Most of the weekend was spent relaxing. I rested my groin on Saturday while my mom hung out with Connor and unpacked all his clothes and Legos. I unpacked my clothes on Sunday and then went to the beach with Connor when I was a little more mobile, and by the time Monday rolled around I was feeling as though I was in decent shape. I was still a little swollen, but Advil controlled the pain, and I wasn't going to be doing anything strenuous.

It was the last day I'd scheduled off of work for my recovery, and I'd hoped to see Kaia again at the diner. With my mom watching Connor for me I went there for lunch, hoping that she would be able to take a break with me again. I was willing to wait, so there would be little stress. I hoped anyway. Maybe she wasn't as interested as I was.

And yet when I walked into the diner, she saw me, and her face lit right up. Everything was suddenly good in the world, and she pointed to a booth for me to sit in while she waited on another table. I didn't even look at the menu, I just watched her glide around the diner. You could tell who the regulars were, she was very friendly to them and always had something to say. The customers obviously liked her, just based on the interactions they had.

You could also tell the people that weren't regulars, as she still was nice, but it was more of a fake smile and a wariness. She had to trust them to open up to them, which made me feel good with the way she had acted on Friday. She wouldn't bring her daughter to lunch with someone she didn't trust, right?

I could see her smiling at me as she approached my table once her other duties were done. "Well, hello there. Fancy seeing you here today." Those damned dimples were amazing, I couldn't stop gazing at her.

"Yeah, I was told that this was the time to come for the best service." I tried to smile as wide as she was, but I don't think I could. Her smile lit up a room, mine looked like a small flashlight.

"You're not wrong. If you're really lucky and can wait about 30 minutes, I hear that some of the waitresses will actually sit with you and share their lunch," she told me in a hushed voice, as if sharing the best secret of all time.

"Really?" I played along. "I think I might have to do that. My afternoon looks free, and I could use the company."

"Excellent choice. Can I get you anything to tide you over?"

"How about a glass of water and some fried pickles please?" I asked.

"Perfect. They'll be up shortly. And for lunch later?"

"Surprise me. I trust your judgement," I assured her.

She bit her lip before breaking into another smile. "I think I can find something for you. I'll be back soon."

She was back shortly with the pickles, water, and a wink before continuing her dance among the tables. It made me wonder why she didn't work here on the weekends. Surely, she would make more money than on a charter boat. Would she be mad at me if I chartered it? It wasn't like I couldn't afford it. Even when I was with Kate, we had no mortgage with her dad having given her the house, and my car was already paid off. Even if I got a nice apartment for Connor and me, my job made me more than enough to afford it.

But that would require her to trust me enough to give me the name of the charter boat.

As the diner started to clear out, I started to smile. Kaia had been a little off on her estimate, and it took her 45 minutes to get to her break instead of 30, but I didn't care. I got to watch her the entire time. When she arrived, she slid a plate of food in front of me, and I had to smile at her choice for me. It was a good looking turkey club sandwich with bacon and avocado with a side of fries and fruit. She had her own version of the same sandwich, but with a sweet tea instead of the water.

"You must be a mind reader, this looks delicious," I commented. "Where is Kassidy?"

"Well, you didn't bring Connor, so I thought lunch could just be us today. Kassidy is playing in the back right now, so she is good," Kaia explained.

"I bet all of the staff loves her, she's adorable."

Kaia's face broke into that wonderful smile again at the praise for her daughter. "She is, I got really lucky with that one. My little angel."

"And her father?" Her face fell as soon as I asked, and I mentally kicked myself for even mentioning it.

She took a deep breath, then looked me in the eye. "He doesn't know she exists. I'd like to keep it that way."

I nodded, trying to find a way to change the subject as quickly as possible. "Hayden would like to meet this friend of yours. Do you have any idea how we could make that happen?"

"Does she like to fish?" Kaia cocked an eyebrow at me.

I shrugged in response. "I have no idea. I could ask her though. Wait, does your friend work on the charter boat with you?"

She nodded, a sly twinkle in her eye. "If you brought Hayden to the boat, she could meet her."

"What if I chartered the boat?" I wondered, returning her smile.

Her eyes widened momentarily as a slight blush crept up her cheeks. "Then I guess you and Hayden would be forced to spend the day with me and Heather out on the water."

I liked that look on her face, and it gave me the courage to ask what I'd been wanting to do since I'd seen her again today. "Kaia, I know this is just the second time you've seen me, and we don't know anything about each other, but at what point do you think I could potentially ask for your number without you thinking that this is a rebound after my soon to be ex-wife?"

She was about to answer when my phone started blowing up with notification after notification on every social media platform I was on, as well as text messages. Taking a quick look at the list, they were all from Kate's friends, and when I looked at the first one it was a rant about how sick and disgusting I was to have her served with divorce papers while she was out to lunch with friends. I could only frown, it wasn't like I controlled the process servers, they were on the county payroll, not mine. But I was happy that at least the process was in motion.

"Everything alright?" Kaia asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine." I ignored the phone for now, but I couldn't turn it on silent in case my mom called with something about Connor. "My ex was just served with the divorce papers, and her friends think the timing was my fault. I doubt they'd believe me if I told them I don't control that, and I also doubt she told them the story behind the divorce."

"Do I get to hear the story?" Kaia asked before sipping her sweet tea.

"You have to answer my question first," I countered.

She gave me a grin back. "I'll tell you what Cole. Come out to the charter boat, spend the day fishing with us and see how things go. Maybe after that we'll come up with an idea of if and when we could consider that." Her ears were tinged with red still, and I was hoping that was a good sign for what might happen if I ever asked her.

"Does that mean I'll get the name of the charter boat?" I perked up a bit at that. I wasn't going to charter them every week just to see her, that would be too over the top. But maybe if things were going well between us, I could do it maybe once a month. And bring Hayden if she was still wanting to see Heather too.

She reached down and pulled out a business card out of her waitress apron and slipped it across the table to me. I looked it over and plainly saw the name of the charter company. Twin Stars Charter. Just like the Stars name on the diner, which was interesting. "There you go."

"Would this weekend be too soon?" I asked with a nervous smile.

"Are you that eager?" she smirked back at me.

"Do you really have to ask?" I added the charter number to my phone, ignoring all of the new notifications. "If this wasn't a prerequisite for you, I'd already have asked you out."

I noticed her blush again, and she took the last bite of her sandwich, so she didn't have to talk for a bit. "Just make sure that Hayden behaves. Heather is amazing, and she needs a good person."

I nodded along with her. "I can't say I know Hayden terribly well, but she was amazing on Friday and seems like a genuine person. I don't think she would be any different in a relationship as she was as a friend."

"Cole, I want to tell you now, that I can't rush anything. Kassidy is my life, just like I assume Connor is yours. I'm never going to do anything that risks her being hurt," she said softly while capturing my eyes with her own blue eyes. "I'm in no hurry to jump into anything, I have a full life already."

I nodded slowly, understanding where she was coming from. "I haven't been on my own much recently. I'm getting my life in order myself and it will take me a bit to get settled in with Connor. My relationship wasn't good, but it did show me what I would like in the future in terms of a relationship. I'll do the best I can to make you comfortable, and I know Connor already loved meeting Kassidy. Even if nothing happens between you and I, I would love to see the kids get a chance to hang out because he hasn't had much of a chance to make friends."

Her smile was back, as were those delightful dimples. "I'd like that. I guess we'll see what happens after the fishing trip." Standing up, she grabbed our plates and headed back towards the kitchen, making sure to flash a wink over her shoulder at me.

She hadn't even put the plates down before my phone was in my hand and I could hear the ringing at the charter company. I smiled after making a reservation for two on that Saturday morning. Life was looking up.