Surprised, I glanced up at her. “Really?”
“Yeah,” she said as she collapsed on the couch next to my desk. She looked defeated.
“What did you find?” I asked, confused by her reaction. I reached out for my desk chair and rolled it over so I could sit on it.
“Dude has literally no social media.” She shook her head. “It shocked me. I mean, where has he been living? Under a rock?”
“Really? You found nothing?”
She shifted her weight to sit further up on the couch. “I did find a nightclub in Miami. Apparently, it’s super exclusive and you literally have to be a billionaire or A-list actor to get into it.” She must have noticed that she was losing me because she quickened her speech. “Anyway, it’s called Obsidian, and it’s owned by a family with the last name of Watkins.”
I waited for her to continue. When she didn’t, I leaned in. “And it’s tied to Cole?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. There’s not a lot out there about the nightclub. I mean, what do you think? The dude cleans the diner in a nice button-down shirt and pants that cost a fortune. It’s possible.”
I frowned. I didn’t like the idea of us just assuming that Cole was some rich guy from Miami, but Breia was right, the man’s wardrobe was strange.
“But what would a wealthy nightclub owner from Miami want with some small-town diner?” I shook my head. “It doesn’t add up. It has to be something else.”
“I’ll keep digging, but this man in not on the social-media grid.”
I nodded. “Keep digging.”
Breia smiled at me. “Gladly,” she said as she moved to stand. “I should head back. Don’t want Scrooge to discover we’re both missing and try to come find us.” She walked over to the door.
“Thanks, Breia,” I called after her as she opened the door and slipped into the kitchen.
I spent the rest of the evening playing hostess or bussing tables. Thankfully, Cole hadn’t noticed when Breia and I slipped away. He pretty much spent the evening ignoring me like I was ignoring him.
Zoey brought Jasper to me right at closing time. Her gaze swept the diner as I walked up to her, and I could tell that she wanted to know which one was Cole. I used my eyes and a nod of my head to point him out. Her eyes were wide when she glanced back at me.
She didn’t have to say what I knew she was thinking. Cole was attractive. He was really,reallyattractive. But he was also trying to take half my diner from me. That knocked him down a few rungs on the attraction ladder.
“Whoa,” she whispered as Cole walked past her and disappeared into the kitchen. “Not how I pictured him at all.” She moved to stand right next to me.
“Zoey,” I hissed as my cheeks heated. I glanced around to make sure that no one could hear her.
“Sorry,” she said, lifting her hands. “I’m just speaking the truth.”
“Well, let’s not forget why he’s here.”
Zoey tapped her nose and nodded. “Yep.”
I was desperate to move this conversation to something else. “Thanks for watching Jasper,” I said as I reached out and wrapped my arms around Jasper’s shoulders. “I hope he was good for you.”
“We went to the store and he picked out some Hot Wheels.”
Jasper pulled said cars from his hoodie pocket and held them up.
“Whoa!” I said as I knelt down in front of him. “You didn’t have those ones. They are amazing.”
Jasper’s eyes danced with excitement as he nodded. “This is my favorite one.” He shuffled the cars around in his hands until he produced an orange and blue truck with a dragon affixed to it.
I chuckled. “I would have guessed that,” I said as I planted a kiss on the top of his head and straightened. “Let me know how much I owe you for those.”
Zoey shook her head. “Naw. My treat.” She reached out and tousled Jasper’s hair. “See you later, squirt.”
“Mommy, I’m hungry,” Jasper said, clearly ignoring Zoey.
