eyes swam again as she nodded. “I . . . I like it better with my Dad. Mom was gone. I didn't see her.”
I pulled her in for another hug, and she came to me willingly. Her body shook through a few post tear hiccups, then calmed. When I pulled away, some of the composure had returned to her eyes.
“Better?” I asked.
With a trying smile, she wiped away the last of her tears. I pressed a kiss on top of her head, straightened, and took her hand.
“Great,” I announced, “because it's time to get you some new dresses with pockets, my girl. Lead the way and show me anything that makes you happy.”
17
Benjamin
Fresh, mountain air greeted me back to Pineville with the mellow rush of an almost-summer evening. Lights dotted Main Street from the buildings, illuminating the darkening avenue with a few open restaurants. Early season tourists spilled out of the buildings here and there. Stars popped out overhead.
But I ignored all of that.
Sleepless nights and jet lag aside, I had a mission. I'd dropped Maverick off at home, kissed my sleeping daughter's head after staring at her for a long time, then headed for the Diner. A check with Sera's name on it burned a hole in my pocket, but that was just an excuse to see her.
It had only been a few days—in hell, if you asked me—but I couldn't wait to catch up with Serafina. To really talk about Ava even though we'd texted or talked on the phone. Who was I kidding? I just wanted to see her.
Not to mention get an explanation for her evasive text last night that said had a very interesting talk with Ava about Sadie today. Can't wait to tell you about it in person. The in-person part of that had me a little concerned.
Anything with Sadie was problematic.
The Diner parking lot was full. With summer came tourists, and most restaurants extended their hours to accommodate the rush of foot traffic. When I slipped inside, people waited on benches in the main part of the parking lot, and music sang from speakers piped outside. Inside, Fight Night flickered across several television screens in a back room. Two lightweight guys grappled on the screen before the heavyweights would come through.
Normally, it would have sucked me right in. My trainees were probably here to watch it, somewhere in the chaos of people. A madhouse packed the back room of the Diner, accompanied by alternating screams, groans, or shouts depending on what kind of hit the champion took.
Tonight, I didn't care about fights, MMA, or rankings.
Once I stepped through the doors, my eyes scanned the area for Sera's wild hair and work jeans. She usually wore a navy t-shirt that said The Diner across the front, and Bacon + You = True Love on the back. Tonight took me several moments before I saw her slipping into the back room, mugs of frothing beer in her hands. Her hair was tied away from her face in a messy riot of curls on top of her head. She appeared frazzled, the color high on her cheeks. An apron tied around her waist gave away her curves, and I didn't like that. Not with a den of drunk men at her hands.
I tried to fight my tension as Dagny stepped forward and asked, “T-table for one?”
“No, thank you. I'm here to speak with Serafina?”
Dagny brightened. “Sure. Have a s-seat at the counter and I'll let her know you're h-here.”
Instead of settling on the only open, frayed stool, I leaned on the counter and kept an eye on the shouting room of men. They packed in there so tight Sera could barely maneuver her way back out through the crowd. My hands fisted in front of me as I watched her try.
“Hey man,” said a voice from my side. “How are you, brother?”
A hand clasped my shoulder, and I turned to see Hernandez standing next to me. Without his sheriff's uniform bulking his already strong shoulders out, I almost didn't recognize him. We'd done some training sessions together since I arrived, then he finagled a contract between us and the county to do more deputy MMA training with new deputies. I grinned when I saw him.
“Hey.” We clasped hands and bumped chests. “How are you?”
“Can't complain.” He shrugged, then gestured to the screens in the back. “Came to grab some dinner, but it's getting a bit rowdy back there. Thought I'd hang out a bit and just