“It’s a woman,” Eagle admitted. “But she’s just a friend.”
Three pairs of eyebrows shot up as they all gave him nearly identical skeptical looks.
“Seriously,” he protested. “I’m not saying I would mind if things progressed, but at the moment, I like what we have. I’ve only seen her once.”
“At the grocery store,” Gramps said with uncanny insight.
“The one with the facial-recognition thing?” Smoke asked.
“It’s called prosopagnosia, and yes,” Eagle said. “She’s funny. And smart. And I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed talking to a woman as much as I do her. She’s pretty amazing. I seriously can’t imagine not being able to recognize anyone.”
“That’s because you recognize everyone,” Bull said dryly.
“True. But think of the bigger implications. When she was bullied as a kid, she had no idea if someone walking toward her on the playground wanted to play with her or beat her up. In high school, she didn’t know which boys were safe and which were to be avoided. And even today, if someone meant her harm, she wouldn’t know if they were stalking her or not.” Eagle shuddered. “I can’t even think about it without wanting to throw up.”
All three of his friends looked concerned now.
“I hadn’t thought about it that way,” Smoke admitted. “You think she’s in danger?”
“No. Nothing like that. She hasn’t told me about any skeletons in her closet or anything. In fact, she’s pretty much been a recluse. People have treated her badly, to the point where she doesn’t like to go out much.”
“So if you’ve only seen her that once, how do you know so much about her?” Smoke asked.
“I’ve been talking to her every night. At first, I just wanted to pick her brain about her condition, but within minutes she had me laughing, and any thought of talking to her only about prosopagnosia flew out the window.”
“Every night?” Gramps asked.
Eagle nodded.
“Well, all right, then.”
“She’s coming here tomorrow,” Eagle informed his friends. “I want to introduce her to you all. But remember, when you see her next, she won’t remember who you are. She’ll remember meeting my friends, and being here and all that, but she won’t know who you are from Adam. Just reintroduce yourself every time you see her and move on. Don’t make a big deal out of it.”
“She gonna know who you are?” Smoke asked.
“When I show up at her door and she looks through the peephole? No. I could be anyone.”
“How’s that gonna work?” Bull asked. “I mean, I’d think it would be weird.”
“Right? If you ever get to the point where it’s personal, what if she wakes up next to you and looks over and freaks because she has no clue who you are in her bed?” Gramps asked.
“Look, I don’t have all the answers, but again, her memory isn’t affected. She doesn’t get amnesia from one day to the next. She’ll remember my name, who I am, what we talked about. And if we ever sleep together, she’ll definitely remember how she felt when she was with me. I’m guessing it has to be scary to look at someone and not recognize them. But she still knows me. I just need to tell her who I am, and it’ll be fine.”
“Maybe you should start wearing cologne so she can smell you,” Smoke suggested.
“I know—you can eat onions all the time, so when she smells onions, she’ll know it’s you,” Gramps teased.
“I could carve a giant E into your forehead so she can always recognize you immediately,” Bull said with a smirk.
“Fuck off,” Eagle retorted, knowing his friends were just messing with him.
“Seriously, though . . . ,” Smoke said, “it has to be a very hard way to live.”
“It is,” he agreed. “She told me she doesn’t have any pictures in her place because they mean nothing to her. That she can’t recognize herself in photos, so what’s the point of having them around? It would be like having pictures of strangers in your house.”
Bull whistled. “That sucks.”
Eagle nodded. “But don’t feel sorry for her,” he said. “You’ll see when you meet her. She’s fucking awesome. She’s still really strong; she’d have to be just to have gotten this far in life. I want Silverstone to be a safe space for her.”
“It will be,” Gramps said resolutely.
“I can’t wait to meet her,” Smoke said.
“Are you gonna tell her about us?” Bull asked.
They all knew he was referring to their missions. They’d talked about this. That what they did should be shared only on a need-to-know basis. But everything within Eagle was telling him he could trust Taylor, that she’d be supportive. “I’m thinkin’ about it,” he told his friend honestly.
“You that sure about her?” Bull asked.
Eagle couldn’t hear any censure in his friend’s tone. “Yes.”
Bull nodded. “If you want Skylar to talk to her, to help explain, I’m sure she’d be willing.”
“My relationship with Taylor isn’t like what you and Skylar had when you told her about Silverstone. I’ve got this,” Eagle said, not letting any of his trepidation show.
Bull eyed him for a moment, then finally nodded. “Okay. You know we all trust you, and I won’t interfere.”
Eagle turned to stare pointedly at Gramps, one eyebrow quirked.
The other man held up his hands. “Hey, don’t look at me. I learned my lesson. I won’t butt in and tell her anything you don’t want her to know.”
Eagle nodded, then glanced back at Bull. “I’m picking Taylor up at five and bringing her back here. I already talked to Archer, and he’s gonna make lasagna for us to eat. Do you think Skylar might be receptive to meeting her? I don’t think either of them has a lot of girlfriends, and I suspect they’ll hit it off.”
“I’m sure she’d love to,” Bull said. “I don’t know if they’ll hit it off or not, but it might make Taylor feel better if she’s not the only woman here when she meets us.”
“Leigh is working dispatch tomorrow night, and Christine’s on duty, so she won’t be the only female,” Eagle said.
“You’ve clearly thought this through,” Gramps noted.
“I like her,” he said. “I admit I was fascinated by her condition, but I’ve learned she’s funny, smart, and easy to talk to.”
“Well, I’m happy you’re hooking up, but don’t think I’m gonna be next,” Smoke replied. “I’m perfectly content being single.”
“We aren’t hooking up. We’re just friends,” Eagle protested.
“Don’t knock it till you try it,” Bull added with a smile, then he pushed back his chair and stood. “And speaking of which, time for me to get home so I can give my woman a few orgasms, then have wild monkey sex.”
Gramps grimaced and covered his ears with his hands. “Jeez, don’t talk about sex around me. It’s been so long, I think my dick’s forgotten how to work. Besides, I have to see Skylar tomorrow. I do not want to be thinking about you naked when I see her.”