From Gods (Descendant Prophecies Book 1)(4)

"Hey, Jack," Skylar replied, blushing.

"Hello, Skylar," Mona welcomed her warmly. She wore all pink with a  white apron. Mona had lost some weight, from what Skylar could remember,  and had dyed her hair a lighter shade of blonde. But what she  remembered most was Mona's love of perfume. She smelled like honey mixed  with wild flowers.

"So what can I fix you ladies?" Mona asked cheerfully.

"We're not here to eat. We're here to work," Kayla moaned.

"You mean you gotta hang out with the old folks today?" Jack chuckled.  His pearl-white hair was unlike any Skylar had seen on an older person  before. It was the purest, prettiest color she had ever seen. Though she  recalled Jack being around fifty, despite his white hair, he looked  young for his age.         

     



 

"Speak for yourself," Mona snapped playfully. "I'm very young. At least  you girls get some relief from the heat. It's air-conditioned all day  here."

Kayla and Skylar giggled.

"Well, I better show Skylar how to work the cash register, and then I'll  help Mona wait tables," Kayla announced, tugging Skylar along with her.

"Go right ahead," Mona muttered, heading toward a table with a wet cloth  in her hand. "Is it your first time behind a cash register, Skylar?"

"First job ever," Skylar said timidly, looking embarrassed.

As Jack prepared the food for the lunch rush, Kayla showed Skylar how to  work the register, particularly what to do when they paid cash or with a  credit card. After several practice rounds, Skylar was set.

"Easy, right?" Kayla asked.

"Yup. Got it," Skylar replied enthusiastically. "Oh my God! This is so  much fun. I love to punch in the keys. I could do this all day."

"You're such a cute dork. Let's see if your enthusiasm is still there at  the end of the day." Kayla shook her head, giggling. Then she went to  the back and came out with white aprons and hair ties. "Here, put this  on and tie your hair back. It's my mom's law." She rolled her eyes.

Skylar frowned in discontent, but she did as she was told. Checking out  her attire, the long apron resembled a skirt on her, especially since  she was wearing shorts. "Cute," she commented sarcastically. Struggling  to pull her hair back into a ponytail, she turned her back.

"Remember, you offered to work heeere," Kayla reminded her, dragging out  her last word. Laughing, she walked toward the back just as the door  chimed.

"Welcome back to Kelly's Diner, boys," Mona greeted, leading the guests to their table.

After Skylar's hair was neatly tied, she turned to see the incoming  customers and froze. Sure, her cousin had joked about it, but never in  her wildest dreams had she imagined she'd see him here. Mortified, her  eyes shot down to the buttons on the register. She didn't want to face  him again after he had scolded her. Stay calm. No big deal. Cops eat  lunch too, but of all the places, why did he have to eat here?

Skylar reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone to text  Kayla who was still in the storage room. First day on the job and I'm  texting. She shook her head. This was not professional, but it was her  aunt's diner after all. Keeping an eye out for customers, she placed her  phone under the counter to hide it as she texted.



He's here!

Who?

The cop.

You mean the hot cop?

Yes!

I'm coming right out!



Skylar glanced toward his table. Her eyes flashed downward when his eyes  met hers. As blood rushed to her face, she hoped he wouldn't recognize  her. He didn't smile or acknowledge her, not that she should care. He  had been on duty when they met, so maybe he didn't remember her. Cops  probably pull over countless people on a daily basis. What was another  face to him?

Kayla burst out the door and then slowed her pace. Since Mona was  already looking after them, she went behind the counter to observe while  pretending to be busy wiping up an invisible mess. Feeling the  vibration from her cell phone, Skylar pulled it out of her back pocket  and read the text from Kayla.



Both are hot. Which one?

The one with the black T-shirt.

What? Both are wearing black.

Sorry. Only had eyes on my cop.

Which one? I get the other one. Lol!

He didn't notice me.

I'll make him notice.

No!



Mona took the order and gave it to Kayla, and then Kayla gave it to  Jack. After the sandwiches were made, instead of passing the plates to  Mona, Kayla took them herself since Mona was attending to other  customers who had just walked in.

"Hello . . . are you guys new to our diner?" Kayla asked with the most  polite voice she could conjure up, while placing their lunches in front  of them.

"No, we've been here a few times, but I've never seen you before," the cop's friend answered, seemingly taken in by her charm.

"My mom owns this place. I help out once in a while. My name is Kayla."  She pointed to the name tag pinned on her shirt. "And my cousin over  there-" she pointed to Skylar, "-her name is Skylar." The guy's eyes  glanced in the direction she pointed, but not the cop's.

Skylar let out a small smile and looked away.

"So, what are your names?" Kayla inquired.

"My name is Nicholas-Nick. And my brother's name is Mason."

Mason? Skylar was eavesdropping on their conversation. She was sure  she'd read his name tag correctly, and it had read "Officer Doug."  Frazzled, she brushed it off. There was no choice. Clearly, his name was  Mason. His brother Nick had confirmed it. Although, in her opinion the  name Mason suited him better.         

     



 

"We're having a party at the beach tomorrow night. Want to come?"

Kayla's face beamed brighter than the sun. "Sure, but can I bring my cousin?"

"Of course. You can bring whomever you like, as long as it's not your boyfriend."

"You're in luck. I don't have one right at this moment. Soooo, when and where?"

"Meet at Point Beach at nine, and don't come too late. Look for the  bonfire. Our group will be the only ones there. You don't need to bring  anything, just yourselves and a bathing suit if you want to swim-or  maybe don't bring one and go skinny-dipping instead." He winked.

Kayla laughed, the kind of laugh only Skylar could understand. It was a  combination of a flirtatious and a nervous laugh. Then Kayla focused her  eyes on Mason since she hadn't heard a peep from him. He gave her a  short grin when she did.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone so you can eat. If you need anything else, let me know."

Skylar saw her cousin flirting easily with the guys, and she knew if she  could, Kayla would be floating in midair at that moment. Skylar wished  she could flirt with boys like Kayla, but ever since she'd broken up  with her ex-boyfriend, she'd lost her confidence.

She had felt things were moving too fast, but what was fast to her  wasn't fast to most other girls her age. She had given him  everything-well, almost everything-not her virginity, thank God. So when  he broke her heart, it had broken all of her. Kayla had never liked him  and told her many times that he wasn't good enough for her, but what  did that mean, anyway? He was her first boyfriend, and for her, he was  good enough.

After Skylar rang up a bill, she got bored standing behind the register.  To keep herself busy, she turned to wipe off the counter behind her.  She twitched when the sound of someone clearing his throat startled her.

"Umm, hi. Sorry, how can I help you?" she said, turning to see something  black. She looked up. When she saw who it was, she froze and wanted to  hide.

"I'd like to pay our bill." His tone was low and soft as he handed the  slip to her. The same sexy tone went straight to her stomach, making it  tingle.

"Sure, of course." She paused while looking at the screen. Feeling the  weight of his stare, she instantly forgot what to do as warmth flushed  her face. What do I push first? Finally, it all came back to her.  "That'll be twenty dollars and twenty-five cents."

When he handed her the exact change, his hand brushed against hers. She  gasped inwardly from the mere touch of his skin. Then a millisecond  later, electricity shot down her spine, and she jerked back from the  shock he had just given her. "Ouch!" Startled, she looked right at him.

Flinching at the same time she did, he looked baffled and then annoyed.  "I'm sorry," he murmured under his breath and curled in his fingers to  make a fist.

"That's okay," she accepted and lit a small quick grin. After all, it  had been an accident, though she couldn't understand how it had  happened. The diner had tile floors, not carpet, and it wasn't windy. It  was the hottest month of the summer, but what did she know about things  like static electricity anyway?

From the corner of her eye, she saw Nick stand and look their way, as  though he were zeroing in on their conversation. He grinned slyly and  then sat back down. Did he find Mason shocking me amusing?

She contemplated thanking him for letting her go instead of giving her a  ticket. Since she still had no idea why she had been pulled over, she  thought she'd ask before her shyness got the best of her, "I wanted to  thank you for letting me go when you pulled me over. I mean, thank you  for not giving me a ticket. It was nice of you. Though I still don't  know what I did." She was doubtful that she should have said the latter  part.