“Now, Poppy.”He licked his lips, his eyes locked on mine, never wavering as he extended his hand and pulled me off the truck.
My legs felt wobbly as I made my way into the diner, ignoring the heat that continued to blossom inside the longer his hand stayed planted on my lower back.
Four
Patrick
We sat in a booth towardthe back of the diner with me facing the entrance so I could keep an eye on anyone coming in or out.While Poppy had spent a lot of time in Silver Falls growing up, it had been years since she’d been back, and I didn’t want her to feel overwhelmed if anyone came up to talk to her.At least I could use my grumpy exterior to ward off most people.I wanted her to see Gage and decide whether she was staying in Silver Falls before I let the nosy bodies of Silver Falls get close to her.
It was busy at the diner, so it took our waitress a few minutes to get to us.She hurried over, grabbing the pencil from behind her ear as she whipped out her notepad and stood at the end of the table.
“I’m so sorry about the wait.We’re a little busier than normal with the holidays,” she said, offering me a smile before looking at Poppy.“Hi!I don’t think we’ve met.I’m Terry.”
She extended her hand to Poppy, who took it nervously and attempted to smile back at her.
“Poppy.”
“Nice to meet you.I swear, I don’t think I’ve seen Pat with anyone besides Gage and Julie.I’ve been wondering when he’d stop being so grumpy and make some friends,” Terry teased, nudging me with her elbow before rubbing a hand along her very pregnant, very swollen stomach.Terry was happily married and had been trying to play the town matchmaker since the day she found out I was single when I first came in, almost a year ago, when I first moved there.
“I have to be grumpy, it keeps people away from me,” I teased back, as I leaned against the plush fabric of the booth.
“Well, apparently it didn’t work for Poppy.At least she doesn’t seem to think you’re too grumpy.”
“He hasn’t been grumpy with me, but maybe he just likes me more than the others,” Poppy said, grinning at me.She was up to something.I could tell by the devious smile playing at the corners of her lips.
“Does that mean you two....”Terry pointed a finger between us as she raised her eyebrows and struggled to hold in a squeal.
I opened my mouth to say no and confirm that there wasn’t anything going on between Poppy and me, but she spoke up before I could stop her.
“Yep.We’re dating.Patrick is my boyfriend,” Poppy said proudly, smiling so big I worried it would hurt her cheeks.
Fucking Poppy.
“Oh my gosh!Why didn’t you say anything?”Terry asked, smacking my arm with her notepad.
“I...Um...Well...”
