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Chapter One
May
“I’m done talking about Axel. He’s bad news.” I line up the salt dispensers one by one on a tray and twist off the caps as I stare toward my sister Nora. She’s always been pushy, but lately she’s been overtly so.
“What? Why? The man is big, tall, inked, and he’s got a good head on his shoulders. That and he’s single, so…”
I roll my eyes and pour the salt over the smaller containers, dragging the box back and forth until the shakers are filled. “You do realize my standards are wider than large and inked, right? I’d like to find a man I can have children with, or possibly a conversation. Axel’s a barbarian. All those MC guys are. It’s not my scene.”
“Right.” Nora throws herself on the stool next to me and leans forward against the counter, squishing her face up with her hand. It reminds me of when she was a kid pouting to Mom for a bowl of ice cream before dinner. We both knew she wasn’t going to get it, but she gave the act her all. “You’re going to hate what I say next then.”
I set the salt box on the counter and stare toward Nora. “Whatever it is, you can fix it.”
She spins up from the chair and makes her way behind the counter. I suppose she thinks the closer she is, the more I’ll understand her point of view. “You’re lonely. You spend all day at the diner, and you go home to a book and a cat.” She flattens her eyes and stares harder. “A book and a cat.Don’t you want more?”
“No! I don’t. I’m happy. I eat whatever I want for dinner. I don’t have anyone’s underwear to worry about and no one to bother me when I’m reading.” I grin. “Except for Petro, and I approve of his disruptions.”
“Yeah, well, that’s not what you were saying last week.”
I huff out a sigh and screw on a few of the shaker caps. They’re not full, but good enough for now. “People get low, Nora. You were feeling like shit last week, too. Why don’tyoudate Axel if he’s so great?”
She pulls her hand down over her long, dark ponytail. “That would be a conflict of interest.”
My brows narrow as I glance up toward her. “Okay, now you’ve got to spill it. How would that be a conflict of interest? I know all your relatives and he doesn’t work for you. So…”
She sighs and looks away, dragging her gaze up slowly. “Yeah… do you remember that stupid idea I had about opening a dating agency?”
My feet shift in place, and I swear I feel a bead of sweat drip from my forehead. I know what she’s about to say and I’m going to kill her. “Yeah…”
“Well, I did it. It’s only an online thing, but Axel signed up.”
“Axel? The big, brooding, motorcycle riding mountain man? He signed up for your dating service?”
She nods.
“Right, well, forgive me if that gives me more of a reason to believe how desperate the man is.” I carry the tray to the counter on the opposite side of the diner, desperate to get as far away from her as I can. We’ve been closed for an hour, and I really need to be done with today.
“Just hear me out.” She follows me as she talks. “He’s my first, and only, client. Can you just listen for a second?”
I roll my gaze toward her, then down at my watch. I’ve walked nearly twelve thousand steps today and my feet ache like hell. All I want to do is go sit in my car and listen to music until I pass out. “You have three minutes.”
“Okay. So, he’s looking for a curvy blonde who loves the wilderness, is open to a family, and wants the ranching lifestyle.That’s you…almost exactly.”
“That’s not me. I have blonde hair and a big ass. That’s all. You know I hate hiking and ranching isn’t my thing. Besides that, the age range Axel’s looking for must be out of my window. He’s what… twenty years older than me?”
She pauses and stares down at her phone, scrolling through the answers to a questionnaire. “I’m sure that can be negotiated after he sees what a good fit you are. Besides, the man doesnotlook twenty years older than you.”
I laugh under my breath. “Yes, he does, and we’re not a good fit. Remember the last time Axel and I were together? I offered to help out at the lodge, and we couldn’t even hang a picture without arguing. Is that what you want for me, a life of eternal misery?”
“It’s called sexual chemistry.”
I laugh. “Just because something is exploding doesn’t mean it’s chemistry.”
Her eyes roll to the side and back again as though she’s searching for a reasonable response. “Chemistry is all about explosions. That’s like a thing, May.”
“Okay. We can both see you’re out of reasonable things to say here. I’m politely declining whatever it is you’re offering, and now I need you to go. I want to close up.”
Nora twists her lips into a bow and scans the room as though she’s holding something back.
