Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77519 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77519 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Nikki did have every intention of going back to her trailer, but she also didn’t want to turn her mother down. Also, she didn’t want to be alone. Hawk might go to her trailer, and she didn’t want to have a chance encounter with him.
“I’d love to.”
“Awesome.” Ethel clapped her hands together.
This was so bizarre to her. She never saw her mother like this. Within minutes, she had a plate full of fluffy but drowned pancakes, lots of scrambled eggs, and several slices of bacon. It was a lot of food, and Nikki didn’t know if she was going to finish it. Her mother joined her with equally as much food, and they ate in companionable silence. It was nice. Nikki never thought she would have an experience with her mother that made her think spending any time with her was nice. It was actually fun.
And after the large breakfast, she helped with the dishes and on the way out the door, her mother pulled her in for a hug. A genuine “see you soon” hug that surprised Nikki.
“I’ll see you tonight.”
She agreed and headed out to her car. A layer of frost had hit overnight, and it was so cold. She wrapped her jacket even tighter around herself and climbed behind the wheel.
Her mother was still at the door, and she held her hand up and gave her a wave. Waving back, she turned over the ignition and pulled away from the curb.
Taking off, she headed toward the fast-food place and couldn’t help but wonder what might have been if she was able to finish her course with Darlene. After yesterday, she didn’t want to be near anything Hawk touched.
She tried not to think about Hawk. He might be telling the truth, but she was now starting to realize he would go to extreme lengths to get what he wanted. She didn’t understand why he’d gone to those lengths for her. Why did he insist on her getting a job and paying for her course? Did he expect her to work for Darlene for several years?
Now that she thought of it, that had all been included. She wondered if he’d worked out the cost and figured five years of her working for Darlene would be payment plus interest.
She couldn’t trust him, and the truth was, she couldn’t trust Darlene.
Arriving at the drive-thru fast-food joint, she turned off her ignition. There was still some heat to the engine, and she pulled out her cell phone and turned it on.
He’d also changed her cell phone for her. There was nothing he hadn’t touched.
There were several texts from Darlene, who said she was worried and Hawk was looking for her. To call her.
Nikki stared at the texts. She had thought Darlene was her friend. Only now, she had her doubts. What if she was only faking it because of Hawk? So many questions. So many doubts, and every one of them sucked big time. She hated these feelings.
She closed her cell phone, turned it off, and headed into work.
David was there. He shook her hand and started to talk about his three kids. One of them was in high school, and according to him, he was embarrassed to have a dad who was the manager of this place. He had another in kindergarten, and another heading toward nursery. She got a complete rundown of his family, including pictures, and she saw his wife. Nikki smiled and told him he had a beautiful family.
Other staff arrived, and most of them ignored David’s greetings, asking how their evenings were. She had told him it was good. Her evening had certainly been an experience.
The moment they opened the doors, Nikki was grateful it was busy. They did not stop or slow down. It was so refreshing. They had the pre-breakfast rush, the breakfast rush, the latecomers, and soon the regular lunch crowd.
There was a kind of slowdown, but there was always cooking, cleaning, and serving to do. She got to take her first break at one o’clock, which she was okay with. She’d not packed any lunch, and the truth was, she was still enjoying the fullness of her mother’s breakfast. There was a lot of food to take.
For lunch, she sat in her car, drinking coffee, scrolling through her texts, wondering if she should answer them. Hawk had texted her good morning and asked how her day was.
She looked at Darlene’s text. Friends or not, she felt she should respond. So, she sent off a text.
Nikki: I’m fine. I saw Hawk. Settled things. It is over. Thank you for all the lessons and for teaching me. It has been a wonderful experience. I’ve got a new job. Take care.
She sent off the text, not expecting to get a response. Not only did she get a response, her cell phone started to ring. Darlene’s name appeared on the screen. Nikki was tempted to close her phone. She didn’t want to have a conversation. Darlene, truthfully, hadn’t done anything wrong. She was just following orders.