Page 27 of Just Ten Seconds

“Right this way.” Jackie takes them to a table next to Mr. Kenner, who is staring out the window.

I walk over to the kitchen because … I don’t know why. I think I just need a minute. I peer over the counter and see Dean and Amanda taking their seats. Her long, dark curls are pulled back in a ponytail that’s secured with a giant bow. While I’m looking at Amanda, Jackie marches herself toward the bar to get fresh waters for their table.

With a severe waggle of her brows, she hides one hand while pointing with the other toward Dean and mouths, You want him.

I widen my eyes at her and give the tiniest of head shakes, urging her to stop.

She brings the waters to the table and is standing behind Dean’s chair when she continues, He’s so hot!

Her mouth is formed in a prowl when Dean turns around to see her standing there.

She quickly changes her stance and puts on a professional face. “Can I get you coffee?” she asks, quickly turning on her toes before he gets a chance to answer.

Dean looks up with a confused face, and his gaze lands on mine. He smiles a full Colgate-teeth grin, and I give a little wave, feeling like a complete tool. When he turns his attention back to Amanda, I smack my hand on my forehead.

“He’s very handsome,” Manny says from his spot beside me.

“He’s okay,” I answer nonchalantly.

He laughs. “He’s what my sister would call bellissimo. Like one of those telenovela hunks.”

“Damn right,” Connie, a waitress who only works weekends, says as she approaches the counter, her back to the crowd. “Is he married?”

“No,” I answer too quickly.

She unbuttons one button of her shirt and bows forward, putting her hands inside her shirt. When she sits up, her boobs are now higher than they were before and slightly spilling out of her bra.

I look down at my own modest breasts and wonder if I could sit mine up like that. Maybe with some masking tape and a prayer. Otherwise, probably not.

“What are you doing?” I ask, utterly confused.

She takes lip gloss out of her pocket. As she untwists the top, she responds, “Men like that come around once every hundred years.”

I close my eyes in thought. “Storms happen once every hundred years. Men are a dime a dozen. You can’t say he’s the only good-looking man you’ve ever seen.”

With a smack of her lips, she tosses the lip gloss back in her pocket. “Oh, I’ve seen them but never with dark skin and light eyes like that, and they’ve certainly never walked in here before.”

They’re both now staring at me as I blink back, unsure of what to say.

“Your objectification of men is alarming.”

Connie waves a hand at me as she fluffs her brown curls. “How do I look?”

“Like competition,” Manny declares.

“You bet your ass,” Connie counters. “Wait, competition to who?”

Manny looks at me, and I drop my head to the side.

“No one,” I say.

“Good.” She squares her shoulders back and turns around, marching toward his table.

It’s another reason I’m staying away from the dating game. I’m not ready for the drama, or the pressure. Lord knows I give myself enough hell as it is.

“She’s not his type,” Manny observes.

“I know,” I answer. “And stop looking at me like that.”