leaving you.”
She let out a breath and jumped on top of me, kissing me soundly. She looked me hard in the eyes. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course I would. I’m never leaving your side again. I’m not losing you, and by God, when I go to wrap up my affairs, I’m sure as hell taking you with me. I’m never going to risk losing you again.” I hugged her tightly and whispered, “Never again.”
My grip on her didn’t loosen, and when she shifted, I had to admit that I whimpered. Her sad eyes met mine. “I’m here.” Her fingers ran through my hair, trying to calm me.
“Can I sleep down here on this? I…I…”
She frowned and took my face in both of her hands. “We have so much to talk about, and there’s still a lot I need to remember. I can recall bits and pieces. Can you help me put them together?”
I nodded yes eagerly.
We heard the low hum of a TV show over our heads. “Penny’s asleep, we can send Shawna home and talk some more.”
I heard her stomach growl. “I didn’t get to take you out.”
“We’ll order in.” She kissed my cheek before getting up and pulling me off the chaise. She didn’t let go of my hand, and I kept hold of hers tightly and let my other hover on her hip as we walked upstairs.
“Well, that was fast,” Shawna looked concerned at our serious expressions.
“We didn’t make it out the door. We’re going to order in. You can go home early. Thanks for watching her for me.”
“Anytime, Hannah. Let me know if you need anything.” She gave me a worried glance, like she wasn’t sure if she trusted me, but then she saw Hannah squeeze my hand, and she left without another word.
HANNAH
I tried to make sense of the jumbled mess in my head, as I finished my food. I remembered him. I did, and the one thing I remembered the most was not wanting to be away from him. I recognized it now for what it was. I’d felt it the moment we’d met again in England. I wanted him then, but I didn’t know why. Even with his odd staring and obsessive behavior, there was always this undertow of needing to be near him. It’d scared me then, and it did now, but not as bad. I didn’t want to get hurt. I didn’t want him to hurt my daughter, either, but my heart was pleading with me to trust him.
It was ridiculous, really, how quickly our relationship had progressed when we’d first met. Even with what I had remembered, and with what he’d told me, we’d only known each other for three weeks, and in that short time, we’d made plans to live together in England. The intensity had been so strong then, and it still was. My body knew exactly who he was from day one.
The bits and pieces that’d been popping up and getting worse since I’d visited England were turning into a full-blown avalanche. “Can we start from the beginning, at the café?” I clarified.
“Yes, of course.” He pulled me closer to him, pressing his face into my shoulder. “I had stopped there, wanting to try some real American food, not any chain stuff, but the real stuff.”
“That’s why you stopped at Dottie’s Café.” That made sense.
“Yes, I had ten hours to kill. I thought walking around Carson City and seeing the sights would be fun. I didn’t take into account that in the U.S., everything is far apart. There was no walking from place to place. I was in good shape, but not that good of shape. I didn’t want to get lost, and there was no way I was hiring a car and attempting to drive on the wrong side of the road.”
“It’s the right side,” I teased.
“You said that the first time, too.” He was wistful, and I was hoping the memories would come faster. “I ended up at Dottie’s, because the cab driver insisted it was good. I found that hard to believe, because there were only three people in the diner besides the workers, you being one of them. I don’t know what happened, but I felt it as soon as my eyes landed on you. It was lightening, I was jolted
She let out a breath and jumped on top of me, kissing me soundly. She looked me hard in the eyes. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course I would. I’m never leaving your side again. I’m not losing you, and by God, when I go to wrap up my affairs, I’m sure as hell taking you with me. I’m never going to risk losing you again.” I hugged her tightly and whispered, “Never again.”
My grip on her didn’t loosen, and when she shifted, I had to admit that I whimpered. Her sad eyes met mine. “I’m here.” Her fingers ran through my hair, trying to calm me.
“Can I sleep down here on this? I…I…”
She frowned and took my face in both of her hands. “We have so much to talk about, and there’s still a lot I need to remember. I can recall bits and pieces. Can you help me put them together?”
I nodded yes eagerly.
We heard the low hum of a TV show over our heads. “Penny’s asleep, we can send Shawna home and talk some more.”
I heard her stomach growl. “I didn’t get to take you out.”
“We’ll order in.” She kissed my cheek before getting up and pulling me off the chaise. She didn’t let go of my hand, and I kept hold of hers tightly and let my other hover on her hip as we walked upstairs.
“Well, that was fast,” Shawna looked concerned at our serious expressions.
“We didn’t make it out the door. We’re going to order in. You can go home early. Thanks for watching her for me.”
“Anytime, Hannah. Let me know if you need anything.” She gave me a worried glance, like she wasn’t sure if she trusted me, but then she saw Hannah squeeze my hand, and she left without another word.
HANNAH
I tried to make sense of the jumbled mess in my head, as I finished my food. I remembered him. I did, and the one thing I remembered the most was not wanting to be away from him. I recognized it now for what it was. I’d felt it the moment we’d met again in England. I wanted him then, but I didn’t know why. Even with his odd staring and obsessive behavior, there was always this undertow of needing to be near him. It’d scared me then, and it did now, but not as bad. I didn’t want to get hurt. I didn’t want him to hurt my daughter, either, but my heart was pleading with me to trust him.
It was ridiculous, really, how quickly our relationship had progressed when we’d first met. Even with what I had remembered, and with what he’d told me, we’d only known each other for three weeks, and in that short time, we’d made plans to live together in England. The intensity had been so strong then, and it still was. My body knew exactly who he was from day one.
The bits and pieces that’d been popping up and getting worse since I’d visited England were turning into a full-blown avalanche. “Can we start from the beginning, at the café?” I clarified.
“Yes, of course.” He pulled me closer to him, pressing his face into my shoulder. “I had stopped there, wanting to try some real American food, not any chain stuff, but the real stuff.”
“That’s why you stopped at Dottie’s Café.” That made sense.
“Yes, I had ten hours to kill. I thought walking around Carson City and seeing the sights would be fun. I didn’t take into account that in the U.S., everything is far apart. There was no walking from place to place. I was in good shape, but not that good of shape. I didn’t want to get lost, and there was no way I was hiring a car and attempting to drive on the wrong side of the road.”
“It’s the right side,” I teased.
“You said that the first time, too.” He was wistful, and I was hoping the memories would come faster. “I ended up at Dottie’s, because the cab driver insisted it was good. I found that hard to believe, because there were only three people in the diner besides the workers, you being one of them. I don’t know what happened, but I felt it as soon as my eyes landed on you. It was lightening, I was jolted
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