Her name tears into his jugular, a shot of adrenaline to his bloodstream. Seth starts and turns to the waitress, who’s waiting to take his order.
“Who’s that?” he blurts abruptly.
The waitress, not fond of having her daily special spiel interrupted, frowns. “Who?”
“Her.”
The waitress follows Seth’s eyeline. Jace moves his body to glance briefly over his shoulder. He’s too polite, he won’t stare. “Never seen her before. Ain’t a local, that’s for sure.” The waitress tsks and presses a hand against her heart. She leans in, but not out of conspiracy to gossip, out of concern. “Poor girl. Think she’s a bit hard up. Looks about half-starved.”
“Give her whatever she wants,” Seth says quickly. He’s itching to feed her. To keep her here as long as he can. “It’s on us. Anything.”
The waitress’s eyes sparkle. She reaches out to squeeze his arm in solidarity. “You sweet thing.”
Jace is grinning. “What? You got a crush?” Getting no reply, he kicks Seth beneath the table. “Dude, you’re starin’.”
“It’s her, man.”
“Who?”
“It’s Sal,” he rasps out.
Jace’s expression darkens. “What the fuck, Seth?”
Before Jace can say another word, Seth leans in, resisting the urge to grab Jace’s head and spin it around Exorcist-style. “Look. Take a goddamn look at her.”
Jace pretends to stretch in the booth, turning his head to check her out. Seth rolls his eyes. Real smooth, asshole. When Jace turns back to Seth, he swallows thickly. Denial clouds his ruddy features. “Sure looks like her.”
“It is her.”
“You want it to be her,” Jace says, overly cautious. “You’re seein’ things.”
Seth tunes Jace out, tunes back into the world when he realizes the woman in the booth is shaking her head at the waitress. Then the woman in the booth is speaking to him. “That’s super nice of you guys. But you seriously don’t have to do that.”
Seth stares at her; her voice, a husky timbre, is distinctively Sal.
She’s frowning.
He’s gawking.
Nice, man. Pull it the fuck together.
“Yeah, we seriously do.” Seth’s throat finally works and he floats her a smile. “Please. It’s on us.”
The waitress gives the woman a stern glare. “Order something quick, honey, else I’m gonna bring you liver and onions.”
The woman wrinkles her nose, looking so much like Sal that Seth’s stomach takes a nosedive.
Seth listens as the woman rattles off an order for a cheeseburger, fries, and a milkshake.
Seth wants—no, craves—a better look at the woman. He needs to get up close and personal. Though his mind screams this is crazy, this is a dream, this is im-fucking-possible, his gut is telling him to pick up the pieces and follow the thread.
When the waitress disappears into the kitchen, Seth decides to make a move.
“You want to join us?” he offers. His voice sounds overly loud in the empty diner. He wipes sweaty palms on the thighs of his jeans as he waits for her answer.
She looks startled. Uncomfortable, even. Like she’s bracing her body for a blow, she shrinks back into the booth, her thin arms crossing across her midsection.
“You don’t have to,” Jace says kindly, seeing her distress. He smiles at her. “Sometimes it’s no fun to eat alone, though.”