Chapter 13

“What are you doing here?”

Theo scowled at Hugh, who was trying to maneuver into the bench seat across the booth from him. He was making a mess of it, knocking his crutches against the table and finally falling onto the seat in an awkward motion that made him wince. “Me? I’m not the one with a hole in my leg. Are you supposed to be driving?”

“I walked.” Hugh settled into place, and the pain lines on his face eased slightly.

“Hobbled.”

Hugh flipped him off and Theo raised his eyebrows. Normally, Hugh would’ve laughed at that. “Didn’t they give you pain meds?”

“Yeah.” Hugh grimaced. “They did.”

“Why aren’t you taking them?”

It was Hugh’s turn to look surprised. “Because they make me puke. How’d you know?”

“It’s obvious from your pissy mood. Can’t they give you something else that doesn’t make you sick?”

Hugh scowled. It wasn’t a look Theo was used to seeing. On his own face in the mirror, sure, but not on cheery Hugh. “Quit nagging. You sound like my grandma.”

“Fuck you.” Theo couldn’t put much heat behind it. Even though a week had passed since the shooting, he was still in a constant state of relief and gratitude that Hugh hadn’t died. After that first rush of rage at the hospital, it was hard to get truly angry with him.

“You wish.” It was Hugh’s standard answer, but it lacked the cheeky warmth that usually imbued the comeback. “Where’s the new waitress?”

“Jules.” The correction was out of Theo’s mouth before he could stop it.

“Right.” A hint of familiar humor lit Hugh’s gaze. “Jules. So have you seen Jules around, or is she in the kitchen, reading your stealthily passed note and checking off whether she likes you or not?”

To his horror, Theo realized his cheeks were getting hot.

“Are you blushing?” Hugh hooted in delight.

To Theo’s relief and embarrassment, Jules chose that moment to hurry up to the table. His stomach dove and leapt in a disconcerting way, as if Jules was his own personal amusement-park ride. That thought heated his face even more.

“I’m so sorry!” Jules sounded breathless, which made Theo’s brain continue down the path it had already stepped on to. “This has been the craziest morning. The kids go back to school today, and Megan called me earlier to tell me that Laura, the waitress who was supposed to work this morning, was sick, so I couldn’t drop them off, so my brain is half here and half riding the bus to school with them, and I’ve already dropped Mrs. McCurdy’s eggs and rye toast with just a little butter on the floor, and—”

Reaching out, Theo grabbed her hand—the one that had been waving in emphasis, fluttering around like an anxious bird. He gave it a squeeze and received a grateful smile in return.

“Hey, Jules?” Hugh’s voice had an underlying note of amusement. Although Theo tried to feel irritated about that, he was just happy Hugh wasn’t looking bitter and pained anymore. “I’m really, really hungry. In fact, I believe my belly button might actually be touching my backbone.”

Unable to hold back an amused snort, Theo muttered, “Belly button touching your backbone? If I’m your grandma, then you’re my grandpa.”

Although Jules sent him a baffled glance, she went with it, giving Hugh a mock-concerned look. “That sounds like a serious medical problem. I’m not sure food is going to fix it.”

“It will. I’m sure of it. The power of belief is strong.”

She rolled her eyes, but reached over to squeeze Hugh’s upper arm. A jolt went through Theo—a jolt he ignored, because it felt too much like jealousy for his peace of mind. “Seriously, though, how are you doing?”

“Except for those instruments of torture”—Hugh gestured toward his crutches—“I’m just fine.” When she gave him a disbelieving look, he grimaced. “Better, then. I’m getting better.”

“I can’t thank both of you enough for what you did.” All teasing dropped from Jules’s voice as she looked back and forth between Hugh and Theo. “For saving Dee and Sam and me.” Her laugh held the threat of tears, and Theo shifted uncomfortably. He hoped she wouldn’t cry. If she cried, he’d have to hug her, and then he’d never hear the end of it from Hugh.

“Jules?” Norman Rounds called from his booth, distracting her from impending tears and awkward hugs.

“Be right there,” she responded, giving Theo an apologetic grimace. “Your usuals?” At their nods, she hurried to the beckoning man. Theo watched her go, not even trying to pretend that he wasn’t enjoying the view. When she reached Norman, however, Theo frowned.

“Rounds has been in here a lot lately,” he told Hugh in a low voice.

Without even looking toward Norman’s table, Hugh answered, “Yep. Showed up in Monroe six months ago and has been squirreled away in Gordon Schwartz’s compound ever since—well, until lately. I’d caught glimpses of him around town once in a while, but this daily breakfast thing is different.”

“Why the change?”

“No idea. Maybe the bromance honeymoon period’s over and Gordon refuses to cook for him anymore.”

Before Theo could say anything else, Otto dropped into the booth next to him. “Why are you here?”

“I just asked him the same thing,” Hugh said, giving Theo a mock-chiding look. “You have another week to go before your mandatory leave is up. It’d be longer if you told the truth about how much your ribs are hurting.”

“I’m not at work,” Theo growled. “I’m getting breakfast. And he was talking to you. You know, the one with the extra hole.”

Otto raised a hand, cutting off Hugh’s retort. “You”—he jerked his chin at Hugh—“should be at home. And you”—this time his sharp gaze fixed on Theo—“should also be home.”

“I’m getting breakfast!” Theo repeated, a little louder that time.

“And flirting with the new waitress,” Hugh added. “Jules.”

Theo turned his fiercest scowl on Hugh, but it just made his partner smile wider.

“He held her hand.”

Otto’s eyebrows lifted so high they almost touched his hairline.

“I know,” Hugh said, as if Otto had made a comment. “We didn’t think it would happen, but our little boy is all grown up. Remember when he said all girls have cooties and he’d rather die than kiss one?”

If he hadn’t been positive Megan would take unholy glee in banning him from the diner, Theo would’ve climbed over the table and started pounding on Hugh, bullet wound or no bullet wound.

“Quit trying to distract me,” Otto grumbled, although his mouth had twitched at the corners. “How’d you get here?”

“Great.” Hugh flopped back in his seat dramatically, but then winced, presumably when his leg protested the jerky movement. “I have two new grandmas now.”

“He walked,” Theo answered for Hugh absently, his attention distracted by movement at the stranger’s table. Norman Rounds reached out and grabbed Jules’s wrist, pulling her closer to him as he spoke rapidly. Theo stiffened. “Let me out.”

“Why?” Hugh asked, while Otto just looked at him.

“Out.” When both men still looked at him expectantly, Theo exhaled, short and sharp, and jerked his head toward the stranger’s table. “He’s militia, and he’s touching Jules.”

After a single glance, Hugh and Otto got to their feet, and Theo rushed out of the booth behind them. Theo tried to move around them and take the lead, but the two men formed a wall, even with Hugh swinging uncomfortably on his crutches.

“Hello,” Hugh greeted Norman, who immediately dropped his hold on Jules. Nudging her gently out of the way, Hugh lowered his body into the seat next to the gaping man. “Hope you don’t mind if I sit here. My leg is throbbing something fierce, and I really need to get my weight off of it.”

Jules took several steps back, as if she was happy to put some space between her and Norman. “Oh no! Do you need anything? Like an ice pack or something? I have some ibuprofen in my purse. Oh, what am I saying? I’m sure it’s hurting more than over-the-counter pain meds could even touch. Is there any way I could help?”

As Hugh shifted, taking up more of the room on the seat and trapping the still-startled Norman in the corner, he gave Jules an entreating smile. “Just my breakfast? Please?”

“Of course.” She gave Hugh another one of those shoulder pats that made Theo unreasonably jealous. “Right away.”

Theo watched her hurry off before sliding into the booth across from Norman. For once, when Otto followed him in, Theo didn’t complain about being trapped. This time, it was someone else—Norman, to be exact—who was the animal caught in the cage, and Theo was one of the hunters.

“Hello,” Hugh said amiably, shifting another inch toward Norman. Now that he’d recovered from his surprise, Norman wasn’t acting like most people would have. Instead of cringing or getting hostile, Norman just pasted on a bland smile that eerily matched Hugh’s. “I don’t believe we’ve formally met.”

* * *

“Hold up.” Megan grabbed her arm as Jules rushed past, swinging her around with the force of her momentum.

“I promised the guys their breakfast,” Jules protested. “They just got creepy Norman to quit being handsy with me, plus—and much more importantly—Hugh was shot in the leg while saving my brother. The least I can do is make sure they get fed. Vicki’s in a mood and can’t promise to put a rush on their order, and kind of… Well, she demanded that I get out of her kitchen, so I grabbed some biscuits and gravy to tide the guys over. I put it on my tab.”

“Those three will be fine waiting a few minutes for their food. Did Hugh do his starving-puppy imitation?”

“Well…” He had looked a bit like a starving puppy.

“Besides,” Megan continued before Jules could answer, “they’re doing their thing.”

“Thing?” Jules looked over at where the three cops had joined Norman in his booth. Since she’d been distracted by Hugh’s mention of his leg hurting, and Theo just being Theo, and relief at getting away from Norman’s tight grip as he babbled about needing to tell her something important, she hadn’t wondered why the guys had sat down with Norman. “What thing is that?”

“Their cop thing,” Megan said, as if it were obvious. “And it’s about time. Norman Rounds has been here every morning for the past two weeks, staring at you with his weird creeper stare, and now he’s started grabbing you. That’s not okay for anyone to do, but especially Norman. He’s one of Gordon’s bomb nuts, so he’s not one you want to have as your very own super-special stalker.”

“Bomb nuts?” Seriously? As if she didn’t have enough to worry about, now Megan was telling her that a guy who was into bombs had a crush on her? This was bad.

“Yeah. Gordon has a group of guys living at his place, and they build things that go boom while discussing how much the government sucks. Theo will have a talk with him about how there’s only one creeper allowed to stalk you at a time, and Theo’s called dibs.” Ignoring Jules’s stare, Megan continued. “Those two are your only tables right now. Why don’t you go sit down, eat your biscuits and gravy, and ignore those guys for a few minutes. If anyone else comes in, I can babysit your section while you take a breath.”

Shaking off the disturbing information overload Megan had just dumped on her head, Jules glanced around. It was true. There was a lull, rare for this early in the morning. Even in the short time she’d been working as a server, she’d learned to grab breaks when the opportunity presented itself. Jules wasn’t about to turn down Megan’s offer, especially as frantic as the day had already been.

“Thank you, Megan.” With a final, curious glance at Norman’s table, where the three cops seemed to loom over the strange man—as much as three people sitting down could loom—Jules obediently headed for an unoccupied booth in the corner. She chose the side that had an excellent view of whatever was going down at table twelve. Jules was curious to see what “doing their thing” entailed.

Norman had become an early morning regular at the diner, always sitting at table twelve, and she’d started to dread seeing him walk in. She would’ve asked Megan to switch sections with her, since the other woman didn’t seem to be as bothered by Norman’s weirdness—or much of anything, actually—but then Jules would lose the cops’ table, too. She was willing to put up with Norman in exchange for an excuse to talk to Theo every day.

Speaking of Theo, he was saying something to Norman, who looked…how Norman always looked. Bland. Possibly mildly amused. Although Jules had a more oblique view of Theo’s face, she didn’t have to see his expression to know he was frowning. In fact, his entire body was scowling.

It would’ve been better if she could have heard what they were saying, but the men kept their voices low. She gave up trying to figure out the gist of the conversation and just enjoyed her biscuits and gravy, as well as her chance to stare at Theo as much as she wanted without anyone noticing.

As soon as she had that thought, she caught Hugh’s amused glance and held back a sigh. Busted. Well, even if her gawking had been noticed, at least she still had her food. Jules tried to stay focused on her plate, but her disobedient eyes kept glancing at the cop—her cop.

Finally they slid out of Norman’s booth and started back to their usual table. When Theo glanced around and spotted her, he reversed direction and headed her way. Her stomach did its usual spin and dive at the sight of him, so big and intense and focused on her, and she put down her fork. With all the butterflies in her belly, there was no room for any more biscuits and gravy.

Theo stopped at her booth. Instead of sliding into the seat across from her, as Jules half-expected him to do, he sat right next to her, using his muscled bulk to nudge her over. She slid to the right, making room for him, trying not to be too conscious of the heat radiating from his side or his amazing smell or the way her heart flapped around like a crazed bird at his proximity.

He tipped his head at her abandoned breakfast, and she made a “help yourself” gesture. Tugging the plate—which still held the majority of her biscuits and gravy—toward him, he took a bite, keeping his gaze steady on her. There was something so intimate about him eating from her plate, using her fork—the same fork that had been in her mouth—that she felt heat rise in her cheeks and hoped her blush wasn’t obvious. Her throat was so tight she knew her voice would sound weird if she spoke, but she also knew she needed to say something; otherwise, she’d explode. Words were a sort of release valve for her overinflated balloon of a brain.

“What was—” Her voice came out husky—like, phone-sex-operator husky—and her face burned hotter. Clearing her throat, she tried again. “What was that whole thing with Norman about?”

Chewing, he studied her thoughtfully for a long moment before swallowing and then replying. “Just getting some answers.”

“Did you ask him why he’s so weird?” She was blushing hard now, but she couldn’t help it. The side of Theo’s knee brushed against hers, melting her brain until all she could do was shriek single-word thoughts like Knees! Touching! “Or why he only wears beige? Black, I think, would be more practical if he wanted to go monochromatic. Stains wouldn’t show on black.”

“No.”

“You don’t think black would be better?” Why was she still talking?

He stopped eating for a moment so he could look at her. His frown seemed to be more confused than angry, for once. “No, I meant I didn’t ask him… This is a strange conversation.”

“Sorry.”

His expression softened as he studied her. “I don’t mind.”

Jules wasn’t quite sure how to respond, and his careful regard was making her jittery—although in the best way possible—so she glanced around as an excuse to break eye contact. Hugh was giving her hungry-puppy face from their usual table, while Otto looked on in long-suffering, yet tolerant, amusement. “I should get back to work.”

Theo followed her gaze to his partner. “He can wait. Kids okay with going back to school?”

“The kids, yes,” Jules said with a grimace. “I’m the one who’s freaking out. They’re ready—more than ready. I keep watching for signs of trauma, but they’re not there. The kids are sick of me asking if they want to talk about it. Dee finally said she didn’t need to, but she would if I needed to.”

Theo made a sound that might have been a laugh if it hadn’t come from Theo.

“It was so hard not to lock them in the basement this morning so they couldn’t get on their bus.” This time, he choked a little on his latest bite of biscuit. “Not that I would do that…especially since the basement door doesn’t have a lock on the outside. It’s just tough not to keep them home, where it’s safe.”

“You want to protect them.” He said it like it was a good thing, an admirable thing, like she was trying to be a good sister rather than the unstable, clinging-to-the-edge mess she felt like she was right now.

Officer Theodore Bosco was a shockingly good listener. Jules gave him a sideways look. Such a short time ago, he’d seemed like the enemy. After he saved her life, and her sister’s life and her brother’s life, though…after he fixed their porch and said he’d like to be a dog and then snored on their couch, everything about him had turned in her mind. Now, it felt as if he was on their side.

That wasn’t good. No matter how big a hero he was, he would still arrest her if he knew what she’d done—what she was still in the process of doing. Theo was a good cop. He wouldn’t have any choice.

“I really should be getting back to work.” Although she tried to make the words sound casual, Jules must’ve failed, because he gave her a sharp look. She slid toward the opening in the booth that was blocked by his solid form, thinking he’d shift out of her way. He didn’t. All Jules accomplished was getting her body close to Theo’s—very, very close.

“You know,” he said quietly, tipping his head toward hers so they were the only ones who could hear his words, “this doesn’t give me much incentive to move.” His gaze dropped to where her thigh touched his. Heat radiated from him, warming her entire side, making her want to get closer. Theo’s gravitational pull had activated again, drawing her in until their planets collided.

Thinking about colliding with Theo made her flush, and she guiltily raised her gaze to his, hoping desperately that he’d missed how she’d just ogled him. By the humor and heat in his eyes, she knew he could read every lustful thought in her head.

Jules could feel her face burning in embarrassment…and for other reasons.

Megan hollered across the diner, “Quit holding my waitress captive, Theo! Indulge in your bondage fantasies later, when there aren’t hungry people to feed.”

There was a bark of laughter from Hugh. Although Theo looked annoyed, he didn’t seem to be at all embarrassed. Jules, on the other hand, felt her skin burn from her chest to her hairline. Worst of all were the images instantly flooding her mind. The heat wasn’t all from humiliation. There was some excitement brewing there, as well.

Luckily, Theo was too busy scowling at Megan and sliding out of the booth to notice Jules’s embarrassment. Ducking her head, she stood and grabbed what little remained of her biscuits and gravy. Before she hurried to the kitchen, though, she couldn’t stop herself from sneaking a quick peek at his face.

He wasn’t looking at her. Instead, he stared, expressionless, over her shoulder. Jules turned to find out what had put that look on his face, but she moved a little too quickly and bobbled. Theo caught her upper arm, steadying her. She automatically put out a hand, and it landed on his belly. Her breath stopped as soon as her fingers landed on his solid belly, only a T-shirt blocking skin-to-skin contact.

“Theo.” The woman’s voice was sweet and feminine, and it yanked Jules back to the present in a disconcerting rush. Turning toward the speaker, she dropped her hand too quickly, blushing as hotly as if she’d been caught fondling his naked stomach. Her embarrassment increased when she saw the woman was insanely perfect, enough so that her beauty melted Jules into an insecure heap. “How are you? I heard about the shooting. How terrible! I’m so glad you’re okay.”

Theo’s response was more a grunt than a word, and his tension was so obvious that it made Jules intensely curious. Was she an ex-girlfriend? Or—and her heart dissolved at the thought—maybe a current girlfriend? Jules could easily see it. The woman was gorgeous. Tall and willowy and even-featured, like a model who specialized in the girl-next-door look.

“Who is this?” The too-attractive stranger turned to Jules with a friendly smile and held out a hand. “I’m Sherry Baker.”

Off-balance from imagining Theo and this woman together, Jules automatically accepted the handshake but waited a second too long to answer. “Oh, I’m Jules! I mean, um…Julie Jackson.” She tried to hide her wince. The last time she’d bungled her new name so badly was when she’d been interrogated by Theo. It made it worse when Sherry gave her a sympathetic smile, as if she knew too well what it was like to act like a babbling idiot. It’d have been much easier to hate Sherry if she hadn’t seemed so stinking nice.

“Sherry,” Otto said, startling Jules, who hadn’t noticed his approach. For a big guy, he sure moved quietly. He must have taken Sherry by surprise, as well, because she quickly twisted around.

“Hey, Sherry.” Hugh swung up on his crutches. “How’re things?”

Glancing between the two newcomers, Sherry laughed. “What a reception! Hi, Otto, Hugh. I didn’t see you two when I came in. Oh, Hugh—I can’t believe you were shot! I think I must’ve left the lieutenant fifty messages after I heard. I was going crazy with worry until he finally called me back yesterday to tell me you were going to be okay. How’s the investigation going? Any idea who it was?”

“Thanks,” Hugh said lightly. “I’ll be fine. We’re following up some leads, but there’s nothing definite yet.” Jules studied his face, pretty sure the tension in his expression wasn’t from pain—not all of it, at least. She wondered if she’d guessed wrong about which cop was interested in Sherry.

“Jules!” Megan bellowed from across the diner. “If you don’t get back to work right now, I’m never going to offer you a break ever again, and by ‘never’ I mean ‘not until the end of time’!”

Jules took a step toward the kitchen. “I’d better get back,” she said. “It was nice to meet you?” To her embarrassment, her voice rose at the end, turning the pleasantry into more of an insult. Sherry’s smile faltered, and Jules felt like a rude toad. It wasn’t Sherry’s fault that residual, unwarranted envy still churned in Jules’s stomach, making her regret eating the biscuits and gravy. She gave Sherry an apologetic grimace, and the other woman’s expression brightened again.

“You, too, Jules.”

Jules started to take another step away from the group, but Theo caught her hand, squeezing it briefly before releasing. That was the second time in less than an hour that Theo had held her hand, Jules realized, and her smile grew huge as she met his gaze.

Thanks to that realization, Jules was almost skipping as she returned to work. There had been hand-holding and thigh-touching and same-plate eating. Jules had no idea what—if anything—all of that meant, but she was happier than she’d been in a long time, and she was determined to enjoy that feeling as long as she could.