arm.
“Who’s he?”
“A customer.” I looked down at his grip and felt my patience wear thin. “Do you mind?”
He slowly let go but stared at Charlie like a bull checking out his next rider. I pulled the pot free from its stand and forced a smile at Charlie.
“How are the pancakes?”
“Great, thanks.” He pushed his empty plate aside and sipped his coffee. I noticed he’d made a little origami bird. Sweet.
“So are you sticking around here for a bit?” I didn’t know why I asked. There was just something about him that interested me.
He tensed but then rolled his neck as if to relieve the tension. “Not sure yet.”
“Well, I hope to see you around.” He glanced up at me, his eyes unreadable, but I knew with a guy like that there was more to his story then he’d ever let on. That was fine with me. All I cared about was that I made enough money to leave this damn town. I pulled out his bill and placed it next to him. “Stick around if you’d like.”
He studied the bill. “This should be eleven sixty. Why is it free?”
I kept my back to him as I rang up Will’s order. “You left too much yesterday.”
“It was a tip—”
“It was too large,” I interrupted.
“That’s not for you to decide.”
“I beg to differ.”
“My tip, my decision.”
I turned to look at him and wondered what his angle was. “Do you always leave such a generous tip?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
“I was rude to you yesterday. I didn’t feel good, and you helped me out. I can leave you a tip if I want to.” He pulled out his wallet and left a twenty. “See you later, Stacy.”
“Bye, Charlie.” I couldn’t help but stare at his large, lean body as he left the restaurant.
And that’s how it went for three weeks. Charlie would come in, eat breakfast, leave a heavy tip, then disappear until the next day. There was always an unspoken attraction between us, though neither one of us acted on it. One day he didn’t show, and the day after. A month went by, and I realized my sexy stranger had vanished. It bothered me a lot, more than I thought it would. Sad. He interested me; he was way different than the guys in this town.
“Thanks, Jack,” I called out as I opened my umbrella.
“If you can wait, I’ll drive you home.”
I stepped out into the rain. “Are you kidding? I love the rain.” He laughed as I waved goodbye.
Three blocks from home, and my shoes were a soggy mess and I was frozen. I didn’t usually go out after work, but today the Red Piper looked inviting. I slipped inside and sagged into a chair at the end of the bar and ordered a hot rum. It went down a little too quickly. I wasn’t a drinker, and the liquor went straight to my head, but it sure warmed me right down to my wet toes.
I didn’t bother with my umbrella as I meandered the rest of the way home. It was too hard to coordinate my feet and the shield. So instead I let the icy drops hit my face and fall freely down my coat. A homeless man sat next to a building, holding a piece of cardboard over his head to protect himself and his golden retriever. They both looked miserable. I handed him my umbrella and a few dollars. He was way worse off than I was. The guy nearly sobbed at the gesture and thanked me. I made a note to bring him some leftover food from the diner tomorrow.
My place rarely looked as warm and inviting as it did at the moment I approached the door. I patted my pocket, then spat out a loud curse. “Shit, where the hell are my keys?” I started to cry; nothing ever came easily to me. My back pressed flat against the wall to find some kind of cover as I let the tears mingle with the cold raindrops. I didn’t regret the help I offered the old man, but right then I wished I had my umbrella back. I just wanted to break the door down and get into some warm clothes. I sank to the ground near the edge of the building where I could get a little shelter from the rain.
After I gathered myself, I realized my
“Who’s he?”
“A customer.” I looked down at his grip and felt my patience wear thin. “Do you mind?”
He slowly let go but stared at Charlie like a bull checking out his next rider. I pulled the pot free from its stand and forced a smile at Charlie.
“How are the pancakes?”
“Great, thanks.” He pushed his empty plate aside and sipped his coffee. I noticed he’d made a little origami bird. Sweet.
“So are you sticking around here for a bit?” I didn’t know why I asked. There was just something about him that interested me.
He tensed but then rolled his neck as if to relieve the tension. “Not sure yet.”
“Well, I hope to see you around.” He glanced up at me, his eyes unreadable, but I knew with a guy like that there was more to his story then he’d ever let on. That was fine with me. All I cared about was that I made enough money to leave this damn town. I pulled out his bill and placed it next to him. “Stick around if you’d like.”
He studied the bill. “This should be eleven sixty. Why is it free?”
I kept my back to him as I rang up Will’s order. “You left too much yesterday.”
“It was a tip—”
“It was too large,” I interrupted.
“That’s not for you to decide.”
“I beg to differ.”
“My tip, my decision.”
I turned to look at him and wondered what his angle was. “Do you always leave such a generous tip?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
“I was rude to you yesterday. I didn’t feel good, and you helped me out. I can leave you a tip if I want to.” He pulled out his wallet and left a twenty. “See you later, Stacy.”
“Bye, Charlie.” I couldn’t help but stare at his large, lean body as he left the restaurant.
And that’s how it went for three weeks. Charlie would come in, eat breakfast, leave a heavy tip, then disappear until the next day. There was always an unspoken attraction between us, though neither one of us acted on it. One day he didn’t show, and the day after. A month went by, and I realized my sexy stranger had vanished. It bothered me a lot, more than I thought it would. Sad. He interested me; he was way different than the guys in this town.
“Thanks, Jack,” I called out as I opened my umbrella.
“If you can wait, I’ll drive you home.”
I stepped out into the rain. “Are you kidding? I love the rain.” He laughed as I waved goodbye.
Three blocks from home, and my shoes were a soggy mess and I was frozen. I didn’t usually go out after work, but today the Red Piper looked inviting. I slipped inside and sagged into a chair at the end of the bar and ordered a hot rum. It went down a little too quickly. I wasn’t a drinker, and the liquor went straight to my head, but it sure warmed me right down to my wet toes.
I didn’t bother with my umbrella as I meandered the rest of the way home. It was too hard to coordinate my feet and the shield. So instead I let the icy drops hit my face and fall freely down my coat. A homeless man sat next to a building, holding a piece of cardboard over his head to protect himself and his golden retriever. They both looked miserable. I handed him my umbrella and a few dollars. He was way worse off than I was. The guy nearly sobbed at the gesture and thanked me. I made a note to bring him some leftover food from the diner tomorrow.
My place rarely looked as warm and inviting as it did at the moment I approached the door. I patted my pocket, then spat out a loud curse. “Shit, where the hell are my keys?” I started to cry; nothing ever came easily to me. My back pressed flat against the wall to find some kind of cover as I let the tears mingle with the cold raindrops. I didn’t regret the help I offered the old man, but right then I wished I had my umbrella back. I just wanted to break the door down and get into some warm clothes. I sank to the ground near the edge of the building where I could get a little shelter from the rain.
After I gathered myself, I realized my
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