Chapter 32
Emerson~
M y shift was going to end in about an hour, and I dreaded it. I hated the thought of going back to the trailer with nothing to do but drown myself in sorrow and self-pity again. I’d been so happy when Muriel had said that I could return to work immediately, because I needed something to do if I was going to move past all that crap with Ramsey.
Even though I still felt random heart pangs throughout the day whenever I gave into my thoughts about him, for the most part, the customers, Muriel, and the daytime crew occupied my mind with jokes and good times. Everyone was also being respectful enough not to mention my mother or my father.
I was turning another order in for the cooking staff when Rebecca’s voice reached me. “Hey, Em.”
“Hey, Rebecca.”
“Yeah, so there’s a customer asking for you,” she informed me. “I sat him in your section and thought that I’d let you know that you have someone out there waiting.”
Perfect.
The busier that I was, the better.
“Okay, great. Thanks,” I said, meaning it.
“I’m sort of jealous,” Rebecca went on, surprising me.
“Jealous?”
Rebecca was the perfect girl-next-door. She was all blonde hair, blue eyes, and perfect skin. She was also all grace and sweet smiles, so the last thing that she should ever feel was jealousy about anything.
“The guy’s super hot,” she explained. “I tried my best come-hither smile, and he didn’t even bat an eyelash. Instead, he asked if I could seat him in your section.”
It had to be Scott French.
I mean, even before I’d been forced to go to Sands Cove, I hadn’t had many friends. However, Scott French, Henry Ricker, and Sally Allerman had been among my closest friends growing up. We’d all grown up together in the same trailer park, and their childhoods had been just as jacked-up as mine had been.
Sally was a very malnourished redhead that lived life annoyingly optimistic. However, she was fierce and loyal, and was the best of us four. Henry was a shy sort with big chocolate-brown eyes and deep brown hair. Though he was shy, he was also smart as a whip and had kept us out of trouble often. Scott had been sort of our leader. He had kind of adopted us as a big brother, and he was very protective. He had silver blonde hair with eyes the color of night. He was also good-looking and kept in shape, and there were more than a few females that had thrown themselves at him regularly.
When Constance had come for me, my trio of besties had hatched a plan for all of us to run away together, but since none of us had been eighteen at the time, it hadn’t been worth the risk to me. No matter what, I would never endanger my friends. So, I’d left, but I had also made sure to keep in touch.
Scott was probably here to cuss me out because I hadn’t told any of them that I was back in town. I’d been putting it off because I’d wanted to feel a little stronger before telling them why I was back. I had a feeling that if I told them everything that had happened, they’d all jump into Henry’s truck, then drive down to Sands Cove and wreak havoc.
At any rate, I guess Scott must have heard that I was back. Small towns and juicy news were a cold combination. So, not being able to hide my return to Hantover any longer, I left my order with Edwin, then went back out to wait on my ‘new’ customer.
I was halfway across the diner when Rebecca’s actual words hit me. A customer was asking for me. Rebecca was only a year older than I was, and she’d gone to school with me, Scott, Henry, and Sally. If my customer were any of those three, she would have said their names, right? Besides, Scott, Henry, and Sally would never eat here. They were about as poor as I was, so they never splurged on eating out or things like that.
So, how would someone know to ask for me when I just started working here again? Was it someone that had come in for lunch, then had come back for dinner? My weekend shift consisted of working from nine am to six pm, so it was possible that someone from the lunch crowd had come back for dinner, but that just seemed odd.
I was walking towards my new customer when something about his shoulders and back gave me a sense of familiarity. Maybe he was someone that I’d gone to school with before Constance had made me go live with her. This town was very small, and it wouldn’t surprise me that word of me working here had spread like wildfire.
Still wondering, I approached the table, and when my eyes took in who my new customer was, I couldn’t stop the small gasp that escaped.
Ramsey fucking Reed was in Hantover.
Ramsey. Fucking. Reed.
I stared down at his handsome face, and my first legitimate thought was that I was going to have to kill him. If he followed me all the way from Sands Cove, the only way that I was going to ever find peace was to murder him, then throw his remains in the ocean.
I wasn’t totally opposed to the idea, either.
Pride had always been the source of my strength. When I’d worn rags to school, when my stomach had grumbled in hunger, when we’d been without electricity…I had never let myself feel embarrassed about my circumstances. I’d been born to an abusive father and a weak mother, and none of that had been my fault.
So, I called on that pride now, and as I reined in my shock, I asked, “What can I get you?” I was not going to ask him why he was here. I wasn’t going to ask or talk to him about anything other than his order. I didn’t want to talk to him. I didn’t want anything to do with him.
His whiskey-colored orbs met my eyes head-on. “I’m not here to eat, Emerson.”
My name falling from his lips caused my nose to tingle, and I could feel pressure behind my eyes. Just the sound of his voice was enough to ruin me all over again, and I hated that fact.
Fuck this asshole.
“Then, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” I replied evenly. “The tables are reserved for paying customers only.”
I watched in both horror and disgust as Ramsey pulled out his wallet, then removed two one-hundred-dollar bills, tossing them on the table. Never having taken his eyes off me, he said, “Now I’m a paying customer.”
Looking into his deceptively perfect face, I could feel myself losing it. Hate, rage, regret, sorrow, love, humiliation…all of them were going to war inside me. Why was he here? Why couldn’t he just leave me the hell alone?
I was about to tell him to go fuck himself when he spoke again. “What time does your shift end?”
My hands tightened around my pen and order pad, but I was proud that my voice was steady. “That’s none of your business. Now, are you going to place an order or not?”
Ramsey stared at me for a few seconds, and then let out a deep breath. “Emerson, I’m here, so that we can talk.”
I let out a humorless laugh.
He could not be serious.
“I have nothing to talk with you about,” I snapped. “Now, if you’re not going to order anything, you can just sit there with your money, because I have other real customers to attend to.” It looked like pride trampled on all those other emotions that I was struggling with, coming to my rescue again.
Ramsey surprised me when he said, “Fine. I’ll let you get back to work.” However, I was less surprised when he added, “But I will be waiting for you when your shift ends. We need to talk, Emerson.”
I turned away from him without even acknowledging his last statement. We didn’t need to talk. I had nothing to say to him, and there was absolutely nothing that he could say that I wanted to hear. Nevertheless, I wasn’t unaffected by his presence. A small part of me-the part that still cared-was curious as to what he had to say. However, too bad for that small part bastard, because all the other emotions were overruling her.
I shook off Ramsey’s arrival, then went back to checking on my customers. I wasn’t terribly busy since we were in the lull between lunch and dinner, so I decided to try my hand at some cowardice. After making sure that all my tables were taken care of, I headed towards the back to find Muriel, and I found her in the storage room, looking over the inventory.
“Hey, Muriel.”
She turned around, then smiled at me. “Hey, Emerson. What’s doin’?”
I hated to ask since I just started working here and all, but I wasn’t ready for a confrontation with Ramsey. My emotions were still beaten and raw from our last encounter, and it was all that I could do not to fall apart.
“I was hoping that I could sneak out of here a few minutes early,” I admitted, then cringed at how unprofessional that sounded.
Muriel lowered her notepad next to her thigh as she cocked her head. “Are you okay?”
That question.
That one question filled with so much genuine concern became my downfall.
The tears started to fall, and I instantly found myself in Muriel’s arms. “Oh, Emerson, what’s wrong?”
I wasn’t in full-blown sob mode, but the tears were making swift progress down my face. “The short version is that I’m experiencing my very first teenage heartbreak, and the cause of that heartbreak is waiting for my shift to end, so that he can torture me some more,” I admitted.
Her expression was pure understanding. “Of course, you can leave early,” she said soothingly. “I can take care of your tables until Adam comes in for the dinner crowd.”
I wrapped my arms around her waist. “Thank you, so, so, so, so much, Muriel.” This sweet woman that had no obligations towards me was showing me more love and concern than my own remaining family. I’d yet to receive one call or text from my aunt or my cousin, not that I expected one, but still.
Muriel disentangled herself from my hold, then said, “Honey, there’s not a female over the age of thirteen that hasn’t experienced heartbreak in some sort of fashion or another. God, men are such fascinating creatures, but they sure do know how to ruin everything that’s good in the world.” She looked into my face, and I knew that she could empathize with how I was feeling. “You get going now, girly.”
I smiled through my tears, then nodded because she didn’t have to tell me twice.