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She nodded "You’re this lily-white guy who greith a perfect family I didn’t You had parents who loved you I didn’t You--"

"None of that’s relevant," he countered, cutting her off

"Mymy father Did you know that?"

He nodded slowly "There was plenty of talk about it, but all I wanted to knohat had happened to you"

"Oh" This was unexpected

Alix nearly sighed in relief when Jenny appeared with two plates The cheeseburger was left open and the cheese had listened and sizzled, fresh fro at her meal

"I asked et anywhere Apparently you and your brother had already been sent to foster homes in another part of the city," Jordan said

Alix reached for the salt shaker but her eyes didn’t leave his the whole time she salted her fries "You did?"

He nodded and picked up a fry

Hungry though she was, Alix hadn’t touched her food "What o into the ministry? Like father, like son?"

"That’s a story for another night" He added lettuce and a slice of to his first bite

Alix bit into her burger, too "Just re

"I couldn’t even if I wanted to"

She sed and drank some more of her Coke "Why not?"

"It’s not what I do I leave the salvation up to God He saves, I just point the way" He took another fry, dipping it into a small pool of ketchup he’d squirted onto his plate

She still didn’t trust hiet?"

"You," she said "Wanting to see e look "Is there some law that says I’rade and I still think you’re kinda cute"

He liked her? He thought she was cute? "You do?" she asked and was ht quiver in her voice

"I wouldn’t say so if I didn’t" He stretched out his hand and stole one of her French fries

"Hey" She slapped his hand

He laughed and gave her his sliced pickle

They finished eating, talked about movies they’d both seen and then left the café an hour later "Are you going to stop avoiding ured she’d play it cool "I haven’t decided yet"

"Decide soon, will you?"

"Why?"

"Because I don’t kno hed

"You co to church on Sunday?" he asked

"Probably not" She didn’t see herself sitting next to any church lady with sagging panty hose and a big purse Jordan oody types would take kindly to her purple-tinted hair

Church was for people who had regular lives and who had goals and dreams Okay, Alix had drea them come to life She wanted to be a chef Not just a cook, but a real chef in some fancy restaurant She’d worked in a couple of cafés like Annie’s over the years and always liked the kitchen jobs best The last place she’d worked--before the video store--had closed down, but working there had set the drea at her Before she knehat he intended, he pulled her into the shadows of the alley and backed her up against the brick wall

They stared at each other for a long

Then his mouth was on hers, and it was all she could do not to crumple at the effect of his kiss Her head started to spin and her knees actually eak The only thing left to do was hold on to him, so she wrapped her arms around Jordan’s neck From there, her senses took her on a roller-coaster rideDisney had to offer

"What was that for?" she asked, her voice sounding like so around in a tin can

When Jordan finally lifted his head, he whispered "I figured you owed rade"

Alix moistened her lips "Yeah…well, you weren’t the only one"

CHAPTER 22

"In the hands of a knitter, yarn becomes the medium that binds the heart and soul"

--Robin Villiers-Furze, The Needleworks Coton

LYDIA HOFFMAN

A nother Friday had co session was one of the best ever, with Alix laughing a lot and Jacqueline more relaxed and tolerant than I’d ever seen her Carol was at hon on the shop door and headed upstairs to ood kind of tired When I first opened A Good Yarn, I’d had plenty of empty hours to work on my own projects