Читать книгу A Heavenly Christmas - Rhonda Merwarth - Страница 7

Chapter Three

There was that strange sensation again as Pearl took Eve’s hand, and then she found herself back in downtown Chicago, transported through time to the next day. It was probably lunchtime now, the crowd bustling around her. Snow fell in fat flakes as they walked toward a building bearing a sign that read Max’s Diner.

“There he is,” Pearl declared, leading Eve to the front door of the place.

Inside, a man was behind the diner’s counter. He looked over at Eve, and their eyes connected.

Wait a minute. “Him?” Was Pearl serious? He was the musician she’d shared a cab with—she was certain of it. “But… I know him.”

Pearl shook her head. “No, not really.”

Eve heaved a sigh as her stomach flipped over itself. This guy was her assignment, the uncle who had lost his way, and she was supposed to help? “Pearl?” She glanced around and realized the angel was missing. “Pearl? Pearl?” she cried out, looking desperately up and down the sidewalk. “Come back!” She’d left without explaining what was next, and Eve felt her nerves clawing at her.

The diner door dinged open, and there was the man in question, standing in the doorway and staring at her, his brow quirked. “Did you… lose a reindeer or something?” he asked with a smirk.

Due to the confusion in her mind, Eve blurted out, “Uh… an angel.” She winced internally at the words, knowing she sounded silly, and felt her cheeks explode in flames. Smooth, Eve. Really smooth.

His brow furrowed as he studied her. “‘Hark-the-herald-angels-sing’ angel?” Yeah, he definitely thought she was certifiable. Well, this was a fantastic start to her assignment.

“Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la?” she responded and plastered on a wide smile. Maybe he’d think it was a joke if she played it off like one.

That got him to laugh, his brown eyes sparkling. And something about that laugh made her feel warm inside. Maybe, just maybe, this assignment wasn’t going to be so bad. She had to admit, he was charming when he wasn’t trying to steal her cab.

“So, are you going to come in or just stand there and treat us to carols all day?” he asked, a lingering chuckle evident in his voice.

She lifted her head and eyed him. “Trust me, you don’t want me singing.”

The guy opened the door wider and welcomed her inside.

Delicious scents of food wafted right to her, and she sighed, her mouth watering in response. Could angels drink or eat? She hoped so, because she could destroy a piece of pie right now. Not to mention how much she wanted a coffee. Pearl hadn’t exactly filled her in on these finer nuances of her new career. She made a mental note to ask the elusive angel next time she saw her.

The guy went back behind the counter, and Eve slipped onto a stool, resting her forearms on the smooth bar surface. Behind her, people chatted in booths as they ate lunch. Life was going on around her the same as before, though everything had changed for her.

“So,” he said with a grin to Eve, crossing his arms over his chest. “Didn’t think I’d see you again.”

“Me neither,” she admitted.

Wow, his eyes were quite brilliant when he smiled. She couldn’t help but respond similarly.

“Maybe it’s fate,” he teased.

She jumped on the topic. This might be her in to figure out exactly what the crossroads issue was so she could come up with the strategy to help him. “Maybe, yeah. At this point, I think that I’d probably believe just about anything.”

He nodded toward the door. “What was all that outside?”

She scrambled for a response to the question, then decided she could give him the truth—at least, the partial truth. “I recently hit my head,” she admitted.

“Are you all right?” he asked, concern clear in his voice, brows furrowed in a frown.

“I’m alive for now.” Not really much else to say about that. She was still wrapping her head around this whole angel business. Yes, she’d grudgingly accepted it was true, but that didn’t mean she had any idea what she was doing. And speaking of, time to get more information out of him so she could form her plan of action. She looked around the diner. “So, you work here.”

“Manager, cook, bouncer, owner,” he said glibly.

Oh, so was he the Max in the business name? “Where’s your guitar?” she asked out of curiosity. Was that a side gig for him?

The light in his eyes dimmed a bit at her question, and she saw a change come over him, evident in the sudden tension in his frame. “I don’t need that to flip burgers.”

Hmm, seemed like a touchy subject to him. Perhaps this was part of the issue. She latched on to it and filed it away in her mind.

“So, what can I get you?” he asked, all business now.

“Uh, a triple espresso please.”

“How about black coffee with unlimited refills?” he countered.

“I’ll take it,” she said with a laugh.

Max went over to the coffee station, chatting with a blonde waitress. Eve took the time to look around at the people in the diner. The reality of her situation hit her, and she sighed. Her life—or whatever it was called now—was going to be changed permanently.

Part of her wanted to go back to her apartment, crawl under the sheets of her cozy bed, and hide out there while she tried to figure out how to adjust.

Eve was no quitter, though. Yeah, things hadn’t gone according to her plan. But she would make the best of this situation. She just needed to remember that she was a go-getter—relentless, driven. She’d made deals happen when no one else had believed they were possible. Surely this wouldn’t be that hard.

Determination helped her to steel her spine. Okay, this wasn’t what she’d planned for herself, but she was going to help this man. Achieve her goals.

The guy brought the coffee to her, and her brain whirred as she came up with her pitch to him. Probably the guitar thing was part of the issue—it was clear from his reaction. Eve was good about listening to her gut. It was what made her so successful in her career. And it would serve her well in this one too.

“So, did you make your appointment on time?” she asked.

“No,” he said lightly. “There was a traffic jam on Madison.” With that, he gave her a knowing look.

Her stomach sank. “I’m sorry.”

He didn’t say anything as he put the coffeepot back in its place.

Time to start fixing things. Eve pasted on a smile and slid into the long-familiar role. “Okay, you know what? I’m just gonna come right out and say it. Let the chips fall where they may.”

He eyed her skeptically.

She pressed on, determined. “I can see that you have a lot going on here. But is your bottom line where you want it to be?”

The skeptical look in his eyes turned to utter confusion. He leaned forward. “Is my what what?”

“Priorities,” she said, warming into her pitch. She could make him understand using the language of her business. The concept was universal. “You know, guitar, diner, diner, guitar.” As she explained, she waved her hands like two scales moving back and forth. Surely he could see that his focuses weren’t in balance.

“Still not following.”

Okay, maybe she wasn’t making it as clear as she thought she was. Her brain scrambled for a new approach. “I… I…” she struggled, then saw Pearl sitting on a stool several feet away, shaking her head at Eve. Boy, she was messing this up. She cleared her throat and turned her attention back to the guy. “I feel like maybe you are… at a crossroads.”

Even without looking over at Pearl, she could tell the angel was rolling her eyes.

He stared at her in silence, then said, “You really should get that head checked.” With that, he moved out from behind the counter, away from her and toward the door. “Sally, will you take this for me, please? I’ve gotta get Lauren home. Come on, kiddo—it’s late.”

As he walked away, Eve felt the disappointing rush of failure hitting her hard. Okay, so her typical strategy to win someone over to her line of thought wasn’t going to work in this case. And the look on Pearl’s face echoed that sentiment. Plus, he thought she was nuts. She was now even further back than when she’d started.

“By the way,” Max said as he donned his coat. “I Googled partridges. They do go in trees.”

“Pear trees?” she asked.

He eyed her in silence, then took a young girl’s hand and led her outside.

“Can I get you anything else?” the blonde waitress asked Eve.

Eve sighed and rested her head on her hand, elbow propped on the table. “No, no, that’s it. Thank you.”