“Are you sure?” Mac asked.
“I’m sure. It’s, er, kind of slow right now.”
“I’ll be closing in an hour. You can go. I’ll take it from here.”
“Oh, but I usually—”
“Go, Luna.”
This was unusual. Just another part that had changed in this town while she’d been away.
****
There was nothing Matthew could do.
Yes, he’d said all that shit to Luna when they were kids. He’d told her he loved her, that he thought about her constantly, and it hadn’t been a lie. He did think about her all the time. It never stopped.
In high school, he’d watch her. Even when everyone ignored her, he’d been drawn to her.
The girl that was so much more than that. She walkedthe halls, sat in class, and she didn’t give a fuck what people thought of her. Wearing glasses, shoving them up her nose, and answering the teachers’ questions. Tutoring. She ignored the sniggering and just got on with her life.
When they had been alone together, he’d expected her to be nothing more than a giggling mess, but she had balls of steel. She had told him to get his act together and to learn. That he had real potential if he actually applied it.
Spending time with her had been fun. Having sex with her, his first virgin, had been incredible—and the worst and most terrifying experience of his life.
His feelings for Luna had fucking scared him.
Moving on and sleeping around was easy. There was so much pussy that had been easy and not innocent. Then, of course, the potential pregnancy. He’d been worried, but part of him had also been glad. If Luna had been pregnant, then that meant they had a chance. He had a shot with her because they had someone keeping them close together.
Only, Luna hadn’t been pregnant. She hadn’t been his, and he’d lost her.
After dumping the burgers on the main table, he grabbed one for himself, as well as a portion of fries, and headed out toward the bench where he climbed on the top and tore open the wrapper. He took a large bite and chewed, not tasting it.
“Wow, you look like someone gave you a pickle you didn’t want,” Kid said.
Kid was the other prospect, along with Rick, but he didn’t see the other guy.
“I happen to like pickles.”
Kid took a seat next to him, opening the wrapper of his burger and peeling off the top bun, and he groaned. “Gross. You want my pickle?”
Matthew shook his head.
Kid lifted it and tossed it into the trash can. “Disgusting. What is the deal with constantly putting pickles on everything? That shit is gross. This is why we need Holly and Mary around here. They don’t pickle everything they see. They know that to have a good burger. You just leave it alone.”
“What about the cheese?”
“That goes without saying.”
“I can’t believe we’re having this conversation again,” Matthew said.
Whenever he got burgers and fries from the diner, Kid always, without fail, complained about the pickle that made it onto his burger.
“Fucking disgusting is what it is. You know what I think?”
“Does it matter if I know what you think or not?”
“I think it is Mac’s way of paying us back.” Kid nodded.