My hand fisted around the towel, pushing it harder into the wood of the bar. I knew that Bell had been through the wringer lately. The past couple of months had been a rollercoaster for her, and now someone was lurking around and making her feel unsafe. But it was more. I couldn’t put my finger on it exactly, but she looked as if she were expecting the whole world to fall out from under her at any moment. And there was nothing I could think to do to make her feel safe, steady. The feeling of powerlessness that brought had me snapping at people all day. Hank and Caelyn had given me a wide berth since lunch, but Bell was still lost in her own world.

“Maybe you two should take a getaway. Some distance might help,” Crosby offered.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Hunter argued.

I hung the towel back on its hook. “I already tried to get her to go away with me. No dice.”

“Get who to go away with you?” Ethan asked as he eased onto an empty stool beside Hunter.

“Bell, who else?” Hunter eyed me. “Unless you’ve got another girlfriend we don’t know about.”

I threw a coaster frisbee-style and hit Hunter in the chest. “Don’t be an asshole.”

“Yeah, and definitely don’t let Bell hear you say anything like that,” Crosby muttered.

Ethan took a pull on his beer. “So, you two are officially together?”

“We are.” The whispers and stares had only intensified since our date. It seemed every local that came in was here for the Ford and Bell show more than the alcohol and food. At least Ethan had the decency to come out and just ask, instead of talking around the subject.

He glanced around the bar. “How are people taking it?”

Hunter shifted on his stool. “Mostly just staring and whispering like nosy assholes.”

I scanned the tables surrounding the bar, over Caelyn chatting up some more of Hunter’s crew, my eyes not stopping until they reached Bell. She smiled down at a family as she took their orders, but the expression was forced. What the hell was going on?

“You’re making that face like you want to kill someone,” Crosby said, taking another sip of his beer.

Not someone, just circumstance. I had half a mind to kidnap Bell and take her away from here no matter what she said. We needed time, just the two of us. “Hey, Caelyn,” I called over the din of the bar noise.

She shoved her notepad in her pocket and headed my way, not looking too happy. “What did you do to my girl?”

I arched a brow. “Your girl?”