Page 32 of New Day at the Beach House

Fifteen minutes later, they were all at Digger’s, where they ended up in the big corner booth that was meant for eight.

Trina, Ethan, and Roxie scooted in to take the seats that were hardest to get to. Margo, Conrad, Willie, and Miguel filled in the rest.

“Ethan,” Margo said. “Why didn’t you invite your mom? We could have had the star of the show here.”

He smiled. “I texted her, but she had plans with the rest of the cast already.”

Their server, Sara, brought them menus and glasses of water, but Roxie had already decided she was getting pie. That would be her dinner and her dessert.

Ethan seemed to be on the same page. “What kind of pie do you have today?”

Sara flipped to a page in her notebook. “Tonight, we have mile-high strawberry, coconut cream, blueberry custard, chocolate silk, cherry crumb, apple raisin, and, of course, key lime. They can all be served à la mode, as well.”

“Wow,” Roxie said. “That’s a lot to choose from.”

“It is,” Ethan agreed. He looked at Sara. “Thanks. I think we’re going to need a minute.”

“Sure. Take your time.”

As the server left, Ethan glanced at Roxie. “Are you thinking about getting pie?”

“I am. But I don’t have a clue which one.”

He smiled. “They’re all good. All the ones I’ve had, anyway. I might try the blueberry custard, since I like both of those things and haven’t tried that one yet.”

“It does sound good, but I was thinking about the apple raisin with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.” She laughed. “If I’m going to be eating something naughty, I’m going all the way.”

“I applaud your thinking.” He pushed his menu away. Then he put one hand under the table so he could hold her hand again.

She smiled and stared at her menu. She couldn’t remember when she’d had such a fun evening.

Sara came back and took their orders. Everyone got pie except for Margo, who got a chicken salad sandwich, and Willie, who got a cheeseburger.

When the food arrived, everything looked so good. Roxie eyed Ethan’s pie, which was a layer of custard topped with a layer of blueberry pie filling.

He pushed his plate toward her. “Go on. I know you want to try it.”

She stuck her fork in and took a small taste. “You can try mine, if you want.”

“Definitely.” He helped himself to hers.

The blueberry custard was really nice. A little tart from the berries, but creamy and sweet from the custard. It wasn’t a combination she would have thought of, but she liked it a lot. She ate some of her own next.

It was everything she’d hoped for. Because she’d ordered it à la mode, her slice had been warmed up first. To her, it sort of tasted like a baked apple. There was brown sugar and cinnamon mixed in with the apples and raisins and the ice cream just made it all come together.

Ethan cleaned his fork off. “That is good.”

“So is yours.”

He nodded. “You can’t beat Digger’s for pie.” He looked around the table. “How’s everyone’s food?”

Lots of nods and happy confirmations answered him. Trina, who’d gotten the mile-high strawberry, barely looked like she’d made a dent in her slice.

He nudged Roxie’s leg with his. “Maybe we should come back here by ourselves sometime, huh?”

She nodded, about as happy as could be. “I’d like that.”

But then, she would have gone anywhere with him.

---