Chapter Eight
The diner was open.
Luna was able to work, and she hated how happy she was about that. Of course, being happy to be working didn’t stop her from thinking about why she was so freaking happy.
Matthew’s advice kept ringing around her head.
The truth was, if she was working, she had a reason to not be writing her story. Completely lame and totally true. If she wasn’t writing, then she would never find out if she was good or bad at it.
She’d never considered herself to be a quitter. Not in her life. Never. But, in this, she felt like a quitter, and that made her feel even worse.
After carrying a large lunch tray of burgers and fries, she placed them down on the table with a smile. The couple at the table thanked her for lunch, and she moved toward the back where she saw Duke had arrived at the diner.
Luna approached his table. “What can I get you?”
She looked up from her notepad when Duke hadn’t spoken for a few seconds. He stared at her.
Did he know Matthew had been at her place last night? Did he hate her? Was he judging her?
“Mr. Bana?”
“I want us to meet,” Duke said. “Just the two of us. Matthew cannot know.”
She stared at him and frowned. “What is it?”
“I need you to come by the clubhouse tonight. Raoul will pick you up.”
“I, er, I don’t think that is a good idea.”
“I know you’ve got a date with my son tonight,” Duke said. “I’m going to give him a job. You will come, and we’ve got to talk.”
“Okay.”
Duke nodded at her notebook. “Two cheeseburgers, please.”
She made a note of it and then stepped away. Arriving at the main desk, she tore off the order and slid it across the counter, but Mac grabbed her hand before she could pull away. “Everything okay?”
She stared at his hand with a frown. “Yeah, everything is great.” She forced a smile to her lips, but smiling was the last thing she wanted to do.
Duke wanted a word with her, and Mac was acting crazy. She and Matthew had shared breakfast that morning, along with a full-blown conversation. What the hell was going on with the world?
“He wants a couple of cheeseburgers. That’s all.” She pulled her hand away. “Any news on any more waitresses?”
“None.”
“Oh. Well, how about I start interviewing them? I know what the job entails and all that.”
“No.” He took the order and turned his back away from her.
What was it with men in Vale Valley lately? She knew she’d been away for some time, and that could cause confusion and distance, but this was different.
All she wanted to do was help. Even though Mary had left, the diner was still going strong. Maybe she should reach out to Mary and ask her to talk to Mac. That sounded like the only logical thing to do.
The rest of her shift went by without any kind of hitch. Duke didn’t even act like he’d asked to meet her, and for a short while, she was tempted to imagine she’d made the whole thing up. Only, she hadn’t.
There wasn’t any chance of her making this up.
Her shift ended, and Mac told her to leave so he could close up early.