“Umm, sure, if you want to. Yeah, that sounds good.”
He couldn’t tell from her answer if she was disappointed or relieved that they wouldn’t be sitting by themselves. “We can just go say hello if you’d prefer.”
“No, honestly, it’s fine. After what you’d told me about your team, I’d like to get to meet them. I know how important it is to be close to the guys on your crew.”
“Yeah, it helps when you’re at a fire or an accident scene to know that someone’s always got your back. And is there when you need it.”
“It’s like at the hospital, you’ve got to count on the staff around to support you when the situation calls for it.”
“Yeah, when I first started Mitch told me to trust them from the start. Of course, he doesn’t get called in as much now, seeing as he’s getting more involved with being a surgeon again. But I valued his input.”
“I think he misses it. Although he hasn’t come out and said it, I just gleaned that from some of the things Nadia told me.”
They made their way over to where his teammates were sitting. “Hey guys, mind if Cerise and I join you?”
Greg smiled and stood. “Sure. Hi, Cerise, I’m Blake. I guess you know these other two.” He pointed to Dean and Chris.
“Hi, Greg, nice to meet you. And yeah, I know Dean and Chris. How are you guys?” Cerise smiled as she sat down. All three men returned her welcoming smile.
Once they were seated, Greg leaned forward. “Dice, what brings you to Buck’s in the middle of the day on a Thursday?”
As far as Brodie was aware, Cerise didn’t want anyone to know what she was doing with regards to adopting Finn. “Just thought we’d get one of Buck’s famous hamburgers.”
Greg leaned back. “Uh huh.” He was studying the both of them. Brodie imagined he did this a lot in his career as a former police detective and now in his position with the sheriff’s department. Observing people and checking out what their tells, etc. were had to be an important part of his job.
“I had a meeting with Finn’s case worker. Brodie volunteered to drive me and then convinced me I needed this burger. Like I haven’t had it before,” she finished with a sweet smile.
The men hooted with laughter.
“Well, then, I guess I’ve been put in my place,” Brodie said, shaking his head.
When the waitress came up they all ordered the burger and talked about general things until their food arrived. Brodie bit and closed his eyes. “I’m almost too afraid to ask Buck what he cooks his burgers in to make them so flavorful.”
“Pig’s blood,” Cerise deadpanned as she took another big bite.
Greg, Dean and Chris choked on the food, grabbing their drinks to wash it down.
“That is both frightening and appealing at the same time,” Brodie commented.
“How the fuck is that appealing?” spluttered Chris.
“Well, when I was in the UK with my college mates, we had blood pudding for breakfast. It’s made out of pig’s blood and other stuff. It was pretty good.”
“I’m choosing to ignore any reference to pig’s blood. Otherwise, I’ll never eat here again,” Greg grumbled.
Cerise chuckled. “Sorry guys, didn’t mean to put you off your food, but I doubt if it’s anything more nefarious than some spices added to the burger meat and then cooked in good, old-fashioned lard.”
“I’m not sure that makes it better, but I can live with that.” Chris took another big bite of his burger.
Once they finished their meal, Brodie noticed that Cerise seemed a lot more relaxed than she had been when they’d left Daphne’s office. This had been a good idea. “I saw a banner as we drove into town, Hunt’s annual wildflower festival coming up. Any of you going?” he asked. “Will we have to do anything like crowd control with the HVFD?”
“In the past we’ve directed traffic to open spaces to park so they don’t block the streets, but as for crowd control, it’s usually not too bad. People just come to take pictures in the bluebonnets. I can never understand why you’d to that,” grumbled Dean.
“It’s a Texas tradition,” Cerise piped up. “Although I’m with you. I’m not sure I understand why it’s done. I’ve seen newborns laying among the flowers. I mean, they’re pretty and all, but it’s not exactly safe. There are bees and bugs that could harm the baby.”
“Not to mention allergies,” Chris commented.
“I think I’d like to go to the festival.” Cerise tapped her bottom lip, drawing Brodie’s attention to it, reminding him of how soft it was. “Maybe bring Finn and make him sit in thebluebonnet field, so I can take some photos. I’m sure he’d love that.”
