Bent Not Broken (A Cedar Creek #1) by Julia Goda Read Free Book Online

she would feel this down to her soul. So she would need Larry.
    “Okay, then he’ll be there, too,” Macy confirmed.
    I squeezed her hand in response, and we both turned our heads when we heard the bell over the door ring, announcing our first customer of the day.
    “It’s your turn to pick the music,” I told her when I looked back at her, trying to snap us out of the funk.
    “Okay. I’ll go do that.” Macy took a deep breath, then squeezed my hand one last time, leaned in to give me a kiss on the cheek, then let go of my hand and headed towards the counter to pick the music.
    “Nothing sappy!” I shouted after her.
    “I’ll pick what I’ll pick!” she shouted back over her shoulder, making me smile.
    She had her shit together and was my Mace again. Okay, time to get on with the day.
    Since Mace had brought coffee that morning, it was my turn to get us lunch. We decided on sandwiches from Tom’s Diner . By the time I could leave, it was almost one o’clock. We had gotten in an order unexpectedly, and I had to finish up inventorying everything. I think if I had made Mace wait another minute to get food, she would have turned green and exploded out of her clothes. Pregnant women were crazy scary when they were hungry.
    I made my way across the street to the restaurant on this nice early fall day. It was still warm enough to only wear a long sleeved shirt but I could smell the cold moving in from the East. Next week, the nice warm days would be over and it would get colder and windier. But for now, I was fine wearing a white thermal long sleeved shirt under my flow-y rock n’ roll black t-shirt with the pink and purple skull on it.
    When I opened the door and walked inside the diner, I was confronted with yummy lunch smells and the sounds of conversation and eating. The restaurant was filled to its capacity.
    Tom’s Diner was exactly what it sounded like. A vintage diner and soda shoppe that served old-fashioned American food. It looked like right out of a movie. When you walked in, you faced the long counter with yellow vinyl swivel bar stools in front of it. To the right across from the bar and further out to the back, the walls were lined with comfy vinyl booths with blacktop tables covered with the holy trinity of diner condiments—ketchup, mustard and those cool glass sugar dispensers. Lots of chrome and vintage throughout and tin signs and mirrors on the walls. And photos. Lots and lots of photos of the town and its inhabitants throughout the years. In my opinion, it was the best greasy spoon in the world with its no-nonsense food like hamburgers, sandwiches, hot dogs, floats, shakes and simple homemade breakfasts. They served the best stack of flapjacks I had ever eaten at a restaurant—the best ones being my nana’s recipe. Their roast beef sandwiches were divine and their milk shakes—or thick shakes as Tom called them—were a must. With thirty flavours to choose from and the mix and match option of whatever flavours you wanted, that gave you a gazillion options.
    Thinking about their milk shakes made me crave one instantly.
    While I was waiting in line looking up at the menu trying to decide if I wanted a caramel coffee shake or a cherry banana one, I felt someone tapping my arm. When I looked down, I saw Tommy grinning up at me.
    “Hey, Ivey! Wanna come sit with us?” he asked me excitedly, “I’ll get you a coffee,” he added and grinned bigger.
    I looked over his shoulder to see Cal sitting in a window booth watching us. When he saw me look, he crooked his finger at me, his eyes intense. Did he really just do that? Crook his finger at me, expecting me to obey and walk over to sit with him? Was he serious? I arched my eyebrows and gave him a dismissive look.
    “Come on, Ivey. I’ll throw in a cookie!” Tommy was funny. And charming.
    I looked back down at him and gave him a smile. “Sorry, buddy, I’m just gonna order sandwiches and milk shakes for me and Macy to go and then I have