“How long has what been?”
He sighs. “Since Molly.”
“A while,” I answer, gritting my teeth. Just the mention of her name and it feels like the clouds have filled the sky and blocked out all the light. It’s been a while since I thought of Molly and now I wish I hadn’t. “Listen, I’ve got to get going but I’ll keep you updated.”
He reluctantly agrees before saying good-bye and as I hang up, I open my door and step out of the truck, trying desperately to shake off thoughts of a darker time. It has been six years since Molly walked out of my life but the pain and destruction she left behind still haunts me.
Shaking my head, I walk into the restaurant and my gaze lands on Juliette. The last thing I want to be thinking about when I'm with her is my ex. She glances up and our eyes lock as she smiles and waves me over. Like magic, as I close the distance between us, the sun begins to shine again, peeking through the dark clouds and banishing my issues with a flash of brilliant light.
“I was about to eat without you,” she teases as I slide into the booth across from her.
“I'm sorry that took so long. Blaze wanted updates on the drive and the girl I dropped off yesterday.”
She shakes her head. “I was just teasing. She hasn’t even come to take our drink order yet.”
As soon as the words are out of her mouth, the waitress walks up and stops chomping on her gum long enough to flash me a flirty smile. “Hey there, darlin’. Can I get you something to drink?”
“We’ll both have a Coke,” Juliette snaps before I can say anything and I turn to her, biting back a grin as she glares at the waitress. I can feel the waitress’s gaze trained on me as I keep my eyes locked on Juliette, waiting for her to get the hint but she seems a bit slow to catch on. Juliette glances at me before turning her attention back to the waitress and clearing her throat. “Two…Cokes… please.”
“Be right back,” she mutters as she rolls her eyes and walks away. When she’s out of earshot, Juliette makes a noise of frustration and slaps her hand against the table.
“So fucking annoying.”
“You seem jealous,” I say, fighting back a grin at the fire dancing in her eyes. Fuck. Why does the thought of her being jealous over me make me want to beat my chest like some kind of goddamn caveman? She scoffs.
“No, it’s nothing like that.” She glances away for just a second but it’s long enough to tell me that she’s lying. “I just hate it when people are rude.”
I nod. “Mmhmm.”
“So, this girl you were helping yesterday,” she says, playing with the frayed corner of the menu. “Why was she coming down to Florida?”
“This guy started stalking her back in Baton Rouge and she needed to skip town before things got too intense.”
She narrows her eyes, studying me. “Do you guys deal with things like that a lot?”
“I guess, yeah. More than we’d like to and definitely more than we should need to but we’ve been on a mission to help those who can’t help themselves.”
“Why, though?” she asks, shaking her head. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I think it’s amazing but it’s a lot to handle and y’all don’t have to do this.”
“It is a lot but we all have our reasons for why we do this. Each one of us has experienced the horrors of domestic violence in one way or another and now we just want to do our part to help.”
She stares at me for a second before looking at the table and shaking her head. “Do you wanna hear something crazy?”
“Sure.”
“I have to keep reminding myself that we haven't even known each other for twenty-four hours because when I'm around you it just feels so easy. I feel like I could talk to you about anything.”
I nod, wondering why she feels she needs to be cautious around me and hold herself back. “You're not the only one feeling that way.”
“So if I ask you why it is that you do this work, would you tell me?” She looks up at me with hope in her eyes and a blush staining her cheeks as her teeth sink into her full bottom lip. It’s a tantalizing picture and I find myself fighting the urge to tell her my entire life story.
“Maybe someday,” I answer instead.
She flashes me an adorable pout. “But not today?”
“No, not today.”
Before she can reply, the waitress walks up to the table and practically slams our drinks down in front of us. Juliette and I stare at each other with wide eyes as she rips her notepad from her apron and gives us an expectant look.
“What do you want to eat?” she asks, practically snarling at us. A defiant look flashes in Juliette’s eyes as she reaches into her purse and yanks her wallet out. I watch in amazement as she pulls out a hundred dollar bill and slips out of the booth before bringing her thumb and middle finger to her lips. A loud whistle pierces the air and the restaurant falls silent, every single patron and employee staring in our direction as she climbs up on the seat and waves the money in the air.
“This goes to anyone who wants to take over our table and give us polite and professional service.”
“What the fuck?” the waitress hisses as I hide my smile behind my hand. A murmur ripples through the crowd but I can’t take my eyes off Juliette. She’s fucking magnificent. Another waitress sets a stack of plates down on the counter and steps out into the dining room. Our waitress turns to her with a death glare. “Seriously, Kitty?”
Kitty shrugs. “My kid needs braces.”
“This is bullshit,” she whispers, turning away from our table and shoving Kitty with her shoulder as she passes her. After she disappears into the back, everyone else turns back to their meals as the chatter resumes and Juliette sits across from me again.
“I’m so sorry about that, y’all. Robyn can be…”
“A bitch?” Juliette provides and Kitty laughs.
“Well, yeah. What can I get you two to eat?”
Straight ahead of me is a glass door that leads into the gas station connected to the restaurant and I smile.
“Actually, let’s get out of here.”
Juliette turns to me with a scowl. “Why?”
“I have an idea. Just trust me,” I say. She studies me for a second before nodding and handing the hundred dollar bill to Kitty who starts shaking her head.
“I can’t accept that. I didn’t do anything.”
Juliette grins and forces the bill into Kitty’s hand. “Sure you did! You made Robyn go away and that’s well worth a hundred dollars. Well… ninety-five dollars once you take out the cost of our drinks.”
“I…” Kitty snaps her mouth shut and shoves the bill into her apron pocket. “Thank you.”
She turns and heads back into the kitchen as we stand up and I hold my hand out to Juliette as I flash her a grin. After grabbing her bag, she slips her hand into mine and a feeling of peace settles over me as I lead her into the gas station.
“What are we doing in here?” she asks, scanning the small store.
“Finding food.”
We walk through the aisles, holding hands and grinning as we grab chips, sandwiches, drinks, and candy before carrying our haul up to the cashier and dumping it all on the counter. He rings us up and tosses everything into a bag before handing it over to me. Once we’ve paid, we walk back out to the truck and I release Juliette’s hand to lower the tailgate.