Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 437(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 437(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
I clear my throat free of emotion as I start slinging hash browns and loads of bacon. Everyone wants bacon today.
Raven hands me three plates of sausage, bacon, and eggs and points over her shoulder. “Maria, can you take this to booth six? I can’t be distracted by the one guy. He’s thirsty as fuck.”
My hands start to shake. Six is Thatcher’s booth. I can do this. If I go over like I don’t know him, maybe it’ll confuse him. Yes, great plan. I grab the plates with a grin. “Can you blame him? You’re stunning.”
She waves me off. “Stop. We both know you’re Red Ruby’s hottie.”
I snort at that as I move around the counter and to the table. I smile at customers, asking if they’re doing well so I don’t stare at the booth I’m going to. I can feel his gaze on me, the tickling at the back of my neck making it really hard to take in air.
“Hey, Maria. Can I get a refill?” Old man Jeb says, and I grin over at him. He’s a regular, a truck driver who stops by every week.
“Yeah, one second. Let me drop this off, and I’ll grab the pot.”
He flashes me an appreciative, toothy grin before I make my way to the booth, acting as if my heart is trying to come out of my chest. “Okay, boys. Here we go.” I set the plates down, looking everywhere but at him.
Owen looks up at me, his blue eyes kind, and my heart squeezes. I wonder how Angie is. I know they’re still together and that she is pregnant right now. I have the urge to ask if she still has the succulents I got her, but I’m sure she does. She has one hell of a green thumb, and man, I miss her. I wonder if she misses me. Damn it.
I swallow hard, but before I can walk away, Owen asks, “Do you have a sister?”
I balk at his question. “Sorry?” I ask, changing my voice to be a bit throatier and not as smooth as it usually is.
“I’m only asking because you look exactly like our friend Audrina.”
“Nope, I don’t have a sister,” I somehow get out as I plaster on a fake grin. “But I do get that people think they know me. It must be my OnlyFans.”
I’m totally joking, but they don’t need to know that. Like I wanted, Owen chokes on his OJ, while the other guy grins widely. He must play for the IceCats, too, because he’s built like a damn bull. All lethal muscle but designed for speed. He holds my gaze as he asks, “Can I get your handle?”
I force a snort, grinning back at him. Raven was right. The way he is looking at me, he is very thirsty. “Maybe.” I tap the table. “Enjoy. Raven will be back in a few.”
But before I can even lift my hand from the table, a large hand wraps around my wrist, stopping me dead in my tracks. I gawk at where Thatcher has my wrist in his hold before looking up to see his face turned up to mine. He throws off his hat then his glasses, and as his eyes bore into mine, my whole body burns. He swallows hard, his eyes searching mine, and all I can do is stand there, locked in his gaze, at his mercy.
I’m such an idiot.
I thought I had this under control, but I’m the fool who brought a knife to a gunfight.
“Audrina,” he whispers, and my stomach drops at the rawness of my name on his lips. His eyes shine, and I can’t move or say a thing.
I shake my head. “No, my name is Maria.”
“Yes, Audrina Maria Hawkins.”
My stomach twists in on itself, my whole body breaking out in gooseflesh as I hold his gaze. He clears his throat but doesn’t move or say another word. Instead, Owen says, “I don’t think it’s her.”
“It is. I know her, don’t I, Audrina?”
My stomach clenches, my heart dead in my chest as I stare into the brown eyes I’ve been missing more with each passing day.
Somehow, I find my voice. “Let me go.”
“No.” Still holding my wrist, he stands up before pulling me into his arms. I want to say I fight it, that I put up some kind of resistance, but I can’t. I fall into his chest as he wraps his arms around me, and he nuzzles his nose into my hair. I sigh deeply into his chest as he tightens his arms. His lips move to my temple, and I know he feels my pulse pounding against his lips. He presses a small kiss there before he moves to my ear, and the emotion in his voice is almost my undoing. “I’ve missed you so damn much.”