Page 78 of My Song for You
Callie
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen the diner this busy. My feet were ready to call a strike and I still had over an hour left of my shift.
The diner door opened. Tiffany entered with the same guy she had been with the last time. Murmured excitement stirred from the surrounding tables. If a skinny supermodel was okay with eating in a diner known for its greasy yet delicious food, then it must be okay for everyone.
They wouldn’t have been as excited if they’d known that the last time Tiffany was here, she’d eaten food that would’ve made a rabbit jealous.
I entered the kitchen to check on my orders. While I was there, Beckie came in from the staff room. Her face was pale, a stark contrast against her black hair.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Have you checked any of your social media sites today?”
I laughed and shook my head. Who had time for those when you were balancing a full-time job, being a mother, part-time classes, regular meetings with your son’s therapists and school, and freelance design work? Occasionally I went on it when I wasn’t working, but it wasn’t my priority.
“Someone’s spreading a vicious rumor that Jared Leigh is Logan’s father, and apparently you’re dead?”
Oh God. The words became stuck in my throat, cutting off my ability to breathe. I leaned back against the counter to keep from collapsing.
Beckie’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit. It’s true. I mean, other than the part where you’re dead. Obviously you’re not.”
“Callie, your order’s up,” Larry called out.
Beckie said something, but I didn’t hear her. I was too focused on getting air in and out of my lungs.
The kitchen door swung out, and Alice poked her head in. “Callie, Tiffany Grainger specifically asked for you, but she didn’t want to wait until one of your tables opened. She’s sitting in Beckie’s section.”
Right, because I wasn’t busy enough as it was. “Why the heck does she want me? It’s not like Beckie can’t take an order for lettuce leaves.”
Alice shrugged. “Who cares what her reasons are, just as long as she doesn’t bad-mouth the diner.”
With a grunt that didn’t begin to convey how crappy this day was turning out, I grabbed my order from under the warmer and entered the dining area. I delivered the food to the waiting table, then headed over to Tiffany.
“Hi, are you ready to order?” I gave her my best smile, plastered on with a heavy dose of superglue.
The answering smile was nothing that would ever be featured inVogue—except maybe at Halloween. Inwardly I shuddered. “No, but I would ask you, woman to woman, to back off when it comes to my boyfriend,” she said with mock sweetness. On the wall beside her was a photo of a wide, all-encompassing tornado with lightning streaking across the sky. How fitting.
“Your…your boyfriend?”
“Jared Leigh.”
“But…I thought you guys weren’t seeing each other anymore.” At least I assumed they weren’t—because he and I had been screwing for the past week. Did it mean that after he’d finished fucking me, he turned around and fucked Tiffany too?
God, I hoped not.
“Now that I’m living in L.A., we’re back together.”
That was news to me. Jared hadn’t even mentioned her since we began hooking up.
“You love him, don’t you? The boy, I mean,” she said.
“Yes.” I bit back the words I craved to say:I love them both.
“What if I can convince Jared to let you have full custody? I think you and I both agree his lifestyle is the worst possible one for a child.”
True. “But why would you want to help me?”
“Because my parents were very much like Jared. They were always traveling. They never had time for me. I was raised by nannies. No child should have to go through that. Logan’s a sweet kid. He deserves better than that. And he’s better off being raised by a parent who can always be there for him. He doesn’t need a parent who pops into his life whenever it fits into his busy schedule.”
