Page 48 of Becoming Family

She put up a hand. “Don’t do it.”

“Don’t do what?”

“Say whatever you’re going to say, and ruin what happened between us in there.”

Damn. She was too good at sensing things. It was like Hobbs had nowhere to hide.

Tabitha glanced down at Trinity, who’d just finished peeing in Hobbs’s yard. “I better go.”

Hobbs reached out and ran a finger under her chin. Tabitha looked up at him with a mixed expression, something hard over a soft center, like a wintry mix, when sleet fell after snow. “I’m sorry about ending the massage. You just got to me, is all. With your magic hands and all that.” She was quiet, her eyes cautious. “I went somewhere I wasn’t ready to go.” Hobbs shrugged, then gestured toward the house. “Then after that, I was—”

Tabitha held up a finger to silence him. “You’re going to ruin it. Don’t.”

Hobbs sighed. After a second of silence, he tried again. “The stuff with my sister was sudden. I didn’t know until I got to Omaha. I certainly didn’t know she’d be coming back here with me. The guy she was seeing turned out to be abusive and we all agreed she needed to get away for a while.”

Tabitha’s whole body changed. Her expression slackened but her body tensed, which was an odd thing to watch, like plastic wrap grabbing on to itself. “That’s horrible,” she said, her voice almost a whisper. “I thought Hannah seemed sad. I’m sorry, Chris. I’ll definitely massage her as much as she needs.”

Chris.

“Thanks, Tabby.” Despite the fact that he’d told himself Tabitha was definitely off-limits, he had a strong urge to hug her goodbye. Just draw her in and feel those hands on his back while he held her body close to his. But that would be even more selfish than he’d already been. “You definitely made progress tonight on your goal. The one about excelling at massage. No jokes, you did great.”

Tabitha’s mouth relaxed into a resigned smile. “Thanks. I still need to fix my Badass List. It’s still unspecific as hell.”

“And the motorcycle ride.” Hobbs pointed at her. “That’s still ours, right? No matter what else happens, I’m taking you on that ride. Promise?” He offered his pinkie, like he was a teenage girl.

Tabitha’s smile proved up. She hooked his pinkie with her own. “Promise.”

“Good night, then.” Hobbs took a second too long to pull his finger away. He cleared his throat. “See you soon.”

“Night,” Tabitha said, turning away. “See you soon.”

Hobbs watched her drive away. She flashed her head beams at him and disappeared. He stood there a little while longer, alone in the cold dark, wondering again what the fuck he was doing. His relationships with women were always so cut-and-dried. Easy. No strings and no misunderstandings. Now Hobbs felt like his head was spinning.

When he got back inside, Hannah was waiting for him in the kitchen, a cat-ate-the-canary smile on her face. “Is she your girlfriend? That would be a first.”

“She’s not.” Hobbs grabbed his favorite glass and filled it under the tap. The water was that unpleasant, sat-in-the-pipes room temperature but he glugged it down, not realizing how parched he was until the liquid hit his tongue.

“She’s not what I’d expect.” Hannah went to the stove and lit a flame under the teapot.

“What do you mean?”

Hannah rooted a mug from the cupboard and opened the box of tea bags she’d bought their first visit to the grocery store. There was a cartoon bear in a nightcap on the front and the inside smelled of cinnamon. “You usually go around with faster girls,” she said. “Based on what I remember. And things you’ve told me.”

“We’re not a thing.”

Hannah plopped a tea bag in her mug and looked up from her task. “Okay” was all she said. As the silence crawled to uncomfortable, she added, “Well, she seems great. Smart. Pretty. Young?”

Hobbs refilled his glass and slugged that down, too. This one was colder. “In between our ages. She just turned thirty.”

“Nice. Just—” Hannah shrugged lightly. “Be careful with this one.”

Hobbs considered a third protest, but Hannah had always been able to see right through him. “I’m not sure you should be giving me advice.”

Hannah’s face fell. The teapot started humming on the stove.

“Don’t give me that look.” Hobbs didn’t care if he sounded harsh. “Are we ever going to talk about this guy who was hurting you?”

“Not right now.” Hannah snapped off the burner before the teapot started a full whistle. She poured steamy water in her mug, the tea bag making pleasant crinkling sounds as it opened up and the leaves plumped. “I can’t.” She dug a teaspoon out of the one drawer she’d tidied up her second day here. “I just can’t right now.”

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