Her Cowboy

Chapter 18

By noon the next day, Piper, Percy and I had piled into the truck and were headed out to town. I was practically bouncing up and down on my seat, excited that I finally got to get out of the house.

"How much longer?" I complained, shifting the Yankees cap on my head.

Percy glanced at me, a half-grin on his face. "How old are you? Three?"

I shot him a look which he chuckled at.

We were driving on a pretty road. The sun shone down on the asphalt, making heat waves appear in the July midday. It was almost deserted, I'd hardly seen any other vehicles. I checked my reflection in the rear-view mirror. Piper had done a good job, it was hard to see the Annabeth Chase behind the disguise of Minerva Jackson. I hated the name Minerva, but Piper had suggested it and Percy had agreed with a wicked smile.

"We're here," he announced from beside me. "See, patience pays off, young grasshopper."

I looked around us at the small town that had appeared out of nowhere.

It was, in my words, adorable. Little towns always made me think that.

Buildings lined cute streets, awnings creeping out and providing shade for a passerby. Boards with names of shops and restaurants stood colorfully around, each with their own sense of style. The town was like that—a mix-match of all sorts of colors thrown together, but they worked somehow. People were walking about, greeting neighbors down the road, and kids were recognizing friends and shouting hello.

I guess it was true. In a small town, pretty much everybody did know each other.

Percy drove down the street, stopping at the one stop sign before pulling into a parking spot in front of "Demeter's Cafe."

He got out, then hurried around to open both the front and back door for Piper and I.

Piper hopped down, thanking him politely before looking around. I grabbed Percy's outstretched hand, smiling at him as he helped me out.

"Why, thank you, sir," I said in a fake accent.

He took a sweeping bow. "You're most delightfully welcomed, m'lady."

I giggled as he straightened up, winking. Piper rolled her eyes, tromping over to the cafe where we were scheduled to meet all the others.

We entered the small cafe and immediately heard, "Piper!"

Turning to the source of the voice, I found a grinning Jason.

As Piper went over to greet Jason, Percy and I exchanged glances.

"They're getting married," he affirmed, repeating his sentiment from before. I threw back my head and laughed, high and clear, before heading into the cafe.

Jason and Piper had already walked over to a large round table in the corner of the restaurant, the light green tablecloth matching the walls. Three people were sitting beside them.

"Minerva," Percy said, and I could hear the snicker in his voice as he said that. I resisted the urge to glare at him as he kept talking. "That's Hazel and Frank. You know Leo."

Hazel and Frank were sitting side by side, looking like complete opposites. Frank was a big, young, Asian man. Not fat, but just muscular and big-boned. He had close-cropped, military style black hair. There was a warmth in his eyes that made me like him almost instantly. He reminded me of a teddy bear, even with his somewhat intimidating appearance.

Hazel, on the other hand, was a petite, young African American with beautiful curls settling like a bronze halo around her. Intense golden eyes latched with mine, squinting as she smiled a welcome.