I should’ve gone home. That would’ve been the smart move. Instead, I grabbed my keys, turned off the remaining lights except for the front sign, and stepped outside. The night air had cooled off, and the street was quiet enough that my boots sounded loud on the sidewalk.
I locked Bad Habit and looked across the street again.
Josie walked past the front window carrying a stack of chairs.
My jaw tightened. “Nope.”
I didn’t know who I was talking to.
Her.
Me.
The universe.
Didn’t matter.
I turned toward the diner instead of my bike.
The diner was three doors down from Bad Habit and smelled like grease, coffee, and every bad decision a man could make after nine at night. It wasn’t fancy. The booths had cracks in the vinyl, and the floor always felt a little sticky no matter how many times they mopped it, but the burgers were good. That was all I needed.
The bell over the diner door chimed when I walked in. The guy behind the counter looked up from wiping down the milkshake machine. “Kitchen closes in ten.”
“Good. I only need nine.”
He snorted. “What do you want, Rome?”
“Two burgers. Fries. Whatever pie you’ve got left.”
He looked over his shoulder toward the pass-through window. “You eating for two now?”
“Don’t start.”
“That wasn’t a no.”
I stared at him.
He held up both hands. “Fine. Two burgers. Fries. Pie.”
“To go.”
“No shit.”
I pulled out my wallet while he yelled the order back to the cook. I leaned against the counter and looked out the window while I waited.
From here, I could see Scoop & Swirl at an angle. Josie had disappeared from the front of the shop.
Maybe she was finally done. Maybe she had gone into the back. Maybe she was passed out on the floor from trying to run a damn business by herself.
I didn’t like that thought. I liked it even less that I gave a shit.
I didn’t know her. Not really.
I knew her name because it had been plastered across a banner. I knew she made good ice cream. I knew she had a smart mouth and looked at me like she was trying to decide if I was a problem.
That was it.
That wasn’t enough to be walking into a diner after nine at night, buying dinner for a woman across the street.
