Page 39 of The Stone Family Warrior

Trent nudged her with his elbow. “I know.”

She swallowed her bite and then grinned at him. “It is warrior meat.”

“Thank you.” Trent stuck his fist into the air. “It’s a win, ladies and gents!”

She giggled again. “You’re ridiculous.”

“You’ve never seen a man cheer over meat before?”

“Actually, I haven’t. My father wasn’t really expressive, and Will wasn’t either.”

“What?” Trent asked.

She made a face. Why had she started talking about Will? “Nothing.”

Trent cocked an eyebrow. “I’m guessing your husband’s name was Will?”

She nodded. These days, whenever she thought about Will and whenever she was even asked about Will, there was always guilt and pain, with a smidge of anger.

Trent’s eyes narrowed. “You okay?”

She didn’t know what emotions he was reading on her face, but she didn’t want to talk about all the crap with her husband. “I’m fine.”

Trent hesitated. “Okay.”

He could tell she was lying; she knew it.

Trent took another bite of his steak and made loud chewing noises. “A man’s gotta appreciate the meat.”

“Oh dear,” she said, relaxing at his antics. Clearly, he was letting her off the hook, and she was grateful for it.

Trent grinned at her too, and for the first time in a long, long time, Liberty finally admitted to herself that yes, she was attracted to this man. She might even still have a crush on him.

“What?” His face turned serious. “That look was not like the other one, but it wasn’t one I recognize.”

“Oh, so you think you recognize all my looks now?”

“Pretty much,” Trent said, all innocence.

For a couple minutes, both of them ate. Today, even though it was cold, the sun was starting to set and the sky was pink and orange. The beach was empty. “You guys have a good view of the sunset,” she remarked.

“It’s even better upstairs.”

She sighed. “I love it here. I never realized how much I love it until … right now.”

He was peering out the window, but he glanced at her. “I know what you mean. Sometimes, when I’m on an op and I’m feeling lonely or worried or anything, I just close my eyes and I imagine this view.” He took his water and sipped it. “Or the view from the library upstairs.”

She thought of the library, of how his mother had spent lots of hours there and the kids, any of the kids, could chat with her anytime. “That is a good view.”

He nodded. “Finish up and we’ll go up there. I have a whole set up to take you through with the treasure stuff.”

Oh yes, the treasure. She began eating faster, prodded by excitement, and noted that he was almost done with his meat.

He took another heaping serving of rice and dug into it. She liked a man who ate a good meal. Will had always been on the skinnier side; he’d definitely never had Trent’s kind of muscle. Not that she cared, but even watching him eat and seeing the way the muscles in his tricep flexed with every bite made her smile. It was a bittersweet moment.

“You have that ‘thinking face’ that makes me feel like you’re thinking about something that makes you unhappy.”

She tried to soften whatever look was on her face. “I was actually thinking about your tricep.” The words came out before she could stop them.

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