Not Quite Dating(4)

“I know what I want,” Tom said, setting his menu on the table.
The others chimed in the same. After taking their orders, Jessie left.
Leanne smiled her way once Jessie gave the cook the order. “Looks like a handful over there. Cute times four,” she sighed with a smile.
“Two of ’em have accents, too.”
“Lookie you, checking them out.”
“I’m not checking anyone out. The last thing I need is another playboy messing up my life.”
Jessie turned around and refilled the coffee cup of one of her night-owl customers sitting at the counter. “How are the pancakes, Mr. Richman?”
“Fine, just fine,” he replied.
When Jessie turned back to Leanne, the other waitress continued talking. “Who’s to say they’re a bunch of playboys?”
“Frat boys who never grew up, most likely.”
“Playboys, frat boys, whatever. One of ’em could be the rich guy of your dreams.”
Jessie raised an eyebrow. “Right.” Grabbing Leanne’s hand, Jessie led her to a far window overlooking the parking lot. “Take a look, sister. See any crazy-expensive cars out there?” Actually, the only cars in the lot belonged to the employees and Mr. Richman. Except for one lone pickup that was new sometime in the mid-1990s. That seemed about the right speed for the cowboys at table twelve.
“That doesn’t mean nothing.” Leanne pulled away and frowned. “Besides, dating means free meals and a movie. Nothing wrong with that.”
“Dinner and a movie in my world consist of McDonald’s and SpongeBob on TV. Dating and Danny don’t mix.”
“Your sister will watch him for you.”
“Yeah, but why waste my time on someone dreaming of the future instead of living it? You know my mom isn’t the wisest woman in the bunch, but she told me once that it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich man as it is to fall in love with a poor one.”
“Yeah, so?”
“So don’t date poor men.”
Across the restaurant, Jack with the gray eyes and the Stetson was watching her over his coffee cup. When he caught her gaze, his lips pulled into a grin, dimples and all. Then, without any provocation, he winked.
“Oh boy.” Jessie lowered her eyes and tried to ignore the flirting frat playboy and the way his attention made her insides squirm.
“Mr. Cowboy is sexy.” Leanna giggled when she spoke.
“I’ll bet Mr. Cowboy mooches off one of his friends for the bill.”
“Oh, come on, he can’t be that bad.”
“He’s flirting with a waitress at Denny’s, Leanne. His ambitions can’t be all that high.”


“Dissed!” Mike laughed, punching Jack in the arm. “Doesn’t look like the waitress is taking a liking to you.”
“Might have something to do with the way you’re dressed, Moore.”
“There’s nothing wrong with the way I’m dressed.” In fact, he liked the fact that Jessie, the sexy waitress wearing a god-awful brown skirt, had no idea who he was. Jack stayed out of the spotlight as often as he could. Here in California, people didn’t know him by sight. In Houston, the story was entirely different. The thought of charming the waitress without waving his wallet felt like the right thing to do, especially after his recent encounter with Heather.
Jack removed his wallet and quickly handed Tom a twenty.
“What’s this for?”
“Breakfast.”
“Why are you giving it to me now?”
“Just hold on to it. If it comes up, I’m just a shit-kicker coming off a long binge of a weekend.” Jack followed Jessie’s movements until she disappeared around the corner.
Hell, he’d be in Ontario, California, for several weeks, overseeing the construction plans of a new hotel off the convention center. He might as well hook up with someone while he was there. He would love to burn the image of every Heather he ever knew out of his mind once and for all. Plastic What can you do for me baby women who flirted with his wallet more than him. There were times this kind of woman didn’t bother him at all, but lately he’d been searching for someone he could talk to, someone to share his ideas and dreams with, maybe a down-to-earth waitress who wasn’t ashamed to get her hands dirty and work for a living. Or ride in an old pickup truck.
Jack wasn’t afraid of hard labor on the ranch or pushing papers at a desk. Ever since he’d finished college and his father put him in acquisitions and mergers, he’d gone out of his way to excel at his job. Unlike his sister, Katie, who probably did lunch with Paris Hilton, Jack actually wanted to work for a living. Living off his father’s money didn’t sit well with him. When the day came for Jack to take over for his father, no one could accuse him of being a slacker who was handed the job without any knowledge of how to do it.
“Hookay, I see what you’re doing,” Tom said.
“Do you?” Jack asked.
“Yeah, I do. I saw you this weekend, dodging the women at the hotel. For a while there I was wondering who was getting married next month, you or Dean,” Mike said. “Tired of all the gold diggers, aren’t you?”
“Tired of all the liars.”
“That would suck,” Tom agreed.
“My Maggie is the best th-thing that’s ever happened to me,” Dean told them.
“Lordy, now he’s gonna go and get all emotional on us.” Tom pushed Dean’s coffee cup closer to him. “Drink up. Maggie, the fair maiden, isn’t going to like it if you come home smelling like a bar.”