Page 50 of Hero Mine

Joy shrugged, forcing herself to focus on the conversation. “Depends who you ask and when. Small-town life has its pros and cons, like everywhere.”

“Makes sense.” He took another sip, his eyes never leaving her face. “Must’ve been scary, what happened to you.”

The rag in her hand froze mid-swipe.

Her heartbeat kicked up, but she kept her expression neutral. “What’s that?”

Daniel leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “The break-in a few weeks ago. I heard about it. Someone mentioned it the other night.”

A sharp prickle crawled up Joy’s spine. Everyone in Oak Creek knew about the attack, of course. It wasn’t a secret. But a stranger knowing about it? Made her skin crawl.

She forced a dismissive shrug. “It’s old news.”

“Still.” His gaze was steady, assessing. “Can’t imagine that happens often in a town like this.”

The last thing she wanted was to discuss the attack with someone she didn’t know. Especially not with paranoia already creeping back in, making her jumpy and agitated. And definitely not while she could hear Cassie giggling at something Bear had said.

“Well, every town has its problems.” She kept her tone light, fingers curled tightly around the edge of the booth table.

“I suppose.” Daniel watched her for a moment, letting the silence stretch uncomfortably. “Did they ever catch the guys who did it?”

Her stomach twisted. Most locals knew better than to go there. The Kozak brothers were dead—killed after taking Sloane hostage. It wasn’t a mystery that needed solving.

“The sheriff handled it.” Her smile felt brittle. “They’re not a problem anymore.”

“I’m sure that helps you feel much better.” Something in his tone set her even further on edge.

This guy wasn’t being unreasonable. It was natural for people to be curious. She still wanted to crack Daniel in the head with her tray.

She forced herself to take a steadying breath. “Can I get you anything else?”

“Nah, I’m heading out. Just came for a beer.” He dropped cash on the table as he stood. “See you around, Joy.”

She watched him leave, unease prickling at the base of her neck. Daniel seemed friendly enough, but the interaction still left her feeling exposed. Raw.

Or maybe it was just her paranoia resurfacing. One stranger asking questions, and suddenly, she was back to feeling watched, hunted.

“Order up, Joy!” Hudson’s voice snapped her back to reality.

She pushed away the crawling sensation on her skin. She wasn’t going to let one nosy out-of-towner derail more of her progress.

Neither was she going to let Nurse Handsy ruin her night.

Crossing to the pickup counter, she loaded several plates onto her tray and delivered them over to the waiting table. She grabbed dirty dishes from another booth that had been emptied and loaded her tray back up. But as she turned toward her tables, her eyes caught on the bar again.

Cassie had somehow migrated even closer to Bear, once again laughing at something he’d said. The woman’s hand traced patterns on the bar inches from his. Joy’s chest went tight, something fierce and possessive surging through her.

She marched toward the service station beside the bar, slamming her tray down with enough force that glasses rattled. Cassie startled. Half the people nearby glanced over.

“Well,” Hudson muttered from behind the bar, eyebrows raised. “That was subtle.”

Heat flooded Joy’s cheeks, but before she could snap at him or make up some excuse about uneven trays, Bear was walking toward her.

He moved with that easy confidence that always made her stomach flip, beer in hand, looking completely unbothered. One eyebrow arched, lips twitching with barely contained amusement.

“You want to tell me what that tray did to deserve that, Bug?”

Joy clenched her jaw, refusing to meet his eyes. “Nothing.”