Saved By A Soldier (Love Conquers Life Book 1) by Alison Mello Page B

like a coffee with the breakfast special,” I say.
    She grins at me. “Will you ever order anything else, Patty?”
    I laugh. “Maybe someday. I’d like my eggs whites only and scrambled with—”
    “Broccoli, peppers and onions. Got it.”
    I giggle as she turns to Carter for his order.
    “I’ll make it easy on you,” he says, “make it two.”
    She looks back to me with a sneaky smile and walks off with our order.
    “What was that all about?” Carter asks me.
    “What?” I feign innocence. “I saw the look she gave you.”
    I shrug. “I’m usually in here alone. It sucks to cook for one person and this place isn’t far from me so I come here anytime I feel like having breakfast. I always order the same thing, the same way, every time.”
    “That’s pretty funny,” he says. Our waitress returns with our coffee. Once she’s gone he asks, “Why are you and your mom not on the best terms?”
    I sigh, not sure I want to talk about this. I give him the short answer. “She wants me to be someone I’m not. She thinks that just because Ben apologized and he has money I should forgive him and go back to him. He’s boring and not very nice, so why I would do that is beyond me.”
    “No offense, but she’s a bit…” he hesitates, trying to choose his words carefully.
    “Snobby,” I answer for him.
    He chuckles. “Yeah, I guess that’s a way to describe her.”
    “She’s very snobby. I’ve never spoken to my father about why they separated but I think it was because she wanted someone with more money. My stepfather was one of the top lawyers around and is now the district attorney, plus he comes from money. My mother likes to be his arm candy and believes that as her daughter it is my place to follow in her footsteps, playing the supportive wife who does whatever her husband bids.”
    “I wanted to flatten your ex Saturday night. I can’t believe your mother supports a great cause like a battered woman’s shelter but wants you to be with a man who hits you and treats you that way.”
    “I know, I thought the same thing. Anyway, can we shift the conversation? I’d rather not talk about her anymore.”
    “Sure, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it was such a heavy topic,” he says with an apologetic smile.
    “How come I’ve never seen you at the lake house?”
    He shrugs. “I was wondering the same thing, but I figured it was an age gap or just happened we weren’t there at the same times.”
    “My mom hates the place so I really didn’t start spending time there until I was about twelve or thirteen. My mom always hated that my dad took me there but I loved it so I didn’t care.”
    “Yeah, and like I said, I think I’m a few years older than you so I was probably over hanging at the lake house with my dad at that point. Although I have to admit I did enjoy being back there.”
    “Why how old are you?” I ask, curious. He doesn’t look that old.
    He grins as our waitress delivers our food and when she walks away he says, “I’ll tell you my age if you tell me yours.”
    I can’t help the giggle that escapes me. “Okay, fair enough.”
    “I’m thirty but I’ll be thirty-one soon.”
    “Yeah, you were probably over the lake house then, because I’m only turning twenty-five, so you’re about six years older than me.”
    “I was still going, but not nearly as much,” he says.
    We both start eating in a comfortable silence, enjoying our dinner. About halfway through he says, “This is really good, I’m glad I got it.”
    “I’m glad you like it. I would have felt bad if you picked my favorite meal and decided it sucked.”
    “Nah, you have good taste.”
    The waitress comes over to ask if we need anything else. I tell her that I’m good and he does the same, so she drops the bill and as I go to take it he grabs it and says, “I got this.”
    “But you paid Saturday night.”
    He raises his eyebrows like he can’t believe I just said that. “And I’ll pay next time