And what was she even doing, paying attention to a handsome man while Drew and Troy and Val were in trouble?
Maybe it was a defense mechanism. Her brain was fleeing all of the worry and anxiety she was suffering from, and it was doing it by focusing on the first pretty thing that she saw.
Well, she had to admit that it had made a good choice. Carlos was probably the most attractive man she’d laid eyes on in the last...she didn’t know how long.
But he was a customer, and he was only in town for a few days, and Pauline sure wasn’t the type of woman to have affairs with the tourist men who were always drifting in and out. That was the sort of thing that ended with regret if you were lucky.
So she was going to take a deep breath or two, get the drinks all ready, and keep herself under control for the rest of the evening. If her heart fluttered in her chest at the sight of that very handsome man, well, no one else needed to know, and it wouldn’t matter after tonight anyway.
Maybe it was good that she was distracted from Drew’s troubles. She couldn’t do anything while she was at work, and if this made the time pass more quickly, then that was all the sooner she’d be able to go home and think about what she could do to help those kids.
That was fine. A distraction. A temporary distraction.
***
Carlos
Carlos remembered Pauline the waitress from the last time he’d come to Glacier Park. She’d struck his attention then, although he couldn’t quite have said why—they hadn’t even spoken, really.
There was just something about her. The way her dark hair, streaked with silver, was pulled back into a no-nonsense braid, with little wisps escaping. The snap in her bright brown eyes. Her oh-so-feminine curves.
It was more than looks, though. Pauline came across as tough, strong, capable in a way that had nothing to do with boardrooms and hostile takeovers, and everything to do with working on her feet and with her hands, day in, day out.
But then she’d turned pink and gotten flustered when she dropped her pen, in a way that made Carlos want to catch her hands, maybe kiss that blush on her cheeks.
He wasn’t usually this captivated by a woman he’d hardly spoken to. It was strange.
Carlos wanted to ask her out, get to know her better. See if this attraction, this draw that he felt to her was based on anything real.
But she was already off-balance, it was clear. She’d been embarrassed—maybe because she felt a similar attraction?—and probably wouldn’t thank him for putting her on the spot at her job, in front of a ton of people.
He considered simply leaving his number on a napkin after they left, but he didn’t like that plan at all. It seemed cowardly, as though he was too intimidated by the idea of rejection to stick around and see what she said. And there was no guarantee that she’d actually see it.
No, he’d have to come back alone. Order a meal, leave a good tip, and only then ask her out, as he was leaving. So she wouldn’t feel pressured to say yes to a customer.
Satisfied with his plan, he settled back into his seat and smiled at Pauline when she returned with their drinks. She smiled back, her cheeks flushing a little once again, and then took their orders with strict professionalism, no more embarrassment to be seen.
Carlos really wanted to get to know her.
***
After they ate, Nate said, “So, ready to check out the local scenery?”
Carlos looked around. The sun was starting to set, lighting the mountains up with a gorgeous golden-orange glow. The rocky forests seemed to stretch out for eternity around the town.
“More than ready,” he said.
Stella and Lynn parted ways with them—wanting to get home, or politely giving the men time to catch up alone, Carlos wasn’t sure. But he was grateful for the chance.
He hadn’t shifted with anyone else in...well, if he didn’t count that time he and Nate fought off Stella’s ex’s wolf pack, it had been years.
And while that had been exhilarating, it hadn’t been fun, precisely.
Now, though, Ken was giving him that devil-may-care grin that Carlos remembered on a much younger face, years ago, and Nate was scouting ahead for a good spot far enough into the trees that no one would see them shifting.
Carlos rolled his shoulders, loosening up, ready to shift and run. He could feel his tiger riding close to the surface, eager to come out.
Too long asleep, it rumbled in his chest. Too long in bright lights, close spaces. Time to get out, run free.