. Was it just the fact that he gave her attention? Was it his charming smile?
