Page 95 of Housebroke

“It does matter. Everything was going fine.”

“And that’s the problem. I don’t trust ‘fine.’ ”

“Explain, please.”

Instead, the menu block continued, so maybe it was time for him to speak up.

“I have feelings for you, Hazel. And they scare the hell out of me.”

The menu dipped, showing her eyes, all wide and surprised.

“I have feelings, too,” she said. “For you.”

She’d said the words softly, but he heard them clearly. Loudly, as if she’d shouted them all through the restaurant. He couldn’t help but smile.

“You do?”

She finally set the menu on the table. “Yes. And I’m scared, too. I don’t trust my feelings.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not a good judge of men, or character. Andrew was awesome when we first started out. We had all these grand plans for our future, and it all blew up in my face.”

“But that’s on him. He’s the one who changed, not you. He was the one who broke all of his promises. How could you possibly have seen that coming?”

Their server returned with the wine and poured it out for both of them.

Hazel took several swallows of her wine. “In answer to your question about my ex, I don’t know. But I should have known. I was unaware of everything going on behind my back. I was so focused on myself and my life and my needs, or maybe afraid to face the truth of what was happening. If I didn’t say it or realize it, then it wasn’t happening, right?” She shrugged. “I don’t know. All I do know is that he snuck around behind me and took everything. All my hopes and dreams and self-confidence.”

Linc dipped his head down, then back up again. “And look at you now. You’re strong and confident with a new dream for your future. And you’re going to make it happen, aren’t you? You’re never going to take shit from anyone ever again, and you’ll never let any man take what’s yours away from you again, right?”

She just stared at him for a few seconds, then gave a quick nod. “Yes.”

“I believe in you, Hazel. You can do anything you set your mind to. And you don’t need any man to help you get there.”

She inhaled and let out a huge sigh. “Thank you for that. And I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting. I need to work on trust.”

“You can trust me, Hazel. I won’t hurt you.”

He could tell from the look on her face that she was wary. He couldn’t blame her. He’d just have to continue to prove to her that he was the guy she could count on.

•••

Hazel took a sip of her coffee, savoring the tangy flavor. She’d had the most amazing lobster—ridiculously expensive, but Linc had insisted. He’d had steakandlobster.

So decadent.

Plus, he’d told her he had feelings. Feelings. And then he’d pumped her up and told her she could be anything and do anything. Live her dreams.

And then she’d proceeded to have a whole lot of wine, while Linc had made amazing small talk about the dogs and his progress on the house as if he hadn’t just turned her world upside down.

She’d also had cheesecake. Exceptionally good cheesecake, too. Kind of an awesome topper to an amazing night.

She felt good. Not completely inebriated, just... calm and relaxed. And happy.

Linc paid the bill and they walked outside. The wind had picked up, and Hazel smelled rain in the air, saw lightning acrossthe water. She tilted her head back and let the beauty of it roll right over her.

Linc slipped his hand in hers. “Feel like taking a walk?”

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