Page 9 of How We Fooled

“Yep. It’s got bacon and gouda cheese with a garlic aioli.”

She raises her eyebrows in surprise. “Fancy …”

I chuckle. “Yeah, but that’s about as fancy as they get here, so don’t get your hopes up.”

She puts down the menu with a sense of finality. “I’ll just do the same as you and get a cheeseburger. You can never go wrong on those.”

I grin at her choice. “Especially here. You’ll like it.”

Lucy comes back and takes our order, then leaves us to get to know one another.

“So, you said your aunt and uncle live here? Who are they?”

“Fred and Heidi Samson. Do you know them?”

I shake my head. “Nah, I don’t know a ton of people from Mason Creek though.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard of my cousin, Justine’s husband … Tucker Simms?”

I squint my eyes. “That’s the musician, right? Had a big hit on the radio and now writes songs?”

“That’s him.”

I nod my head in recognition. “Yeah, I train at his son’s hitting facility sometimes.”

“Yes, Matthew. I’ve heard of him, but I haven’t met him yet.”

I smirk in her direction. “See, everyone is tied some way or another in these parts. Be careful because everyone knows your business, sometimes even before you do.”

“Good to know.” She laughs, then tilts her head playfully. “So, what kind of dirt could I find on you if I asked around?”

A few seconds go by, and she raises her eyebrows in question since I’ve been sitting here, contemplating in my head if I should tell her who my dad is, but not saying anything out loud.

She purses her lips. “Your silence is either very telling, proving that you do have something to tell me, or your life is so boring that you have no secrets.”

“Why would having no secrets be boring?” I chuckle.

She raises her shoulders slightly with a smirk of her own. “Everyone has secrets. Just some are juicier than others.”

I place my hands on the table and lean closer to her to playfully ask, “Should I be asking you this question? No one knows you here, so your secrets might be harder to fish out of you.”

She laughs out loud. “Exactly. Why do you think I’m here? A fresh start was definitely overdue.”

I lean back in the booth, raising my arm to rest on the back of it, nodding my head very slowly. “Interesting. How about you don’t tell me your secret—yet,” I say matter-of-factly, hoping there is a future for us and maybe we’ll spill each other’s secrets eventually, “and you don’t make me tell you mine?”

She leans back and follows my mannerisms, which makes me hold back a laugh at how over the top she tries. It’s absolutely adorable.

“I think you’ve got yourself a deal,” she says in a deeper voice.

I can’t help the loud laugh that escapes my lips just as our food arrives.

“Nothing better than the sound of a heartfelt laugh,” Lucy says as she sets down our plates.

“I couldn’t agree more,” I respond, smiling at her, then at Liza.

“You two enjoy.” Lucy pats my back, then turns to leave us.

She’s right too. Not many people can make me laugh like that. I felt that Liza would be different when I first met her, but now, I’m feeling like she really is.

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