‘I’ll have the same’ I reply, figuring it sounds good enough.
‘Cool, and you want to order food?’ the girl asks.
Noah looks at me questioningly, and I nod, ‘I’ll have the same as you’ I say in answer to his unasked query.
Noah rattles off our order, ending it with that devastating smile that the waitress rolls her eyes at before walking away.
‘You’ll fall for me one of these days Daisy’ he calls after her.
‘Not in this lifetime playboy’ the waitress retorts before disappearing through the door to the kitchen.
‘She’s into me’ Noah grins, winking at me as I shake my head.
‘So much for the cheerleader being your happily ever after’ I murmur pointedly.
Noah laughs, ‘Rosa is my forever sweetheart, but until she comes around to seeing that, well . . a guy has needs.’
I wrinkle my nose at him, making him laugh louder, his hand falling on my arm, leaning closer to whisper in my ear as the bell from the door jingles again. ‘I’m kidding’ he chuckles, ‘Daisy is friends with my older sister, and she has no patience with me. I really like f*cking with her.’
laughing, I pull back slightly, my eyes moving from my new friend’s face, across the small room to land on the very imposing figure of my new stepbrother who is glaring at me, his arms crossed over his chest.
Caleb’s POV
Yeah, this has been a really good morning, I even managed to not snap at Sharon or whatever her name is.
‘Are we getting some lunch?’ my brother calls out as he enters my office, Callan a few steps behind me.
‘Sure, where is Cynthia? I’m hungry’ I mutter, not even looking up from my computer where I’m currently going over plans of a building that is hosting a banquet which will be graced by Maine’s rich and famous, that we are providing the security for.
‘Her name is Iris dude, seriously, it’s not hard to remember’ Gage sighs as he throws himself into one of the chairs opposite my desk. ‘And she had a doctor’s appointment remember? Asked to take a half day today, she’ll be in this afternoon?’
Nope, I have no idea what he’s talking about, and to be honest I don’t care but that does explain why she hasn’t annoyed me all morning.
‘So who is getting lunch?’ I ask irritably.
‘Not it!’ my brother and best friend both yell out at the same time, smirking at me as I glare at them both.
‘We’re not in seventh grade anymore, do you two want to call shotgun as well?’ I growl.
Callan shrugs, ‘We don’t call shotgun dude, how old do you think we are?’ he demands before grinning, ‘We play rock paper scissors like proper f*cking adults.’
I roll my shoulders, trying to ease some of the tension which is so much worse now these two knuckleheads are sitting across from me.
Both men are watching me expectantly, so grudgingly I push back my chair and grab a notepad and pen.
‘Fine,’ I grumble, ‘what am I ordering for you assholes?’
‘Well as you are paying, I think I’ll go for the cream cheese bagel with a slice of that carrot cake they always have’ Callen muses.
I raise an eyebrow at him, ‘who said I am paying?’ I demand mulishly.
My best friend grins, ‘you did, just then’ he replies, as my brother cracks up laughing. God, they are both immature assholes, how did I get lumbered babysitting them both?
I write down Callen’s order before turning to my brother who taps his chin as he contemplates. ‘I’ll take a cherry cola, chicken Caesar salad, and one of those blueberry muffins I like.’
I grumble loudly as I write it down before scrawling my own lunch down and standing up.
‘See you soon big bro!’ Gage calls after me as I stomp over to the door, buttoning up my suit jacket whilst I walk and head out of the office.
Once on the street, I stop for a second, sucking in a lungful of the humid Maine air as I close my eyes momentarily. I love those guys, but their constant childlike behaviour grates on me more often than not. It’s like, whilst I was dealing with what I saw and did overseas, my brother and best friend are determined not to acknowledge that time in their lives and have reverted back to high school as though acting like teenagers will somehow wipe out the years and memories. The divide between us seems to be growing with every day that passes, I just hope they find their way.
Checking the road, I cross the street and head down the sidewalk to Manny’s bakery, which was recently renamed as Sugar and Nice, the small bakery that we always get our lunch from. It’s a small family run place that has just been handed down to the fourth generation. Daisy’s father handed the reins over to his daughter after he had a stroke two years ago. The place had stayed shut while the old man recovered, but eighteen months later, he had to accept that he was never going to get back to his kitchen and finally stepped down.
Daisy took over six months ago, and though young, the pink haired woman was doing well. Their cook, Laurence, had taken temporary jobs after Max’s stroke, and came straight back when he heard that the young woman was reopening the doors. Word was that he has taken a pay cut until Daisy gets the business back in the black, but he refuses to answer any of the gossips in the area who ask him.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.