LITMIR.BIZ

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pride. “I protect him when mom argues with Sean. She says I’m going to be a good mommy one day.”

      “I’ll bet you will be.” The stress in Annie’s home became clear. Sending your child off with the likes of Sean Butler would put anyone in a bad mood. “What’s up, kid?” he asked as Betsy had hesitated. She had all but finished a couple bites of cake.

      “Maybe mom wants the last of it,” she said, hovering her fork over the shared plate.

      “Nah. I think you should finish it off, and we’ll get her a fresh piece.”

      Betsy’s eyes brightened with delight. “Good idea, William!”

      William stood and lingered near the table, waiting for the little girl to lick the plate clean.

      “We’re getting you a fresh slice,” he told Annie, who’d marched out of the bathroom.

      “No, thank you,” she replied, motioning for Betsy to join her. The little girl hustled out of the booth to stand beside her mother.

      “Okay,” William redirected. “How about a drive down to the lake, then? I thought I’d cruise around the peninsula if you’d like to join me.”

      Annie vigorously shook her head and put her hand on Betsy’s shoulder to silence the little girl’s enthusiastic squeal of approval.

      “We have to get back.”

      “But mom, couldn’t we, please?” Her mother shot her a stern look as a final warning.

      “Another time.” William winked at Betsy, escorting them to the entrance. As he exited ahead of them and held open the door, he could feel Annie hesitate.

      “Thank you,” she said, briskly scooting by him.

      “Thank you,” Betsy echoed cheerfully.

      “Annie,” William called. She turned as Betsy bounded ahead of her to the car. “Is there anything I can do for you? For the both of you?”

      Annie seemed to scrutinize his words.

       “Why?”

      “You seem like you’ve got the world on your shoulders.”

      Her face fell. She studied him for a few moments, her wide brown eyes drawing him further in with each slow blink. She was guarded from what he assumed was a direct result of years spent with Sean. And while he knew he shouldn’t care, seeing her again made him feel like a hint of the man he’d been in high school. A man he had long forgotten.

      As he moved closer, she shook her head and turned to her car. Her quick dismissal reminded him that a lot of time had passed and that she’d most likely forgotten the man he once was, too. Still, before he left Chinoodin Falls, he’d need some assurance that she was going to be okay.

      * * *

      ANNIE JOGGED THROUGH the back door of the diner and snatched her apron just as Mia, a fellow waitress with a spirited disposition, handed her a cup of coffee.

      “Thanks, M,” she breathed between gulps. “I feel like I’m always running from one thing to the next.”

      “How’s the little guy?” Mia asked, her clumpy mascara-coated lashes batting with concern.

      “I can’t tell if he really has a tummy ache or if it’s anxiety.”

      “Girl, your ex-husband gives me a tummy ache. I covered your tables.”

      Annie softened in appreciation as she caught her breath. She’d taken James to the doctor for the first appointment of the day before dropping him at school. His temperature was a little above normal, but the doctor believed he was fine. It was nearly summer, and not wanting him to miss end-of-the-year festivities, she’d said goodbye to him with an extra hug and kiss.

      She and Sean had argued the night before, as per usual, and she knew James internalized it. He had zero control in a stressful relationship with his father, so a sudden tummy ache probably had more to do with his emotional health than physical. She couldn’t blame him. She felt like she couldn’t fix things either, and she was an adult.

      “How’s my favorite lady?” Miles called from the kitchen.

      “I can hear you, you know!” Mia said, her bottom lip turning down in a pout.

      “Mia,” Miles said, poking his head around the corner. “You know I have nothing but love for you, but my heart will always belong to Annie. What can I make you?”

      “I’ll stick with coffee.”

      Mia pointed at Annie’s waist. “You need some sustenance, A. Miles, scramble her some eggs.”

      “Coming right up!”

      Annie scrunched up her face. “I can’t eat right now, Mia.”

      “You have to eat something good. I can’t have you skinnier than me on my wedding day.”

      “What I need is to drop two hundred pounds of ex-husband.”

      “Maybe he’ll get amnesia.”

      Annie laughed. “A girl can dream,” she said, but her face fell once she spotted William sitting at the end of the counter. She had mulled over his comment from the other night, trying to decipher what it meant. Is there anything I can do for you? He’d had some nerve telling her he loved her, running out on her without any explanation and then showing up more than a decade later as if she hadn’t meant anything to him in the first place. Now he wanted to know if there was anything he could do for her? He was too late.

      She greeted the Old Timers, a name she’d coined for a group of retired men who were her favorite regular customers. All born and raised in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, their friendly banter was as charming as their thick, Fargo-sounding accents. Heavily reminiscent of the Finnish and German influence on the area, some native speakers sounded like they were conversing in another language once they really got going. But Annie had lived in the Upper Peninsula since she was a child, so deciphering was old hat.

      “Dare she is!” Joe declared, slapping the table. “How ya doin’ now, Annie?” With his sparkling blue eyes and puffy red nose, he could have walked straight out of a quaint, small-town pub.

      Danny winked at her, fluffy white eyebrows fluttering above large, thick glasses. “Mia had to bring us our coffee, and she don’t pour it right, dontcha know.”

      Annie smiled and pulled out her order pad. “Are you eating this morning or just shooting the breeze and holding my tables hostage?”

      Joe pointed a calloused finger at her. “Now don’t start! I need a refill on my coffee first.”

      Annie tapped her pen on the table in feigned anger. “I’m never gonna retire if you only order coffee, Joe.”

      He took a sip and peered at her over the top of his cup. “But it’s such good coffee.”

      “I brew it myself.” She winked before turning to the others. “How about you, Earl? Do you want the Early Riser breakfast, like usual?”

      Earl flipped the corner of his newspaper down to contemplate her suggestion. He’d ordered the same breakfast every day for three years. He purchased The Chinoodin Chronicle newspaper and read it cover to cover at the table every morning. And even if the temperature reached eighty degrees, he’d worn the same red Kromer hat with fleece-lined flannel and earflaps. His eyes darted around the room before he flipped the corner of his paper back up, shielding his face. “Yah,” he answered in his usual gruff way.

      The Old Timers had been coming into the diner occasionally long before Annie had started working there. But when Dennis passed away and Annie began full-time, as Karrin told it, the Old Timers quickly took notice. They had begun arriving every morning since like clockwork.

      Annie hustled to grab the coffeepot, aware that William’s eyes were following her.

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