My gut drops.
My body goes rigid.
A low gasp escapes me, my jaw clenching.
Effa reaches for my hand. “Mercs, you okay?”
The waitress steps up with a syrupy smile.
“Well, hey, guys. It’s so good to see y’all again.” Her gaze slides to me, slow and deliberate. “Kaden… I had no idea ya’ll were back in town.” She tilts her head. “I’m assumin’ you came back for me?”
And just like that, the past walks straight back into my present.
Chapter Twenty-Two
EFFA
The strawberry blonde waitress angles her whole body toward Mercs. Her lashes flutter, her tongue darts out to wet her bottom lip, and her chest rises higher than necessary as her breath catches the moment she sees him.
I study her face. She’s a natural beauty, minimal makeup, but clearly one of those women who doesn’t need much to glow. Her little upturned nose makes me feel instantly insecure, and her dimples?
Goddess, I want to claw them right off her face.
But the real punch to the gut is the little gasp that left Mercs the second she spoke.
He knows her.
And the way she said,‘I’m assumin’, you came back for me?’
That wasn’t casual.
That was damn well loaded.
My eyes flick to Mercs. He looks like he’s seen a ghost. His gaze bounces between her and me, frozen in the middle.
It’s Gran who finally breaks the silence. “Hi, Lilah, darling. It’s been a while. How’ve you been?”
Lilah turns to Gran with that dazzling smile, and then glances at me, assessing me with sparkling blue eyes.
She’s flawless. Ugh.
“Oh, Daphne, it sure is nice to see ya again. And Kiera, how ya holdin’ up, hon?” Her voice drips with sweet Southern-style charm. But it’s not the tone that throws me, it’s the fact that she knew Gran’s name.Daphne. Goddammit. I hadn’t even thought to ask.
“I’m okay,” Kiera replies gently. “Taking each day as it comes, I suppose, Lilah. Did you know Kaden’s touring with the band,Luminous? And this is Effa, their lead singer,” she adds, pulling me into the spotlight while Mercs remains frozen like a deer in headlights.
Lilah raises a perfectly arched brow, tilts her hip, and clicks her tongue in what I can only assume is fake approval. “Well,gooolly, a real-life rock star in sleepy little Ligonier? Who would’ve thought? Kaden, have you been holdin’ out on me?”
I narrow my eyes at Mercs, my stomach twisting.
What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Mercs clears his throat, flinching slightly as Lilah places a hand on his shoulder. His eyes dart to mine.
He looks pale.
Cornered.
I bite my lip to stop the question on the tip of my tongue that my gut’s screaming for answers.
