Already seated, Melissa Reinhart-Graham lowered her laminated menu and slipped off her wide-rimmed hat and scarf. The diner bustled with a morning rush of truckers and drunks and made for the perfect spot to avoid spectators. It was on the outskirts of Hawthorne Peaks and they had the best cinnamon apple muffins, the only thing, Joseph remembered, Melissa would devour in its entirety. Which is why he chose the place.
Melissa granted him a scowl, her features matured with age, her blonde hair had a few gray streaks, and her brown eyes were rounded with crow's feet yet smoothed with a youthfully elegant glow only she seemed to radiate. Even when they were teenagers, he would notice her by her glow within a crowd, and to this day, he can’t understand why. Why did Melissa mesmerize him so? Th
