“Happy to hear it. I’ll have that breakfast out to you in just a few minutes. Anyone else joining you?”
“Just me this morning. And no rush. I’m not technically supposed to be here, so I’ll just slide into my usual booth and be hiding.”
Jessie laughed. “Your secret is safe with me. We’ll try and keep those shitty reporters out of here too so you can eat in peace.”
“Have they been bugging you guys?”
“A few tried to come in here and get us to answer questions,” Dolly sighed. “But we made it clear they aren’t welcome here.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
Stone made his way to the back corner of the diner, where the booth he normally occupied with the guys sat empty. A few people smiled at him, or nodded as he walked by, but it didn’t escape his notice that several people turned away, too. That article had convinced more people in Silver Springs than he’d wanted to believe that he and his team weren’t the men they worked so damn hard to be. And that stoked the anger that was starting to fester in his belly.
Jessie came by with her pot of coffee, filling his cupright to the top. Stone watched out the window as people walked right over the spot where he’d nearly died… or had died, but was too damn stubborn to stay that way.
“So, you get shot and you think the team rules just don’t apply to you anymore?”
Stone lifted his eyes off his phone, but he knew without looking who was standing beside the table.
“Track. You already have breakfast?” he asked as Gage slipped into the booth, opposite of him.
“Nope. Sloane and Lily have a late start today so I figured I’d pop in here and grab something for them. But I’ve got time to eat if you want some company.”
He nodded, knowing Gage would likely stay no matter what. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
“Hey, Gage.” Jessie bustled up to the table, sliding Stone’s plate to him. Gage flipped his coffee cup over, and Jess poured the hot liquid right to the top before refilling Stone’s. “Are you sticking around or just here to tell this guy how happy you are to see him out and about like the rest of us already have?”
Gage laughed. “Well, seeing as how I have the honor of still seeing his ugly mug everyday, I think he already knows I’m happy he’s still here. But I would love to sing the praises of your vanilla cinnamon waffles with a scoop of your coffee ice cream?”
“Ice cream in the morning. What would the good doc say?” Stone chuckled, knowing full well that Sloane wouldn’t mind.
“She’ll only be mad if I don’t bring an order for her.”
“Got it.” Jessie smiled. “And I’ll put another waffle order on hold for when you get ready to go.”
“Two orders on hold, Jess. Can’t leave Lily out.”
Jessie laughed. “How does Gunner feel about you feeding his wife?”
“If he was really worried about it, he’d be here ordering for her. But just in case… maybe it stays our little secret?”
“All you guys just pop in here hoping I’ll keep my mouth shut…” Jessie laughed as she turned away.
“What was that about?” Gage asked.
Stone smiled. “She’s keeping a secret for me.”
“Hmm. You wanna talk about it?”
“You already know. You caught me here.”
“Ah, I see. I thought maybe you talked to her about Mae.”
Stone pressed his lips together, waiting for Gage to elaborate.
“I’m starting to think you might be as stubborn as we all know Mae can be. Do you want to talk about it?”
Damn. “About what?” Stone asked, already knowing the answer.
