hungry.â
Marcus put down his fork, then leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his stomach as he studied her face. He was so accustomed to her appearance that he never studied her features, but looking at her now, he had a fleeting moment of doubt. What if� Then he frowned and thrust away the thought.
âYouâre worried about tomorrow, arenât you?â
Olivia shrugged, then nodded as she looked away.
Marcusâs frown deepened.
âI wish I could make you believe that thereâs no need for concern.â
Olivia looked up, her eyes swimming with tears.
âOh, Grampy, I wish you could, too, but thereâs a dark feeling inside me, and as hard as I try, I donât believe anything is ever going to be the same again.â
Marcus wanted to argue with her, but he knew that she wasnât in a frame of mind to listen. All they could do was wait this out. Only time and truth would tell.
Olivia could tell that sheâd upset her grandfather, and while it was the last thing she wanted to do, shehad never been able to lie to him. All she could do now was trust that his faith in her was justified.
âIâm sorry for being such a whiner, Grampy. Iâll be better, I promise. And for starters, I think Iâll try some of Roseâs tenderloin, after all.â
Marcus smiled as he passed the platter.
âDonât forget the gravy,â he added.
Â
Foster Lawrence downed the final bite of his burger, then dunked the last two fries in ketchup, nodding affirmatively when a waitress paused by his table with a pot of coffee.
As she poured, Foster inhaled the fragrance of freshly brewed coffee while considering the luxuries that now abounded. It was almost midnight, and yet heâd walked out of his room and down the street to the all-night diner and ordered food.
Not because heâd been especially hungry, but because he could.
âHow about a piece of pie?â the waitress asked. âStill got some apple and some deep-dish peach.â
Fosterâs stomach was full, but his mouth watered.
âPeach?â Foster said
âPeach it is,â she said.
âà la mode?â he added.
âSure, mister. Ã la mode.â
She gave him a friendly wink and moved on.
He watched the sway of her backside with admiration, but on this day, his bodily hungers had been fully assuaged. He would settle for the peach pie and ice cream and call it a day.
Outside the diner, a police car went speeding by, running with lights and siren. He shuddered, thankful that, for now, he wasnât their prey. As the patrol car disappeared down the street, he caught a glimpse of his reflection in the darkened windows and grinned. The man looking back at him was not only bald, but bare-faced. If sheâd been living, not even his mother would have recognized him like this.
Then the waitress appeared and slid the pie in front of him. Despite his full belly, the aroma of warm pie and ice cream made him hungry all over again.
âHere it is, mister, ice cream and all. Enjoy.â
âYou bet I will, babe,â Foster said with a smile, then picked up his spoon and dug in.
As he ate, he made plans for tomorrow. Heâd looked in the phone book for the Lazy Days restaurant but had come up empty. It didnât surprise him to know that it was no longer in business. Lots of things had changed since heâd last been in Dallas, and although businesses had come and gone, the buildings were still there, which made him confident that the building that hid his money would be, too. It was only a matter of time before he got what heâd come for. For now, pie and ice cream would suffice.
Â
Trey sat on the edge of his bed, fingering through the pages of his high-school yearbook. It had been ages since heâd bothered to drag himself through the memories, but seeing Olivia had brought them all back.
He paused at a page, lightly tracing the shape of
Piers Anthony
M.R. Joseph
Ed Lynskey
Olivia Stephens
Nalini Singh
Nathan Sayer
Raymond E. Feist
M. M. Cox
Marc Morris
Moira Katson