I looked down at the clock, realizing that I hadn’t eaten in well over ten hours, and suddenly I was starving. If I had known that jumping off that exit to eat at the diner I’ve passed a thousand times and never thought twice about would lead me to my current obsession, I would have continued driving. It seems the universe is a cruel bitch, and her best friend karma decided that was the night I would forever pay for my sins.
Now, I’m standing in the shadows of a grove of trees watching her fall apart just like she has done every year since I found her on this day. After she allows herself the allotted amount of time, she stands and turns to leave. This time I don’t move fast enough, and she catches sight of me. Standing stock still, I’m nearly holding my breath waiting to see what she will do. Her eyes scan the tree line before snapping back to me, and I swear she can see through the shadows and into my soul. She makes it about halfway up the embankment, never moving her eyes from mine until her foot catches a root and she goes down on her hands and knees.
I don’t think before I move to step out of the shadows and go to her. To remind her to watch where she puts her feet and pay closer attention to things around her before she ends up seriously injured or worse. When my booted foot makes it out ofthe shadow and into the daylight, a man shows up rushing to her side. Halting my steps, I watch the interaction. I slink back into the shadows, waiting and watching like always.
He reaches out and touches her. I reach out, grabbing hold of the tree beside me as a feeling rocks through me I’ve never known. I feel as if someone has punched into my chest and wrapped their fingers around my soul and is squeezing the life out of me. The urge and need to cut parts of him off inch by inch until I make it to his elbows is nearly blinding. That need and drive become nearly unbearable when she tries to pull her hands away and he refuses to let her go. She finally gets her hands free before turning and practically sprinting up the embankment. I shift back so that I’m once again hidden, watching closely in case I need to step in and send this fucker straight to hell.
I’m gripping the tree so hard that I know I’ll have a few splinters when I finally leave. She finally makes it up the trail and is fighting to get her keys from her pocket with the motherfucker hot on her heels when she drops them on the ground. I watch as her face falls and more emotions than she would ever admit line every inch of her body. The jackass that seems to not be able to take a fucking hint chases her. When he places his hand on her lower back, I finally lose my ability to stay in the shadows.
That is until my movements cause her eyes to land on mine. When they do, hers go wide, and the fist currently strangling my soul loosens just enough that some of the haze I’ve been in clears.
“Fuck,” I mutter before retreating into the shadows until I know she can no longer see me.
She eventually gets her keys back, gets in her car, and pulls out of the parking area. When her brake lights are far enough away I know she can’t see me, I watch and scowl at the motherfuckerthat hasn’t removed his eyes from her retreating car.Yeah, this man is going to be a big fucking problem.Stepping out of the shadows so that my presence is known, I pull my phone from my pocket. The dumb motherfucker still doesn’t take notice of the fact that he is now being hunted by a predator. I take a couple of pictures of the man before my phone starts vibrating in my hands. The name on the screen isn’t someone I talk to often, and I’m not sure it’s a good thing he is calling.
“Giaco, this is a surprise,” I answer, turning to make my way to my waiting SUV.
“Aww Vito, can’t a cousin call his family?” Giaco croons down the line like the slick motherfucker he is.
“We both know that my only claim to the family is my place as number two to Andre, and my mother was the whore for a number of your asshole fathers,” I snide, not in the mood for his shit.
He chuckles as if I told him a fucking joke. “That is the truth. I guess the proper greeting would be, hello dear bastard brother.”
“Giaco, I am not in the mood, nor do I have the time to deal with your shit,” I snap as I get to my SUV and climb in, never taking my eyes off the fucker that is now scrolling on his phone walking right past me to his car. “If there is a purpose to this call, let’s hear it. If not, I’m hanging up.”
Giaco chuckles before I hear the creaking of him leaning back in his chair, then he lays out the issues they’re having with some not so friendly people causing issues for their suppliers out of Savannah. I let him know that we’ve also noticed an issue with stuff coming out of Savannah, which is why we’ve started working with the Irish out of Nashville. We talk business for a few more minutes, and I let him know I’ll talk to Andre and be in touch in a day or so. Just as I crank my SUV, the fucker’s carpulls past me. Deciding to make a pit stop before making my way to the farm, I pull out behind him intent on following him for a beat.
We make it down the mountain, and I’m about to take the turn to the farm when I realize he is turning into the diner, where I see Loretta’s car is parked. Growling, I pull back into traffic so I can pull into the diner as well. Looks as if the time has come that I can no longer watch my secret obsession from afar.
Three
Loretta
The ring of the bell over the door causes me to turn from talking to Dawson to greet the new customer. When I see who is coming through the door, I drop the coffee carafe I’m holding. It hits the floor and shatters, splashing coffee all over everything. My hands start to shake as Mr. Pretty walks through the door, smiling widely.
“What the hell, Loretta?” Lottie gasps, rushing over to me.
I break eye contact with the man and bend down quickly to help her clean up the mess, refusing to answer because I have no idea why I reacted the way I just did. I get the glass cleaned up about the same time she makes it over with the mop. When I look around, I find him sitting at a booth just watching me. Swallowing hard and chastising myself because there is no way that he is here for me or followed me here.
“I’m so sorry, Lottie,” I whisper, fighting back tears.
Lottie must hear in my voice because she looks at me with the same soft smile she always does and pats my hand. “It’s alright, my dear. There ain’t no use crying over spilled coffee. You go welcome that man, and I’ll finish up here.”
Giving her a tentative grin, I go to get him a menu and some silverware. Slowly, I make my way over to the man, taking deep breaths so as not to lose my shit on this man. I’m about three feetfrom him when he looks up and a bright smile spreads across his face. Plastering on my flawlessly perfected professional face, I take the last steps to him, laying the menu and silverware down like I’ve done a thousand times before.
“Welcome, I’m Loretta, and I’ll be your server this evening. What can I start you off with to drink?” I rush out.
He leans back against the booth, looking me up and down before bringing his eyes back to mine with a satisfied smile on his face. “It looks like I finally get to learn your name.”
A blush covers my cheeks. “I guess it was awfully rude of me not to give you my name earlier.”
He crosses his arms over his chest. “It was mighty rude, but I’ll forgive you if you go out on a date with me.”
“I don’t know about that. How about I get you something to drink to start with and then see how it all goes,” I state, trying my best not to break down right here and now.
The light in his eyes gleam in the same way my stepdad’s would right before he lost patience with my mother.And things didn’t end well for her or for me.
I shuffle back from him, fighting my need to run, and slam right into a very hard chest. Large, strong hands land on my hips, holding me upright as the scent of a very expensive cologne wraps around me. Inhaling deeply, a memory long blurred tries to creep up. Something about that smell is familiar to me.
