“Jesus,” I mumbled. I bowed my head and held my laughter inside my chest.

“Oh, well, we don’t have one of those, but that’s very nice, dear,” the waitress replied. “You got that love inside you, it’s best to share it. I don’t think anyone would mind if you made a quick announcement, that is, if you’re feeling inclined.”

I looked at Legs again, brows lifting and face stuck in a grin. That shit was permanent.

She looked back at me, tipping her chin up and wearing the sweetest fucking smile I’d ever seen in my entire life. “I’m gonna do it,” she whispered excitedly.

“Babe,” I murmured, and that one word, fuck, that one word held so much feeling and meaning and promise—for her and for us, and she felt that.

Sucking in a breath so full it felt like she was draining all the air straight out of me, Tori turned her head to face the room, rolled up onto her toes, squeezed her fingers into my side, and did it.

My woman claimed me in front of five people at 1 a.m. in the middle of a diner, saying I was hers and everyone needed to know it, and informing those five people to spread the news around after giving out our names, which really had the waitress smiling and looking pleased to be working that night and a witness to this announcement.

Nobody else seemed to give a fuck. The two construction workers sitting at the counter or the old man sitting alone at a booth. The cook didn’t seem to care either.

Didn’t matter, though. That didn’t stop Tori from saying it. Didn’t stop me from feeling it either.

It did, however, still prove to be not enough of a crowd for her, and Tori made that known when she dug her phone out of her back pocket and sent out a mass group text after making that announcement.

“What’d you say?” I asked her after she tucked her phone back into her pocket.

“Same thing I just said. That you’re mine and I’m yours and I’m claiming you. And for them to spread the word.” She smiled big.

“Who’d you send it to?”

“Everyone on my contact list.”

My brows lifted.

Tori got a text from Sunshine exactly one minute later. I didn’t know what it said but figured it was something good since Tori was smiling reading it and replying. Shortly after that, I got a text from Dash.

She’s crying her eyes out and won’t go back to sleep. What the fuck?

Then he sent me another one.

Heard the news. Happy for you.

Aside from those two getting on us, the phones had been quiet.

“You’re incredible,” I whispered against her cheek.

With her legs thrown over one of mine, Tori leaned into me, giggling and sucking pancake syrup off the side of her thumb.

We were sitting in a booth with enough food in front of us to feed a small army.

Turned out, claiming me worked up one hell of an appetite. After skimming the menu, Tori ended up ordering more food than I did.

“I’m so awake now,” she murmured, licking her lips, smacking them, and setting her fork down on her plate. “Can this be our thing?” she asked.

“What?”

“Breakfasts at midnight. Here. Always here.” She turned to look at me, reaching out and taking hold of my face. “I don’t ever wanna sleep again,” she whispered, grinning through her sugar high.

I smiled and spread my hand across her stomach. “Told you the food was some good shit.”

“It’s not the food.”

I stopped smiling.

Tori stared at me for a breath, then she pinched her eyes shut, swallowed, shifted closer while keeping hold of my face, and when she was practically in my lap, opened her eyes and her mouth to give me something else, something important, I could tell, but her words were halted when our waitress walked over.

“How’r we doin’?” she asked kindly.

Tori bowed her head and grumbled under her breath. Her hands fell away.

Laughing, I slid my arm around her and gave her a squeeze. I kissed the side of her head, then looked up at our waitress, answering, “We’re good.”

“Can I get ya’ll anything else before the kitchen closes? Our cook’s about to head out.”

Gasping, Tori’s head shot up. Her eyes were panicked as she stared into my face.

“Babe, I think we’re good. You still got another stack of pancakes,” I told her, thinking she was freaking out about the kitchen closing.

My woman could eat. I fucking loved that.

“No, um …” She looked behind her, saying, “We’re good. Thank you.” Then when the waitress moved away, Tori turned her head around to look at me again. “I need to tell you something,” she said, gripping on to my faded black Hurley tee.

I looked down at her holding-tight hands and then back into her face. “This serious?” I asked, brows lifting.

“It is.”

“You scared to tell me?”

She nodded, swallowing before admitting softly, “I’m just worried it’ll mess things up. And God, I don’t want that. I don’t want to go backwards.”

I felt my mouth twitch. “Don’t gotta worry about that,” I promised.

She shook her head, letting her eyes fall away. “That’s sweet, but you don’t know what I’ve done.”

What she’s done?

Jesus.

Now I was starting to get worried.

“Babe, just tell me. It ain’t gonna mess shit up.”