Harlequin Special Edition December 2019--Box Set 1 of 2 by Christine Rimmer

Author:Christine Rimmer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2019-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

The Lost Antelope was a long, squatty building with stucco walls painted turquoise. The roof was terra-cotta tiles and the window frames and door were stained dark brown. Two large plate glass windows sat on either side of the door. In the left window, a neon sign advertised a popular beer, while in the opposite window hung a metal sign that simply read: Good Food.

The parking area was plain dirt with a faint bit of gravel left over from years gone by. At the back of the building, a rickety windmill was shrouded with mesquite trees.

Camille’s beloved diner was like nothing he’d been expecting, and for long minutes after he cut the truck motor, he simply stared out the windshield.

“What’s wrong? You’re not saying a word,” she said.

“No. I’m thinking.”

“Well, if you were expecting a fancy café with outdoor seating and half-naked waitresses serving espressos, then you should be disappointed. It’s just a simple place with good food—just like the sign says.”

“I’m not disappointed,” he told her. “I’m surprised, that’s all. It just doesn’t seem your style.”

“Hmm. What is my style, Matthew? Something more modern and expensive-looking?”

“All right, I confess,” he said sheepishly. “I was thinking along those lines.”

She cast him a reproachful look before she shoved off her seat belt and opened the truck door. “Come on. Let’s go in and I’ll show you around.”

He walked at her side across the hard-packed ground to the back of the building, where a security light illuminated a single metal door.

Since the diner sat on a lonely spot near the highway and wasn’t exactly a part of the tiny settlement of Dragoon, Matthew wouldn’t be surprised to learn it was often vandalized—although he couldn’t see any sign of prior damage to the door or the walls of the stucco structure.

“How many times has this place been robbed?” he asked.

“Never. Norman always takes the money home with him in the evening. I like to believe little desert angels guard the place, because it’s never been defaced or damaged. The insurance on the property is outrageous. But that’s to be expected.”

She unlocked the door, pushed it open and reached around the left wall. Fluorescent lighting instantly flooded a square room with shelves built into the walls on three sides. As Matthew followed her inside, he glanced around at the industrial-sized canned goods, along with an assortment of boxes that were jammed and stacked in every available space.

“This is where we store most of the nonperishable food,” she told him. “And a few odds and ends like table napkins and paper towels and that sort of thing.”

He was amazed at the volume of stored food. “You actually use all this? Looks like there’s enough stockpiled in here to feed a small army.”

She looked amused. “Norm is ordering all the time. Otherwise, these shelves would be wiped out.”

Motioning for him to follow her, she reached through an open doorway leading into a connecting room and switched on another light. As the two of them moved forward, she said, “In this area is where we keep the refrigerated and frozen foods.

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