Page 16 of Engaging with Her Enemy

She barked out a laugh, not expecting that. “The bear you slept with when you were little?” He nodded. “Wow.”

“Gets better. My commanding officer was there.”

Thinking about him in that situation turned her stomach sour, but she smiled for him because he wanted her to. Suck it up. She could do this. She closed her eyes. “I'm going to college at night.”

“That's great!”

She opened her eyes, his face reflecting the excitement she'd heard. “It would be great if it wasn't as hard as high school. Harder.” Because he wasn't there. Why hadn’t she realized that before?

“Does anyone else know? Juliana? Cameron?”

“No.”

“Ms. Iris?”

“No one.”

He pulled into the parking lot at Rhonda’s. He didn’t move to get out. The excitement faded to a thoughtful look in his eyes. “How's it going?”

“Bad. I was doing okay until I got to accounting, my last class. Now, nothing makes sense. My professor is unforgiving. I have the same problems I did in high school. I read things backward. I skip over lines in the text when I study. I invert numbers.” She waited for him to tell her it was okay. That she had a disability that kept her from being like everyone else. It'd never came. Hudson had done a lot for her. Except let her give excuses. They were alike in several ways.

“Let me help.”

She sat up straight. “Help? Like,tutorme again?”

He shrugged. “Why not? I’m here for the next couple of months.”

Becky narrowed her eyes. “What's in it for you?”

“Spending time with you for one.”

Crossing her arms, she pretended to be disinterested, like the woman inside her that wanted to skip dinner and crawl across the cab of the truck didn’t exist. “Do you know accounting?”

“Yes.”

She wrinkled her nose, trying to think if it’d work. If she could handle it. “I don’t know, Hudson.” She let herself out of the truck, not waiting on Hudson to help her down with her high heels. Tutoring brought back the memories and fears from before.

They didn’t speak as they walked across the gravel parking lot to the restaurant.

As the hostess made small talk, Becky smile and nodded, ignoring the drumming in her chest. If she moved an inch, she'd bump into his chest. His light cologne made her a little dizzy with desire. Another unexpected reaction. She'd never noticed another man's smell over the stale beer and onion rings that usually greeted the customers of Rhonda's.

They were seated in a booth near the back. At Becky's request.

Hudson held up his menu, scanning the words that Becky had memorized since Rhonda's selections hadn't changed in twenty years. “Don’t be stubborn, Becky. I can help you. When do we start?”

She crossed and uncrossed her legs. Letting him into her life again was a huge risk.

Rhonda, the owner, walked up, pulling a pen from her curly, gray hair and not caring that she interrupted a conversation. “I still can't believe you're the same little boy that used to come in here with your Mom. And you,” she said, narrowing her eyes at Becky. “I'm glad to see you out with someone other than that Tommy guy. I never liked him, and that's saying something since he's been dropping half his paycheck at my bar each weekend since you dumped him.”

“Who's Tommy?” Hudson's sharp question made Rhonda laugh.

“Just a loser she's dated off and on for the past couple of years. He comes in here willing to bet anyone to a game of pool and having to call a cab by the end of the night. Couldn't tell you what she saw in him.”

“I'm right here, Rhonda.” She'd be mad if it weren't for the fact that she considered Rhonda a third mother, her second being Ms. Iris. They’d both helped her through more than one break-up. “Tommy is a guy in the next county, but I haven't seen him in a few months. He proposed to me with certain stipulations.”

Hudson leaned back, crossed his arms. “This is interesting.”

“No, it's really not. I'd rather not discuss him.” Her overwhelming attraction to Hudson blew away anything that existed between her and Tommy.

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