Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Evidently, I hadn’t soothed her as well as I thought.
I gave her a squeeze and said, “Let’s get out of Hutch’s way.”
She let me go but took my hand and guided me into my own store, looking over her shoulder at Hutch. “How you doing, Hutch?”
“All good,” he grunted (he’d been grunting a lot since it all went down). His gaze came to me. “Counter, babe?” (Yes, that was another grunt.)
“Yes, please.”
He took the box to the counter and dropped it.
Then he came to me, got toe to toe, tipped his chin, and he ordered, “Shop. Or town.”
I knew what this meant because I’d already received my briefing.
Unless he was at my side, I wasn’t to leave my shop, or the town (however, if I went somewhere in town, he wanted me to text him where I was going to be), even though I didn’t know what he thought I’d do, considering I didn’t have my truck.
Hotwire a car and go on a joy ride?
Since he was tweaking, I just nodded.
He kissed my forehead, dipped his chin to Abigail and stalked out.
Abigail and I turned to watch him go.
When the door slammed, and after we heard him testing it was locked, we turned to each other.
“Let me guess,” she began. “Mr. Alpha had his turf threatened, and he’s pissed.”
Abso-freaking-lutely.
“He’s a mess,” I shared. “He’s more of a mess than I am. I think he’s said two words since we got back from the police station Sunday morning that weren’t grunts.”
She linked her arm in mine and led us to the counter, humming, “Mm-hmm.”
When we got to the counter, I stowed my bag, scarf and jacket, and she started rummaging through the box.
I went to the tablet to get to the inventory list so I could log them in, and I did this talking.
And since I could multitask, freaking.
“I’ve all but moved in with him, Abigail.”
She was admiring the Chanel, but she looked at me when I said that.
I stopped bapping the tablet and held my hands up. “I give. I’m not so proud and stubborn I can’t admit when I’m wrong. So now, I’m going to admit I was wrong and you were right. I’m in over my head. I think Hutch and I are both in over our heads.” I drew in as much oxygen as I could to prepare to say my last, then I said it, “We are so not FWBs.”
She said nothing, but her face assumed a gentle expression.
Annnnnnd…more so’ing.
I so wasn’t fond of what that gentle expression might mean, I went back to bapping.
And talking.
“On Saturday night, before it all went down, I was drinking tea, staring at my fire, as mountain girls do, sorting all of this in my head and gearing myself up to talk to him about it. See where he was at. And now, since it all went down, I can’t say anything.”
“No,” she said carefully. “Now is definitely not the time to tell that man you’re cutting him loose.”
My eyes flew to her. “Cutting him loose?”
“Though I will, very, very cautiously say, your ex was an asshole. A lot of men are assholes. But all men aren’t assholes. And I don’t think Hutch is an asshole.”
She didn’t address my question, thus I repeated it. “Cutting him loose?”
She’d taken all the handbags out of the box and set the box aside, and now she was looking for our tags to price them, all while, clear as day, she was struggling with what to say.
“Abigail, you’re never at a loss for words,” I noted. “Don’t fail me now.”
She found the tags and turned to me.
“This is very sensitive. This is also very important. But it affects me only indirectly. What you decide, in something like this, it has to be all you.”
“It will be all me,” I asserted. “And I already know I have no choice but to discuss things with him. I don’t want to put you on the spot. You’re obviously uncomfortable. So brace for me putting you on the spot. You’re also my only good friend up here and the only one who knows Hutch at all.”
“Okay,”—she squared her shoulders—“I’ll start with saying, just be careful with him.”
I was torn between mad she’d think I wouldn’t be and confused as to why she’d say that at all.
She explained it.
And rocked my world.
“Because that man is head over heels in love with you.”
I stopped breathing.
Completely.
And I was pretty sure my heart exploded.
Could you remain standing if your heart exploded?
“Mabel?” she called.
I forced air into my lungs to say, “You think he’s in love with me?”
She appeared stunned. “You don’t know that already?”
My head swung to look toward the back hall.
When I swung back, Moxie had jumped up on the counter to inspect the bags.
I watched her do that. I then watched her inspect her counter cat bed. After that, I watched her dis her bed, jump down and saunter over to a leather chair I’d refurbished beautifully that summer. I’d thought it would go right away, but we’d been sitting on it for months (not literally).