Chapter Five
On Thursday night Chloe sat, her butt going numb and her coffee going cold, and tried not to have a panic attack.
She had picked Charlie’s Diner on Fourth Street instead of one of the popular cafés on Main for this meeting because she’d thought it would be less crowded, but she’d severely underestimated the population of Braxton, Ohio’s desire for straight black coffee and cheap pie.Every booth was full, every stool at the counter was occupied, and there was a cluster at the front door of mostly senior citizens waiting for a table.
She’d thought she’d picked a safe time, well past lunch and before the after work crowds, but four o’clock in the afternoon was apparently right in the middle of the early-bird rush, and the seniors were not happy.A lot of them were giving her the stink-eye, no doubt for taking up an entire booth by herself, and they weren’t being subtle about it.
The waitress wasn’t thrilled either, especially since all she’d ordered since she’d sat down was coffee.Chloe knew she’d have to order something else soon in order to keep the booth, like a slice of pie or a grilled cheese or maybe a side of beef, the way the blue hair brigade was glaring at her.
She was trying to decide between a slice of chocolate cream pie and the French dip when a shadow fell over the table.Fearing the waitress’s impatient scowl, she looked up, her apologetic smile already in place, then just stared.
Sawyer was even more beautiful in person.
“Chloe?”he said, his mouth curved in a polite smile with just a touch of flirt, his peridot eyes warm.He was wearing dark jeans and a forest green sweater, his shoulders impossibly broad under a wool coat of dark gray.His beard looked soft, the cheeks above it ruddy from the cold.His dark hair was a little longer than in his photos, tousled by the wind, and the little flecks of white melting in it told her it had started snowing again.
Realizing she was staring, she cleared her throat and tried for cool.“Yes?”
“I’m Sawyer,” he said, the amusement in his voice telling her the attempt at cool had been unsuccessful.He gestured to the booth opposite her.“May I?”
“Of course.Please.”Ordering herself to chill, she folded her hands on the table and waited until he’d settled into the booth.“Thanks for meeting me.”
“No problem.I like your choice of restaurant.”
She winced.“Sorry.I didn’t realize it would be so crowded.”
His eyes crinkled as his smile deepened.“No worries,” he assured her, then glanced up at the waitress.“Hello.”
Carol, who had given Chloe nothing but scowls from the moment she’d sat down, beamed.“Hey, there, handsome.What can I getcha?”
“I’d love a cup of coffee,” he told her, cranking the wattage in his smile up a few notches.“Cream and sugar?”
“You want the fake stuff or the real deal?”
“The real deal, if you have it.”
“For you, I’ll dig it out.”She winked.“Anything else?”
“Chloe?Would you like anything?”
“I’m fine,” Chloe said, noting without surprise the return of Carol’s scowl.“Thank you.”
“We’re good for now…” Sawyer leaned forward to check the name tag pinned to Carol’s impressive bosom.“Carol.But I’m going to need a slice of pie later.”
“Then I’ll be back.”Beaming again, Carol strutted away.
“Wow.”
Sawyer lifted one dark eyebrow.“What?”
Forgetting her nerves, Chloe snorted.“You know what.”
Sawyer’s smile managed to be smug and sheepish at the same time.“A smile goes a long way.”
“I smiled at her,” Chloe grumbled.“She didn’t offer me real cream.”
“I’ll give you some of mine.”
Chloe was saved from answering by the arrival of Carol with Sawyer’s coffee in what was surely record time, and watched with amused amazement as she laid it out in front of him like a five star meal.
