Cody nodded.
“Your mom is an amazing cook—especially where breakfast is concerned—yet you have a regular order here?” Jenna shook her head. “If I had your mom, I’d never eat out again.”
“Your mom doesn’t like to cook?” Cody guessed.
Jenna shrugged, unable to remember who did the cooking when she was growing up. She remembered a lot of meals out of a cereal box or can. Certainly nothing to rave about. “I guess not.” After a sip of coffee, she explained, “My mom passed away when I was nine.” She hated that the older she got, the less she seemed to remember about the part of her life that included her mom.
“I’m sorry to hear that. I can’t imagine.”
“It was a long time ago.” If Jenna wasn’t careful, she’d get herself all choked up with emotions. The last thing she planned to do was turn into a sobbing mess in front of Cody. “After breakfast, what’s our next stop?”
“Eager to be rid of me?” The teasing twinkle in his sea-green eyes was dangerous.
“You’re the one who has a plane to catch.” But yes, Jennawaseager. The sooner she got the keys to Grandpa’s cabin, the sooner she could send in that two-week notice and decide where home would be. “You never told me what’s in Maui.”
“A new TV show.”
“You’re a stuntman, right?”
“Did Haylee or Laurel tell you that?”
Jenna sipped on her coffee, enjoying only the warmth it provided. There wasn’t enough creamer in this diner to sweeten it to her impossible standards. “I may have dragged that detail out of a sibling, but I won’t tell you which one.” Though she guessed all on her own when they first met, yesterday she had asked more than a few questions about the specifics.
“Haylee.”
“Don’t you ever worry about getting hurt?” Jenna asked, remembering how many stories Grandpa shared about stuntmen—and women—he’d watched botch a stunt and break bones. “One slip and you could end up paralyzed for life. Or dead.”
“I’ve broken a couple bones,” Cody admitted. “Cracked three ribs once. That wasn’t fun. But it comes with the territory. I know the risks involved.”
Jenna kept her expression blank, but she was surprised nonetheless by his nonchalant attitude about a profession that could result in an early death. “She doesn’t want you to go, you know. Haylee.”
“It’s the same every year.”
“Except this time, it’sthreeyears. No time off that isn’t for an emergency.” Haylee had been more than forthcoming with the details while they scrubbed and hosed off kayaks. She preferred having her family close. She seemed nervous to navigate life without Cody around, but why, Jenna hadn’t pinned down. Even without him, the girl still had a ton of family around. “What kind of TV show films that way? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“One that’s already been signed for five seasons, as long as they’re filmed back-to-back. It’s all about instant gratification these days.” Cody leaned back in his seat as the waitress set plates in front of them. His was stacked with three pancakes shaped to look like a moose’s face peering at you. Somehow, the chef had managed to cook a three-piece pancake as one connected work of art.Fascinating.
“Can I get you anything else?” the waitress asked. “Besides more coffee?”
Jenna shook her head, eager to cut into her omelet. It was a relief to feel hungry again. All the stress and tension of day-to-day life, coupled with grief over the loss of her grandpa, had robbed her for months of any voracious appetite. Which made Whitney’s comment about losing five pounds all the more ridiculous. Jenna had lost eight over the course of the summer. Any more and she’d look unhealthy.
“Wait, we need a picture,” Cody said before the waitress hurried away. He handed over his phone, slid their plates close together, and leaned over the table. “Just a quick one, please?”
“I can’t get you both in the frame,” the waitress apologized after a look behind her. Another couple of inches and she’d back right into a full table.
Cody was up out of his seat and sliding into Jenna’s before she had time to register what happened. Her thigh pressed against his as he draped an arm around her. Warmth radiated throughout her as dozens of butterflies fluttered to life in her belly. “Say Moosecakes.”
“I’m not saying Moosecakes.”
“When in Rome.”
“This is definitely not Rome,” Jenna answered between clenched teeth for the sake of the picture.
“Hope one of these works for you all.” The waitress gave Cody a lingering look as she handed his phone back. One that could mean she was interested in him for herself or applauding him for dining with another woman in public. It’d be easy to mistake them as on a date. Jenna should’ve realized sooner he hadheartbreakerwritten all over him.
Despite that nugget of knowledge, Jenna felt the absence of Cody when he returned to his own side. She blamed the rainy-day chill for enjoying the warmth he so easily provided. “When’s the last time you had a serious girlfriend?”
“Jealous?”
