Page 44 of Billionaire Unforgettable: Tanner

Christ!I still hated that the people in this town hadn’t all welcomed her back with open arms.

She was one of their own.

“But things are improving?” I asked.

She nodded. “Some people are acting like the misunderstanding never happened. I can’t say everyone was awful. Silas, Charlie, and some of the people I knew from growing up here were nice to me from the beginning.”

Probably because they were smart enough to realize that Hannah didn’t have a mean bone in her body.

Even without my help, others would have eventually realized the same thing.

It might have taken a while, but Hannah was a hard woman not to like.

Fuck knew I was still drawn to her.

It had always been that way for me with Hannah.

Maybe I’d been able to put her out of my mind when I’d thought she’d left me for another guy, but now that I knew the truth, I was completely screwed.

I was just as mesmerized by her as I had been years ago.

Could I be her friend now?

I had no damn clue, but I also knew that I couldn’t stay away from her now.

I also knew that she didn’t trust me, and that was my biggest hurdle to get over at the moment.

If she could learn to trust me again, I’d worry about everything else…later.

Bottom line: I wanted Hannah to be happy here, and I knew her career opportunities were more limited here than in a bigger city.

She’d helped me and supported me when I was trying to get my career off the ground.

I wanted to be there for her like I should have been years ago.

And that wasn’t going to happen until she learned to trust me again.

This time,herhappiness came first.

“Are you okay, Tanner?” she asked, her voice concerned. “You look like you’re thinking pretty hard about something.”

I lifted a brow and caught her gaze. “I was lost in thought. I was thinking about you.”

Her eyes widened and she looked flustered.

Had I really been such an asshole that I’d forgotten to give Hannah the attention she deserved?

She looked like she was bewildered that I’d been thinking about her instead of something else…like maybe KTD Remington.

She hadn’t asked me exactly what I’d been thinking about, which was unusual because Hannah was inquisitive by nature.

I hated the fact that she didn’t feel like she knew me well enough to ask what I was thinking anymore.

Hannah might feel more comfortable with me, but not comfortable enough.

I picked up the check, and Hannah instantly reached for her purse. “Let me give you some money.”

She’d tried the same thing at the ice cream shop, and at The Mug And Jug.

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