I shifted in my seat. "Well…yeah…" But why? That'd been a ludicrous thought, but then I understood. My mom would've been mad. She would've hated the idea, she always did. I slumped even further in my seat. Mason wasn't my mother. He wouldn't want to keep me only to the house or out with the only friends she approved. Lydia and Jessica had gotten Analise's stamp of approval. That ended with disaster. Then a sick feeling came to me, and I looked back over at Mason.
"What's wrong?" His voice was so quiet. He glanced from me to the road, but he could tell.
I took another breath. Could I even say this out loud? "My mom liked Lydia and Jessica. Do you think—" I hesitated. I couldn't say it.
"Do I think…what?"
But I knew I would always wonder. "Do you think she liked them because they were like her? I mean, they were mean and didn't really care about me."
His eyes widened a fraction of an inch, but that was his only reaction. The air seemed tense, though, and my gut twisted. I knew why it had changed as soon as I said those words. It was true, and Mason knew it but didn't know how to say those words to me. I shook my head and looked away. "It doesn't matter. I know what you're going to say."
"No, you don't."
I nodded. Drawing in a painful breath, I leaned my forehead against the window. I'd been so blind. She had made comments. She always knew that Jeff was a cheater—could she recognize it in him because she was one too? Was that why she liked Jessica most of all? Because she was like her? She hadn't liked Lydia as much—was that because Lydia cared the most for me out of all three of them?
It was sick. I didn't want to think about it anymore.
"Hey," Mason spoke. He was cautious.
My shoulders tightened and bunched around me. "I don't want to talk about that. I really don't."
"Well, you need to. You sure you have to work tonight?"
I swung around at his gruff voice. What was he mad about? Even though his eyes weren't on me but on the road, I saw the glimmer of fury there. His jaw clenched and his grip tightened on the steering wheel. I asked, "Are you mad at me?"
"What?" He whipped his gaze to me. Then spat out, "No! I'm mad at that bitch you call your mother. Did she pick your friends for you?"
My stomach dropped. She had.
He saw my answer, and a disgusted sound came from him. "I can't believe her—no, I can. She's controlling and possessive. That's why she never liked the idea of you and me, because she couldn't control me and because she knew I cared about you. You want to know my guess as to why she liked those two for you?"
Did I? No, but I knew I needed to.
He continued as his voice grew savage. "Because she wanted people around you that would hurt you. She wanted them to hurt you because then you'd stay with her. You would never know what else was out there, that there are good people out there. I'm not a saint, I know that, but when I love someone, I love them with everything." A curse ripped from him, and he pulled into Manny's parking lot in a rush of gravel before he braked to a stop. Then he was on my side of the car. His eyes were fierce, but his hands were gentle as they turned me to him. He pressed his forehead against mine. I felt how he was keeping himself in control. He expelled a deep breath. "I want the best for you. I don't want to keep you
imprisoned to me. I want you to reach your fullest, find friends who really care about you, get a job that you like. I want you to go to my school and get a track scholarship. I want you to do all of that in spite of your mother, because if she had her way, you'd never go anywhere. She would ruin it."
I closed my eyes. She would. The truth stabbed me in the gut.
His hand cupped the side of my face and lifted me up. He whispered, "Look at me."
A whimper escaped me. His eyes burned with love. The emotion was there, an extra layer to the windows of what he felt. It hurt, but it was the good hurt. Something unlocked inside of me, that was him. I had everything boxed inside, kept away so I wouldn't feel, but with Mason, all I could do was feel. That was because of him, because he loved me. I whispered back, "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For loving me." For giving me what my mother should have—unconditional love. That hurt to admit. Another whimper slipped out, but I was lifted into his arms and held against his chest. He rocked me back and forth with his head tucked down. I didn't want to be anywhere else.
When I walked into Manny's, much later, Heather was behind the bar counter. She wore a similar red shirt from yesterday with ripped jeans that stuck to her like a second skin. With a towel and glass in hand, she dried and placed it back behind the counter. She picked up another as I went over. One of her eyebrows lifted in the air. "I hope this isn't a pattern because, girl, if it is we have to rethink this job for you."
"I'm sorry, I am. My mom collapsed this morning. She was rushed to the hospital."
Her mouth dropped. When an apology flashed over her face, I looked away. Mason told me the lie would work and it had, but there was a ball of guilt on the bottom of my stomach. I only hoped to work it away. That meant showing up on time and no more afternoon quickies. Mason never let them last as quickies. They grew into full-blown afternooners.
"I'm sorry, Sam. I figured something happened from last night, but I didn't think it was your mom." She nodded towards the door. "I saw Kade drop you off, it looked intense in there."
I flushed. She had seen that?
"Uh, yeah." A sudden rush overtook me. I wanted to tell her all about it, but I couldn't. Well, I could, but she wasn't my friend. I had never trusted any of my friends, but after only knowing her a day, I wanted to confide in her. Confused by that, I pushed it away. I was here for a job. "Where do you want me today?"
She gestured to the back of the bar. "You can stay here with me today. It shouldn't be too busy until later, but Brandon will take over by then."
As I settled beside her, there were some customers I recognized from last night's party. A few older couples were there as well, along with a young family.
"Jason!" a mother hollered as her two-year-old darted down the hallway, giggling. He pumped his chubby legs harder and his giggles increased.
Heather and I shared a look of amusement as the mother raced past us. "They come here every morning, and little Jason loves going to the back office to see my dad."
"They come here every morning?" I grabbed a towel and glass to dry.
She nodded as she put picked up another. "Yep. Coral and Jeff, her husband, have opposite schedules. He's on the road with his job at night, so they meet here for an early supper and some time together. It'd probably be easier if they did it at home, but I think Coral enjoys the break from watching
all three of their little ones. My dad dotes on Jason." She nodded to the table where a girl and another boy looked the same age. Food was plastered over their faces and hands. Their dad wore deep bags underneath his eyes as he tried to feed the baby. Heather chuckled, "Jake and Jenna too."
"Triplets?"
"Yep. They're almost a part of the family now. Coral keeps trying to set up Brandon with her co-workers. She's a nurse, after their breakfast she'll go in for a twelve hour shift. She works the night shift."
Watching that table and hearing the fondness in Heather's voice, I felt slapped in the face. That was what a family was. They cared for each other. Her dad came out of his office with the two year old in his arms. His mother followed behind, cooing and smiling as Jason flailed his arms over Manny's shoulders at her. Another chuckle came from Heather as her dad sat at their table. The other two flocked to his lap, and soon all three of them were crawling all over him.
They weren't blood, but they were family.
"You okay?"
I jerked from my thoughts, but caught the glass before it went flying from my hands. A full face flush was coming. I ducked down and grabbed another glass to dry. "I'm good. Do you need me to grab some more glasses to shine?"
I was aware of the skeptical look she gave me but ignored it. When she remarked, "I supposed you could polish some of the silverware—" I had that tray in my hands before she could finish her sentence and scurried to a far table. It hurt to watch that loving family.
Brandon arrived and went behind the bar so Heather and I could help Lily and Anne, the other two servers from the diner. After the third hour of full tables with more people still streaming in, I asked Heather if it was always like this and she nodded with a rueful grin on her face. "Why do you think I get so pissed at Brandon for banging my friends? They quit after he breaks up with them. I can't keep losing anymore girls."
"Watch out!" Lily called as she hurried towards us and collapsed a bin full of dishes on the counter. "Whoa. I almost dropped that. Manny would have my hide."
Heather snorted, "Yeah, right. My dad? He can't even bring himself to squash a ladybug. Your job's safe if you break a few dishes." When the door opened and a bunch of guys walked in, she groaned but started towards them.
Lily grinned as she turned to watch her beside me. "She's right, you know."
"About?"
"About her dad. He's a softie, that's why so much of the other stuff falls on Heather and Brandon's shoulders. They do the firing and hiring. If anyone would fire me, it'd be Heather."
When the guys folded around a table in the back corner, Heather stood with pad in hand. All of them stopped and scanned her up and down. She shifted her weight to one side so her hip stuck out and lifted her chin up. They looked up with cocky smirks already starting, but those fell away as soon as they caught whatever expression she wore. A few cleared their throats before snatching up the menus she plopped on the table.
I chuckled. She had stopped their flirting in its tracks. Heather was not someone I wanted to mess with.
"So what's your deal?"
"Huh?" I looked over. I had expected Lily to leave the dishes and hurry away again, but she had been watching me as I watched Heather. "What do you mean?"
She shrugged. "Heather likes you, a lot. If another girl had shown up two hours late on her second day, she would've been sent away at the door."
"Oh." I shifted around and reached for the bin of dishes. I could wash them, anything to get away from this line of questioning. I liked Lily and Anne from the night before. Both were on the heavy side with friendly smiles, but I grew uneasy at the keenness in her eyes now. It hadn't been there the night before. "It's nothing. My mom went to the hospital today. I was late because of that—"
"Oh my gosh!" Her hand clamped on my arm.
Startled, I let go of the bin, and it landed with a thump back on the counter. "No, it's okay. I mean, it was a shock, but my mom will be fine. I think it was—"
"Logan Kade just walked in here," she hissed. Her hand tightened on my arm. I gritted my teeth against the pain from her hold but processed her words. Sure enough. Logan waltzed through the front door as if he owned the place. His eyes were narrowed, but the same cocksure smirk was there as he scanned the room. When he saw me, he paused in question, but I shook my head so he nodded and turned to the bar. He lifted a hand in the air. "Yo."
"Kade!" Brandon boomed from the bar. "Get your ass over here, man!"
The two bumped fists together when Logan claimed a stool at the bar. The two acted like long-lost best friends. It wasn't long before they were having shots. After an hour, the enjoyment of each other's presence wasn't fading. I was mystified. Logan never sought me out. He seemed content to swap
stories with Brandon, who I was reminded had played football with Logan and Mason a year ago. That startled me as well. Heather's brother owned and ran the bar, but he had only graduated high school a year ago. That was a lot of responsibility, but he seemed to handle it fine, like Heather did with running the diner.
Just then, she slapped a hand on the counter beside me. "I need a smoke break. You game?"
"Game?"
She jerked her head through the back door. "Come with? You're up for a break soon, aren't you? Lily and Anne can handle our tables for awhile."
"Tables? You mean my two and your ten?"
She flashed a grin as she reached for her purse under the counter. "Come on. This'll be interesting."
"What will?"
But I didn't have to wait long. The second we went through the door, Logan popped out behind us and shut both doors so no one could see or hear us. He claimed a chair on the other side of Heather since I was next to the door.
She lit her cigarette, took a drag, and leaned back to watch us.
"You don't want to talk to me in there?" Logan leaned forward on his elbows. He'd been happy inside, he was intense now.
I ignored that question. "Mason told you?"
"You yelled it across the room."
"Oh." I flushed as I remembered. With Mason shirtless, I hadn't noticed anyone else. But he wasn't there to question me about my job. "What's going on?"
He expelled a breath and glanced at Heather.
She blew out a long puff of white smoke before she lifted the cigarette again. "I ain't going anywhere, pretty boy. This is my place. This is my break. She's my friend now. You got something to say, share it here or keep it till later, but I ain't going anywhere."