Page 71 of Rebel Bride
I was not prepared.
My sister waved and because we weren’t sociopaths and actually liked each other, she headed over with Rosie and Summer in tow. Thankfully there was no room at the inn, and they would have to sit elsewhere.
“Hey, guys! Fancy meeting you here.” My dad grinned and elbowed Conor to get out of the way so he could exit the booth.
“Sure, Dad.” Addy grinned. “Fancy meeting you at the diner where they’ve named an omelet after you.”
“The Theo is amazing. I recommend it.” Dad gave Addy a hug, Rosie a kiss on the cheek, and then stood before Summer.
“How are you doing, Summer?”
She peered up at him, her eyes wide and glossy. “Okay, Mr. Kershaw.”
“I’ve told you, it’s Theo. You need a hug?”
Her bottom lip quivered, and she nodded, whereupon my dad wrapped her up and held her for a few seconds. God, he was such a good guy.
The entire diner had ground to a halt: servers stopped delivering coffee, diners paused with forks half-raised, and all watched as my dad made it clear that Summer was one of us. She might have done one of the team dirty, but she wouldn’t be a target, not on Theo Kershaw’s watch.
He drew back. “Pretty brave to come back.”
Summer exhaled. “I have a life here, too.”
“Yes, you do.” And then to the rest of the diner, “Carry on, R-drama fans! Nothing to see here.”
That yielded a few chuckles, and everyone continued about their business, but with one eye on our corner.
Addy said to Dad, “We’re just going to grab a table over there. Talk later?”
“Sure, Twinkle. Have a nice lunch.”
I watched them go, silently urging Summer to look my way. There was a flicker of a glance in my direction, and then they were off to a table far enough away that I could pretend she wasn’t even here. Rosie caught my eye and raised an eyebrow. I gave her a quick smile.
Dad retook his seat.
Landon adjusted his glasses. “That was a nice thing to do, Dad.”
“I’ve always liked Summer. I know it had to be a tough decision for her. She’s going to be under a lot of scrutiny for a while.”
Conor picked up his menu again. “Well, it’s a good thing she doesn’t have anything to do with the hockey camp.”
Weird thing to say. “Why’s that?”
“Because Carter will be joining us as a mentor next week.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Summer
* * *
I’d always thought of myself as a reasonably good actress. First there was the smoothing of my accent, then culturing myself so I wouldn’t sound like an uneducated rube. Learning how the middle classes did things helped me to become a character that was a million miles away from Shelby Mae.
I called on those skills now.
I hadn’t expected to see Hatch, and even though he was a fair way off, my Shelby senses had tingled and pointed my nipples right at him. He should have been on the other side of Lake Michigan, enjoying his vacation. Instead, he was here, confusing my hormones when they needed calm and quiet.
We took a seat at a table on the other side of the restaurant, and I accepted the menu handed to me by the server. Suddenly I’d lost my appetite. How could I act normal while he was here? Or while every set of peepers was locked onto me, waiting for … what exactly? For me to knock back my chair and sprint out of here?
