Page 32 of Memories of the Lost

He dropped the box in the trunk. “Yoga, actually.”

“Really.” Eyeing his arms, she wondered if the rest of him was that solid. She hoped she’d have a chance to find out. “I still want to sketch you.”

“Better hurry. I’m leaving Saturday.”

It gave her a pang, which she shoved away. “Come on. I know a place in the village you will love.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The Gentle Earth Eatery had been a fixture in the village as long as Tillie could remember. A gigantic geranium bloomed in the plate glass window, so huge it looked like it grew up through the floor, but it wasn’t dusty or shedding. Someone took good care of it so it bloomed red and pink all year.

A bell rang over the door as she pulled it open, and the fragrance slammed her hard—cinnamon tea, baking bread, herbs, and spices. She halted so quickly that Liam bumped into her, his hands falling on her shoulders.

“Ah, this is the real thing, ain’t it?”

“Yep.” She inhaled deeply. “I feel like the scent alone could heal me.”

The White girl behind the counter wore dreadlocks beneath a yellow-and-pink bandanna. Her nose was pierced between the nostrils, like a bull. “Hey, y’all, welcome. You can sit anywhere.”

They slid into a booth by the window, and she brought menus over. Her arms were wound with flower-and-plant watercolor tattoos, and Tillie imagined her as the summer version of Gaia. “Special today is avocado and sprouts on sunflower bread with carrot-coconut soup for eight dollars. I’ll give you some time to look at the menu.”

“Mm, sunflower bread,” Tillie said. “Bring us some iced tea, please.”

Liam smiled, raising a brow.

“Trust me.”

She headed for the kitchen.

“The sunflower bread is from my mother’s recipe,” she said quietly. “It was one of her best breads, and they begged for it.”

“I was already set on the special, but now I’m really in, unless there’s something better I should try.”

She ran her eyes down the menu, thinking of her favorites over the years—the apple pancakes, the grilled “cheez,” the seitan bacon. “My mother always liked a bean burger with guacamole, but I’m with you on the soup and sandwich.”

The server returned with two tall glasses of iced tea. It was a deep reddish-brown color, even with the ice. “Ready to order?”

“I’m going with the special,” Liam said.

“Cool.” She smiled at him. “Are you Australian?”

“Close. Kiwi.”

“Oh yeah? Whereabouts? My friend and I are going there next summer.”

“You’ll love it. Hiking?”

“Some. Camping. I want to sleep on the beach at Stewart Island. Supposed to be able to see the stars like nowhere else.”

“Brilliant.” He gestured toward Tillie. “What do you want, Tillie?”

She smiled. Charm surrounded him like an iridescent aura. She’d been slammed by it herself. “Same,” she said. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” She smiled at them, but more at Liam, and clapped the menus together.

“Like a bee to nectar,” Tillie drawled.

He gave her a half smile, acknowledging but not expanding.