Winona jumped up and followed her. “Are you going to be safe getting home?”
“I’m good,” Nicole called back, not bothering to stop or turn around.
Chaska intercepted her, said something to her, then looked over at Winona and Naomi. “I’m going to drive Nicole home. I’ll be back in a few.”
His gaze caught Naomi’s, and what she saw in his eyes made her pulse skip.
Winona nudged her. “See?”
What had been a terrible, awkward evening suddenly seemed brighter.
“Your brother is a good man,” Megs said from the other end of the table.
Naomi could think of a dozen ways that Chaska could have handled this tonight, all of them less thoughtful, less caring, than what he’d chosen to do.
And to think you were feeling jealous.
Rain appeared at Naomi’s side. “You didn’t like your pizza, sweetie?”
“I guess I just wasn’t hungry.” She’d lost her appetite when Nicole had slid her hand up Chaska’s thigh.
“I’ll box it up for you. Joe, the owner, would like to meet you.” Rain disappeared with Naomi’s pizza.
Naomi had been watching her throughout the evening and was impressed. Rain was a true professional, someone capable of rising above the chaos of a restaurant to meet the needs of her customers.
A moment later, a tall man with a thick beard and a man bun walked over to the table, people waving to him as he approached.
“Hey, Joe.”
“Howdy, Moffat.”
“What’s up, Joe?”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Naomi.” Joe shook Naomi’s hand and sat in Chaska’s chair. He was a handsome man, perhaps in his mid-forties. His face was tanned from a life lived outdoors, and there was just a touch of gray at his temples. “I’m Joe Moffat, the owner of this place. Are you enjoying yourself?”
She was now. “Yes. Thanks.”
“You are an incredibly brave woman. I know I speak for most of Scarlet when I say how sorry we are about what happened to you.”
Was that really how these people saw her—brave?
“That’s very kind of you.”
“I came to tell you a couple of things. The first is that your meal tonight is on the house—yours, too, Winona, and your brother’s.”
Winona looked delighted. “Thanks, Joe.”
Naomi opened her mouth to object, but Joe held up a hand to stop her.
“This is my place, and I get to treat people to dinner when I want to,” he said. “Also, has anyone talked to you about the fundraiser?”
Winona shook her head. “We mentioned it, but that was it.”
Joe told Naomi how he and some of the locals wanted to raise money to cover whatever expenses weren’t paid by the victim’s compensation fund. “This was a major disruption of your life, and we’d like to help you get back on your feet.”
His kindness was making it very difficult not to cry.
Keep it together!