Page 34 of Gideon's Gratitude

She gave me a knowing smile. “Yeah, you two look pretty intense. You want me to make you up new ones?”

“No.” This time Archer answered. “Perhaps you could heat them up?”

Dubious was the best description for her expression. “It’d be easier just to make up new.”

If I had a car, I’d leave. Just drop a few bills and walk out the door. This was all kinds of humiliating. “Please, Sarabeth. We’re both hungry. It’d just be nice if the food were warm.” I wasn’t above begging. Or eating it cold, if it came to that.

She snagged the two plates. “I’ll nuke them, but it’ll have to be behind chef’s back. He’d have a hissy fit if he knew I was desecrating his food that way.”

“Maybe let him know it was delicious?” I rubbed my forehead. “I’m so sorry.”

“You need a painkiller or something? You don’t look so good.” Her blue eyes clouded with worry.

Oh, God, anything but that.“I’m just hungry. Not enough food today. I’ll perk right up after I’ve eaten all that good stuff.”

“Well, I’ll be right back.” She turned and headed to the kitchen.

“Gideon—”

“Please, let’s just eat, okay? I don’t want to rehash all my problems. There are no alternatives. No other plausible scenarios. This is my life. The sooner I accept it, the better off I’ll be.”

“There are always alternatives. The only end of it is death. And even then, if you were clever in life, you can manipulate things.”

“Is that how you see the world? As something that needs to be manipulated? And people merely pawns?”

“Two warmed-up meals.” Sarabeth placed the plates on the table. “Mind the plates, they’re really hot. You gentlemen need another milkshake?”

At least we’d drunk most of those.

“I would love a coffee.” Archer met the server’s gaze. Then he stared at me.

I’ll never sleep tonight.

Would you anyway?

I’d take a natural supplement and hope to put this whole mess of the last twenty-four hours behind me.

“I’ll take a coffee as well.” The smile was less forced than I’d have thought. Sarabeth’s charm worked.Hope Archer leaves a big tip. If not, I’d slip whatever coins I had in my pocket on the table. Hopefully without the man noticing.

“Right up. Cream, milk? Sugar’s on the table.”

“Milk, please.”

“I drink it black.” Archer’s smile was megawatt.

She nodded, spun, and bounced back to the counter. How could one woman be so cheery?

“Look—”

“Let’s eat.” I felt no guilt in cutting the man off. We both needed food in our bellies. Personally, discomfort overwhelmed me when I went too long without food, and any feeling beyond the normal pain was intolerable.

Archer nodded, and when Sarabeth dropped off the coffees and a little container of milk, we both managed a smile.

I dug into my food.Hopefully we’ve reachedan end to this fraught fucking interrogation.

Chapter Six

Archer

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