17. Thea
17
THEA
The faint twang of a country song wafted through the air as I moved from one table to the next, checking on refills and bussing the empties. The lunch rush was in full effect, and I wasn’t exactly on my A-game.
Sleep hadn’t been my friend last night. I shouldn’t have been surprised when a nightmare had found me around three in the morning. There’d been too many triggers the day before.
I recounted something I’d read in a book about post-traumatic stress disorder. Facts over feelings. Feelings were always justified, but we had to put them into the framework of facts.
I was scared. The run-in with Russ had brought up a whole boatload of trauma I hadn’t yet laid to rest. But the facts were that I was safe, Brendan had no idea where I was, and Russ was nothing but a cruel bully.
So, I focused on the good. On the here and now. I moved toward a table of tourists, their heads bent over a guidebook. “Can I get you any refills? ”
The man looked up and smiled. “Sorry, we were in the throes of a hiking debate.”
“Not a problem,” I assured them.
The woman held up her coffee cup. “I wouldn’t mind another.”
“Decaf or regular?”
“Regular, please.”
“Coming right up.”
“Actually.” The man stopped me. “We’re trying to decide between the hike at Castle Rock and this one with a waterfall. Have you done either?”
I leaned over the guidebook, surveying each of them. “I’ve done both. But I actually recommend the hike at Broken Ridge Pass. It has four different waterfalls, and you get great views of Castle Rock. It’s about five or so miles.”
The woman grinned at me. “That sounds amazing. Thank you so much.”
The guy just shook his head. “This is why you always ask the locals.”
“Happy to help,” I said as warmth spread through me. Because I was a local. And for the first time, I really felt like I was building a home in Sparrow Falls.
I moved through the crowd, grabbing a few empties and making a mental reminder to get the woman’s coffee. I stopped at another table and forced a smile to my lips. I felt like an ass because Mara had never been anything but nice to me, but knowing that she and Shep had history had a green-eyed jealousy monster poking up its head inside me.
“Hey, Mara. Can I get you anything else?”
Her head snapped up from the magazine she was reading, a hand flying to her chest as a laugh bubbled out of her. “Sorry. I was in another world.”
My smile came a little more genuinely this time. “I think that’s the theme of the day.”
Mara grinned back. “Fridays. Always a struggle bus.”
“So true. Can I get you anything else? ”
She shook her head. “I need to get back to work, but thanks. This was just the Friday pick-me-up I needed.”
“Glad to hear it. Have a great weekend.”
“You, too,” Mara said as I moved to the next table.
Finishing my rounds, I headed behind the counter and filled the tourist woman’s mug.
Sutton moved in next to me, pitching her voice low. “You doing okay? You can take off early if you need to.”
I thought I’d hidden my lack of sleep decently well, but apparently, I hadn’t. “How bad are my dark circles?”
One corner of Sutton’s mouth kicked up. “You might need some of my super concealer if you were hoping to hide them.”
I snorted. “At least we’re in it together.”
She squeezed my arm. “Everything okay?”
I turned toward her. “It really is.” And that wasn’t a lie. I’d let someone into my house last night. Not just anyone, either. A man. One who had a heat I hadn’t felt in years stirring inside me. And I hadn’t panicked or kicked him out. I might’ve been a little awkward, but Shep had to be used to that by now.
Sutton kept her gaze on my face for a moment, then it was like sunshine blasted out of her. “Something happened with you and Shep!” she squealed.
I clamped a hand over her mouth. “Shhh!” My face flamed because half the bakery had likely heard her yell. “Nothing happened. We just had dinner.”
“So, a date?” My hand muffled Sutton’s question.
I dropped my arm, my cheeks still hot. “No. I mean, I don’t know. He’s just been bringing food every day he works at my place.”
Sutton’s eyes began to glisten. “He brings you dinner every night?”
“Please, do not start crying. You know I can’t handle tears.”
She sniffed, waving a hand in front of her face. “Okay, okay. I’m just happy for you. You deserve this.”
“Nothing’s happened, Sutton.” I did not need her runaway romantic heart on this train. She’d have us married in her mind before the day was over.
Her smile only widened. “Maybe not yet, but it will.”
I just shook my head, quickly washing my hands before grabbing the mug of coffee. “I need to get this to a table.”
“It’s the truth!” Sutton yelled after me.
I only hurried away faster, dropping the coffee with the tourists and scanning the rest of the restaurant. Mara had left, so I moved to her table to clear it. I grabbed her plate, balancing a now-empty cup on top of it, and then moved to grab the magazine she’d left behind.
The moment my gaze connected with the glossy cover, I froze. Ice slid over me, making my skin turn clammy. My heart thumped as if someone were squeezing it in a brutal grip.
A face stared up at me, one with a perfectly straight smile and shining blue eyes. I’d seen them shine at me like that. But it was nothing but a lie.
I jerked my gaze away from the photo to the headline. The words had all the blood draining from my head.
America’s Favorite Superhero Heads to Oregon to Film a Western.