Page 166 of Chasing Infinity

He raises his eyebrows. “Those kids are so stinking cute. I wonder if they’re on vacation.”

“I’ll find out,” I tell him. This is one of his favorite parts of the job too. It’s hard not to get sucked into the excitement of meeting new people. Willow Heights is so small that I usually see the same crowd every day, depending on their preferred schedule to go out and eat. It’s always fun and exciting when newcomers wander in.

It’s a good reminder that there’s an entire world out there aside from Willow Heights. Our small town has the habit of sucking you in and never letting go—though I honestly wouldn’t have it any other way. The change to the routine is fun for me, though.

“So, what brings you folks to Willow Heights?” I ask the woman as I refill their waters.

She looks at me with her big blue eyes and tilts her head at her daughter. “Amy here learned all about Niagara Falls in her geography class last fall, and we told her we would go check it out over Christmas break, so here we are.”

“Where are you all from?”

“Cedar Ridge, Tennessee,” she tells me. “I’m Izabel. That’s my husband Ryan out on the phone, my daughter Amy, and my son Danny.”

“You have a beautiful family,” I say, bending down so I’m face-to-face with the young boy. His cheeks heat up again, but he manages to hold my gaze this time. “Hi Danny, I’m Addie. How old are you?”

He looks at me with wide blue eyes and leans closer to his mom.

“I’m nine!” Amy informs me from across the table, her green eyes lighting up as she speaks to me. Her light brown curls sway on the sides of her shoulders as she bounces in her seat. “Danny’s seven, but he’s kind of shy.”

“Are you shy?” I ask her, amused.

“Nope!” She replies, popping her lips on the ‘p.’

“I didn’t think so,” I say, laughing.

At that moment, Izabel’s husband returns and slides back into his seat, shooting her a sideways grin. “Heya Bells.”

I notice her cheeks pinken as she smiles back at him, her blue eyes sparkling. “Hey there, Ryno. Everything okay at home?”

“Oh yeah, just Josie being Josie. I told her we were passing through Willow Heights. She said she was actually the one to draw up the plans for your diner?”

“Oh, Josie Reynolds? You know her?” I ask, surprise seeping through my voice. I had worked closely with her when coming up with the design for the diner, but I lost contact after all was said and done. I found her online, perusing her portfolio, and hiring her was one of the best business decisions I had ever made.

“She’s my business partner,” he tells me.

His wife rolls her eyes. “She’s one of our closest friends.”

“Huh,” I mutter, all of a sudden getting that uncomfortable feeling that I’m part of something much more significant. “Small world.”

“I’m so glad we stopped by here,” Izabel says. “Ryan, did you know Josie worked on the plans for this diner?”

Ryan rubs the back of his neck, pondering. “I mean, I knew she worked onadiner at some point, but I don’t always keep track of her projects unless I’m working on them too.”

His wife scoffs and shoots me a look that just screamsmen, what are you gonna do with them?I fight off a smile. I like this family.

“Your food should be out any minute,” I tell them, tapping the table and then getting out of their way so they can spend their family time together.

I wander back and tell Jack everything I learned. His mouth falls open when I tell him they work with the woman who helped me design the diner.

“Wow, I mean…how?”

I shake my head. “I have no idea. I’m a little speechless. I can’t wait to tell Noah about this tonight.”

“It’s definitely crazy. It’s not like it’s a short trip from here to Tennessee by any means,” he says and picks up a stack of quarters, unrolling them and sticking them into the cash register. “Makes you feel insignificant, huh?.”

I scrunch my nose up. “I’m not sure I would go that far.”

He shrugs and continues to unroll his quarters.

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