by Susan Stoker
He smirked. “Okay, you got me. That’s not the only thing, but it’ll do for a start.”
Hope took a deep breath. Once upon a time, she’d been good at flirting, but that seemed like ages ago. Speaking quickly, because she knew she had to get back to work and because Billy would be back any second, she said, “He struggles with math. He’s really good at writing and reading, but math confuses him. I know I need to get him in school, but until I get more on my feet, I don’t trust that the system won’t try to take him away from me. Besides that, he doesn’t do well with strangers. Go easy on him, okay?”
Calder reached out and took Hope’s hand in his. “I’m not going to judge you, or him, Hope. He does need to be in school, but believe it or not, I understand why he isn’t. I can tell he’s a smart kid. He’ll bounce back from this.”
“I hope so.”
“I know so.”
And then Billy returned, clutching a few papers in one hand and a pencil in the other. He pushed past his mom and climbed into the booth next to Calder.
Her son didn’t spare her a single glance. Since the kidnapping, he’d constantly wanted to be near her, wanted to be able to see her, but somehow Calder’s attention meant more to him at the moment than she did. Hope didn’t know whether to be thankful or hurt.
“Hope,” Tori called out. “Order’s up!”
“Go,” Calder ordered gently. “We got this.”
“If you need me, just let me know,” Hope said.
“Of course.”
He said it in a tone that comforted Hope. Of course, Calder would call her over if her son needed her. But she had a feeling she wouldn’t be needed anytime soon. Billy was staring up at Calder with adoration.
Wishing she could sit on the other side of the booth and watch the two together, Hope took a deep breath and got back to work.
That morning was the first in a long line of mornings. Calder came in, had breakfast with Billy, then the two of them worked on whatever schoolwork Hope had prepared for her son the night before.
She had a feeling if her son was talking, all she’d hear about was Calder this and Calder that…which she would be okay with.
As it was, she was fielding questions from Audrey, Tori, and Donna. They wanted to know what the deal was with the hot guy who kept coming in every morning and sitting in her section. Tori tried to complain to Joseph that Hope was spending too much time chatting with a customer and neglecting her duties, but Joseph merely said, “If you were as concerned about getting your ass to work on time every day as you are with what Hope’s doing, I’d be a much happier boss. Leave her alone, Victoria.”
Hope had wanted to laugh, but she also wanted to stay on Tori’s good side. She’d learned the hard way from her time in the shelters that making enemies made her life harder. So she simply shrugged and made a mental note to ensure none of her customers had to wait for her because she’d been talking to Calder and Billy.
A week and a half after Calder started having breakfast at the diner, Hope was walking back to the motel with Billy skipping happily in front of her and Joseph at her side. This was the fourth time he’d insisted on walking them home after her shift. It wasn’t dark outside, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“What’s the deal, Joseph?” Hope asked quietly.
“Not right to let you walk home alone,” Joseph said.
“Since when? I’ve been doing it every day since I started working at the diner.”
“Since Calder mentioned it. I’m sorry, hon, I should’ve done this way before now.”
The warm feeling in her belly spread at hearing Calder was looking after her, even though he wasn’t physically there. “Joseph, I’m fine. This part of town isn’t as bad as where I used to walk the streets at all hours of the day and night.”
The older man scowled. “Don’t remind me of that shit,” he growled.
“I don’t see you accompanying Tori home. Or Donna or any of the others,” Hope protested, not letting it drop.
“That’s because Tori has Caleb with her. And Donna drives, as do Hannah and Audrey. They also don’t have a seven-year-old to keep an eye on.”
Hope wanted to protest more. She wasn’t sure how much protection a sixty-five-year-old man would be if someone wanted to start trouble, but she appreciated his concern anyway. “Then, thank you.”
“Don’t thank me, thank Calder,” Joseph said gruffly. “He’s the one who pointed out that you shouldn’t be walking the streets by yourself.”
“I know, but it’s more than just walking me home,” Hope persisted. “It’s everything. Letting Billy stay at the diner all day is going way above and beyond. And giving me the job in the first place. And letting me work all the overtime you do. It’s…just thank you. I’m going to pay you back.”
“Don’t want your money, girl.”
“I know. I didn’t mean monetarily. But there’ll come a time when you need something, and I’ll hopefully be in a position to provide it. To help you out for once.”
“I’m not doin’ anything for payback,” Joseph said without looking at her. “My Madelyn was always happiest when she was helpin’ others. She said that success to her was based on serving others, not at the expense of others.”
“That’s beautiful,” Hope breathed.
“She was beautiful,” Joseph countered. “I’m a grumpy ass, I know it. But every day, I try to live like my Madelyn would’ve wanted me to.”
“She would be so proud of you,” Hope said, putting a hand on the older man’s arm.
Joseph shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. But you remind me a lot of her.”
“I do?”
“Yup. You don’t care what someone looks like, or what they smell like for that matter. You treat everyone who walks through the door of that diner as if they’re a treasured, welcomed guest. I’ve seen you pay for a meal for someone who can’t afford it, even when you yourself don’t have any extra money. You don’t complain if someone leaves you a shit tip. Hell, you even defend that crazy old coot, Eli, when he leaves fucking lottery tickets instead of money.”
“Hey, Hannah once won twenty bucks on one of those. That’s way more tip than she would’ve gotten from him otherwise.”
“Yeah, except she’s served him twenty times or more, so that comes out to only a buck for every time.”
Hope shrugged. “One of these days, someone will win big on one of those scratch-offs, then you’ll be saying that Eli was a genius.”
Joseph shrugged.
“Besides, Billy loves scratching them off. I use them to teach him about probability.”
“You’re a good mom,” Joseph told her. “Me and Madelyn didn’t have no kids, not for lack of trying; it just wasn’t meant to be. But if I had a kid, I’d want her to be just like you.”
They’d arrived at the motel and Hope wasn’t sure what to say. Joseph had just given her the best compliment she could ever remember getting. Her own parents had washed their hands of her when she’d had Billy out of wedlock. They didn’t want anything to do with her or their grandchild. She’d been upset but would never expose Billy to their censure.
“Thank you,” Hope said quietly.
“You’re welcome. Now…get some sleep. Morning comes early.”
“Yes, sir,” she said with a smile, then leaned up and kissed Joseph’s bearded cheek. “Thanks for walking us home.”
With a grunt, Joseph turned and headed back toward the diner.
Hope stood in the doorway of her motel room until she could no longer see Joseph, then closed it securely behind her. Nighttime at the Sun Motel was when things got dicey. Sometimes all was quiet, and other times the evening was filled with fighting and a visit from the police.
I’m gonna get us out of here, Hope vowed silently. She didn’t know how, or when, but she was saving every penny she earned so she could get a safer place to live. Billy needed to be in school. She was doing her best, but she was well aware that her best wasn’t good enough.
/> But as much for her son, she wanted to move out of the motel so she could feel more normal. She wanted to be the kind of woman Calder wouldn’t be ashamed to be with.
No, not that. He wouldn’t give one shit if the woman he was dating was penniless.
She wanted to be proud of herself. Wanted to be someone she wouldn’t be ashamed of.
Taking a deep breath, Hope turned to face Billy. She had lessons to come up with for the next day, a son to keep entertained until it was bedtime, and rent to the motel manager was due. She needed to count out her tips and figure out how much extra she had this week, and see if she had enough to go down to the thrift shop a couple blocks over to find Billy some clothes that fit his growing body.
Chapter Four
It had been a month since Calder had started eating at the Alamo Diner, and he already couldn’t imagine a day that didn’t start with seeing Hope and Billy. He hadn’t realized how lonely he’d been until he had them in his life.
Driving downtown to the diner was a little out of his way, but he’d go double the distance if it meant seeing Hope.
The feeling that Hope might be someone special when he’d heard Blythe talk about her had been spot on. He admired the hell out of her. She’d somehow managed to climb out of the gutter, literally, get a job, support both her and Billy, and get on with her life.
A part of Calder had wanted to be the one to find and “rescue” her, but it turned out Hope Drayden hadn’t needed rescuing at all. He longed to give her money so she could move out of the shithole motel she was living in, but he knew better than to even offer. He knew instinctively she needed to make her own way. It killed him, but he understood it.
He’d once tried to give her a hundred-dollar tip with his breakfast, but she’d stormed out of the diner after him and shoved the bill back at him. She’d said in no uncertain terms that if he left her more than the normal amount of tip again, she’d get Joseph to bar him from the diner.
That wasn’t exactly possible, and Calder had a feeling Joseph wouldn’t do anything of the sort, but because Hope had been extremely upset, he’d immediately agreed. So now he left a generous but not over-the-top twenty-percent tip…but that didn’t mean he didn’t order more food than he really wanted most of the time. More food meant a higher bill, which in turn meant a higher tip.
He really hoped both Hope and Billy saw him as a friend after all this time. They needed a friend more than anyone he’d ever met. Even Blythe’d had Tadd and Louise when she’d been homeless. Hope didn’t seem to have anyone. Except Joseph. The gruff elderly man had taken them under his wing and treated them as if they were his own child and grandchild.
Calder hated not being able to make sure Hope and Billy got home safely every night, but after speaking with Joseph about his concerns, the man had volunteered to walk them home. It wasn’t the ideal solution, Calder wasn’t sure what Joseph would do if someone tried to harm them, but it was better than nothing.
More and more, he loved spending the two hours each morning with Billy and chatting with Hope when time allowed. Billy was a smart kid. He might not speak, but he didn’t miss anything going on around him. He’d asked, by writing the question on a piece of paper, if Calder had figured out what had happened to Willie, the old man who’d been shot in the alley. He’d put off the kid’s question until Hope could join them, and then informed Billy the bag and water he’d seen had been the evidence they’d needed. They’d fingerprinted the bottle and had tracked down the man who’d touched it.
After bringing in the petty thief, he’d admitted exactly what Calder had hypothesized had happened. He’d thought the older man had just bought a bottle of booze, and when he found out it was only water, had shot him in disgust. Both Draydens had been sad, but Calder praised Billy for finding the evidence needed to catch the guy who’d shot his friend.
Billy showed his intelligence in other ways as well. Calder had a feeling he was reading well above the level of other children his age; he was also observant and took in everything anyone said around him. He didn’t hesitate to try to protect his mother either. One day, when Hannah was yelling at Hope, Billy slid out of the booth and went up to the other woman and pushed her thighs, making her step away from his mother. Hannah wasn’t happy, but she backed away and went to gossip with the other waitresses.
Calder definitely didn’t care much for the other waitresses Hope worked with. They were catty and didn’t seem to care that he was clearly interested in Hope. When he rebuffed their advances, they refused to take the hint and continued to flirt with him whenever they could.
Every morning he sat in Hope’s section, but he was well aware of the fact that the other women manipulated Hope as much as they could. They’d beg her to take tables outside her section and then, when she was busy, poach her regulars before she could get to them. Hope also frequently took more tables than were assigned to her when customers had waited too long to get served. And when the other waitresses didn’t show up altogether, she never hesitated to take on extra shifts.
It wasn’t lost on Calder that most of the regulars did their best to sit in Hope’s section each morning. It was the drop-ins and newcomers who had to settle for Hannah, Tori, Donna, and Audrey.
All in all, Hope was an amazing person. Thoughtful, considerate, and just plain nice.
And Calder wanted her more than he’d ever wanted anything before in his life.
He should’ve been concerned about that revelation, but he wasn’t. At forty years old, he’d just about given up on getting married and having a family of his own. But from the first time he’d heard about Hope, he’d been intrigued. Meeting her had simply increased his interest.
That morning, Calder was moving on to plan B. Hope and Billy had been living in a solitary bubble. She’d done an amazing job getting herself back on her feet, but it was time to expand her circle of friends. He knew she hadn’t called Blythe yet, but he felt as if he understood why. Blythe knew the life Hope had lived. And Hope wanted to put as much distance as possible between that life and the new one she was forging.
He’d passed on as much information as he could to Blythe and reassured her over and over again that Hope was fine. Blythe still wanted her to move into Sophie’s empty house, but Calder didn’t want to suggest anything that would make Hope apt to cut him out of her and Billy’s lives.
This morning, he’d invited his friends Daxton Chambers and TJ Rockwell to have breakfast with him. He knew he was taking a risk, as both men were police officers, but he’d asked them to come in their civilian clothes. Though, he’d also asked them to make sure to bring their badges. Dax was a Texas Ranger and TJ was a highway patrolman.
He was sitting in his usual booth when his friends entered the diner. Calder wasn’t surprised when Tori and Donna both immediately went up to them and tried to seat them in their areas. His friends were good-looking. Calder might be a guy, but he was well aware that women were attracted to his friends. It had been amusing, and welcome, to the men when they’d been single. But now that everyone had women of their own, who they loved with all their hearts, the attention was merely annoying.
Calder hid his grin behind a hand when the men blew off the desperate attempts of the waitresses to gain their attention and headed his way. Standing, he greeted his friends.
“Hey, Dax. TJ.”
“Good to see you,” TJ said as he shook Calder’s hand.
“You’ve been busy lately,” Dax observed as he too shook his friend’s hand, then sat in the booth.
Calder grimaced. “Yeah. It seems as if there have been more deaths this year than last. I don’t have official numbers, but I wouldn’t be surprised if, at the end of the year, we’ve set some sort of record.”
The other men shook their heads in commiseration.
“I hear the woman you’re interested in works here,” TJ commented once they’d gotten situated.
Calder knew TJ was teasing him, but he stiffened anyway. “Yeah. Got a problem with that?�
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TJ’s eyebrows shot up and his eyes got wide. He immediately shook his head. “No, man. I think it’s awesome. I’ve known you a long time and I haven’t ever seen you this…intense about a woman before.”
Calder tried to relax. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to jump down your throat. Yeah, Hope is special. And wait until you meet her son. He’s somethin’ else.”
“Happy for you,” Dax said quietly. “There’s nothing in the world like knowing someone’s waitin’ for you at the end of a long shift. I don’t know what I’d do without Mack. She can make me smile when I’ve had the absolute worst day in the world.”
Calder opened his mouth to respond, but when he heard a commotion to his right, he turned.
Billy was running toward the booth with a huge smile on his face. But the second he saw that Calder wasn’t alone, he skidded to a stop and stared at Dax and TJ.
“It’s okay, Billy,” Calder said, holding out his hand. “These are my friends, Daxton and TJ. They’re nice.”
Billy stared at his friends for a second, then, melting his heart even more, finally took a step forward and grabbed Calder’s hand as if it were a lifeline and Billy was drowning in the ocean.
He pulled the little boy forward and formally introduced him to his friends. “Dax, I’d like you to meet Billy Drayden. Billy, this is Dax. And that is TJ. He used to be in the Army.”
“Hey, Bud,” Dax said.
“Good to meet ya,” TJ told Billy.
It took a moment, but eventually, Billy nodded at the two men in greeting.
“Billy doesn’t talk much,” Calder informed his friends. “But he’s super smart, aren’t you?”
Billy smiled up at Calder and nodded happily.
Everyone chuckled.
“Hi.”
Calder looked up from Billy’s happy face into Hope’s. She was standing by their table, looking unsure and shy. He smiled up at her and repeated the introductions. She didn’t shake his friends’ hands, but she did smile at them and nod her head. “I see you’ve met my son. If you need to talk, let me know and I’ll send him back to the office.”
