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was—”
    “Stop right there. Are you talking about Cooper Hudson – as in COOPER HUDSON?” Her face was lit up and her eyes huge.
    “Uh, yeah. Do you know him?”
    “Uh, yeah . He’s a dream! Ohmigod, and you and he hung out together?”
    “Yes,” I said with a raised eyebrow. I was about to ask her how she knew him, when the bell over the door chimed and a large group walked in together.
    She patted my hands super-fast and squealed something and then grabbed a handful of menus and ran off to wait on the customers.
     
    We had a steady flow of customers and we stayed busy through the lunch crowd. The regulars liked eating there because Sal was an amazing cook. He didn’t make anything fancy, but what he did make, he made perfectly. His specialty was his burgers. They were A-MAZING. I liked that he toasted the buns and grilled the onions. His fries were the next big thing because he used some kind of Cajun seasoning on them. Everything Sal made was fantastic. It was a small diner, and I liked the coziness of it. I only worked part-time three days a week, and usually only worked the lunch shift. It was mainly to have something to do to occupy my time for the short term. I didn’t need the money, and if one of the other girls needed the hours I would gladly give them my shift.
    When I noticed one of my favorite customers sit down in my section, I filled up a glass full of ice and filled it to the rim with sweet tea, then set it down in front of him.
    “Thank you, Lily,” he said with a warm smile. “How have you been?”
    “Fine. And yourself?” Jim was older – more like Ms. Sophie’s age— and he loved giving me a hard time.
    “When are you going to run away with me and get married?” he teased.
    “I think your wife might be a wee bit upset about that,” I said. He loved his wife. He talked about her all the time, and always with a glimmer in his eye.
    He laughed. “Yeah, you’re probably right. I guess I’ll just have to settle for you marrying someone as good as me.”
    “You’ll be the first to know,” winking at him.
    “I’ll hold you to that, Miss Lily.”
    I didn’t need to take his order because I already knew what he wanted: Grilled cheese and tomato soup. He ordered it every day. “I’ll get your soup and sandwich right out to you, okay, Jim?”
    “Take your time, little lady. I’m in no hurry.”
    I was thankful when the end of my shift finally arrived. I had been going nonstop and wanted to get home in time to take a nice hot bubble bath before Cooper showed up. Plus I was starving. I hadn’t eaten anything since my bowl of cereal that morning and I was saving my appetite for later. It wouldn’t matter where he took me to dinner because I’d be too hungry to care.

    I had time to soak in the tub, wash and blow dry my hair, put on my makeup- still sticking to the basics: mascara, blush, lip gloss, and got dressed. I chose something casual… jeans, a light yellow top with white trim around the scoop collar and I chose a brown necklace that had a yellow flower as its ornament and it rested just under my throat. It matched the yellow on my shirt perfectly.
    I looked at the clock. Six fifty-eight. Ugh, this is torture.
    A minute later I heard his car pull up in the driveway. I was relieved that my waiting was over, but then I felt nervous again. I watched him get out of the car from the picture window in the living room, and remembered what Beth had said this morning. She knew him; I forgot to ask her how.
    I opened the door before he had a chance to knock. Cooper was standing there holding two bags in his arms.
    “What’s all this?” I asked, moving back to allow him inside.
    “I decided to make you dinner instead. I hope you like lemon pepper chicken.” He made his way through the door and back toward the kitchen.
    “Yeah, absolutely.” I watched him unload the groceries and move around my kitchen like he already knew where everything was. “Do you need any