“Always,” Matthew said with a grin. “Especially if you’re the one pouring it.”
Laurel gave them all a long-suffering look but poured anyway. When she reached Bennett, she lingered just a second longer than necessary.
“You look…rested,” she murmured, her eyes twinkling.
“You look smug,” he replied quietly.
“Must be the company I kept last night.”
Bennett stifled a grin and watched her move to refill the others’ mugs. The sway of her mouthwatering hips should not be that distracting, but here he was, fighting a hard-on in front of half the damn team, trying not to let it show.
“I’ll be back with your orders shortly,” she told them before hurrying to top-off coffees at another table on her way to the kitchen.
He watched her, letting the comfort of her presence ground him again. She was fire and light and grit wrapped into one maddeningly captivating woman.
And he’d be damned if anyone took her safety for granted again.
“You two want a table or a room?” Carter asked under his breath.
Bennett shot him a sideways glare. “You want to keep your teeth?”
“Just saying,” Carter mumbled around his raised cup.
Mac cleared his throat, setting his cup down. “Carter, quit heckling the man before you make him grumpier than usual.”
Carter smirked, unfazed. “He’s already halfway to glowering, I figured I’d tip him over for fun.”
“Ignore him,” Mac said, turning to Bennett. “I’ve got Cooper pulling footage from traffic cams between the building and the outskirts. If this guy was watching the place, he didn’t vanish. There’ll be a trail, and then Hunter will be on it.”
Bennett’s jaw ticked. “Good. Let’s find it before he circles back.”
Laurel returned with a tray of plates and expertly began setting them in front of each guy. “Six breakfasts for six brave men,” she said. “With a side of sass and a warning not to fight over the syrup.”
“Hit us with our morning trivia,” Carter urged, taking his offered plate.
She paused mid-step, clearly delighted. “All right, gentlemen. Did you know Texas is the only state that was once its own independent nation?”
Carter groaned. “Come on, we learned that in fifth grade.”
“Fine,” Laurel said, narrowing her eyes playfully. “Did you know that armadillos always give birth to four identical babies? Quadruplets. Every time.”
Tyler lifted an eyebrow. “That’s strange.”
“That feels weirdly relevant to Carter,” Matthew said, smirking into his toast.
Carter brows crashed together. “What does that mean?”
“It means,” Mac cut in, dry as ever, “if you ever clone yourself, I’m quitting.”
Laurel grinned, clearly enjoying herself. “Science is amazing. So is breakfast.”
As she placed Bennett’s plate down last, her fingers brushed his again. Deliberately. Barely there. But it lit something inside him anyway.
She winked. “Enjoy, boys.”
And just like that, she was gone again, heading back to the counter.
Matthew looked at Bennett, then back at Laurel’s retreating form. “You’re in so deep, man.”
