“I didn’t say it the other day. I’m so sorry about Dale. He was important to us all.”
Mae smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “He would have been so happy to know you are alive. He was heartbroken over what happened. We all were.”
Tears glisten in Rella’s eyes, but she blinks them away before they have a chance to fall.
“Enough with the sad talk,” Mae says, wiping the remorse from her face. “I’m so glad you came. I’ve got Jerry cooking your favorite meal.”
“Homemade Brunswick stew.” Rella sighs.
Trouble makes a gagging sound behind us, which makes Rella giggle. We all used to pick on her over her favorite meal, because it tasted like shit and looked even worse. She claimed Mae was the only one who could make it just the way she likes it, which worked in our favor because it meant she could only get it at The Hill.
“You hush it,” Mae scolds Trouble. “Or I’ll bring you a huge bowl and stand there until you eat it all.”
The vulgar look on his face vanishes in a flash. Unsure if Mae’s bluffing or not, there’s no damn way Trouble’s willing to take the chance. I can’t say I blame him.
The Hill has always been a seat-yourself type of restaurant, but Mae still leads us to a table off from the few other customers. On our way, I notice Roy and Garrett at the bar staring at Rella in interest. Rella notices them too and moves closer to me. Anger heats my blood. It takes them a moment to notice my fiery stare, and when they do, they quickly dart their eyes away.
With ind
ignation still churning in my stomach, I pull out the chair at the end of the table for Rella, which will give her the space she needs and put her back to the two men. I take the seat to her right, keeping them in my line of sight. I may be overreacting, but it pisses me off that they were looking at her and made her uncomfortable.
I try to get my temper under control as Trouble seats Remi across from me and takes the seat next to her. Elijah sits on his lap. JW, Eden, Judge, and Ellie are supposed to be meeting us here. Thea and Maisy are spending the night with Brittney.
Mae already knows what we all want, and after she kisses Elijah all over his face, she leaves to put in our order. The others walk through the door just then and come over.
“Sorry we’re late. Maisy had a crisis when she couldn’t find her Kindle,” Ellie says, taking the seat a couple down from mine.
“I think it’s great she enjoys reading so much. You don’t see that with many kids these days. All they want to do is play video games or play on the computer.”
“Oh, she still loves playing her video games,” Ellie replies to Remi. She glances at Judge and smiles mischievously. “Just ask Judge. She ropes him into playing with her all the time.”
I’ve never seen Judge as happy as he has been since Ellie and Maisy came to town. Even now, the guy has a proud grin on his face. If I didn’t know how special Maisy was, I’d call the look pathetic, but even I have a hard time keeping my stoic expression when Maisy is around. She has a light about her that shines on everyone.
“I’m sure that girl could ask him anything and he’d give in,” Eden states with a laugh.
“Damn straight,” Judge says without compunction.
“How’s Thea?”
JW glances at Rella, a hint of concern lining his features. “She’s only eleven years old and has been through more than most adults. She starts therapy next week. I’m hoping she’ll give it a fighting chance.” He looks at Rella. “Thank you for talking to her. I’ve known for a while she was struggling, but she wouldn’t really say much to Eden or me and refused therapy altogether.”
“She overheard you and Eden talking about me the other night,” Rella says quietly.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize she heard us.”
Rella shakes her head and holds up her hand to stop Eden. “No. It’s okay. I think that’s why she talked to me. She felt a kinship, maybe. I was glad I could help.”
Eden still looks guilty, but she nods anyway. JW’s jaw tightens in regret also.
Rella smiles sadly at them both. “Really, it’s okay. I was part of Sweet Haven, so I’m sure most people know what happened anyway. I trust JW and I know he trusts you too. My… ordeal is no secret.”
Mae picks that moment to bring out our food. Remi asks her to sit and eat with us, but she refuses, saying she’s enjoying working too much. It’s on the tip of my tongue to demand she sit, but I refrain from saying anything. Mae’s a grown woman and knows her limits, even if she bends them at times. We’ll all keep an eye on her to make sure she’s not doing too much.
As she walks away, I notice Roy and Garrett once again looking our way. They’re young, mid-twenties probably. Rella’s a beautiful woman, so I know they are appreciating her looks. It’s going to get them hurt. Garrett says something to Roy, and his eyes move to me. The color leaches from his face, and he spins back around on his stool. He lifts his hand to Cathy, the other waitress, and she pulls her order pad from her pocket.
“I’ll be back,” I tell the group and ignore the questioning looks I receive.
I walk casually over to the bar. Roy and Garrett don’t notice my approach as they start pulling out their wallets to pay their bill. I come to a stop behind Roy and overhear his next words.