Page 75 of Home Sweet Home

“Thanks for the steaks,” Evie said. “Best birthday in a while.”

“Sure thing, kiddo,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Maybe it was the lack of light, but something seemed off. She couldn’t parse it out, and each time she tried, her thoughts floated back to the boat.

“I need to shower, or I’m going to be late, but Josh has a game later,” Evie said. “It’s at home, so just in the park. Four o’clock.”

He nodded but glanced toward the couch like his mind was elsewhere before looking back at Evie. “Four. Got it.”

When Evie arrived at the diner, the new waitress, Taylor, was already there. “Hi, Evie,” Taylor said, jumping at the sound of the bell chiming on the door as Evie went through it.

Taylor was fine. She was young, not even twenty, with eyes as wide and blank as a Disney princess. Everything, from the coffee machine humming on to a customer raising their hand to ask for the check, spooked Taylor. When Evie looked at Taylor, she couldn’t imagine herself that young, but she knew she must have been at some point.

“Coffee?” Taylor’s voice was high and chipper, like a songbird’s, even though it was barely light outside. “Just made a pot.”

“Sure,” Evie said, tying on her apron and sliding onto a stool.

Taylor passed her a mug, and when Evie took a sip, the coffee was so bitter she had to fight the urge to spit it back out. She saw a flash of Kayla at the counter, bright-fuchsia lips smirking as she winked at Evie. When Evie blinked, it was Taylor, though, biting her lip and waiting for feedback.

Evie hopped off the stool. “Here. Let me show you.”

“Morning,” Joe said, the door chiming behind him.

“Hi, Joe,” Taylor said with more enthusiasm than Evie could have mustered for the Queen of England. “Evie was showing me how to make coffee.”

Joe grinned at Evie. “She learned from the best.”

“Pour that one out,” Evie said, gesturing to the pot in Taylor’s hands.

Taylor nodded, and when she went into the kitchen to pour out the pot, Joe asked, “You give any more thought to what we talked about?”

Evie had decided to take the job. Josh was gearing up for college, and while they’d narrowly avoided losing the house, she still had the Visa to pay off, and an unfulfilled promise to enroll Josh in the comp sci course in the fall. She didn’t love waitressing, but it was better than her other options.

Before Evie could respond, the door chimed, and Bob Munson walked in. Taylor froze like Bob was a pair of headlights and she was a deer who’d decided to abandon all self-preservation instincts and jump across the highway.

“I’ve got it,” Evie said, grabbing a menu off the counter as Taylor stared at the canister of coffee grounds like she wasn’t sure where to start. “Just use two scoops. Any more, and it’ll taste like battery acid.”

Every second of Evie’s shift felt like the longest of her life. Each time she glanced at the clock, she willed it to be two so she could spend the rest of her day with West. They had the game later, and even though they wouldn’t be alone, it would be enough just to be near him. What got her through each slow minute was the text that had pinged her phone at around nine, right as the morning crowd had dissipated.

Morning, beautiful.

She’d shattered into bits with just two words, her breath catching in her throat, her heart ceasing to beat. She both hated and loved what he could do to her.

When her shift was over, she drove by Kayla’s salon on the way home. Kayla’s car was outside. Evie had an hour before the game, and she hadn’t told Kayla what had happened.

When Evie walked into the salon, Kayla stopped sweeping.

“Well, this is a nice surprise,” Kayla said, leaning on the broom. “How was work?”

“Fine,” Evie said. “The new girl’s coffee sucks.”

“Of course it does.” Kayla sat on a wooden stool by her station and patted the empty chair next to her. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Evie took a deep breath and glanced toward the corner of the salon, where Polly Patecki lounged, space helmet atop her head as she thumbed through a magazine. Ryleigh was sitting cross-legged on the couch, headphones clamped over her ears, her attention glued to a tablet.

They weren’t alone, and Evie’s cheeks were suddenly hot.

Kayla swiveled to see what Evie was looking at before she turned back, her eyes lighting up in recognition. “Did you…?”

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