Page 10 of Hale Damage
Now let’s hope Joe can follow through on his multiple orgasm promises. Hell, it’s been so long for me, I’d settle for one.
CHAPTER THREE
The Waffle Ho
Remington
“Areyou sure this is where you want to eat?” I ask, eyeing the restaurant with suspicion.
“Hell yes,” Minnie says with an enthusiasm I’m not feeling in the least.
I look up at the sign towering overhead. “Waffle Ho?”
She laughs like I’m being silly. “You’re so funny. Some of the letters on the sign aren’t lit. Who doesn’t love Waffle House after hours?”
Um, me?
We enter, and my nose is instantly assailed with the smell of grease and cardiac blockage. I have to admit, it makes my stomach rumble with hunger. A hostess approaches. She has a ratty blonde updo with no fewer than six pens sticking out of it at all angles. And she’s smoking a cigarette. Inside the restaurant.
“Table for two?” she drawls around the cancer stick.
Minnie points to a booth near the front window. “Can we have that one?”
“Sure thing, honey,” the woman, whose nametag readsElmo, says. I’m fairly certain that’s not her real name because a waitress namedCookie Monsterpasses by as we’re going to our table.
That reminds me, I should probably tell Minnie my real name. Butwhat if she recognizes it? The bet was I couldn’t get her to go to the hotel with me, despite not knowing I’m one of the richest men in the nation. And shit, I kind of like the vibe we’ve got going on. Not once has she asked me about my bank account or if I could buy her the newest designer purse or if I could get her some free makeup.
Minnie likes me for… me. But I’m definitely going to tell her at some point. I feel a pull to this woman, and I’m a hundred percent sure I don’t want this to only be a one-night stand.
I allow her to choose her seat first and then ask, “Can I sit beside you?”
Her smile is brilliant when she nods. She has one tooth on the right side that barely overlaps the one next to it, and the slight imperfection is perfect in its own way.
Sitting beside her, I pick up the menu. I expected it to be sticky, but it’s smooth and clean, as is the tabletop.
“Waffles or pancakes?” she asks, looking down at the selections.
“Well, we are at the Waffle Ho. I should probably get waffles.”
Minnie snorts and then covers her mouth with her hand. I like her snort. I likeher. She’s the most unpretentious woman I’ve ever met.
“Maybe I’ll be a rebel and get pancakes then,” she announces sassily.
We order from the woman namedCookie Monster, and Minnie swivels her body a little to face me. “What’s your favorite thing, Joe?”
“Um, like, on the menu?” I ask, confused.
“No, like, in the world. What do you like?” Her guileless hazel eyes look up at me from her caramel-skinned face. Her hair appears to be a natural red, but her skin tone hints at a mixed race of some kind. Maybe Latina?
“I love golfing. It’s what I do to relax.”
Her head tilts to the side, spilling some of those rich red locks over one shoulder. “Why?”
I wasn’t expecting the question, but my brain doesn’t even have to scramble for the answer. “Because it’s something I did with my dad. I got my first set of golf clubs when I was three, and we would spend every Saturday on the links.”
“Did your brothers go too?”
I shrug. “Not until they were about ten. They weren’t as enamored with the sport as I was when they were little. They’re still not, to be honest, but they play to be social.” My mind flits to the wager I’d made with Phoenix earlier. If I won the bet, he had to play golf with me every weekend for six months. I’m looking forward to kicking his ass.
