Cocky Secrets (Cocker Brothers #29)

11. Sage

ELEVEN

Sage

T he bell above the door jingles as I step into our sleepy town’s beloved, quaint diner, helmet under my arm. The warm scent of coffee and freshly cooked bacon wraps around me like the welcome of a friend.

It’s early morning, barely past seven, and the local crowd is here—families, regulars, and what looks like a couple of tourists from the way they’re arguing about maps on their phones.

I slide into a booth in the corner, my eyes scanning the familiar faces at the counter. Mom was more worried than pissed off, when we returned to the plantation yesterday with my new Harley. What we hadn’t anticipated was what had really irritated her — that she hadn’t been asked to go to the diner with Dad when he’d gone researching. “I’m stuck here all the time and you go in and have breakfast without me?!”

“That’s what you’re mad about, Meg?”

“This is no surprise that you bought her that hog! Oh no! I’ve been waiting for you two to come home, expecting it! You know why? Jett told me when I discovered both of you were gone!”

“That mother fucker,” Dad grumbled, shouting, “Jett, I told you to keep it a secret!”

Jett shouted back from the outside porch, “You think Luna would’ve let me keep that one from Meg? Come on now!”

So, this morning, Mom climbed on the back of Dad’s Harley, and me and my brothers each saddled our own, for an early morning ride to get a family breakfast outside of the plantation’s normalcy, just the five of us. Sofia Sol stayed home with the kids since she loves to sleep in, and they do, too.

Mom’s in the bathroom right now. Luke and Atlas are already planted at the counter, laughing and teasing each other as they await plates of scrambled eggs and crispy hash browns. Dad is with them, and all three are wearing their usual leather jackets, an ever-present reminder that they’re members of The Ciphers, for anyone who’s interested. And from the lingering glances cast their way, it appears many people are. It was news to me, yesterday, to discover they have a good reputation in town. It makes me relaxed in this atmosphere, knowing that we’re among fans.

“You sitting by yourself, Sage?” Atlas calls over to me.

“Need to get a good look at the diner from this angle so I can’t paint it later,” I call back over the continuous conversation of other customers. “Besides, there’s no more space at the counter.” The chair-stools, bolted in since the 1960’s, have only enough room between them to climb on. No way to pull a chair up from one of the tables even if they were high enough.

Atlas points to the empty one beside Dad. “What’s this?”

Dad smacks him upside the back of his head. “For your mother.”

“Oh, right,” Atlas mutters, and Luke laughs at him. “What? I’m not used to Mom being with us!”

I can’t help but smile at their antics, but my attention drifts past them, ahead, to the other end of the diner. Bear is leaning against the far end of the counter, in jeans and a tank-top that fit him like they were invented for his body alone. He’s chatting with the waitress, but I can see from the way his gaze flickers towards me that he knows I’m watching. A thrill of excitement runs through me, and I pretend to focus on the menu in front of me, switching gears on purpose as if I’m not interested in him. As if I didn’t hope to find him, thinking maybe it was his usual morning routine to have breakfast here.

“Coffee?” a waitress in her sixties with too much mascara asks.

“Sure.” The booth was already set up with two sets of utensils rolled in napkins, and coffee mugs turned upside down on saucers. I flip one over, reaching for the bowl of creamers next. “Thank you.”

Bear finishes his conversation and strides over, past my family, work boots thudding softly against the worn tile floor. His amber eyes are warm and inviting, and I can’t help but feel a rush of warmth spread through me as we stare at each other for the entire extent of his journey.

“Mind if I join you?” he asks, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

I told you I can’t see you.

I told you it’s impossible.

Glancing to my dad, my brothers, I pause before smiling, “Not at all,” voice steady despite the flutter in my stomach. “I could use some good company. I was about to eat alone.”

Actually I sat down here hoping you’d come over and say hello, if I were alone. Since we bought the Harley from you, it wouldn’t be too weird.

Would it?

I don’t care.

I’m feeling reckless.

I couldn’t sleep last night. Bear was haunting my thoughts. Plans of riding through the mountains with him. Secret adventures on the horizon that no one knew about. How fucking hot he is. The way he looks at me like I’m intriguing. How he sold me his Harley just so we could go riding together. How crazy a decision that was.

Or does he simply have the means to buy another one, so it wasn’t much of a loss to him? Was he just being kind?

Kind…or devilish.

Am I being careless inviting him to sit? It would be weirder if I said no, when he asked, wouldn’t it?

He slides into the booth across from me, filling the space with a mix of authority and charisma. “Nice to see you again, Sage.”

“Bear,” I nod in greeting, glance darting to where Mom has just appeared outside the bathroom door. She raises her eyebrows and I shake my head, it’s alright.

Dad looks over, waves his hand and says in a loud voice, “That’s who we bought the hog from. All good.”

Bear glances back, gives Dad a nod, and secures curious looks from Luke and Atlas. And Mom. She can’t stop watching us, even as she takes her seat.

Bear asks me, volume lowered to a private level, “Are your brothers treating you like a child?”

“Of course,” I answer, my volume lowered as well. “They’re always messing with me. One more than the other, but…yeah.” My heart races as I hold Bear’s gaze. “What about you? Just here to keep the peace?”

Bear laughs softly, and it’s music to my ears. “Something like that. Even though I’m off duty, I like to keep an eye on the locals. You never know what kind of trouble a certain redhead might get into.” His eyes twinkle with interest.

I feign innocence, “Trouble? Me?” biting my lip, and adding more creamer to my coffee. “I’m just here for the pancakes.”

The waitress pauses by my table. “Pancakes?”

“Short stack with bacon, please.”

She hurries away, writing it on her order-pad and tearing off the slip to give it to their cook, comfortable shoes hurrying through the maze.

“Just here for the pancakes, huh,” Bear replies, raising an eyebrow. “You sat here so I’d come over.”

“Sure I did,” I scoff.

“Don’t act like you didn’t. You’ve got a spark in your eye like you’re planning something.”

I keep my expression a cool facade, voice quiet. “Maybe I am, Officer. But you’ll have to stick around to find out.”

He leans back, arms crossing, a playful challenge in his expression. “Is that a dare?”

“Perhaps.” I lean forward, very quiet, lips barely moving, “What if I told you I like a little trouble?”

Bear’s expression shifts, attraction lighting up his features. “Is that so?”

“Sage, are you flirting with that guy?” Atlas calls out, laughter bubbling in his voice. “You know we’re watching you, right?”

I shoot him a glare. Bear shifts in his seat, and I feel heat rising to my cheeks.

“Looks like your brothers are wondering if I’m a threat,” he says, caution in his tone.

I reply, touching my lips so The Ciphers can’t read them, “Trust me, they don’t know the half of it. How do we go on that ride?”

Bear’s back is to them, so they can’t see his smile widen, and for a moment, the noise of the diner fades away. It’s just us, caught in electric aliveness. “How do we make this happen in secret…”

The air between us crackles with possibilities, and Bear’s eyes hold mine, as if we’ve created our own little world, one where the clatter of dishes and the sizzle of the grill no longer exist.

“I work nights, so why don’t you say you’re going to Viola’s,” Bear suggests, his voice low and drawing me deeper into trouble. His gaze sharpens. “What’s your idea of fun, Sage?”

Before I can answer, Atlas calls over again, this time with a less playful tone. “Hey! A seat opened up next to us. Or, did you find someone to help you with your pancakes?”

I shoot him a look, but Bear only laughs, the sound warm and inviting to me. But to Atlas I know it would grate on his nerves to hear Bear laughing when Atlas is being protective. “Looks like your brothers are keeping close tabs as predicted.”

Loudly I say, “They think they’re my guardians or something,” and roll my eyes, “But I’m perfectly capable of handling myself.”

Bear leans in a little closer, the space between us diminishing. “So, what’s stopping you from showing them just how capable you are?”

I pause, the question hanging in the air like a challenge. “You’re daring me to tell them I want to date a cop?”

“Is that what we’re going to do? Date?”

I lean forward. “I don’t fuck around with just anyone. If we do this, we’re giving us a shot.”

There’s a flicker in Bear’s gaze—the thrill of a challenge? Maybe something more. “I might be able to fill that role, but we’d have to be careful.”

“Careful?” I tease. “We’d have to have magic powers. It’s impossible.”

He chuckles, shaking his head. “Nothing is impossible.”

I whisper, “Your badge is the problem. But badge or not, I think maybe you’re just like me — you could use a little chaos in your life.”

Bear’s expression shifts slightly, amber eyes narrowing. “You’re on, Sage. How about we meet tomorrow at noon? Vi’s shop. Just you and me. I’ll show you how to have some real fun—under the radar, of course.”

Atlas shouts a warning, “Sage!”

I whisper, lips not moving, “Noon?”

“If you show up.” Bear reaches over, takes a sip of my coffee, never breaking eye contact. “But you’ll have to promise to keep it between us. Can’t have the whole town knowing I’m letting a wild card like you into my life.”

“Clearly,” I smile.

Dad stands up from the counter. “Sage! You gonna sit there all day, or are you joining us?”

My gaze locks onto my waitress as she pointedly places my pancakes next to Luke. Fun times are over.

“So much for my own booth,” I mumble, feeling the thrill of secrecy wrap around me and Bear like an unbreakable bond as I raise my voice to normal volume. “It was good seeing you again.”

He stands, giving me one last lingering look before he turns to leave. My heart races as I watch him walk away, the sound of my brothers’ laughter pulling me back to reality.

As I join them at the counter, Atlas grumbles, “That conversation went on long enough.”

But Dad is watching Bear walk into the golden morning sunlight. As soon as he’s gone, Dad says, “That’s the kind of man of I see you with, Sage.”

My jaw drops. “What?”

Mom nods, “Strong. Good eyes. And your father told me last night he liked him.”

Luke sets down his coffee. “He’s a cop.”

Dad jolts. “ What?!”

“Beat cop. We’ve seen him patrolling.”

Dad shouts, “Oh hell no! You stay away from that guy.”

The whole diner silences.

As does my heart.

“You hear me?” Dad shouts.

I whisper, “I hear you,” and stare at pancakes and bacon I no longer have any appetite for. “The whole diner hears you.”

“Watch your tone, Sage,” Mom warns, and we finish our meal in silence, with mine ending up in a takeout box I’ll leave untouched…forever.