Page 59 of Riverside Reverie

Bonnie poured her a mug too, then sent a cheeky smile to our group. “Let me guess, a Hangover special for Miss Talia, Western with Bacon for Miss. Jasmine, Lumberjacks for Mr. Theo and Mr. Desmond?”

“Are we that predictable?” Talia teased as Bonnie wrote down our orders on her notepad.

“Not predictable, just reliable. At least when it comes to your breakfasts,” Bonnie laughed, her gaze going back to Lux. “What about you, sweetheart?”

“Uhh,” Lux scanned the menu quickly. “The two egg special sounds good, with bacon and the home fries.”

“How do you want your eggs?”

“Sunny side up would be great,” Lux answered, smiling warmly. I lapped up this new tidbit of information about her eagerly.

Bonnie jotted it down with a nod, then collected the menus. “We’ll get that right out to yous,” She said, heading to the kitchen to put the order in.

“So, do you still want a ride home this afternoon?” Jasmine asked, turning her head to look at Lux beside her. “Because I work tomorrow, unfortunately.”

“Uh…” Lux’s eyes went to me briefly before she looked back at Jasmine. “I guess so. I should get back and start making arrangements if I’m going to be moving in next month.”

I wasn’t ready for her to go. “You’re welcome to hang out with me. I could drive you back whenever. I don’t have to be back at work until Monday.” The offer spilled from my lips before I could call it back, not that I wanted to.

Lux looked back at me, debating. “That might create more problems for me,” she admitted. “To have an unfamiliar guy drop me off and then announce I’m moving would make my parents question my choices even more than I know they already will.”

“I’m not unfamiliar,” I winked at her, referring to all the ways we’ve gotten to know each other in the last few days, making her lips twitch in a repressed smile. “But I understand.”

“I could drive you back Friday. My parents are hosting Camellia’s birthday dinner this weekend,” Jasmine chimed in. “What arrangements do you have to make?”

“I need to go buy a car so I can get around, and I’ll have to pack my things up. Plus, I need to…deal with some family stuff.” Lux said.

“Ah, yes. The evil sister,” Talia nodded sagely. “You don’t have to deal with that right away, though. You could kick around for a few extra days, put our poor Theo out of his misery.”

I frowned at Talia, not liking that she was calling me out. I wouldn’t be miserable if Lux left, but I wouldn’t say no to spending a few more days with her before I had to head back to work.

“You’ll need furniture, right? You could get Theo to take you to the furniture surplus store in town and pick something out, so it’ll be delivered before you move,” Jasmine added helpfully, her eyes bright with excitement. She was stoked that Lux had agreed to be their roommate.

Desmond shook his head, trying to hide his grin behind his coffee mug. The way the girls were working hard to convince Lux to stay a little longer had me internally laughing.

“I don’t mind taking you to the furniture store,” I told her.

Lux glanced at me, considering my offer. But before she could reply, Bonnie returned with three heaping plates, and the other waitress from earlier who carried the other two.

“Breakfast is served,” she said with a flourish, setting our plates down. “Anybody need a refill on coffee?”

“I will,” Desmond held his empty mug up. “Thanks, Bonnie.”

Bonnie and the other waitress left us to our food, with Bonnie returning briefly to top up coffee for us before making the rounds at other tables to do the same.

Conversation lulled into a comfortable silence while we all dived into our breakfasts.

Lux

After breakfast, we returned to the duplex and Jasmine insisted on stealing me for a couple of hours. “Don’t worry, Theo. we’ll have her back by dinner,” Jasmine teased, tugging me toward the door.

I still hadn’t decided on if I wanted to stay a few more days, and I could tell Jasmine wanted to talk about that and about my night with Theo. Plus, she had some clothes I could borrow. I was a little sick of the few outfits I’d brought, and I desperately needed to do a load of laundry if I was going to stay.

“Alright, spill. Why are you hesitating on staying a few extra days? Are you second-guessing your decision to move here, because if so I’m going to be really sad,” Jasmine demanded the moment the door closed behind us. Talia was watching, her expression a mixture of amusement and curiosity—like she was invested in my answer and entertained by the entire situation.

“I’m not second-guessing that decision,” I assured her, rolling my eyes at her dramatics. “I mean, I know my parents aren’t going to be thrilled with the idea, but they’ll have to get used to it. I can’t remain in that house much longer. There’s nothing there for me.”

“Yeah, I know. I saw the posts,” Jasmine made a face, dragging me to the living room and flopping down on the couch.

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