Page 20 of Last Second Chance

“Just about perfect,” Poppy said, but I knew that she would have done it for free.

With the deal made, the outlook of our afternoon had suddenly shifted, but I didn’t mind. That was what it was like to be with Poppy, one of the things that I missed. She was unpredictable.

I followed both women inside, thinking that it was a real sign of spending time with the right person when even time in a hot kitchen was sure to be fun.

CHAPTER9

Poppy

“Would you rather have a mullet or be bald?” Scott asked as we waited in the kitchen. It was hot in here, so I was gathering my hair into a bun at the top of my head. That was probably the inspiration for his question.

I twisted my lips as I thought it over. “For the rest of my life?”

“Let’s say for a year.”

“Then, I’ll take the mullet.”

Scott chuckled. “I’d almost like to see that. Your turn.”

I thought about it for a moment. “Okay, would you rather be stung by a wasp or have a tooth pulled?”

Scott winced. “Why are your scenarios always gross or painful?”

I laughed. “That’s the point of the game. Would You Rather is supposed to make you pick between two bad situations. It’s fun.”

“I thought the point was to pass time?” he asked.

Freya stepped into the kitchen then with her arms full of dirty dishes. Scott immediately moved closer and took them from her arms. She didn’t stick around, and I figured she was busy with the lunch rush as she dashed back out after flashing me a grateful smile.

The kitchen of Water’s Edge Eatery was just like any other restaurant I had worked in. Food service was the easiest job to get on campus while I was going to school, so I’d seen behind the scenes of various fast food restaurants in the commons area on campus, the place where students could grab lunch or dinner between classes. Then, for the last year of school, I’d waitressed at a nice French restaurant.

This kitchen was small, but perfectly functional. It was divided into two spaces, The dishwashing room and the area where the cook prepared the food. The smells wafting over from the other side were making my stomach growl. I was looking forward to getting a chance to eat soon, but washing dishes wasn’t so bad.

There was a conveyor-style dishwasher that could clean a rack of tableware in about a minute, and I was manning that, spraying off dirty plates and glasses as they came back before running them through. Scott put the clean dishes away and washed any pans that were too big for the dishwasher in the three-compartment sink.

I knew that he only offered to do this because of me, and it wasn’t exactly the most fun way to spend an afternoon on a tropical island. We could be swimming or hiking or something, but I felt good about helping out Freya with Scott by my side. In fact, I couldn’t think of a single other person that would be so willing to do this with me.

There was also no one else that I’d rather have at my side while I was a hot mess, my shirt wet with water from the powerful sprayer and my blonde hair frizzy from the humidity in the room. I didn’t have to worry about him judging my appearance. He always looked at me with so much desire, no matter what. It made being with Scott, even here, feelright.

It was scary how much it felt like we were already a couple again. I’d just really started talking to him last night, finally listening to his side of the story. Even if I believed him, I wasn’t sure what the future held for us. Had the messy breakup caused too much resentment to ever really move past it? I had held on to so much hurt and anger that it was hard to imagine that it wouldn’t affect me anymore. Was his version of events enough to allow me to officially release all of those negative feelings? I wasn’t so sure. It seemed like something out of my control. I was already falling for him again, despite my reservations.

“I guess I’d go with the wasp sting,” Scott said, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I blinked. “What?”

“The game. Are we still playing?”

“Oh, right. Yeah.”

“My turn then. Would you rather be able to fly or read people’s minds?”

I cringed. “With all the gross things I’ve heard come out of men’s mouths, I don’t even want to know what they keep inside their heads. Besides, flying sounds amazing.”

He glanced at me curiously. “What’s that mean?”

I shrugged. “I just think that soaring up in the clouds would be—”

“No,” he interrupted with a small frown. “The comment about the things men say to you.”

---