Chapter 10 #3
He nodded, then led me over to the diner.
There were only a few tables and all were empty, so we basically had the place to ourselves.
I followed Billy over to a spot near the window, and we’d barely sat down when a cute red-head with a great figure and pretty green eyes came over to us.
A bright smile swept across her attractive face as she said, “Hey, Billy. It’s good to see you. ”
“Hey, Jasmine. You look well.”
“I’m making it alright.” She glanced over at me as she asked, “Who’s your friend?”
“This is umm... Leigh. She’s a friend visiting from out of town.”
“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Leigh. What can I get you two today?”
Billy glanced up at the menu board, then answered, “How about a couple of cheeseburgers?”
“Sure thing. What about drinks?”
“Sweet tea for me,” I replied. “With lemon, if you have it.”
“I’ll have the same.”
“You got it.”
Jasmine turned and disappeared into the kitchen. Moments later, she returned with our drinks, only to disappear once again. I took a quick look around at all the adorable, vintage country décor, then asked, “Do you come here often?”
“From time to time. Mainly when I’m passing through or need to come for supplies.” His eyes skirted around the room as he whispered, “It doesn’t look like much, but the food is great.”
“I can’t wait to try it.” I took a sip of my sweet tea, then asked, “So, how many of your girlfriends have you brought here?”
Billy’s eyes widened with surprise, making me immediately regret asking such an invasive question. I wanted desperately to take the question back, but the words were already out there. He inhaled a quick breath, then let it out slowly before answering, “None.”
“Really? Not a single one?”
“There have been no girlfriends, Everleigh. Not a single one.”
“Oh, I didn’t realize.” I hated that I’d made things awkward, so I attempted to make things better by saying, “If it makes you feel any better, I’m in the same boat. There hasn’t been anyone since Bobby, and that seems like a lifetime ago.”
“What about Antonio? Did he…”
Relief washed over his handsome face when I said, “No, nothing ever happened between us. I don’t know what I would’ve done if he’d tried, but thankfully, he was too focused on the money I was making him to pursue me physically.”
“Thank God.”
“Speaking of the whole making him money thing, I should probably tell you something.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, I probably should’ve already told you about it, but with everything that’s been going on, it slipped my mind.”
He glanced over to the kitchen, and when he saw that Jasmine was getting ready to bring our food over, he asked, “Does it have something to do with Antonio?”
“Afraid so.”
“Then save it.” He waited as Jasmine placed our food down on the table, then added, “Let’s just enjoy our meal, and you can tell me later.”
“Okay, but soon.”
He nodded, then turned his attention to Jasmine. “This looks great.”
“I hope you enjoy it. Let me know if I can get you anything else.”
“Will do.”
Once she’d disappeared back into the kitchen, Billy picked up his burger and asked, “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“Not that I’m aware of. I’ve often wondered if Mom ever remarried and started a new family, but I have no way of knowing for sure. What about you?”
“No. Just me.” He gave a half-hearted shrug. “Guess that’s why it’s so easy for me to be alone.”
“Possibly.” I smiled as I told him, “You know, they say only children are more ambitious and stubborn than those with siblings. Do you agree with that?”
“Definitely stands true for you.”
“Me?” I gasped. “I was thinking about you.”
“I’m nowhere near as ambitious or stubborn as you.”
“Says the man who cleans for men like Antonio DeLuca. You have to be pretty ambitious to get into a career like that.”
“Ambition has nothing to do with it.”
“Then, what is it? Why do you do what you do?”
“I was hoping for a lighter topic for dinner.” He chuckled as he asked, “You sure you wanna dive into this?”
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
Billy spent the next half hour or so explaining how he’d become a cleaner, and the more I heard, the more I realized why he’d been hesitant to talk about it over dinner.
It was a truly heartbreaking story. My chest literally ached as I listened to him describe what had happened with his wife and the awful things her doctor had done to his patients.
I understood his thirst for revenge.
I’d wanted the very same revenge when I heard that DeLuca had killed my father, and while I was conflicted over the method, I was pleased to hear that his wife’s doctor had gotten what was coming to him.
It was easy to see how it had all changed him—just as my experience with Antonio had changed me.
He told me how he’d used his background in forensics to erase any evidence of the doctor’s death, and that was it. His story stopped there, but it wasn’t difficult to piece the rest together.
It felt good to know that my instincts were right. Billy wasn’t a bad man. He was damaged, but he had a good heart and good intentions. But I feared those good intentions might end up costing him more than he bargained for.