His jaw clenched. She refused to let her gaze waver, knowing if she backed down here, it would be all over. Stone Petty would eat her alive and then ask what was for dessert. “I had to consult on a case,” he finally ground out. Waves of heat and crankiness swarmed from his aura. He paused, and his next words seemed strangled, as if he was forcing them out. “I apologize.”
She treated him to a brilliant smile, mostly fake. “Apology accepted. Please don’t let it happen again. Oh, and you’ll need to stay additional time after class. The rules, of course. Each minute must be accounted for. Now, let’s start the subject of the day, shall we?”
Eli and Luther looked satisfied by his punishment, and she was back in control.
For now.
She ignored the shiver that raced down her spine and concentrated on her class.
STONE PICKED AT HIS thumbnail and wondered what Devine was up to. Maybe he had been chasing a speeder, and when he got to the driver’s window, the driver looked off. Maybe Devine asked him to get out of the car, and the driver refused, and his partner got to slam him up against the hood, cuff him, and do a vehicle search. Maybe he found something incriminating like a weapon or drugs. He’d get a medal and Chief Dick would boast about him in the department, and the whole time Stone was stuck here in anger management class learning how to eat well to decrease anger and stress.
Bastard.
“Officer Petty?”
He looked up from his battered thumb. He was getting sick and tired of her prim and proper tone. His title sounded like a mockery and irritated the hell out of him. “Stone,” he reminded her again. “You call that dude Eli and the other dude Luther. How about calling me Stone?”
She smiled again, but it wasn’t real and they both knew it. “Achieving the status of a policeman deserves respect. You earned the title and deserve to be called ‘Officer.’”
Bullshit. How did she manage to get away with such behavior? She wrapped up insults in phony attempts to be nice. Of course, she’d backed him into a wall on that one. Who would’ve thought his being a bit late and eating fast food could make her so damn snarky?
Stone smothered a humorless laugh. At least temper made her more real. If he had to hear one sugarcoated statement about avoiding bad foods, soda, alcohol, cigs, and anything else fun in life, he was gonna seriously fake some kind of illness. Maybe food poisoning from his bacon biscuit. Yeah, that was good. Was she calling him again?
“Yeah?”
“Luther and Eli have shared some of their concerns with their diets. Do you have any?”
He began to roll his eyes but caught himself just in time. He didn’t want to have to stay any later in psycho zen detention. “Nope.”
She was sitting cross-legged again on the mat. Head rising high above her slender shoulders. Red-gold hair caught in a thick braid that hung down her back. Long, graceful limbs tangled up in a dance of grace and balance he’d never really seen in another woman. Too bad she was so dull and boring. “Wonderful. Why don’t you take us through typical meals during a workday?”
Why weren’t Luther and Eli normal dudes? If they’d band together and make some serious trouble, the day would go a lot faster. “I get up and have my coffee, toast, and bacon.”
“Turkey bacon?” she asked.
He snorted. “Hell, no. Nothing wrong with eating pig. That’s why God put ’em on earth for us. To eat.”
She literally paled. Stone’s mood picked up. Yep, she was a vegetarian all right. Too funny. He warmed up to his topic. “I go to work, and have a midmorning snack of Cheetos or Oreos. Then for lunch I usually swing by Micky D’s or Arby’s, depending on my mood. Wash it down with a Big Gulp soda. Then, for my midafternoon snack, I hit the vending machine. Dinner is pretty healthy.”
She swallowed. “Chicken?”
He scratched his head. “Sometimes. Kentucky does a good job of it. Sometimes steak, nice and rare and bloody. A few IPAs and maybe a shot of Irish whiskey later on. Oh, I eat veggies, too. Like you’ve been saying, they’re important for balance and stuff. I like corn.”
“Of course you do.” A fine sheen of sweat had broken out on her forehead. He tamped down on a laugh. Damn, she was a do-gooder. Wanted everyone to eat from the earth, probably, and die of starvation and boredom. She cleared her throat. “Umm, do you feel any of these habits need to change after our session? Luther wants to try drinking more water. Eli would like to stop snacking in the evening. What would you like to change?”
Stone pretended to think. “Well, I did quit smoking, so that was a big change.”
“Yes, a wonderful decision we all applaud.”
“I’d say I’d like to change my choices with fast food.” She looked so relieved and happy, he almost felt bad for her. Almost. Her smile seemed much closer to real. His gut clenched. Funny, he had an urge to make her do it again. For him. Her eyes sparkled, and her lips relaxed, and that amazing energy shimmered around her, setting off something deep inside.
Whatever. He was probably hungry again.
“I’m thrilled you want to make those changes. Gentlemen, let’s break for lunch and try to use some of our newfound knowledge. Again, the power of our choices affects all aspects in our life. Even anger.”
Luther and Eli agreed with way too much eagerness, but Stone was already leaping from the chair and to the door. One hour of freedom. He’d pop back into the station and see what was up. It was also time to get the bastards back for the poop in his trunk incident. Devine had identified the two main culprits—McCoy and Make It Work Dunn. He’d keep this round simple and classic.