by Susan Stoker
Tori and Donna were being bitchier than usual, but Hannah wasn’t there that morning, so that was a plus, even if it meant Hope had to do more work than usual.
There had been only two people who’d approached her and Billy on their walk to the diner that morning, asking for money. One slunk away when she’d told him she didn’t have any. The other, however, a homeless man, had followed her for two blocks, saying things about Hope being too big for her britches, now that she’d won, and telling her that she should give to those less fortunate, otherwise people might “get offended” and possibly hurt her. That guy had scared her, but she’d done her best to ignore him and walk faster to the diner.
She’d thought long and hard the night before about whether or not to take Calder up on his offer to claim the money for her. She’d finally decided that if she was ever going to move on from her abusive relationship, she needed to stop being afraid to really live her life.
So, she’d called the lottery board and made arrangements to come to their office in a few days to take care of the formalities of winning. She’d ask if there was a way to either keep herself anonymous or at least keep her picture out of the press releases. Calder still had her winning ticket, which Hope was perfectly okay with. The last thing she wanted was to leave it in the motel room for one of the maids to find, or for someone to steal it from her on her way to or from the diner.
Calder was going to pick her and Billy up later that day to take them to his house for dinner, and Hope promised herself she’d tell him about the scary homeless guy—she didn’t tell him that morning, not wanting to kill the happy mood everyone seemed to be in. And she’d also make sure he was okay to continue holding on to the ticket until they went to claim the money.
All in all, she was in a relatively good mood, even though she still had quite a few things on her mind—so she wasn’t mentally prepared for the barrage of reporters who entered the diner right before lunch.
They pushed into the small building and immediately started asking, loudly, who was the waitress who had won a million dollars.
Tori, being oh so helpful, pushed her forward and pointed at her. “She is. Hope Drayden.”
Hope’s head spun with the questions that were immediately fired at her. She stared, frozen, at the cameras with wide eyes and couldn’t think of one thing to say.
“What will be the first thing you buy with the money?”
“What did you say when you scratched off the ticket?”
“Are you going to share with the man who gave you the ticket as a tip?”
“Tell us about yourself, Hope!”
“What does your family think?”
It was the last question that made Hope finally shake herself out of her stupor. She spun away from the cameras and fled to the office, where Joseph and Billy were doing schoolwork.
Joseph looked up when she entered and asked, “What in the world is going on out there?”
“Cameras,” Hope panted. “They’re here because of the lottery. They got me on film, Joseph.” The last was whispered, even though she was completely panicked.
“Shit,” Joseph muttered. “Stay here. I’ll deal with them.”
Nodding, Hope wrung her hands together and stared at the door Joseph left through. She felt Billy come up next to her and put his arms around her waist. She put an arm around his shoulders and stood there in shock.
The entire reason she’d fled to San Antonio without a penny to her name was because of her ex. She’d wanted to get as far away from him as possible…to hide from him. He’d told her if she ever left, he would never rest until he’d tracked her down and dragged her back home. That since he was a cop, he had the resources to find her no matter where she went. And if she was on the news…it would make it easier for him to find her. To find them.
It was one thing to have her name in some lottery database, it was another thing altogether to have her picture plastered on local news shows that could be picked up across the country.
Being brave enough to live her life would be harder than she’d thought.
Hope began to shake, and she didn’t even realize until she was sitting that Billy had led her over to the chair Joseph had been using next to the desk.
He made soothing noises in the back of his throat and petted her hair. Hope should’ve been thrilled Billy was making any noise at all, but now she couldn’t think of anything other than her ex finding her and carrying through with the threats he’d made.
Ten long minutes later, Joseph came back through the office door. “They’re gone.”
Hope closed her eyes and sighed in relief. “Will they be back?”
“Probably. But you don’t have to worry. If they come back, I’ll just chase them off again.”
“What am I going to do?” Hope fretted, more to herself than Joseph.
“You’re going to hold your head up and not be scared anymore,” her friend and mentor said firmly. “You aren’t the same woman who lived with that scumbag. If he dares show up here, you’ve got friends who will stand by your side and support you.”
“You don’t know him,” Hope whispered. “He’s sneaky. If he wants me back, he’ll find a way to make that happen.”
“I’ve called Calder,” Joseph said, ignoring her words. “He’s on his way to pick you and Billy up.”
“What?”
“You’re taking the rest of the day off. Tomorrow too. You can come back the day after next if you want.”
“If I want?” Hope asked. She felt like she was echoing everything he said, but nothing was making sense.
“Yup. Let’s let things die down, then you can figure out what to do next.”
Hope felt bad. She was disturbing Joseph’s livelihood. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Joseph said with a smile. “I guarantee when people hear that a customer gave a waitress a million-dollar tip, they’ll be lined up around the block to eat here. I’m gonna make bank.”
Hope couldn’t help but smile. She knew Joseph was trying to make her feel better, but he was also probably right. “I can come in tomorrow and work.”
“Nope. Those other girls can take care of it for once. You get your head together then you can come back. But you know you can’t work here forever, right?” Joseph asked.
Hope sighed again. “Yeah.” As much as she loved Joseph, she didn’t exactly love being a waitress. The older man had given her a chance to get her life back on track, but now that she didn’t need to work there, it was inevitable that she’d quit when she got an apartment in the suburbs. “I’m gonna miss you, Joseph.”
He waved his hand. “Whatever. Like I said before, you’ll have a car and a phone. You can visit and call me whenever you want.”
Hope smiled. “You got it.”
“Wait in here until Calder arrives.”
“But my tables—”
“Audrey, Donna, and Tori can take them. Lord knows you’ve had to cover for them often enough.”
Hope winced. The other girls wouldn’t like that, but whatever. They were already pissed at her for not giving them any of her winnings. Besides, she had covered for them in the past. Countless times. She handed her order pad to Joseph and took off the apron around her waist. “I’ll cash out before I go.”
Joseph nodded. “I’d get on that if I was you. Calder was none too happy when I told him what was going on. I bet he’ll be here before you know it.” Then the older man turned and left the office again, gently shutting the door behind him.
Hope wasn’t thrilled with what was happening either, not in the least. But as a result, she was going to get to see Calder and spend more time with him. She couldn’t be mad about that.
She counted out her tips and was watching Billy get his things together when the door to the office opened once more.
Before she could blink, she was in Calder’s arms.
“Are you all right?” he asked, pulling back, putting his hands on her shoulders and inspecting her from head to to
e as if the reporters had been holding weapons rather than cameras.
“I’m fine.”
Calder chipped away at the shield around her heart a little more when he crouched on the floor next to Billy and asked him the same thing.
When Billy nodded, Calder gave him a huge bear hug too, then grabbed hold of his hand as he stood. “Right. Then we’re outta here.”
Hope didn’t even protest when Calder put his arm around her waist and led her out the office door to the front of the diner.
“Where are you goin’? Tori asked as they passed her.
“Joseph gave me the rest of the day off. Tomorrow too,” Hope said.
“What the fuck?” Tori huffed. “This place is gonna be crazy because of you, and you’re fuckin’ leavin’?”
“Yeah, she’s leaving,” Calder answered for her. “She’s been busting her hump for months while you and your friends do the absolute minimum possible. All the regulars want to sit in her area because they know they’ll get served in a timely manner and won’t have to put up with attitude while they’re eating. Here’s a tip—you’ll catch more flies with honey than vinegar.”
Hope could only stare at Calder as he chastised the other waitress. It had been a long time, if ever, since anyone had stood up for her like Calder was. She squeezed his waist with her arm, trying to let him know how much she appreciated it.
“I’ve got a man,” Tori hissed. “I don’t need to flirt and simper to make men interested in me either. Caleb likes what I’ve got just fine. This job is stupid, and Hope treats it as if it’s the end-all, be-all of jobs. That stuck-up, stingy bitch wouldn’t know what to do with a man’s cock if her life depended on it!”
Halfway through Tori’s rant, Hope had reached out and covered Billy’s ears with her hands, not wanting her son to hear the filth spewing from the other woman’s mouth. He’d heard his share of swearing since they’d been on the streets, but Hope tried to keep his exposure to a minimum.
“Get your shit and get out,” a deep voice growled from behind them.
Hope turned to see Joseph standing there listening. His face was red and his fists were clenched at his sides.
Calder didn’t say a word, merely stepped to the side, pulling Hope and Billy with him.
“Joseph, I didn’t mean—”
“Oh, I think you meant every word,” Joseph sneered, interrupting her. “You’re lazy and a bitch to boot. You’re done.”
“Fine!” Tori spit out, then turned to look at Donna and Audrey. “Come on, we don’t need to put up with this bullshit.”
But the other two women wouldn’t meet her eyes.
“Audrey? Donna?”
“I need this job,” Donna mumbled.
“Me too,” Audrey echoed.
“Fucking bitches,” Tori said under her breath, then whipped her apron off and threw it on the floor in disgust. She turned on her heel and left the diner without another word.
It was so quiet in the diner for a moment, Hope would’ve sworn she could hear a pin drop…but then someone started chuckling. Then one of the customers started clapping. Soon, everyone in the diner was cheering and laughing.
Hope noticed Donna and Audrey slinking off to the drink station before she felt herself being turned. She looked up at Calder and saw that he was definitely not amused by what had just happened. “Are you okay?” he asked.
She nodded. “Are you okay?”
He looked pissed for a second longer, then she saw the anger fade away. He shook his head in exasperation. “Only you would ask me if I was okay after a scene like that.”
Hope raised a hand and put it on his cheek. “No one’s ever defended me like that before.”
“Well, get used to it,” Calder responded. “That’s what boyfriends do when their girlfriends are unfairly and unjustly attacked. You ready to go?”
Hope blinked at him. She felt warm all over. She liked being his girlfriend. Just as she liked him being her boyfriend. Standing up on her tiptoes, she kissed him. It was a light, chaste kiss, but she still felt lightning move from her lips down to her toes.
His arm tightened around her waist, and she hoped that meant he felt it too.
Calder pulled back and looked into her eyes, and Hope felt as if he were looking straight into her soul. That he could read every heartbreak, every doubt, every dream she’d ever had about finding a man who would love her for who she was. He licked his lips, and his gaze darted down to hers before coming back to her eyes. His brown gaze was intense, yet soothing at the same time.
Then he blew her mind even more. After kissing her lightly on the forehead, he knelt down next to her son and asked him if he might be interested in a hamburger from Whataburger. When Billy nodded, Calder picked him up as if he weighed no more than an infant, when Hope knew that wasn’t the case. Her son was a rapidly growing boy, and she’d long since given up trying to carry him.
Then Calder reached for her hand. He nodded at Joseph and they walked out of the diner toward his pickup. There were a few reporters standing around who called out questions, but Calder ignored them and got her and Billy inside his truck safe and sound before climbing in himself and driving off.
He took them to the motel, where he stood in the doorway while Hope packed an overnight bag of clothes for her and Billy. They hadn’t really talked about it, but there was nowhere Hope wanted to be more than with Calder.
She was feeling off-kilter after everything that had happened that morning, and if for some reason Earle felt the need to hop on a plane and come to San Antonio, she felt much safer at Calder’s house than in the crappy motel.
When Calder pulled into his garage, after going through the drive-thru at Whataburger, Hope marveled again at how beautiful his house was. It was huge…but then again, she’d been living in a motel room for the last few months, so anything above three hundred square feet seemed big to her.
Calder handed the bag of food to Billy and said, “Go on in, Buddy. Me and your mom will be there in a second.”
Nodding, Billy ran off for the door to the house and disappeared through it.
“I’m sure you have to get back to work. I don’t know what Joseph was thinking calling you. You’re busy and—”
Calder interrupted by pressing his lips against hers and backing her up against the side of his truck.
Hope inhaled sharply at the move, but immediately melted into Calder as his arms came around her. One hand went to her head and he shoved his fingers into her hair, cupping the side of her face, and the other dug into her waist as he held her against him.
His head tilted and moved even as he held her still.
Hope groaned and raised her hands to press against his chest. But she didn’t push him away, she dug her nails into his shirt and held on as Calder rocked her world.
How long they stood there making out, Hope couldn’t have said. When Calder took his lips from hers, she was breathing hard, and when she shifted, she felt her damp panties rub against her core. More than that, she felt Calder’s arousal hot and hard against her belly. But instead of thrusting himself against her lewdly or moving his hands to touch her intimately, he leaned his forehead against hers and simply stood there.
She felt his warm breath against her cheeks, and she didn’t make any attempt to pull back or move. It felt as if they were talking without words. She’d never felt closer to another human being than she did to Calder at that moment.
“Thank you for coming over,” he said after a couple minutes had passed.
“Thank you for showing up at the diner when Joseph called,” she countered.
“I’ll do my best to always be there for you,” Calder said in what sounded like a vow. “There will be times I won’t be able to, but you have my promise that if possible, I’ll always drop whatever I’m doing to get to your side when you or Billy need me.”
“Calder,” Hope whispered, feeling overwhelmed. She’d been alone for so long, his words struck her hard. “Don’t say that if you don’
t mean it,” she said softly.
“I mean every word, Hope. I’ve never met a woman like you. I’d just about given up on ever finding a woman who could take me as I am. Every day I’m surrounded by death, by choice, but all I have to do is think about you and it’s as if the sun has come up. When Blythe started talking about you and Billy, I thought she was exaggerating your goodness. That there was no way a woman who’d been on the streets, as you had, could be as nice as Blythe said you were. But the reality is a thousand times better than her stories.”
“I’m not always nice,” Hope said.
Calder chuckled. “Sure you’re not.”
“I’m not,” Hope insisted.
Calder still had a hand tangled in her hair and they were still plastered to each other, but she felt as if she needed to make sure he understood.
“Tell me one time, recently, when you weren’t nice.”
Hope bit her lip and tried to think. It was difficult with Calder being so close. Her nipples were hard under her uniform and his body against hers was making it almost impossible to want anything other than for him to kiss her again.
“Um…one time at a shelter, I told another woman a shelter nearby was giving out free socks when I knew they weren’t.”
“Why?”
“Why’d I tell her that?”
Calder nodded.
“Because I knew they were running out of spaces for the night and I wanted to make sure me and Billy got a bed there. She got out of line, and I was right, we got the last available bed.”
“You did that for Billy. Doesn’t count when you’re protecting your son. What else?”
Hope pressed her lips together. “Calder, I don’t—”
“Seriously, what else?” Calder asked.
“I don’t know!” Hope whined.
“You can’t think of anything that doesn’t involve you trying to provide for your son, or you trying to protect yourself and him, can you?”
“I’m sure I can…but I can’t think when you’re all…” She shifted, and her nipples brushed against Calder’s chest. Hope inhaled sharply, which only pressed her closer to him.
