Page 75 of Redeeming Harmony

“This looks delicious. Thank you, Monica,” Lucas said. He winked at the server, his grin widening when she blushed and gave him a shy look.

“You’re welcome, Lucas.” Monica set his salad down and turned to Emma, setting her plate in front of her. “Here you go, Emma.”

“Thanks, Monica,” Emma said.

“You bet. Oh, hey, that yarn you recommended for my scarf? It’s perfect. It’s so soft and never splits. It’s knitting up really nice.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Emma said.

Monica hesitated, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear when the wind blew it into her face. She turned to Lucas again. “Do you need anything else? Extra salad dressing? More bread? Maybe another refill on your iced tea?”

“I think I have everything I need, gorgeous,” Lucas said. “You’re exceptional at your job.”

Her cheeks pinked again, and she giggled. “It doesn’t take much to be a server.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Lucas said. “Serving at a restaurant is one of the toughest jobs out there, and you are magnificent at it.”

From the corner of his eye, he could see Emma rolling her eyes as she placed her napkin in her lap. He smiled up at Monica, who lingered a few seconds longer before reluctantly saying, “Okay, well, I’ll check on you again in a little bit. Enjoy your lunch, you two.”

She walked away, and Lucas grinned at Emma when she said, “Seriously, Lucas?”

“What?”

“You flirt with everyone you meet,” she said.

“That is one hundred percent categorically false,” he said, placing his napkin in his lap and picking up his fork. “I didn’t flirt with the cashier at Walmart the other day.”

“Only because Gareth is a guy,” she said.

“No, because he has the skin of an angel and is totally out of my league,” Lucas said.

Emma laughed and then grabbed the extra napkins when a gust of wind blew them off the table. “We’ve been friends long enough now for me to see you for who you are. You’re a flirt, Lucas. Admit it.”

“Of course, I am,” he said. “But, in my defense, anything I say to a woman is always true. Monica, for instance, is an excellent server. Probably the best server at the Windmill, in fact.”

“She is,” Emma agreed. She had to grab the napkins again when another gust of wind tried to carry them away. “Sorry, maybe sitting on the patio wasn’t such a great idea.”

“It’s fine,” Lucas said. “It’s not usually this warm in October, so we should take advantage of it.”

Emma’s phone rang, and she glanced at it before turning it over.

“You can answer that,” Lucas said.

“It’s someone I’m not prepared to talk to right now,” Emma said.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a woman from Riverton. She, um,” Emma picked at her napkin, “she wants to buy Twisted Stitches.”

“Wow,” Lucas said.

“She’s a long-time customer who owns a craft store in Riverton. But she’s passionate about yarn and knitting, and she wants to buy me out.”

“Are you thinking about accepting the offer?” Lucas asked.

“We haven’t even talked about an offer,” Emma said. “She mentioned buying it last week when she was picking out yarn at the store and has called twice since then. I’ve let both calls go to voicemail.”

“So, just tell her you’re not interested,” Lucas said.

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