Page 27 of Five Days in July
“This is my new office manager, Lenore.” I stare him down, trying to limit whatever damage he’s about to inflict on my reputation.
He gives me a wicked grin and opens his mouth but then seems to notice how Lenore’s tucked herself up against my side. Letting go of her hand and stepping back, he smiles warmly. “Nice to meet you.”
“You as well.” Lenore’s voice is relaxed, and for the first time since high school, I see Steve as competition. I’m not usually a jealous man, but the hot tightness in my chest says it wants her to only smile at me that way.
“Are you new to the area?”
“How does everyone figure that out so quickly?” She smiles slightly at him, and I’m both glad to see she’s relaxing around my best friend and unsure of how to handle this sudden onslaught of possessiveness.
“Just haven’t seen you around.” He looks between her and me as if he’s waiting for me to reveal that I’ve been keeping her a secret from him for longer than just a day.
“I moved up about two months ago.”
“Well, welcome to Door County.” He gestures to the tables. “Take your pick.”
“Thank you.” She steps in front of me but stays close as we lead him toward a quiet corner in the back where there’s a free booth. As we pass, one of the part-time waitresses hustles out of the kitchen with a wide tray in her arms, carrying it up to the only other diners at the front of the restaurant.
Steve leaves two menus on our table and follows the waitress, helping her hand out the dishes. I don’t need to look at the menu since I come here often, but I open it up and scan the options to occupy my hands.
Lenore’s tracing through her menu with a finger, considering each choice. I can see her eyes moving across each description while she reads, just like they did earlier in the store as she researched all the random car parts to make sense of them.
Before long, the full-time waitress, Sandy, an old friend of Annie’s, comes over with two sweating glasses of water and takes our orders. Needing a pick-me-up after a restless night, I opt for coffee, half expecting Lenore to do the same. She surprises me when she sticks with the water. Not that she looks tired, but I know how hectic her day was yesterday.
“Need more time before you order?”
“Yes, please,” Lenore says quickly before going back to analyzing the menu. She appears to be attempting to memorize the whole thing.
“No problem. Be right back with your coffee.”
“Sorry, I’m terrible at decision-making.” She smiles in a self-deprecating way that makes me want to refute her before she returns to her search. “What do you usually order?”
“Honestly?”
“Well, yes.” She stops reading and looks across the table at me.
“Burger and fries.”
“Good lord.” Her snort of laughter soothes my earlier jealousy. She did not laugh at Steve like that. There have been times I’ve wished for his more outgoing personality, but I’ve always been the reserved one of our duo.
“Have you tried anything else?”
“Yeah. Steak for dinner.”
She looks incredulous. “Do you only eat meat?” I know she’s teasing, even though she keeps her face carefully neutral. It’s something in the way she leans toward me, the subtle tilt of her head that gives her humor away.
“Soup sometimes. There’s a soup and sandwich special toward the bottom.” I tilt down the edge of her menu and slide my finger to it.
“Maybe I’ll just try that. What’d she say the soup of the day is?”
“Gazpacho?”
She makes a face. “I’ll pass then.”
“What, no cold soups?”
She grimaces. “Only if it's hot out.”
“Fair enough.” Today was just average. We got some hot days here, but most of the time, it’s tolerable.