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much
for eating dinner with Gracie. Or showering with her, for that matter. He knew
by the look in Faith’s turquoise gaze that the woman was on a mission and
Gracie was her target.
    Lane tried not to be bothered by the fact that their
plans had once again been derailed. It seemed to be the case no matter the time
or place these days.
    Gracie turned away from him, but not before he noticed
her rolling her eyes. Standing beside her, Lane watched as Faith came stomping
across the room.
    “Oh, shit,” Gracie muttered.
    “Problems?” Lane whispered.
    “Always. And if the look on her face is anything to go
by, I’m up shit creek without a paddle.”
    The lure of food was so powerful Lane decided that
he’d leave Gracie and her sister to hash out whatever their issues were without
his help. Just because he had a longing to touch her, he stepped behind Gracie
and placed his hand gently on the small of her back, squeezing ever so
slightly. “I’ll catch you later.”
    When Gracie met his gaze over her shoulder, he was
tempted to lean in and kiss her. That look spoke volumes, in a way that said, I’d
really like to find you naked in my bed later , which was incredibly
difficult to resist.
    But he didn’t have a chance to say or do anything
before Faith was marching up to Gracie. “We need to talk.”
    “Good to see you too, Faith,” Lane said with a grin.
“Have a good night.” And with that, Lane snuck off, not wanting to endure
Faith’s wrath. Whatever had that woman’s panties in a bunch, he didn’t want to
have anything to do with it.
    Lane had just grabbed a plate, piled it high with
mashed potatoes, followed by two slices of Salisbury steak, another helping of
potatoes, another piece of meat… Before he was finished, he had enough to sate
his appetite for at least a week, although he’d probably be hungry again by
midnight.
    As he was grabbing two rolls, trying to hold on to his
hat’s brim with his fingers, balance his plate in one hand, a glass of tea in
the crook of his arm and the bread in the other, for the second time in under
an hour, someone asked him if he’d seen Grant.
    “Do I look like his keeper?” he snapped.
    “Whoa, dude,” Cody Mercer snapped. “Who pissed in your
Post Toasties?”
    Lane blew off the statement, knowing better than to
get into a pissing match at this point. He was his own worst enemy when it came
to his emotions, and the fact that Grant was back and everyone seemed to know
it but him didn’t sit well, nor did knowing that his plans for spending just a
few hours with Gracie were nothing more than wishful thinking.
    “I just wanted to let him know that Hope was lookin’
for him.”
    “I heard,” Lane groused as he moved toward an empty
table on the far side of the room. Without hesitation, he slid into the chair
and put a death grip on his fork, ready to eat in peace.
    Cody followed.
    Well, so much for peace.
    “Do you know what it’s about?” Cody asked, dropping
into the chair opposite Lane.
    “Why don’t you join me?” Lane murmured beneath his
breath.
    “Don’t mind if I do.”
    That drew a smile out of Lane.
    Okay, so his pissy attitude really didn’t have a place
here. Cody Mercer was a good guy, a little too cocky and self-assured for
Lane’s taste, but he meant well. Too bad the kid had a thing for Mercy Lambert,
the wildest of all the Lambert sisters. That woman would chew him up and spit
him out before he ever knew what hit him.
    Not that Lane was going to bring it up. He’d actually
been waiting for a couple of years to see it happen. Metaphorically speaking.
Unfortunately, Lane had been the one to waltz right into the shop in time to
see Mercy straddling Cody and…
    “So?”
    Lane looked up to see Cody was waiting for him to say
something. Thank heavens for that. He did not want to remember that day,
especially while he was eating. “So … what ?”
    “Do you know what Hope wanted?” Cody repeated slowly,
as though he were talking to a