Lockwood Creek Book Three - Can be read as stand-alone.
Dr Chris Chambers had no intention of settling down, he loved the chase too damn much. Or so he told himself. And love 'em and leave 'em were words he swore by. And so what if names like play...
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~ ~ Beth ~ ~
As I went about my work at the diner, Chris's words, I miss you, looped inside my head like one of those annoying jingles and it didn't matter how hard I tried to shake them, they wouldn't budge.
Why did he have to tell me that?
Sure, I missed him too. He's what my heart wants—needs and I'm sure if they carved my chest open right now they would find a stupid, dopey heart tattooed with... belongs to Chris.
But want and need are sometimes not the best things for us, because I knew all too well that life and love don't always go hand in hand. My mama had been living proof of that.
And I had no intention of embarking on a journey paved with heartbreak and humiliation.
So my unrelenting heart would just have to get over it already.
With a weighted sigh, I swept the cloth over the table. Working at the diner was proving tougher than I remembered; I could chase around after twenty kids and still not feel as exhausted as I did right now. My legs felt heavier than a sack of potatoes, but glancing up at the clock, I found a little happiness in the fact that I only had an hour left.
"Hey, tiny."
Me? I stopped what I was doing and looked up.
The voice came from the rowdy bunch of guys at the far end of the diner, their raucous laughter drowning out the few other diners still eating.
"Yeah, you," the shaggy brown-haired guy called out.
I hadn't taken their order because they were sitting at one of Judy's tables. But she was on a break, so I was stuck manning her. Straightening up, I retrieved my pad and pen from my apron and approached their table. "What can I get for you gentlemen?" I ignored the way their eyes raked over me, making me feel like the last biscuit in the basket.
"How about you join me this Friday? Let me take you out," the brown-haired guy offered. "Show you a good time."
In his dreams.
"That's a kind offer, but I'll have to decline. Now, can I get you something?" I asked, keeping my tone professional but friendly and clarified just in case I hadn't been clear enough. "From the menu."
"Awe c'mon, tiny, at least give me your number?"
He wasn't getting it. "Sorry, it's still a no."
His friends erupted into laughter as if my rejection was the funniest thing they'd heard all day.
"You've gone broken his heart, sugar," one of his buddies teased.
The guy I turned down dramatically clutched his chest as if I'd wounded him. His performance was Oscar-worthy.
