“Did you give him electroshock treatments? Sneak happy pills into his coffee? Offer him a blowjob?”
“Addie!” Nova whisper-yelled. “What iswrong with you?”
“I’m dying to know what you did to Torin Gallagher to not only have him smiling but laughing. I heard him all the way out here. I thought I was going to have to call an ambulance because he’d finally cracked up.”
“You act like he’s not even human,” Nova said.
“He acts like he’s not human!” Addie retorted.
“Stop it.”
“Seriously, Nova. The man never laughs. He smiles once in a while, but it’s usually gone before you can get a good look. I’ve never,never, heard him laugh like that and I’ve been working here for years.”
Nova shrugged. “What can I say? He thinks I’m funny.”
Addie stared at her and shook her head.
“What?”
“Just…be careful,” Addie said.
“What?” Nova repeated.
“Whatever’s happening here. Just be careful. I like both of you a lot. I know he’s not the easiest of men, but he has feelings that can be hurt, just like you do.”
Though her tone was gentle, Addie’s words stung. “I know that,” Nova insisted. “I wouldn’t hurt him.”
“Maybe not on purpose, but he’s not like you, Nova. He doesn’t move so easily through life.”
Ouch. Nova blinked again. “You think I move easily through life?”
Addie seemed to realize that her words had hurt. “I only mean that you don’t let things get to you, bring you down, the way he does.”
Nova shook her head. “Addie, I like you a lot and I’m getting to know you, but you don’t know me well enough to say something like that.”
With great care, Nova set the towel and cleaning spray on the table in front of her. “I’m going to go into the back to help prep for tomorrow. You’ve got this, right?”
Addie opened her mouth, closed it, and then finally said, “Sure. Go ahead.”
Her heart aching a lot more than it should have, Nova walked back into the kitchen. Torin looked up from where he was cleaning and his hands stopped moving when he saw her.
Nova waved at him and headed toward the cooler. She needed a moment alone somewhere quiet and cool until the burn around her heart eased. Then, she could get back to work.
Nova went into the cooler, making sure the flap for the padlock they never used rested between the frame and the door. It kept the door from latching. The interior knob worked sometimes, but not every time, and Torin couldn’t get anyone out to fix it. He’d been calling once a week since she’d started working at the restaurant and they were giving him the run around.
Facing the back wall of the cooler, Nova ran her hands through her hair and took a long breath. She filled her lungs with air, pulling it as deep as it could go, holding it for a moment, and then blew it out slowly.
It took three more breaths before her chest stopped hurting. She tried to ignore the dampness that gathered in the corners of her eyes, but it remained.
“Nova.”
She turned quickly to see Torin standing in the doorway, his blue eyes concerned as he looked at her.
When he saw the tears, he came deeper into the cooler, letting go of the door. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly, turning to wipe the tears that clung to her lower lashes.
His hand landed on her shoulder, turning her to face him. “Nova, you’re crying. What’s wrong?”
