Page 24

Savannah sits across from me, her eyes darting everywhere but in my direction. When she’s done taking in her surroundings, she stares down at the menu with her fingers gripping the edges and her brows drawn tight.

Damn, I picked this place in hopes she’d feel at ease, but even here she looks like she’s ready to bolt at any second.

“Hey,” I say softly, leaning forward. I so badly want to take her hand, but I hold back. “Don’t worry about anything. It’s all on me tonight.”

Her head snaps up, her expression caught somewhere between gratitude and embarrassment as she shakes her head. “Oh no. I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

“You didn’t ask.” I smirk, closing my own menu. “Pick whatever you want.”

Reluctantly, she nods before going back to her menu, and after a few moments, she sets it down, looking around the place nervously. It ticks me the hell off that she’s so uncomfortable right now. I thought we’d gotten over this.

“You look beautiful tonight, Savannah.” And she really did. Save for that rhinestone one-piece she wore on stage; I haven’t seen her in anything other than leggings and a sweatshirt. Today she’s wearing jeans and a black off-the-shoulder sweater that cinches in at her waist.

“Thanks,” she says, still not looking at me. Why the hell is she still so nervous?

“Hi, guys!” The waitress comes over with a pad in her hand and a wide smile. She looks between the two of us, her pen tapping against the notepad. “My name is Chloe, and I’m so happy you both decided to come here for dinner tonight.”

It’s hard not to notice Savannah wince as she shrinks into the booth and covers her face with the menu.

“Hi, Chloe, it’s nice to meet you.” I give her a smile, but she’s not focused on me. She can’t stop looking at Savannah.

“Oh, it’s great to meet you too…” she drawls out the ending, looking at me expectantly as she pushes up onto her toes.

“Cade,” I say with raised brows.

She drops down, and I almost want to say she has a smug smile on her face. “Cade.” Her voice is calm. “You’re a hockey player, right?”

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

Savannah coughs and gives Chloe a look.

Chloe squeaks a little before coughing herself. “Yeah, uh, well, you look like it. What with all those muscly biceps of yours.” She lightly whacks my arm with her pad, resting her hand on her hip. “You picked a good one for your date,” she says to Savannah, who grumbles under her breath.

Is she annoyed that Chloe called this a date?

I thought we were on the same page. I mean, she dressed up for it, so I didn’t think I needed to spell it out. But with Savannah, I can never be sure.

I never really know what she’s thinking.

“What can I get you both?”

Chloe’s ponytail flicks between us, so I clear my throat and answer. “I’d love the lasagna with cheesy garlic bread and a water. What would you like, Savannah?”

“Yeah, Savannah? What would you like?” There it is again. The drawl in her voice that sounds almost teasing.

Savannah is slow to bring her attention to the waitress, her cheeks a little red. “I’ll have the house salad and a water, please.”

Chloe jots it down. “A house salad with a large side of sweet potato fries and a strawberry milkshake. Got it.”

Savannah’s gaze flicks to me, unease clear in her face.

“Is that what you want?” I ask, almost certain these two know each other.

“Yes,” Chloe answers for her. “It’s her favorite.”

“Great,” I say.

“Well, if that’s it, I’ll get it all prepared for you.” Chloe takes our menus and as she walks away, I look at Savannah quizzically.

With no menu to hide behind, she shrinks into her seat. “Uh, I used to work here.” Her cheeks flame at the admission.

“Really?”

“Yeah, before…” She trails off, and I know why.

The same reason she tenses up whenever I mention Luke.

She’s embarrassed. She shouldn’t be. This place is awesome and the stuff with Luke, well, shit happens in life, and we all make a bad decision or two.

Hell, I made a pretty bad decision fighting for him too.

“I’m sorry. I picked it because it was close to campus. We can go somewhere else if you want?”

She raises her hand. “No. Don’t worry. The food’s great here. Joe makes a mean lasagna.”

“Well, I can’t wait to try it.”

Chloe comes over and drops our drinks on the table and most notably three straws. “One for your drink, and the other two for the milkshake.” She looks at me pointedly. “In case you want to try it. It’s delicious.”

“I can order my own.”

“You can share mine,” Savannah offers. Chloe walks away, looking far too pleased with herself, but she’s working in my favor, so I like her.

Without waiting for a response, Savannah grabs both straws, slides them into the drink and nudges it to the center of the table.

“Try it,” she says, then leans in and wraps her lips around the straw, taking a long sip.

Well, fuck. Who am I to say no to that?

I lean forward, take a sip and as my forehead brushes across hers, I’m fully aware of how we must look. A perfect little couple, tucked into this booth, sharing a milkshake. Wonder if she’ll let me make this a reality soon.

“Tastes amazing,” I say as I lean back and watch Savannah take another drink. Her lips close around the straw again and I’m pretty sure she’s completely unaware of what that does to me.

Tearing my gaze away, I tap my fingers against the table, taking in the diner around us. With worn red booths and checkered floor, it’s got that old-school charm about it, and I can’t help but picture Savannah working here.

Wearing a little apron, balancing plates on her arm, flashing that small, reserved smile to customers who didn’t realize how rare it was to get. Would she have been flustered when the rush hit? Or did she move through the chaos with that quiet determination she always seems to have?

I bet she was good at it. Quick, efficient, making sure people had what they needed without getting too involved. She’d be the kind of waitress who didn’t stick around long enough for small talk but still somehow left an impression.

I accidentally catch Chloe’s eye across the room, and she smirks like she knows exactly what I’m thinking before going back to scribbling something on her notepad.

“What made you quit?”

She swallows, hesitating, and I wait. She’ll tell me. I know it. “I, uh, didn’t have much of a choice.”

“Why not?”

“I needed more money for my apartment.” She tries to mask it, but her voice cracks at the word ‘apartment.’ The one that was apparently fumigated in less than twenty-four hours.

The same apartment that she wouldn’t let me pick her up from.

Right now, I don’t think her apartment exists, but I’ll wait and see if she tells me that.

“Is that why you ended up working for Luke?”

She shrugs. “Yeah, originally, it was supposed to be just a couple of nights a week to supplement the income I got from here.”

“Mhm.” That’s how Luke always worked with his girls. Start them slow. Ease them into things until he builds their trust. Then slowly, slowly chip away at their support system until he’s all they’ve got. Unfortunately, Luke didn’t bank on me getting involved.

“I got into some debt and had to leave here to earn a little more money.”

Well, that’s more than she’s said before.

“At Luke’s.”

She nods, and that’s enough for me to put some of the pieces together. “Luke cut you a deal, didn’t he? One with a lot of interest tacked on the back which he didn’t tell you about until you’d already accepted it.”

Savannah’s lips part slightly. “H-how’d you know?”

I shrug. “I’ve been on the receiving end of a couple of Luke’s offers.

House always wins for him.” My voice dips, letting her hear the edge behind it.

“Gotta admit, I was relieved when he finally stopped trying to get me to fight for him. Pretty sure the only reason he backed off was because of the way I looked at you that first night.”

Her cheeks flush instantly at the implication, and she drops her gaze to the table.

“Lasagna.” Chloe drops my meal in front of me. “And the House salad with a side of fries.” She slowly drops the other one in front of Savannah, like she’s waiting for some kind of reaction, but Savannah barely spares her a glance. Doesn’t say a word. Just keeps her focus on the table.

“Thank you,” I say.

Chloe looks between us, her smile still bright. “Is there anything else you need?”

“No. We’re good,” Savannah answers, not looking up.

Chloe gives me another passing look, a small smile, and a roll of her eyes. I’m guessing she’s had to deal with Savannah’s shutdowns before.

“What was Luke’s deal?” I ask as casually as I can. I want her to choose to open up to me.

Savannah stabs her salad and admires the lettuce instead of looking at me. “An advance. Enough for a down payment on an apartment. The interest, though…” She pauses, then rephrases. “It makes it nearly impossible to keep up.”

The way she corrects herself. The weight behind it. It confirms what I already know.

Leaning in, I ask, “Are you living out of your car, Savannah?”

Her head jerks up, eyes wide. She stutters, and I can tell she’s trying to think of a lie, so I don’t let her. Instead, I take her hand and bring her attention to me.

“You can’t hide from me, Sav. I see you,” I say gently. “I just want to help.”

Her eyes search mine, looking for any hint that I might be tricking her like all these other people have, and I will her to really take me in. I need her to see that I don’t want to do anything except help her.

After a minute, she sighs and leans back against the booth, our hands slipping away from each other. Something I don’t like, but I get it. She needs to admit this herself before she admits it to me. “It’s not like I have much of a choice.”

“How long?”

She raises her brow.

“How long have you been living in your car?”

“Just a few months.”

“ How long, Savannah?”