“I’d be more worried about Travis realizing when it’s time to take out the trash.” She purses her lips together, her eyes narrowing, and now Selma’s the one with her eyebrows stuck to the top of her forehead. “Now, why don’t you do us all a favor and skedaddle. You’re keeping our waitress from taking our order.”
I can’t help but laugh as I watch Selma melt into the floor before sliding away dejected. Our waitress, Stacey, approaches the table with an ear-to-ear grin. “Well, you don’t get to hear that kind of awesomeness every day. How are you both doing?”
Jess says matter-of-factly, “Fine, thank you. I’m going to need a few more minutes with the menu, but I’d love some water.”
“And you, Miss Faith?” Stacey turns my direction.
“I’ll take a Rough & Ready Red Dog.” It’s Travis’s and my favorite beer.
“Bottle or draft?”
“Bottle, please.”
Stacey excuses herself, and Jess looks up from her menu.
“Okay, you look sad, Faith. What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.” I shrug.
“You do realize you’re talking to a true crime reporter,right?” Her eyes bore through me, weighing out and measuring my every look, gesture, and word. I don’t know how Logan handles being married to her, but then again, he’s never been one to hide his feelings or thoughts.
I feel like an idiot as I admit, “The Red Dog’s Travis and my favorite brew. Ordering it makes me realize how much I miss him.”
“Miss him. What do you mean? You live in the same town. And it’s not even fire season yet.”
She’s made good points, and now I have some explaining to do. Great. “You know how kind he’s been helping out at the feed store. Well, over time, it led to us hanging out more and more, and before I knew it, we were working on cars at his garage regularly, including my Cougar. Remember I told you he bought it from me on the condition I’d help him fix it up?”
“Yes, and he’d give you first dibs on it before auctioning it off.”
“Yes. Well, we got to the point where we were hanging out almost daily. And talking on the phone late at night. I really enjoyed his friendship, but then he kept asking me out, and I kept saying no. It was really cute, and he’s adorable. But you know, not my type of guy?—”
“Okay, hold it right there. Why do you think he isn’t your type?” I should’ve never started confiding in Jess. I realize my error too late. After all, she’s Travis’s sister-in-law now and must have a bias.
“Oh, you know what everyone says. That he’s a player and all.”
“Who cares about what everyone says? I thought you said you were hanging out with him almost daily. Wouldn’t you be a better judge of his character than anyone else?”
Her words stun me into silence. She isn’t wrong, and a wave of guilt washes over me. Why would I let the opinions of others influence how I see Travis when I’m hisfriend—best friend—as he’s pointed out more than once? “That’s a good question.”
“Anyway, I didn’t mean to interrupt. Go on.”
“So, a week ago, he was helping out like usual and kept asking me out. Looking back on it now, it was actually pretty sweet, although I assumed he was flirting with me the way he does with all girls. Anyway, we kissed, and it was amazing. Like really amazing. But then he said the stupidest thing in the world, and I kind of kicked him off the feed store property … in a nice way.”
She raises her eyebrows, and a smirk lights up her face. “Really? I have to ask. What did he say?”
I take a deep breath, thanking Stacey as she puts my beer on the table. Jess thanks her for the water. I lower my voice so others don’t hear. “He asked me to take a ride with him and told me I had the rest of my life for repenting.”
“Oh no,” she giggles. “And knowing, Trav, he thought he was being smooth.”
“Only I didn’t take it that way.”
She laughs. “Yeah, you could call it presumptuous, although it’s kind of a fun invitation if you’re into that kind of thing. When I met Logan, you would’ve cringed at half of the stuff that came out of his mouth.” She rolls her eyes. “He had the cheesiest pickup lines, but he was so damn cute, I couldn’t help myself. And I’m glad I didn’t.”
“Really? Like what kind of pickup lines?”
She looks up at the ceiling, thinking for a moment. “At Alex and Maksim’s wedding, I was the maid of honor, which meant I needed to stick around to make sure the caterers got paid and all of that. So, I was making sure the caterers had everything they needed to wrap up, and he came up and said, ‘They’ve got it covered. Now it’s time for me to cover you.’” She says the last part, lowering her voice and furrowing her brow like Logan.
I cover my mouth in shock. “Oh, that’s so cheesy. What did you say to that?”
