Page 22 of After You

“He says he likes being around here. And around me. Brings back good memories. And he wants me to be able to stay in my own house as long as possible and not need to move to an apartment or assisted living if all I need help with is the yard and such,” Alicesaid.

And yeah, that made sense. Kyle Ames, protector of the status quo. But it was sweet, she had to admit.

Hannah took a deep breath. “I’m um…going to…I have a question forKyle.”

She did. She was pretty sure. It seemed there were things she’d planned to ask him when she’d thought they were meeting at his clinic. It seemed now that all she was really wondering was why he wasn’t more upset about seeing her again. Because she was certainly feeling upset. Anticipating their first meeting had made her anxious, and then, after the surprise of running into him last night, she’d been even more worked up about seeing him today.

And then all he’d given her was a smile, a hug, and a “it’s really good to see you”. What the hell did thatmean?

Alice smiled. “Of course, dear. Take your time,” she said. “I’m sure you have a lot of catching up to do withhim.”

Well, Hannah wasn’t so sure about that. She knew exactly what Kyle’s life had been like. She was sure it was going exactly according to plan. Everything always went according to Kyle’s plans. Okay, maybe not the marriage and family bit. Or at least not with her. But he was probably right back on track. Yeah, she definitely needed to find a few things out—like who he was dating—so she knew how to prepare for the next six weeks.

That was something she loved about Seattle. She didn’t have to prepare or be on guard or know what she was doing three weeks from next Sunday. She could just take it day by day. But for the next six weeks…or more…she was going to have to be on her game. If she could remember anything from the Hannah McIntire Perfectionist Extraordinaire Handbook. She’d lived it for eighteen years. It would come back to her. Surely.

But as she approached Kyle and all of his hot, solid muscles and his slick, lickable skin—lickable? She had to stop thinking about Kyle and licking in the same sentence—she was pretty sure she was missing a few pages from that handbook. Because that Hannah had always been confident and upbeat and prepared for anything, even when it came to Kyle. In fact, Kyle had been one of the most predictable things in herlife.

But when he turned and saw her coming and gave her a slow, almost knowing smile, Hannah realized she had no idea what todo.

But she did know she was in huuuuuge trouble.

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