“No chance I could tempt you to stick around? I’ll give you as many shifts as you want.”
“I don’t even live in the same state anymore.”
He turned to Nick, shaking his head. “I was a stupid man to let her go, and I’m suffering now, believe me.”
“I get where you’re coming from.”
Buck clapped both of us on the back. “Well, I’ll make sure you have a good meal tonight. Becky’s got a new cocktail menu you ladies might like to try.”
Missy led the way to a booth and slid in first. I sat next to her, and Nick took the other side. Barely a minute passed before Buck came back with the menus. There was no change in the offering, and I still knew it by heart.
“What’s good?” Nick asked.
“Everything, to be honest. The cook must be at least seventy, and he’s been here forever. I don’t think the regulars’ll ever let him retire. Some of them come here every night. Buck tried to mess with the food once, and there was almost a mutiny.”
“In that case, I’ll have a burger with everything. Got to keep my strength up.”
“I’ll have the same, except I can only ever eat half of it.”
Nick picked up the cocktail menu and skimmed through it. Then he did a double take and choked back a laugh.
“Holy fuck, have you read this? There’s a cocktail on here called ‘Becky’s Bukkake Special.’”
Now I may not have been worldly wise, but Billy went through a phase of forcing me to watch porn with him, which left me well aware of what bukkake was. Had Becky gone mad?
Missy let out a whoop of laughter. “Where, where? Show me!”
Nick waved the menu, and that good-natured smirk came back. “It’s halfway down, between ‘Morning Glory’ and ‘Golden Shower.’ Fuck me.”
Missy snatched the list from him. “Apparently it’s Becky’s special recipe of coconut cream, peach schnapps, and cider. Is that even drinkable?”
Just then, Becky came over, all bleached blonde hair, silicone-enhanced boobs, and minuscule skirt. Nick got her full attention, but he seemed to be having trouble looking her in the eye.
“What can I get for you, sweetie pie?” She teetered on impossible heels and stuck her chest straight into his face as he fixed his gaze on the table.
“A burger with everything, and Lara’ll have the same. Missy?”
“A steak sandwich for me.”
Becky dragged her gaze away from Nick to acknowledge our existence, then smiled as she saw what Missy was holding. “Oh, I see you’ve found my new cocktail menu. Would you like to try one? I created them all special myself.”
I kicked Missy under the table, but she totally ignored me.
“Sure. Gimme a Morning Glory.”
How did she say that without laughing?
“One Morning Glory. Got it. Lara?”
“How did you come up with the names?”
“Oh, I was having trouble with that, so a couple of the regulars helped me out. Some of them sound real exotic, don’t you think?”
“Uh, I guess so. I’ll just have a lemonade, though.”
“Sure.” Her smile faded, but she quickly perked up when she turned back to Nick. “What can I get you to drink, honey bear?”
“Just a beer, thanks.”
“Honey bear?” Missy asked after Becky had sashayed away.
Nick rolled his eyes. “I guess that’s why the ‘dumb blonde’ stereotype is alive and kicking.”
Becky quickly returned with the drinks and made a beeline for him. Totally predictable.
“So that’s a root beer for you, Coke for Lara, and a Bukkake Special for Missy.”
“Definitely alive and kicking,” Nick muttered.
Thankfully when our food orders turned up, they were more or less right. More or less. Nick’s portion of fries looked twice the size of mine, even though they were supposed to be the same. Obviously he warranted special treatment. Becky had probably shoved half of my fries onto his plate before she left the kitchen, and I noticed she’d also fluffed up her hair and refreshed her lipstick.
But the food hadn’t lost its appeal, and as we ate, the strained atmosphere eased a little. Nick chatted away, mostly to Missy, pausing occasionally to nod at Becky on the six occasions she stopped by to check that everything was all right with his meal.
I’d worried he might turn his nose up at Buck’s, considering the restaurants he normally ate at, but he seemed quite comfortable there. To me, the place looked even seedier than I remembered—a few more chips out of the scarred wooden tables, paint peeling from the wall by the restrooms. Had that