only one, but I think he took the outrage for them all.”
Fitting. Pop had gotten the shit for what his parents had gone through, and then for what everyone else went through with their loved ones. He’d taken the blame for a lot he hadn’t done in life until eventually he’d earned all the blame.
The smell of coffee greeted us as we entered. A group of older men surrounded a little table in the corner, playing pinochle. The young barista, Taya, was the owner of Creek Coffee. It’d been downright scandalous that she hadn’t used King as the moniker instead of Creek, but she wasn’t native to town. She’d moved to King’s Creek and wasn’t afraid to buck the trend.
“Morning, Emma,” she called, her gaze going from Emma to me. I expected the usual flash of derision in her gaze, or at least some superiority. But other than a hint of curiosity, I couldn’t detect anything negative. She smiled in greeting. “Welcome.”
Did she seriously not know who I was?
“Hi, Taya,” Emma replied. “This is Bristol. She doesn’t drink coffee. What do you have other than water?”
Taya pushed her dark hair off her face and propped a hand on her hip. “Let’s see, do you like really sweet, or more mellow like tea?”
Pop used to say that tea was nothing more than weeds someone had pissed on. I couldn’t drink it without that imagery. “I like sweet.”
“An Italian soda coming right up.” She tapped a placard by the cash register. “Pick a flavor, any flavor. I can mix and match too.”
I was digging out my wallet while I read the list. Emma put her hand on my arm. “You saved me from Creeper. Let me treat.”
My inner being rebelled. I didn’t want charity. But I’d seen how Tucker, Kiernan, and Dawson treated each other. Some days, Tucker arrived with a carafe from Creek Coffee for the three of them. Other days it was Kiernan with donuts or bagels. Also supplied by Creek Coffee. And then there was Dawson’s Sunday night Bake-Offs. I’d helped him prepare extra coffee for the guys that morning.
It was what friends did. Acquaintances even.
“Okay, but only if you let me buy next time.” Oh, god. Had I just asked her out? It hadn’t been this awkward to ask a guy out.
Emma grinned and handed a twenty to Taya. “Deal.”
I ordered a strawberry cream Italian soda and followed Emma to a table.
After we sat, she looked straight at me. “At the risk of being nosy . . . you and Dawson, huh?”
Her mouth twitched like she was holding back a grin. I didn’t sense jealousy or the need to gather gossip to spread around town. “Me and Dawson,” I confirmed.
“He finally wore you down?”
“I guess you could say that.”
Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. “Good. That man needed to work for it. After you two came into the ER that night, I hoped you’d give him a good run for it.”
“You’re not upset?”
Her brows popped. “Because we dated? No. I think most of us ladies want to know what it’s like. He’s hot. He was nice enough. But . . .” Her forehead furrowed. “I want the guy I end up with to do anything to be with me. No coasting. No humoring. No hemming and hawing.” She leaned forward. “I want the chemistry you two had in the ER. I mean, he would’ve carried you to town to get you to the doctor.”
“He would’ve done that for anyone.” And I meant it. That was the thing about that day. He’d done it for me when I would’ve been voted Most Likely to Be Left in a Ditch by Dawson King.
“He would’ve. Then he would’ve tipped his hat and been on his way. He wasn’t leaving your side. I crossed my fingers for you.”
I winced. “I might disappoint you.”
She laughed and the pinochle players glanced at us. Taya dropped off our drinks and I tried not to down mine in one pull after the first taste. “Well, I’m glad it’s working out. And I’m glad I got to know the real you. You were always so quiet in school.”
I arched a brow. “Quiet? I was always in the principal’s office.”
“Because the other kids wouldn’t quit fucking with you. They knew you’d take the fall. It’s why they kept doing it.”
I stared at her. The second time in twenty minutes she’d made my jaw drop. “I mean, I knew that, but I didn’t think anyone else noticed.” Or cared.
“Yeah,