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“Sounds good.” He set his menu aside as the waitress approached our table.
“Something to drink?” she barked.
“Soda for me, please,” I said.
“You?” she addressed Smoke.
Smoke smiled up at her, his eyes glancing at the name tag on her faded gray V-neck. “Long day, Sheila?”
Sheila blinked and some of the animosity drained from her expression. “Long day.” She nodded. “Working a double again.”
“I remember those days,” Smoke said in commiseration. “Graveyard shift?”
She sighed. “Yeah.”
“I actually liked the graveyard shift,” he said. “So many interesting people awake at that hour.”
“Interesting.” She snorted, but a playful smile appeared on her lips. “Nothing but drunks and lowlifes looking for trouble at night.”
“Bet you handle them no problem.” He winked.
Sheila chuckled. “I’ve had practice. A drunk and lowlife ex-husband prepared me.”
I watched in amazement as Smoke completely changed Sheila’s attitude. By the time she walked away with our order, she was smiling.
Smoke looked at me and raised his dark brows. “What?”
“That was kind of amazing,” I admitted.
“What was?”
“You made her smile.”
“She just needed a little kindness. A little attention.”
I frowned as I looked at the table. “It was thoughtful.”
“And you didn’t think I could be thoughtful?”
“Not you. Most people. Most people just seem to sail past someone else’s bad mood. Or they get in a bad mood too and it just escalates.”
Sheila returned with our sodas, a cheery smile on her face. “Food’ll be out shortly.”
“Thanks, Sheila,” Smoke said.
She blushed like a teenager. I didn’t blame her. There was something about Smoke. When he turned his attention to you, you felt like he was really listening. Like he really cared what you said.
My phone trumpeted in my purse. I pulled it out, silencing it immediately when I saw Knox’s name.
“Cheating douche?” Smoke inquired, reaching for his drink.
“Yeah.” I grimaced. “I really don’t have the bandwidth to deal with him right now.”
“You’re not going to tell him you left?”
“Nope. He’ll figure it out when he gets home in a few days.” I fiddled with the straw of my soda. “Are all men dogs? Why do they cheat?”
Smoke paused. “Do you want the answer I’d give my daughter, or the real answer?”
