Page 13 of Hit Me With Your Best Shot

His lips twitch,butbarely.“It’s water.”

Ding, ding, ding—I was right!

“Let me guess,” I continue, gesturing toward his glass. “You’re one of those people who think water solves everything. Bad day?Water.Hangover?Water.Life falling apart?Water.”

He shrugs, his dark eyes flicking back to mine. “I’m not a big drinker.”

“Valid,” I concede, grabbing my Sprite with lime and raising my glass in a toast. “You know what helps more?”

He arches an eyebrow, waiting.

“Bacon.Cheeseburger,” I declare victoriously. “Guaranteed to fix any bad mood.”

“Now you sound like my sister.” He laughs.

“Why? Does she like burgers?”

“No—she’s always pushing gummy bears on me like those are a cure for any ailment.”

Interesting. “Gummy bears?” I repeat, tilting my head. “That’s oddly specific. Is she a doctor or something? Is this her medical opinion?”

He chuckles, shaking his head. “Nope.”

“Does it help?”

He pauses, considering. “Sometimes.”

At that exact moment, my burger arrives. It’s in a to-go bag, packed neatly in a white Styrofoam container doing nothing to disguise the mouthwatering smells wafting out of it.

My mouth waters as I untie the knot and lift the lid, taking a deep whiff.

“Mmm.” I sigh contentedly, then glance at him. “Want one?”

I lift a fry and hold it in his direction, wiggling it slightly to tempt him with it.

He eyes the fry like it’s some kind of foreign object, thenlooks back at me, one eyebrow raised. “You offering me pity fries?”

I grin at him. “Yup.”

He hesitates for a moment, then leans forward, plucking the fry from my hand with an almost begrudging smile.

“Thanks.”

To keep myself busy I eat a fry, too.

Swallow.

“You live around here?” he asks, chewing.

I push the container closer, so it’s between us now, an unspoken invitation for him to grab another.

“Yeah, not far. A couple blocks over.”

He nods, reaching for another fry. “Nice area.”

“It’s alright,” I say casually. Nice isn’t the word for this area; expensive. Waspy. High-end. Those are better words to describe it, but I won’t get into that. “What about you? You a regular around here?”

Never seen him here before, not that I come here often.

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