grabbed my shoulder.
“Megan?” his voice sounded behind me. I clutched the bundle of menus I was toting and glanced back. “I like your necklace. That’s a beautiful shell.”
My cheeks flared up again and I managed some semblance of a response before racing away as if my legs had caught on fire. What the hell was going on? First the resemblance and then the comment about my necklace? Was this some huge conspiracy to get me locked up in the sanitarium? Or I could be overanalyzing things and he could be some poor schmuck who started working here wondering why that Megan chick was acting so weird around him.
I let out a sigh and dumped the pile of menus by the host stand where Terry stood watch.
“Ready for the masses?” she asked, leaning against the stand and staring at her phone.
I snorted. “All five of our regulars plus whatever poor saps decided it was a good idea to vacation here.”
“Sounds about right.” Terry squinted, staring out the glass doors. “There’s Al, I think. One down, four more to go.” The old man hobbled toward the restaurant, leaning on his walker as per usual. “By the by, did you see the new boy?” Terry whistled low.
I shook my head. “You guys are making a huge deal over nothing. The guy could be a swamp monster and, if he was someone new, there’d be talk.”
Her eyes widened. I closed mine, cursing my luck. “He’s behind me, isn’t he?”
“Swamp monster? That’s rough.” The slight twang to Mason’s words—all of it was so familiar.
“That’s me, keeping things bitchy from open to close.” I turned around and gave him my customer service smile.
“Yeah right.” He arched an eyebrow. “You seem the sunshine and buttercups type.”
“He’s already got you pegged, Meg.” Terry grinned, rifling a hand through her pixie cut.
“Almost like he knows me,” I mumbled. Christ, I sounded crazy again. “Ignore my babble. Time to wait some tables!” Trying to shake off my inability to string a sentence together, I made a beeline for Al, who had settled by the bar. His face crinkled into a mess of wrinkles with his smile. I grinned and handed over a menu.
“Megan,” Terry called a couple minutes after I put Al’s order through. She jabbed a finger in the direction of an older blonde woman sitting in one of the booths. “Got a customer for you. Mind if Mason shadows?”
“Sure thing.” I waved Mason forward. “You want to give it a whirl?”
He shook his head. “I’d rather watch. I’ll pick it up after the first customer or so.”
I approached, conscious of the gorgeous man following me. With my luck I’d trip and hit the floor. Arriving at the table, I focused on the customer. The woman had some heft to her, but her weight wasn’t the only thing that said plump. From her lips to her curls, the word fit. Her eyebrows lifted as we approached.
“Hi, I’m Megan. I’ll be your server tonight.” I handed over the leather-bound menu and gave her a big smile. Not like it mattered, with Mason standing behind me. Of course, her gaze was focused on him.
“Well, if you’d like a second to look over the menu, I’ll start you off with a drink?” I asked, trying to get her attention.
“Water, please,” she said, still not bothering to look my way. Lovely. It was going to be one of those days. I kept my temper down and gave her a sugary smile as I turned on my heel and returned to the kitchen to grab her drink.
“Are they always rude like that?” Mason whispered the second we entered the back of house.
A grin tugged on my lips and the nervousness I felt around him lessened. “Depends on the day.”
***
The shift ended faster than anticipated. Working with Mason had made the time fly by. He’d switch between tailing me or Gina as he picked up the ropes, and by the end he was helping his own customers. Once I’d banished all the weirdness about how similar he looked to my made-up friend, I was finally able to enjoy his company.
I
“Megan?” his voice sounded behind me. I clutched the bundle of menus I was toting and glanced back. “I like your necklace. That’s a beautiful shell.”
My cheeks flared up again and I managed some semblance of a response before racing away as if my legs had caught on fire. What the hell was going on? First the resemblance and then the comment about my necklace? Was this some huge conspiracy to get me locked up in the sanitarium? Or I could be overanalyzing things and he could be some poor schmuck who started working here wondering why that Megan chick was acting so weird around him.
I let out a sigh and dumped the pile of menus by the host stand where Terry stood watch.
“Ready for the masses?” she asked, leaning against the stand and staring at her phone.
I snorted. “All five of our regulars plus whatever poor saps decided it was a good idea to vacation here.”
“Sounds about right.” Terry squinted, staring out the glass doors. “There’s Al, I think. One down, four more to go.” The old man hobbled toward the restaurant, leaning on his walker as per usual. “By the by, did you see the new boy?” Terry whistled low.
I shook my head. “You guys are making a huge deal over nothing. The guy could be a swamp monster and, if he was someone new, there’d be talk.”
Her eyes widened. I closed mine, cursing my luck. “He’s behind me, isn’t he?”
“Swamp monster? That’s rough.” The slight twang to Mason’s words—all of it was so familiar.
“That’s me, keeping things bitchy from open to close.” I turned around and gave him my customer service smile.
“Yeah right.” He arched an eyebrow. “You seem the sunshine and buttercups type.”
“He’s already got you pegged, Meg.” Terry grinned, rifling a hand through her pixie cut.
“Almost like he knows me,” I mumbled. Christ, I sounded crazy again. “Ignore my babble. Time to wait some tables!” Trying to shake off my inability to string a sentence together, I made a beeline for Al, who had settled by the bar. His face crinkled into a mess of wrinkles with his smile. I grinned and handed over a menu.
“Megan,” Terry called a couple minutes after I put Al’s order through. She jabbed a finger in the direction of an older blonde woman sitting in one of the booths. “Got a customer for you. Mind if Mason shadows?”
“Sure thing.” I waved Mason forward. “You want to give it a whirl?”
He shook his head. “I’d rather watch. I’ll pick it up after the first customer or so.”
I approached, conscious of the gorgeous man following me. With my luck I’d trip and hit the floor. Arriving at the table, I focused on the customer. The woman had some heft to her, but her weight wasn’t the only thing that said plump. From her lips to her curls, the word fit. Her eyebrows lifted as we approached.
“Hi, I’m Megan. I’ll be your server tonight.” I handed over the leather-bound menu and gave her a big smile. Not like it mattered, with Mason standing behind me. Of course, her gaze was focused on him.
“Well, if you’d like a second to look over the menu, I’ll start you off with a drink?” I asked, trying to get her attention.
“Water, please,” she said, still not bothering to look my way. Lovely. It was going to be one of those days. I kept my temper down and gave her a sugary smile as I turned on my heel and returned to the kitchen to grab her drink.
“Are they always rude like that?” Mason whispered the second we entered the back of house.
A grin tugged on my lips and the nervousness I felt around him lessened. “Depends on the day.”
***
The shift ended faster than anticipated. Working with Mason had made the time fly by. He’d switch between tailing me or Gina as he picked up the ropes, and by the end he was helping his own customers. Once I’d banished all the weirdness about how similar he looked to my made-up friend, I was finally able to enjoy his company.
I
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