Chapter 2
Note to self:
Online dating is a real MEAT market.
Think about becoming a vegetarian.
“Alright, spill.” Ellie Sterns leaned on the counter, a bright-yellow apron with the words “Sit-n-Eat Café” embroidered across the front hanging from her neck. It was a little after one o’clock and the lunch rush had died down to a handful of regulars. “I heard you almost got arrested.”
“My reputation precedes me, I see.” I stuffed another bite of chili in my mouth. “This is amazing. I can’t believe Ollie let you make something new.”
The Sit-n-Eat Café was a Two Harts staple. The owner, Ollie Holder, a curmudgeon of a man somewhere between seventy-five and a hundred and seventy-five years old was very clear that the menu never, ever changed. Mondays were always fried chicken day, chicken-fried steak on Tuesdays, and so on. The café was not open on weekends, and it only served lunch. There were no exceptions.
Once I asked if he had leftover tamales on a Friday. Not only did I not get an answer, but he also refused to talk to me for two weeks. Which was awkward because that was the summer I worked for him.
“I’ve been bugging him for months. I think he got tired of me asking.” Ellie flipped her long braid over her shoulder and frowned. “Actually, I’m a little worried about him. He left early today because he wasn’t feeling well.”
“Ollie?” I said around a mouthful of cornbread. My table manners were on point. “I’m pretty sure he’s indestructible. He’s like Chuck Norris but shorter and with crazy eyebrows.”
She huffed a laugh. “You’re probably right. You’ve known him longer.”
Ellie Sterns had landed in Two Harts a little over a year ago, her little boy Oliver in tow. Her brother, Chris, was Mae’s fiancé and a defensive end for the Oklahoma Stars. He was kind of a football god, if I’m being honest, and I was a fan. But really, I loved him the most for loving Mae the way he did.
Ellie had come to Two Harts with the intention of meeting Mae and then heading to her parents’ home in Oklahoma. But Two Harts can worm its way into a person’s heart.
Ollie had had a permanent HELP WANTED sign in the café window until Ellie came along and became his newest employee. She’d found an apartment above the Spencers’ garage to rent and settled into life at Two Harts like a champ. I liked Ellie. She was a little unpredictable, a little impulsive, a damn good cook, and a solid friend.
The bell on the door jangled announcing Mae’s arrival. She slid onto the stool next to me.
“Sorry I’m late. Chris is headed back to Oklahoma for football camp, or whatever they call it. He came to say goodbye and I got distracted with…stuff.” Her red hair was half falling out of its ponytail, blue eyes sparkling, cheeks flushed, and?—
“Maebell Sampson, is that a hickey on your neck?” I asked. Okay, maybe a little louder than I should since Mae slapped a hand over my mouth.
“It is not a hickey,” she whispered. “I’m sure it’s…it’s…”
“Gross.” Ellie screwed up her face in pretend disgust. “My brother gave you a hickey.”
“A love bite,” I said, or rather mumbled, behind Mae’s hand.
Ellie grinned. “A sucker stamp.”
I pulled Mae’s hand away. “An affection affliction.”
“Oooh. Nice one. How about”—Ellie placed the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically—“a passion patch.”
Mae’s face was about the same color as a beet. “Could you two stop, please?”
“Sure. Sure.” I laughed so hard, I had to brace myself against the counter before I faceplanted in my chili. No need to waste good food. “I won’t mention that lip legacy one more time.”
“Me neither.” Ellie held up her hand in the universal sign for “scout’s honor.” “Not one word about that sweetheart stain on your neck.”
Mae covered her face with her hands as the two of us cackled. It was so fun to tease her these days. She’d spent a few years so stressed out and worried about everything and everyone, she’d had no time for fun. Chris gave her fun…and apparently hickeys.
“I’m going to kill him,” Mae muttered. “There will be no wedding. Only a funeral and I will dance on his grave.”
Murderous thoughts aside, they were so cute together. I was happy for her, truly, deeply, a hundred percent happy for her. Well, maybe ninety-seven percent happy and three percent jealous.
Still giggling, Ellie straightened. “Let me get you something to eat,” she said to Mae, and then pointed at me. “And you have some explaining to do. I’ve only heard fifteen different versions from fifteen different people at this point.”
Ellie disappeared behind the kitchen partition.
Mae arched an eyebrow in my direction. “I can’t wait to hear what it was this time.”
“First, you owe me an apology.” I kept my voice light. “You’re supposed to be around to rescue me.”
“We’ve talked about this. I can’t be here to rescue you all the time.” She gave me a shoulder bump.
I sighed. “I know. I know.”
Ellie reappeared and slid a bowl of chili in front of Mae. She rested her elbows on the counter in front of me. “Talk, lady.”
“I will.” I took a long sip of my sweet tea. “But first I want to hear how your date went on Saturday.”
Ellie groaned. “It was bad. The sort of bad where I excused myself to the bathroom and never came back.”
“Why?” Mae and I asked at the same time. Ellie’s dates were legendary…for being awful.
She pulled out a dishtowel from her apron pocket and began scrubbing the already clean counter. “He was normal on the computer. His name was Ryan. Ryan is a perfectly normal name for a perfectly normal man, right?”
“Sure,” I said.
“Wrong.” She tossed the towel on her shoulder. “We met at a restaurant in Houston. It’s this new place where the whole schtick is serving burgers made from exotic meat. So, we sit, we talk. He’s nice. Like, really nice. Great smile. Dimples. Teaches high school history. That sort of thing. I say, ‘Oh, they have ostrich burgers.’”
“Sounds gross,” Mae murmured.
“Actually, I’ve heard ostrich meat is delicious,” I said. “I read this article about?—”
“Excuse me, focus.” Ellie snapped her fingers. “I’m telling the story.”
I grinned. “So sorry, go ahead.”
“Then he says, ‘Oh, ostrich is on my bucket list. It’s a goal of mine to try as many different types of meat as I can before I die.’ So, we order and we’re chatting while we wait and then he says, ‘Have you ever wondered what human meat tastes like?’”
“Shut up!” I said.
Ellie’s braid whipped around as she shook her head. “I didn’t say anything. I just stared at him. He looked at me like he wanted an answer, and he didn’t blink. Not once. My creepmeter freaked out. ‘No, I haven’t ever wondered that,’ I said. Then he shrugged and took a roll from the breadbasket, slapped some butter on it and all I could think was I might be the next thing he slapped butter on if I wasn’t careful. So, I snuck out the first chance I got.”
Mae and I gaped at her in stunned silence.
She shrugged, looking forlorn. “I’m beginning to think something is wrong with me. I attract deadbeats, losers, and now possible cannibals. My man picker is broken.”
“Wow. I’m never dating again,” I said. “Like, never.”
Mae patted my arm. “Yes, you will. Not every guy wants to eat your face for dinner. Look at Chris.”
“You sure about that?” I pointed to her neck; Mae did not look amused.
“Alright, I want to hear what happened on Friday,” Ellie said as a customer arrived at the counter to pay. “Duty calls. Be right back.”
My best friend turned a speculative eye in my direction. “You know, it has been a while since the break-up with Alec and?—”
I hissed.
“Sorry. I forgot we’re not supposed to say his name.” She patted my arm.
“I gave you a list of acceptable things you could say instead.”
“Yeah. Somehow Pea-Brained Coward doesn’t roll off the tongue,” Mae said in a dry voice.
“Alright, sorry to break up the moment,” Ellie said, back in front of us. “But we close in twenty minutes, and I still don’t know what you did.”
With a wave of my hand, I straightened. “I chained myself to the Legacy Tree.”
Ellie shook her head, baffled. “That’s it? That doesn’t seem your normal MO.”
“It was spur-of-the-moment.”
“Why?” Mae asked.
I pushed my empty bowl away. “It seems our illustrious mayor wants to sell Legacy Park.”
“He wouldn’t,” Mae said.
“He wants that stupid football stadium and he’s willing to do anything to get it. Including sell the park to some skeezy developers who’ll tear down the tree and turn it into a strip mall. I really hate that guy.”
“Same.” Mae hated him even more than I did. That’s what happens when your boss is also your ex-boyfriend. As the librarian, she’d had to fight him last year to keep her budget from being decimated.
“He can’t do that, can he?” Ellie asked. “Doesn’t he have to get it approved first?
“I’m sure it would have to go through the city council.” Mae frowned. “But that council is full of people who would love to get more business in town. Even at the cost of our history.”
“That tree has my parents’ names carved on it. My dad proposed to my mom right in front of it.” I propped my elbow on the counter and rested my chin in my palm, feeling more than a little disgruntled.
Mae patted me on the back. “We won’t let it happen.”
“So, who was your rescuer?” Ellie asked when I explained I’d forgotten the key to the padlock.
I squirmed in my seat, looking anywhere but at Mae. “Theo.”
“Theo, of course.” Mae smirked. “So nice of him.”
“Who’s Theo?” Ellie asked.
“He grew up with Ali and her brothers. Ali had the biggest crush on him when we were in high school. He lives in Houston now. Personally, I think Theo might ha?—”
Cheeks heating, I cut her off. “Thank you for your thoughts, Mae.”
“Have I seen him around? What’s he look like?” Ellie asked, eyes bright with even the passing thought of something interesting to latch onto. She liked a little drama with her chili.
“Yes, Ali, do you happen to have any pictures to show us?” Mae arched an eyebrow because she knew I did.
I cleared my throat and stabbed around on my phone until I found a photo of him I especially enjoyed. It had been Cal’s engagement party in my parents’ backyard before he and Melanie moved cross country, a casual barbecue with some friends and family. He wore a regular old t-shirt and a regular old pair of shorts. I’d yelled at him to smile right before I snapped it and hadn’t quite given him enough time, so his mouth was only tipped up one side, but his eyes were crinkled at the corners, and he was looking straight at me. Like he was seeing right into me and for some reason, what he saw made him…happy. I knew it was a question of timing and light, but I always wondered exactly what he was thinking at that moment.
“This is him.” I handed the phone to Ellie.
After studying the photo, she let out a low cat whistle. “Oh, he’s a cutie. He doesn’t look like he’s at the gym every spare minute or on some weird caveman diet.”
I took the phone back and inspected the picture. Theo wasn’t a gym rat like Frankie or extra lean like Cal who ran marathons for fun (I know, gross). He was somewhere in the middle. No six pack or bulging muscles. A normal guy. And so handsome.
“I see what you mean,” Ellie said. “Her eyes are getting all dreamy and she’s got a big, dopey smile.”
Mae nodded. “Exactly. You should have seen her in high school when?—”
“Nope,” I cut in. “I’m way over all that.”
I had to be. I was a realist when it came to Theo. The roles for he and me were cemented in years of friendship—minus that stupid little teenage crush—and that’s exactly where it needed to stay.
Ellie and Mae didn’t look convinced, both staring at me with dubious expressions.
“I am.”
Mae arched an eyebrow. “No need to get defensive.”
“I’m not defensive,” I said very defensively.
“You know, Ellie hasn’t been having much luck in the dating department.” Mae tapped a finger on her chin. “We should fix her up with Theo. They’d get along great, don’t you think?”
I narrowed my eyes. “No, I do not.”
“Why? Something wrong with him?” Ellie asked.
“Yes, he… he smells.”
Mae burst out laughing, and Ellie followed suit. “You are so full of it.”
“It’s alright.” Ellie giggled. “You keep him all for yourself.”
“You’re both hilarious.” I stood and slapped some money on the counter to cover my lunch. “I’m leaving now. Have your fun at my expense.”
Before I left, I pulled my phone out and snapped a photo of Mae while she was still too overcome with laughter to stop me. With a wicked grin, I began to type a text message as I took slow steps toward the door.
“Did you take a picture of me?” Mae called out. “What are you doing?”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said over my shoulder, almost at the door. “I’m just letting Chris know how much you bragged about that little lip love note of yours.”
“Ali! Do not encourage him!” She yelled right about the time I hit SEND.