He grabbed his groceries and walked out before she could say any more. Once he was in the truck, he debated on where to go next. He didn’t really have any more errands to run, but he didn’t want to go back to the lodge yet. With Josh’s attitude and Rosie’s snit, Mitch was left being the voice of reason, so it made sense to avoid the place until he’d shaken off his bad mood and could be reasonable.
His stomach growling made the decision for him. It was late for breakfast and early for lunch, but he wanted some damn coffee. And maybe an omelet. Seeing Paige again couldn’t hurt, either.
*
It had been a slow morning and, having run out of busywork, Paige was leaning against the counter, flipping through a magazine, when Mitch walked through the door, and she lost all interest in the article she’d been reading about all-natural industrial cleansers.
He smiled when he saw her and took a seat at the counter, at the end farthest from the pass-through window to the kitchen, where Carl was prepping for lunch. “Morning, Paige.”
“Hi, Mitch. Coffee?”
“Lots of coffee. Lots.” He gave her a wink that made her tingle in all the right places.
No, the wrong places. No tingling, she reminded herself as she poured a coffee and set it down in front of him. “Anything else, or just the coffee?”
“I’ll take a hash and cheddar omelet with home fries, skip the toast, and some company.”
He was looking her in the eye when he said it, and she hoped what she was feeling on the inside couldn’t be seen on the outside, because it could be summed up in three words. I want him.
“It’s pretty quiet right now,” she said. “If you’re looking for company, you’ll have to make do with me.”
“There’s nothing ‘making do’ about you, Paige Sullivan.”
Even as the tingling and zinging and other-ing words intensified, she laughed. “That was pretty slick. You’re even smoother than the stories give you credit for.”
“Is it working?”
“Nope. Sorry,” she lied. “Let me go put your order in.”
Since Carl had disappeared from the window, Paige had an excuse to slip out back for a few seconds. Mitch Kowalski was hell on her nerves. And not the nerves that got rattled when children ran amok in her diner while their parents sat and drank coffee. He was hell on the nerves that were connected to body parts that had been severely neglected for the past two years.
She didn’t hide long though, because, after Carl took the slip from her, he gave her a funny look. “You feeling okay? You’re a little flushed.”
Great. “I’m okay. It’s a little warm in here.”
“No, it’s not.”
She shook her head and went back through the swinging door. Mitch was drinking his coffee, but it looked a lot like he’d been watching the door for her return. Even though there were some newspapers piled near him, he was ignoring them and, since he’d said he was looking for company, she didn’t really have a choice but to visit with him.
After topping off his coffee, she poured herself an iced tea and leaned her hip against the center island. She could have sat on one of the many empty stools, but she either had to sit far enough away it would seem rude if he was looking for conversation, or close enough so those nerves might start getting ideas again.
“After Ava comes in later,” he said, “you want to go for a ride with me?”
Yes. Yes, she did. “I have plans after work, but thanks anyway.”
“It would be fun. We could go over by the lake. See where we end up.”
It was the seeing where they’d end up that was the problem, because there was a pretty good chance if she was alone with Mitch, she’d end up in his arms. Or his bed. “Maybe another time.”
Rather than taking the hint, he leaned forward and grinned. “Come on. I’ve even got a helmet that would fit you.”
“Helmet?”
“For the bike. I’m talking about taking a ride around the lake on the bike, not in the truck.”
Oh, that’s just what she needed after two-plus years of self-imposed celibacy—a hot guy between her legs and a vibrator on wheels under her. “I…can’t.”
He leaned back again, wrapping his hands around his coffee mug, but he didn’t look rejected. Curious, maybe. “Why don’t you date, Paige?”
“Sorry, but details about my personal life aren’t on the menu.”
“I don’t get it. You’re beautiful. You’re obviously smart and driven, since you not only brought this place back to life, but you made it better than it ever was.”
The man knew how to flatter a woman, that was for sure. “Thank you.”
“You seem to be in a great place in life. Why aren’t you looking for a man to share it with?”
“Men are a luxury, not a necessity.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, scowling as if the concept was totally foreign to him. Which it probably was.
She moved away from the island and straightened the salt and pepper shakers just to give her hands something to do. “It means I don’t need a man in my life. And I have that written on a sticky note taped to my fridge so I don’t forget it.”
“But you want a man, right?”
She pretended to think about it for a few seconds. “Not especially.”
“Who opens jars for you?”
“I have a little gadget that does that.”
“But…” He grinned. “What about sex?”