“Um…”
Fallon smiled at him. “That sounds wonderful. Thanks.” Then she patted him on the shoulder. “And if you would be so kind as to put in an order of the loaded potato skins, that would be great.”
“Yeah, whatever…” he muttered before going to the kitchen. Hell, he’d make the damn potato skins himself and the rest of their order just so he didn’t have to go back out there right away. What on earth was she doing here? Last he heard, she was working in Texas and he was thrilled. It was far enough away to guarantee that she wouldn’t be coming home too often and yet…here she was.
In the kitchen, Jamie took his time making up the potato skins and while they were baking to melt the cheese, he slowly made three plates of pot roast, mashed potatoes, carrots, and gravy.
Sadie walked over and gave him a strange look. “Um…do you need some help? I didn’t see anyone waiting out there, but I don’t mind bringing the food out so you and Ronan can eat.”
“It’s fine. This is for us and uh…a um…”
“Oh, yeah, I saw Fallon out there,” she said with a smile. “I wasn’t expecting to see her since her parents are traveling with yours.”
That makes two of us…
“So…you know Fallon?” he asked as he placed the three plates on a tray.
Nodding, she said, “We went to school together but didn’t really hang out in the same circles, you know?”
“Yup.”
Fallon had gone to some fancy charter school, so that spared him from having to go to school with her. He just didn’t realize Sadie had gone there too.
“If it’s alright with you, I’m going to watch the bar while you guys eat and then I’ll start doing the prep work for the dinner crowd.”
“That works. Thanks, Sadie.”
She walked out of the kitchen as Jamie pulled the potato skins out. “Dammit.” It occurred to him that he should have made the skins first and waited until they were done eating them to make the rest of the lunch. With a shrug, he put them on the tray. “Little Miss Fussy will just have to deal with everything being served at once.”
Hefting the tray up, he slowly made his way out to the booth where Fallon and his uncle were sitting, and he paused when he saw how intently they seemed to be speaking. Ronan reached over and squeezed her hand and, if Jamie wasn’t mistaken, Fallon looked…sad.
“None of my damn business,” he murmured before walking to the booth and placing the tray down. He looked at her defiantly. “We don’t normally take long lunch breaks, so I just brought everything out at once.”
Frowning, she said, “And? What’s the big deal?”
And for some reason, that completely flustered him. He was prepared for some snarky comment or for her to at least mention something about how her lunch was going to get cold, but…she didn’t.
Ronan was sitting in the middle of his seat, which meant that Jamie was supposed to share Fallon’s side of the booth. And by the look on his uncle’s face, he did it on purpose.
Again, Fallon didn’t make any sort of sarcastic statement or snort at having to share a space with him, and he took that as a win.
“Have you talked to your parents?” she asked him.
“Uh, I spoke to my father yesterday. How come?” He would bet good money she was going to say something about needing to be checked up on so he didn’t ruin the family business.
But she didn’t.
“They all sound like they’re having a great time. They’re taking this trip at a bit of a snail’s pace, but they’re getting to see some fun stuff,” she said, looking at him with a smile.
A genuine smile.
And he didn’t trust it.
“They’re in Amarillo now,” she went on, “and I think they’re planning on seeing a rodeo!” Laughing softly, she shook her head. “In my entire life, neither of my parents ever mentioned even being curious about a rodeo. But…I guess…when in Rome, right?”
“I guess…”
“Ronan was saying how Ryleigh comes in a couple of times a week to help with the cooking. I wonder if…”
“She did that even before our folks left for vacation,” he said hotly. “So if you’re thinking that she’s coming here to babysit me or because I can’t handle running the pub, then you’re wrong. Ha!”
Fallon looked at him as if he were crazy. “Um…I was going to ask if today was one of those days when she was going to come in because I’d love to see her.”
Across the table, his uncle was laughing behind his napkin.
Traitor.
“Oh. Uh…no, Ryleigh’s not supposed to be in today,” he murmured and put his focus on his lunch.
“Fallon, you’re going to be around for a while, so I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time to catch up with Ryleigh and Arianna,” Ronan said.
Going to be around for a while? Seriously?
“Why?” he found himself asking. “I thought you were living and working in Texas?”
Without looking at him, she began pushing food around on her plate. “Things just weren’t what I thought they were going to be with the job, so…it didn’t work out.”
Ha! He knew what that meant.
“So they fired you, huh?”
Now she did look at him and for the first time in all the years they’d known each other, she looked devastated.
Uh-oh…
The look was gone in an instant, and she returned her focus to her lunch. “No, it just wasn’t what I was looking for. I rushed to find a position after graduation, so this time I’m going to be a little more thorough in my research. So, as your uncle mentioned, I’ll be home for a while.”
They all ate in companionable silence for several long minutes and when Bobby called out to him that he needed a hand, Jamie was more than ready to jump up and help.
“I guess I’ll be seeing you around,” he said with a tight smile and instantly turned and headed for the kitchen.
And stayed there until he knew she was gone.
It was childish and he knew it, but Fallon Murphy was just not someone he wanted to be around. She normally got the best of him in some way or another and she was basically the only person who ever made him doubt himself. Even his siblings—who all loved to tease and poke fun at him—never made him second guess anything.
But she did.
And it bugged the hell out of him.
Fortunately, the rest of the day flew by, but one of his servers called in sick and he ended up staying until closing to make sure they had enough coverage. He was dead on his feet by the time the last customer left, and all he wanted was to crawl into bed and sleep for a week. Tomorrow was his day off, so he knew he’d at least get to sleep in a little and not have to do anything all day if he didn’t want to.
He was walking out to his truck along with Bobby and thanked him for all his hard work today before wishing him a good night. The drive home didn’t take long. He was currently renting a small two-bedroom bungalow a couple of blocks from the beach. It was nice having some privacy and not living in a big apartment complex with dozens of other people. Of course, it meant he had to maintain the property, but he found he kind of enjoyed it. Maybe tomorrow he’d go out and mow the lawn or something.