Chapter 26

Tobias The former Mrs. Darling has surprised me yet again. I took her to a nice Italian restaurant, thinking she would be grateful. And while Hannah seems happy, she is studying the pizza menu.

I chuckle in my seat, and Hannah snaps her head, looking at me like a deer caught in headlights. “What?

Have I done something wrong?” She looks around as if she is nervous. I’ve done something wrong, haven’t I? This is an incredibly fancy place, and I don’t fit in…” Oh… Hannah thinks she doesn’t fit in?

My heart grows soft, and I offer her a smile. Hannah is precious. When I’m with her, I’m afraid the wind, the earth… life will take her away from me. And I don’t want that. I want to keep her safe from it all.

“You’ve done nothing wrong,” I tell her, hoping to remove that worried look from her face.” Is any dish catching your eye?”

“The pizzas, especially the one named Milano.”

I bite back a smile and flip to the pizzas myself. Since Hannah is honest about what she wants, I should follow in her footsteps. This will be fun. She is a refreshing breath of air. Anyone else would order the expensive food, especially since I’m paying, but not this woman.

“I might take the Milano myself…” I eye the minced meat pizza and my mouth waters. “Yeah, I think I will take the same as you.”

“That’s not how it works!”

My lips curve into a confused smile. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me!” Hannah’s eyes are vast, and she looks wild and crazy when she meets my gaze. Her sunglasses are perched on her head, and her face is shiny with sunscreen. “You have to order a different pizza from me so we can trade slices with each other! Hasn’t anyone ever taught you that?! It’s common sense!”

My amusement grows. “Is it?”

“Yes! And you’re old-you should know this!”

“Old?!” I snort. “Thank you for that.”

“Fuck!” Hannah is panicking now. It’s hilarious to watch her face go from crazy to pale and then bright red when she sees me smiling. “That’s not what I… shit… I didn’t mean it like that! Wait. Why are you laughing?!”

Seriously? How can she not know? It’s impossible not to smile when she is such a weirdo.” Because you’re so silly.”

Hannah’s face is back to being red, and she squirms in her chair. “I’m not silly…”

“You are,” I say, gazing at her from the opposite side of our small circular table. My smile is wide and only growing larder. “But I like it.”

If I thought she couldn’t get any redder, I was wrong. It looks like she has run a marathon by now, and I watch her exhale slowly and flare her nostrils before picking up the menu.

“Perhaps I order the salami pizza…” she mumbles.

Hmm, changing the subject, is she? Alright then.

“Sure, then I can take the Milano, and we trade slices,” I beam at her when she looks. you wanted.’

To my surprise, Hannah beams back. “That would be great!”

Such enthusiasm and such a bright smile over something so small. How is it possible for Hannah to be so lovely? I watch her with a fond feeling in my heart, and when she starts talking about the dessert, the warmth in my chest only grows.

“Like Even though Hannah only talks about food, this is another moment when my heart thread with hers.

Every time she smiles, it’s as if someone is reaching down with a sewing needle and putting another stitch on our souls. I’m falling for her.

Truth?

I want Hannah to become my real wife. But I need to figure out how to go around it. I don’t want to freak her out with what I want, and… I also want children, and I wonder if she is ready. for that. She is in college, and I don’t want to wait, but… do I have a choice?

I don’t think I will ever fall this hard for another woman.

Hannah laughs and smiles so much that the cold, workaholic Tobias Ford is changing to someone less heartless. I’m adjusting to accommodate her needs, but I realize it’s also for my own sake because I’m happier.

Hannah makes me happy.

I want her, but… shit. What if she doesn’t want me? Fuck. I haven’t thought that far yet. How can I be so fucking self-centered that I didn’t think of that yet?!

What if Hannah hates me?

What if she doesn’t like older men and just acts friendly because I’m a billionaire with a fat wallet?

I’m so lost in my train of thought that I order my food on auto-pilot. When the pizzas come out, Hannah chews on her bottom lip. Her eyes are studying my face, and I breathe a laugh.

“What is it?” I ask.

“It’s just… you looked so… angry…”

“I’m not angry.” I’m not, but my head is spinning with thoughts of the future, making it hard to pay attention.

“I see…” Hannah stares down at her pizza, and I notice her hand clutches her fork so hard her fingers are turning white. “Tobias, can I tell you something without you getting mad?”

Immediately my walls rise-nothing good comes from a woman saying those words to you. Nothing. Sarah was the last person to speak those words; the rest is history.

Still, this is Hannah, so I decide to hear her out. “Of course, you can.” I try my hardest to sound kind. Hannah is not Sarah. She will not hurt me-I must repeat that over and over. “Is something bothering you?”

“Yes, something is actually bothering me,” Hannah places down her cutlery. There is tomato sauce around her mouth, but I say nothing about it and remain silent in my seat. “I’m…” her beautiful eyes are filled with despair for some reason. “I’m… I’m not sure how to say this.”

The little pained breath of a laugh at the end makes me realize that whatever is on Hannah’s mind is hard for her to be open about. So even if she will hurt me, it isn’t easy for her-that tells me exactly what I need to know: she is unlike any other woman I’ve ever met.

Hannah is precious.

“Just say it,” my tone is calm. “It’s easier that way, and I promise I won’t get mad at you, whatever it is.

You have my word.”

Her tongue darts out, wetting her dry lips. “I’m scared…”

Hannah is refusing to look at me, so I hunt her doe-eyes down, forcing her to see me.

“Don’t be scared,” I reach out my hand, and my fingers briefly touch hers. Hannah jerks in fright, but I grip her hand, willing her to calm down.

Her eyes liquefy, but she doesn’t withdraw from my hand. Still, there is some shaking that bothers me.

It’s almost as if she is afraid of me? But that is silly. Why would she fear me?

“I’m in love with you, Tobias.”

I swear my breathing seizes. I know that I should be talking, but I can’t. I’m shocked and slowly place my hand over Hannah’s chest. I can feel her heart… pounding for me.

My eyes meet hers. Hannah is awfully quiet, probably waiting for me to stop acting like a lunatic and say something-she confessed to being in love with me! The problem is just that I don’t know what to say! Part of me is convinced I’m hallucinating at this moment.

I continue to stare, and Hannah’s bottom lip trembles. She looks close to tears again, and some of my sanity returns.

“Do you mean those words?” I ask in a barely audible voice. It isn’t fair to ask her this, but I’m just not convinced that such a nice girl is in love with someone who could be the Grinch.

“Of course I do,” Hannah speaks softly. Her eyes are shining, and the smile curling her lips is insecure.

“Does your silence mean that you do not feel the same?” She laughs, but the sound is pained. “I mean, of course, you don’t feel the same… you want Sarah.”

She thinks I want Sarah back?

The truth is that part of me will always belong to Sarah, and I’m unsure whether or not I want Sarah or Hannah. I’m falling for Hannah, but I’ve already fallen for Sarah.

But Hannah’s vulnerability and how she can turn any occasion into something exciting? How she always seems close to laughter and isn’t afraid of being herself-it’s all hitting me on a deeper level. I can see myself falling so deeply in love with her that I won’t ever recover from away for Women like Hannah? They are rare, and I would be a fool to throw a chance with her a woman like Sarah, who uses mind games to get what she wants. Hannah is not like that.

Hannah is–

The memory of her smile plays in my mind, and I smile.

“I think I’m in love with you too…”

When Hannah looks at me with her big, shocked eyes, I breathe a laugh. Not because she looks silly but because I’m filled with so much yearning that it’s insane. I’ve never wanted a woman as much as I want Hannah.

I should give her a clue about that.

This is the moment of truth, and I wet my lips. “In fact, I’m probably deeper in love with you than I’m willing to admit because you’re pretty much the only thing on my mind,” I smile wider. “I can’t stop thinking about you, Mrs. Ford. You’re on my brain all the time. So, I ask you: what have you done to me?”