Page 37 of Novel Problems

“That’s not like you.” Blake frowned, leaning forward. “Is everything okay?”

“Well, I was going to wait until our food arrived to launch into the details, but since you asked…” I gave Blake a run-down of yesterday’s events, beginning with discovering Hannah signing books just before 3 a.m. and ending with last night’s kiss.

Blake’s eyes got wider and wider.

“So, yeah, that’s why I didn’t bake the cake last night. I was exhausted and also more than a bit distracted,” I finished.

“How are you feeling about everything today?” Blake took a sip of her water.

I frowned. “I’d been hoping everything would be clear when I woke up this morning, but that didn’t happen. I still feel weird Hannah didn’t tell me who she is and that she went to such great lengths to keep it a secret from me. But at the same time, it seems like she was avoiding the topic out of anxiety rather than for any sinister purpose.” After hearingabout Hannah’s difficult childhood, I had a good deal of sympathy for her.

Blake nodded. “And the kiss?”

“It was incredible in the moment. But afterward it was super awkward. And to make matters worse, at the time, I thought she wasn’t an employee anymore, but it turns out she still is. So all my worries about there being a power imbalance still stands.” I sighed. “The whole thing is a blur—I’m not even sure who instigated it. I think it was mutual, but what if I instigated it and she just went along with it out of awkwardness or because she felt she had to?” I winced at the thought.

Blake raised an eyebrow. “George, have you ever been kissed by someone you didn’t want to kiss?”

I nodded.

“And what did you do?”

“Well, with the boy in seventh grade, I pushed him away. When it happened in a gay bar in Tampa, I pulled back from the woman.”

“Uh-huh. So, last night, did Hannah push you away?” Blake leaned on the wooden table and stared at me.

“No.”

“Did she lean into the kiss or move her lips, her tongue, her hands?”

Heat rushed to my cheeks as I remembered Hannah moaning into my mouth, her hands pressed on my back, her tongue in my mouth.

Blake grinned. My body language must have given me away. “Well, I’ll take that as a yes,” she said.

Dan, the owner of Builders’ Arms, arrived with our food, placing a burger and fries in front of me and a Caesar salad in front of Blake.

As soon as he left, Blake continued her cross-examination. “And did Hannah do anything to suggest she wasn’t into it?”

I paused for a minute, thinking back. “No.”

“Uh-huh. And who ended the kiss?”

“I think it ended kind of mutually. Like the kiss just came to its natural conclusion.”

Blake smirked. “So, in light of all that evidence, what do you think the chances are she wasn’t into the kiss?”

I shook my head, holding back a chuckle as relief washed over me. “Okay, okay, Detective Mitchell. I see your point.”

Blake’s smirk widened into a grin. “Hey, I’m a doctor. I like facts. But I think you’re overthinking things, perhaps because of your parents’ experience and what happened with Alexis. It sounds like you guys had a lovely, mutual smooch.”

I snorted. “Even if you’re right, Hannah is still an employee, so she’s off-limits.”

Blake stabbed a piece of chicken with her fork and started eating it, a thoughtful expression on her face.

I stared at her, waiting for her to swallow it so she could impart whatever words of wisdom she was developing as she chewed.

“The reason you’re worried about the employee thing is mainly the power imbalance, right?”

I nodded.

---