Page 68 of You Were Invited
Ellie, standing on the other side of the counter as she ate lunch and studied a kitchen gadget catalog, glanced up and smirked.
“Normally I’ve brought you two servings and two pieces of pie to go. Got a bug in your stomach today?”
“Not in my stomach. I’ll take a doggy bag.” He sat up and pushed his burger plate away. He was still starving, but couldn’t seem to get much down. He had a huge stack of fries and a half-eaten burger he’d save for dinner.
“Crazy how little this place has changed since I was a girl.” She crunched on a chip. “It’s the only thing I care about in Northgold.” She lowered her voice. “I honestly hate this damn town.”
Julian raised a brow. They’d drifted apart after he’d gotten sober. During the anniversary renovations, they’d quickly made up for lost time. So far, they’d replaced the booths and painted. They planned to lay down new flooring that weekend. He usually played the listener, just like he had when they’d gone to the same parties. In the before. Whether or not Ellie still partied was a different question he couldn’t answer, but during their younger days, he’d never heard her utter such a snide comment about Northgold.
She rolled her eyes. “Some old fogies already made cracks about the improvements.”
“You serious?”
“Mr. and Mrs. Sharp asked why I was turning it into ‘some high-britches bistro.’” Ellie curled her lip. Bitterness darkened her eyes. “They want what’s familiar. Even if it means cracked pleather held together with duct tape. It’s mine now. If I’m stuck in this town, it’s going to look how I want it to look.”
“I don’t think they’ll stay too sour once you remind them how good a cook you are,” Julian said.
Ellie grinned. “And if they don’t like it, the door can hit them on the ass on the way out!” She picked up her sandwich, but didn’t take a bite. Her smirk faded. “Too many people ‘know’ me. You know how it is, Julian. God, you do.”
Julian looked away. He put a fry in his mouth.
“Mom and Papa worked so hard. Everybody knows it. And I’m good. God, I’m good. But I’m not them. And I’m here, and they ‘know’ me.” Ellie traded her bitter voice for the familial tone she reserved for her favorite customers. “I’m surprised you’vestuck around, Julian. If I were you, I would’ve bailed and never come back to Northgold again.”
Julian shifted his feet and rolled his shoulders. “Yeah.” He leveled his gaze at her.
Ellie stopped mid-bite. “Oh, Julian. I don’t mean to– I was just... Here I am, goin’ on and bringing up the past like an idiot. I was just saying. Really, if I didn’t have the diner, I don’t know where I’d be. Not here.”
He wasn’t sure to what extent ‘not here’ meant, but he nodded. He felt his hackles go back down. “Sometimes a few miles out of town feels too close.”
“Wish people kept their noses out of people’s business.”
Julian nodded.
Ellie closed her catalog. She then leaned in conspiratorially. “I’ll be honest. When you first started coming around with the varsity crowd, I thought you liked me, the way you listened like no other guy would. Even when all I had to say was garbage that made no sense in the morning.”
He grinned. Ellie had been like a big sister or cousin to him. Although those had been dark days, half the reason to go to parties in town had been the chance to see Ellie, who had graduated high school the year before he’d entered. It saddened him now that he’d forgotten most of what they’d talked about, but he’d always felt welcomed and seen.
“I was devastated when you stopped showing up. I suppose I shoulda stopped showing up long before you stopped.” Her smile returned. “I’m glad you’re better. You and that cute girl... still... together?”
“Oh. Annie?” He shrugged. “No.”
“Really? Seemed sweet. Seemed sweet on you? She ghost you or something?”
Another shrug. If Annie wanted him, she'd make it happen. “She’s got her own thing... and shit’s about to hit the fan here, too.”
“How so?” Ellie looked around the restaurant, confused.
Shit...It had been nice to have an actual normal conversation with someone while it lasted.
“What? I mean... With you? You don’t have to tell me.”
He licked his lips and lowered his voice.She’ll find out eventually anyways.“Dad’s getting out of prison early.”
Ellie’s jaw dropped. She put her palm on the side of her head.Oh shit... she mouthed.
“Yeah.”
“That’s rough. I’m sorry…”
