He chuckled.“I’m just trying to make life easier for all of us.I’m guessing that you plan to stay away until I leave, and while I feel bad about that, I won’t say I don’t appreciate it.I know you’re fine walking around town by yourself; this is about me soothing my guilty conscience about kicking you out of your own home for the evening.”
He held up his hand when she started to protest.“Even though I know that’s not completely true.All I was going to say is — how about you text when you’re ready to come home, and we’ll come pick you up?I’ll be leaving here then anyway, and it’s only an extra two minutes to bring you and drop you back off before I head home.”He raised his eyebrows.“You know it makes sense.”
Tiffany pursed her lips, thinking it over for a moment before she gave him a nod.“Okay, it does make sense.”She turned to Savannah.“Maybe it’s because he’s a mechanic, but it strikes me that your man here knows how to make things work.”
As Savannah smiled at him and nodded, Jake stood a little taller, hoping that he’d be able to make things work the way he wanted between the two of them.
After she’d gone, Savannah took her jacket off and hung it on the back of the door.
“Want me to hang yours up?”she asked Jake, who shrugged out of it and put it on the hook himself.
She clasped her hands together.“This is weird.Why do I feel nervous now when we spent all day together?”
“I don’t know.Maybe it’s because I’m in your space for the first time.”He held his arms out to her.“Maybe a hug will help.”
He loved the way she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face against his chest.He kissed the top of her head and asked, “Better now?”
She nodded but didn’t lift her head.
“Are you sure?”he asked.
He loved the way her body shook as she laughed.“I am.But I’m thinking maybe I should have invited you to come over later so I could shower off after the shop.I’m trying to keep my arms down.”
That made him laugh.“Well, shit, now you’ve got me worried.Your nose is almost at my armpit height.Do I stink?Is that what made you think of it?I knew I should have gone home to shower first.”
She looked up at him.“You don’t stink.I was thinking about me.”
He caught her chin between his finger and thumb.“You could never stink, Savvie.”
Her eyes grew wide, and to his surprise, she pulled back, stepping away from him.
“Maybe I should just jump in the shower now.Maybe… do you want to go home and take one, and I’ll take mine, and then we’ll meet back here after you… Because…”
“Hey.”He spoke gently, not understanding what was going on — only that something had freaked her out.She looked upset, and he wanted nothing more than to hold her again, but after she’d pulled away like that, he didn’t know…
He reached out toward her but then let his hand fall again.“Are you okay?”
She swallowed visibly and nodded slowly.“I am.I’m so sorry, Jake.I… I feel stupid now.I overreacted.I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right.You have nothing to apologize for.I’m not mad at you.I’m just… confused.”He smiled, hoping to make her do the same, and held both arms out again, hoping that she’d come back to him — but not sure.“Or was I just that stinky that you had to get away from me?”
Instead of smiling, she screwed up her face and pressed her fingers to her temples.
“Shit.I did it again, didn’t I?”he asked.“Whatever I said wrong, I’m really sorry.”His heart was pounding.He didn’t understand how he was screwing this up so badly.
She came to him and wrapped her arms around his waist.“It’s not you.It’s me.Shoot, I hate the way that sounds.I’m not saying I want to end things.What I mean is…” She looked up into his eyes.“You’re not messing anything up.I’m the one doing that.You didn’t say anything wrong — at least it wouldn’t be wrong to a normal person.”
She blew out a big sigh.“I should probably just explain, shouldn’t I?”
He nodded slowly.“It might help.”
“Okay.I don’t know how much I’ve told you about my mom.”
He tensed.She hadn’t told him much at all, but he knew a lot from Josh.The only trouble was, he couldn’t remember what she’d said herself and what she wasn’t aware that he knew.
He needed to just come clean.He tightened his arms around her, hoping that he wasn’t going to upset her further.“You haven’t said all that much, and I hope you don’t mind that I know, but Josh has said a few things here and there.”
That was something of an understatement, but he figured it was enough to at least let her know.
