Page 27 of Falling for You
CeCe rolled her eyes. “That’s pretty generous of you. I get a whole week?”
“Tops, but then I’m driving this gossip train straight through Buckeye Falls.” Natalie tugged her arm through the air and made a whistling sound. “Toot, toot!”
CeCe waved and watched her friend drive away. When she stepped back inside, she got into work mode, pulling out old notebooks and jotting down ideas that would work in a food truck, but also in a competition setting. Her fritters might work? Evan seemed to be a fan already. Max would have a lot of great ideas, and Evan was coming into his own in the kitchen, but CeCe knew she was the glue that held the team together.
A smile tugged at her lips when she thought of Evan. His earnest eyes as he focused on learning a new recipe or trying new techniques. There was a lot they needed to figure out between them, and she’d have to come clean about Eric. Especially if they were going to try for something more. Evan deserved to know the whole truth. It was the least she could offer him. It was the least she could offer herself.
*
Going to work at thediner was never a chore for Evan, but today felt especially exciting. He’d replayed the kiss with CeCe so often last night, he was surprised he got any sleep. For once, they finally seemed to be on the same page about the status of their budding relationship. CeCe was into him, and he wanted to do cartwheels down Main Street.
Letting himself in through the back door, Evan hung up his jacket and clapped Max on the back when he entered the kitchen. “Good morning, boss,” Evan greeted.
Max chuckled and slid a bowl of eggs across the counter. “Good morning. You’re in a great mood.”
Helen appeared from the dining room, looking frazzled. Her graying hair was pulled into a low ponytail and two pencils were tucked behind her ears. “The guy’s always in a great mood,” she scoffed. Despite her gruff tone, she patted Evan’s elbow as she walked past. Helen was all bark and no bite.
Evan pulled an apron free and looped it around his waist. He took the bowl of eggs and started cracking them in preparation for breakfast. The two men fell into their familiar morning routine for a few minutes, sharing ideas for the day’s omelet special and laughing at Helen’s horrible jokes.
When Max told Helen to open the doors, Evan looked at the clock and froze. “Where’s CeCe? I didn’t realize how late it was.”
Max opened another package of bacon and tossed slices onto the grill. Over his shoulder, he said, “She took the day off.”
“But shenevertakes a day off,” Evan replied. A million horrible visions swam in his mind’s eye. Was she sick? Was she hiding from him?
Helen ushered into the kitchen with an empty coffee pot. “Then it’s high time she took one.” She grunted as she filled the pot with coffee and headed back to the dining room. Before she stepped out again, she barked at Max, “A number four with crispy bacon and a number eight with sausage for table five. I’ll be back with the other orders.”
Max gave her a thumbs-up and went back to cooking.
Evan fumbled his hands, causing three slices of untoasted bread fell to the floor with a sad thud. Evan couldn’t focus on anything other than getting to the bottom of CeCe’s absence. “Is she okay?” he asked while tossing the bread in the trash and trying again.
Max turned and smiled at Evan. “She’s fine, man. You know I wouldn’t be this relaxed if she wasn’t all right. I think she truly just needed a day off.”
CeCe was too much of a workaholic for that to be the simple answer. There was too much to do at the diner for him to go off in search of answers. Instead, he got to work and tried not to think about all the reasons CeCe wasn’t there.
The Kiss? The age discussion? Karaoke? Did he push her too hard?
Fortunately for Evan, he didn’t have much free time to obsess about her absence. An hour after the breakfast rush slowed down, Ginny and Natalie came in through the backdoor. “Hello,” Ginny called out as she shrugged off her coat. Before she could hang it on a hook, Max was by her side and kissing her senseless.
Natalie sighed at the happy couple and tossed her purse on the edge of the counter. “It’s a good thing I like you both, because your PDA is getting worse by the minute.”
Helen stomped by with a stack of plates and added her two cents. “You can say that again, Madame First Lady.”
Evan couldn’t disagree, but the sight of the love birds made him wish for CeCe’s company even more. Natalie came up beside him and smirked, and the look in her eyes made him uneasy. Was it possible that CeCe mentioned their kiss? Evan highly doubted it, but why else would Natalie look like she’s in on a big secret?
Natalie gave Evan another glance before offering her morning greeting. “Good morning. How are things?” He nearly nicked his thumb with his paring knife. Being under Natalie’s focused gaze was terrifying at best. She could likely get even the most seasoned spy to spill their guts in a matter of moments.
“Uh, good morning.” He coughed and regained his composure. “What brings you ladies in?”
Ginny came up to her business partner’s side and hip-checked her out of the way. “Pay no attention to Natalie. She’s excited because we signed a new contract this morning,” Ginny beamed at Max, who whooped with excitement.
Picking up his fiancée, Max spun her in a circle and kissed her cheek. Ginny nearly lost a shoe from his display of aerobics. “Gin, that’s great news. What services did they buy?”
Natalie answered the question while Ginny was put back on solid ground. “They want the full package. Ginny talked them into everything, including a new website.”
Evan’s ears perked up at the mention of a website, but he didn’t interrupt.Stay cool.
Ginny poured a cup of coffee and gestured at Natalie, who shook her head. Sipping from her cup, Ginny continued their news. “The only downside is we haven’t hired any web developers yet. The boutique has a tight turnaround time, which makes me a little nervous.”
