He had become so in tune to my feelings that he immediately looked at me with scrutiny. “What’s wrong?”
“Why did you just put that on?”
While he tried to shrug off the question, I could see his jaw clenching like he was holding back. “It’s my cut.”
“But why now? I mean, I get you not wearing it at the border where you could be identified.” I drew in a deep breath and repeated an earlier question. “Are we in some kind of danger?”
Rev stared at me for a moment before exhaling a loud breath. “Look, Annabel, there’s a lot about my world that you don’t understand and you don’t need to understand.”
“So you can’t explain to me why putting on a piece of leather matters?” I motioned to his cut.
“Just know as long as you’re with me, you’re not in danger.”
“Especially since you’re wearing that cut now?”
Rev growled as he shoved his keys in his pocket. “You just can’t leave it alone, can you?”
“Being stubborn is part of my being normal, too,” I countered.
I was grateful when he finally smiled at me. “I know you can be normal, Annabel. In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen someone able to be so ‘normal’ in spite of what all she’s been through.”
“Thank you,” I murmured.
“So come on. You need a nutritional meal, and this place is supposed to have really good food—some nutritious shit that you need.”
When I realized that was all I was going to get from him, I reluctantly agreed. “Okay.”
As we walked across the parking lot, Rev kept his hand at the small of my back. When we walked inside the diner, the bell over the door tinkled, alerting the patrons to our presence. It seemed to me that conversation momentarily halted, but it also could have been just my imagination.
A waitress who reminded me a lot of “Kiss my grits” Flo from the TV show Alice came up to us. I’d often watched old reruns on the television set in the kitchen when I was growing up. Our cook had been a big fan of the show. “Two?”
“Yes, please.”
She grabbed some menus. “Follow me.”
As we passed a row of booths and tables, the hardened-looking truckers took notice of Rev. Then I witnessed an expression of respect pass over their faces. I knew then the reason why he had put on his cut. There was unspoken power in the worn leather, and at the moment, I was grateful for it.
We slid into a booth next to a large glass window. The waitress handed us the menus. “What can I get you to drink?”
“I’ll have a Coke,” I replied.
“And you?” the waitress asked Rev.
“I’ll take a sweet tea and a milk.”
The waitress scribbled down our order. “Be right back.”
I started to glance over the menu when Rev said, “By the way, the milk is for you.”
My gaze snapped to his. “Excuse me?”
“You need the vitamins.”
“What if I don’t like milk?” I countered.
Rev ran a palm down his face in exasperation. “What if I don’t care whether you like it?”
I couldn’t believe his sudden audacity. “I have a very controlling father back in Virginia. I don’t need another one.”
Rev leaned his elbows on the table and shot me a no-nonsense look. “I’m not trying to control you. I’m merely showing concern for your health. You ate like a bird in the hospital, so you’re already at a nutritional deficit. I couldn’t say for sure, but I would imagine you didn’t eat well while you were with Mendoza—”
“Actually, I had all the best food available there since I ate my meals with him.” It was the truth. Whereas the girls in the barracks got the bare minimum. Mendoza was too smart to starve them because if they lost too much weight and looked unhealthy, they lost their attractiveness to potential buyers. As for me, I sat up in the main house eating lobster and steak simply because I was Mendoza’s favorite of the moment.
Rev held up one of his hands. “I stand corrected. However, with the blood you lost, coupled with your surgery, you’re going to have to fight off anemia. After you drink your milk, I would suggest you order a steak, along with some green leafy vegetables like a salad or some spinach.”
“Now you’re my nutritionist along with my rescuer?” I snapped.
“Annabel,” Rev said softly but with conviction.
I sighed. “I’m sorry. You’re just trying to be nice, and here I am taking out some shit on you, aren’t I?”
“I can understand why.”
“You can?”
He nodded. “For the last two months of your life, you were completely under someone else’s authority. It’s only natural now that you’re free that you would fight against anyone trying to exert any control over you.”
I blinked at him a few times before I could calm my emotions enough to respond. In the few days I had known him, it never ceased to amaze me how it was possible that Rev could read me so easily. None of my family or even my close friends had ever had such insight.
The waitress returned with our drinks. When she set the milk down in front of Rev, I reached out and slid it over to me. I was rewarded with a genuine smile from him.
“Know whatcha want?”
When he saw I was still uncertain, Rev went ahead with his order. “I’ll have the sirloin, well done, a loaded baked potato, and a salad with Italian dressing.”
The waitress turned to me. “And you?”