Page 7 of Under the Mistle-Foe

“I don’t even know why I’m telling you this when I haven’t told anyone else,” he said.

His head was turned toward me. I could feel his hot breath glide over the back of my hand. I pulled my hand back, almost like the heat of him had burned me, then slipped them into my pockets as casually as possible so it didn’t seem like I was avoiding his touch.

Or maybe I was jailing my hands so I wouldn’t seek to feel more of him.

Remy didn’t seem to notice, however. He faced the stage again, his expression turning stony once more. “So you better not tell anyone else.”

“I won’t. I pinky promise,” I said. He didn’t respond, and for a second, I wondered if I’d spoken too low that he hadn’t heard me, but then he faced me again, a soft smile gracing his lips as he shot me a thanks.

I just stared back, my mouth hung open like an idiot. I never dreamed of Remy intentionally smiling at me, or hell, even giving me his thanks, because god knew I’d never done anything to deserve it before.

It felt like we were finally getting somewhere, forming a small connection that was beyond me being some person he tolerated in high school.

And the hopes of being in Remy Trent’s life that had diminished over our years apart lit up again. Even if it was a minuscule chance, maybe something could grow between us. Even if it was just friendship.

At that moment, bright light exploded from behind Remy.Oohsandaahssounded around us, almost drowning out the exclamation of surprise that came from Remy. “Look! They lit up the tree! Wow, I forgot how beautiful it is…”

He craned his neck up to see the myriad of colorful lights that shone against the giant Christmas tree. I couldn’t pull my gaze away from him to enjoy it. All I could do was standthere and watch his delight at the show. This view had to be more beautiful than anything the lights could come up with.

The lighting of the Christmas tree stole the hearts of most people here, but not mine. My heart was already stolen by the man standing beside me.

CHAPTER 4

REMY

“Two more signature burgers!”Atlas called out, slid the order slip on the ticket holder behind all the other uncompleted ones, and then disappeared like the wind. The diner was packed today as well.

Sweat rolled down my back. I’d lost count of how many burgers I’d already fired up today, but man, I had forgotten how popular the burgers were here. They weren’t particularly hard to make, but the sheer number of orders had my muscles straining.

Despite running on my feet all day, working at the diner wasn’t all that bad. It got my stiff body, which had been long used to being hunched over a desk, moving. It was no wonder Dad was still fairly in shape in his late sixties. He’d always said working in the kitchen never gave his muscles a chance to deflate. Which made his mandatory rest extra difficult with his bitching about not moving his body around enough.

I had to peek through the serving hatch every so often to make sure Dad was keeping his promise of sitting by the register and wasn’t trying to help the waitstaff. Thankfully,I’d only found him wiping down a table once. At least he was using his crutches and not trying to hobble around so he could keep his hands free. The man was too damn stubborn for his own good.

The lunch rush went by quickly, without giving me much time to think of anything else but the dish in front of me. I personally brought out the last dish while Rory did a bit of cleanup before the end of his shift. The diner was still packed with customers finishing their meals, all happy smiles as they chatted and ate.

“Good work today, son,” Dad wobbled over to my side on his crutches. His old-fashioned soda jerk hat sat squarely on his head. It was his signature piece, something he’d worn so often that whenever I pictured Dad in my head now, it was always with his hat.

He leaned on the wall, ignoring the glare I shot his way, but it wasn’t like I could keep him off his feet all the time. Plus, it must be difficult for a man who used to be so active to have to be sedentary now.

We watched the dining room for a few minutes when Dad suddenly spoke up. “This is what I love so much about The Shack. Friends and families spending time together, enjoying the food we created with our very own hands. It’s a pretty magical thing.”

I hummed in agreement. It was hard not to smile at such a scene. I’d once dreamed of taking over the diner when Dad retired. I’d started helping in the kitchen when I was a kid, and Dad let me cook my very first order when I started high school.

I still remembered the huge sense of accomplishment and satisfaction I felt when customers complimented me on the food. It was a feeling I wanted to replicate over and over again. I thought I had my entire life all planned out.

But that wasbefore.Now I wasn’t sure about anything.

I returned to the kitchen to help Rory finish the cleaning now that the lunch rush was over. “You have a guest, Remy,” Atlas called out, popping his head through the curtain along with Kaysen.

“I’m getting déjà vu,” I muttered, which only made the two men grin.

“What? Not happy to see me?” Kaysen teased as he swung an arm over my shoulder.

I tried to shrug him off. “Not when it feels like you’re gonna try to force me to do something against my will again.”

He laughed and only held on tighter. “I would never! It can’t be against your will when I know you justlovespending time with me.”

I groaned but didn’t disagree. Kaysen was my oldest and closest friend. We’d attended school together most of our lives. And from the day our seats were arranged next to each other in the second grade, it was like our fates were sealed. After that, we somehow always sat beside each other in every single one of our classes.

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