And she needed to cancel brunch with Cherry.
Chapter Sixteen
“A zit? Really?” Cherry muttered. “What am I, fifteen?” She found the right filter and used it to smooth out her skin in the photo, and even deepened the tone a bit so she looked a little tanner. Then she altered the background and lighting, making it look a bit sunnier and easing the shadows just a smidge. In the photo, she and Andi each had a chip and that to-die-for chipotle dip, and their arms were entwined like a bride and groom when sipping champagne. The shot was fun and light and would get her a lot of hits, since Andi said to be sure to tag her when she posted it, which she was going to. Once she fixed her zit, she smoothed out her flyaways so her hair looked a little less messy. The summer always added some frizz. A little color to her cheeks and it was perfect. Thank God for editing software.
It was Sunday afternoon, and she was intently focused on her social media stuff because she was trying hard not to think about Ellis. She’d canceled brunch, said she was really sorry, that something had come up, and it wasn’t that such a thing wasn’t allowed or couldn’t happen, because of course it was and of course it could, but it wasn’t sitting right with Cherry. She had no idea why. There was just a feeling. A weirdness. An uncertainty that made her uncomfortable, itchy in her own skin.
“It’s fine,” she whispered to herself. “Quit freaking.”
It was totally fine. She’d check on her later today and hit up the diner in the morning. NBD. They said their good nights that night, and Ellis was uncharacteristically short.
Cherry didn’t sleep well.
The next morning, she decided to surprise Ellis, so she didn’t tellher she’d be at the diner. It was Monday, after all, and Mondays were busy, so she tended to start them in the office. But Ellis had been on her mind all night, her responses to Cherry’s texts all short and impersonal. Had she done something wrong? Said something? Missed a signal? Lord knewthatwas a possibility. She wasn’t great at shorthand, especially early on in a relationship.
Whoa.
Was that what this was? A relationship?
She let that roll around in her head as she ordered coffee and a couple of Cal’s warm biscuits from Kitty, then pulled her laptop out and made herself a little workstation. They hadn’t talked exclusivity, but they had slept together. Granted, that had happened much sooner than Cherry was used to, but it had felt so right at the time. And still did. She gave a little snort because this was stuff she should be talking to Ellis about. Face-to-face. Instead of endlessly overthinking it all in her head.
Kitty came by with a plate of biscuits and her coffee. “How’re you doin’ this morning, honey?” she asked, and it always seemed like she really did want to know. She was broad and solid and had the kindest voice, and Cherry thought, not for the first time, that if she was ever sad or upset, she’d love to curl up in Kitty’s ample lap and go to sleep there.
“I’m good,” Cherry said. “How are you?”
“Oh, can’t complain.”
“Hey, can you let Ellis know I’m here?”
Kitty frowned. “She’s not here today, hon. She took today and tomorrow off. I think she’s out of town. Didn’t she tell you?”
Ouch.
“Oh, that’s right. She did. She did tell me, I just spaced.” She made a goofy face. “Mondays, am I right?”
Kitty smiled back at her. “You let me know if you need anything else.” And she was off to wait on other customers, leaving Cherry to sit there, fake-smiling, confused and hurt and a little bit ticked off. Ellis hadn’t just canceled brunch yesterday, she’d literallyleft townand hadn’t said anything to her. She’d be worried about Ellis’s sister if she didn’t know Michaela was actually here in Northwood.What the hell, Ellis?
She reached for her phone, ready to send a heated text, when she noticed a woman across the diner watching her. Cherry had seen her more than once—she was a regular, usually with a book. When thebreakfast crowd filtered out and Cherry was on her third cup of coffee and really got down to focusing on her work, the book woman was almost always still there, sitting at her table, sipping tea—Cherry could see the tag and string hanging off the side of the cup—and reading. They’d never made eye contact, though.
Until today.
Something shivered through her, like fingertips dancing up her spine, and as the woman held her gaze, the feeling coiled in her stomach and sat there, making her weirdly fidgety. What the hell was that about?
She swallowed hard and had to make a conscious effort to tear her eyes away, even as the woman closed her book. She was still looking at Cherry, she could feel it, and the next time she looked up, the woman was walking toward her. Something about her was familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on exactly what.
“Hi,” the woman said when she reached Cherry’s table. The diner had cleared right out, and the two of them were the only ones left. Kitty was behind the counter, wiping a glass with a white rag and seemingly keeping an eye on the two of them, for which Cherry was grateful, because she was finally able to put a name to what she was feeling.
Fear.
“Hello,” Cherry said back, and without invitation, the woman pulled a chair out and sat. “Um…” She cocked her head and watched as the woman folded her hands and placed her forearms on the table. Studied her hands, chewed her bottom lip, seemed to be looking for the right words. “Can I help you with something?”
There was something familiar about the woman. Cherry put her in maybe her early to mid-fifties. Short hair, sort of reddish blond. Brown eyes. Kind eyes, but eyes that had seen sorrow. Pain. How Cherry could tell that, she had no idea, but she was sure of it. When the woman smiled, there was a shadow of sadness to it.
“You’re Cherry Davis.” It wasn’t a question, just a simple statement, and there was the sad smile again.
“I am.” Was this a fan? Somebody who knew her from online? That was a rare occurrence, but it did happen, happened to Andi all the time. “Have we met?”
“A long time ago, yes.” The woman looked down at her hands again. “My name is Lila.”
