Page 44 of Chocolate Cherry Cabin

“I said I’m happy!”

“You have everything you want in your life?” His eyes were on her lips as he brushed the hair from her cheek.

“I applied to go back to school.”

She shut her eyes. She shouldn’t have told him that.

Now that he knew, he would never let her reverse her decision about going if she got accepted.

“Good. Don’t give up on whatyouwant. Don’t put the needs of others—”

“Your mom’s history is not repeating itself through me, Louis.”

He dropped his arms, his face suddenly expressionless.

“Seriously, Louis. Let me live my life my way. They’re my mistakes to make.”

He took a step back, and Hannah floundered, unsure how to navigate. Had she crossed a line? Were there even any lines with Louis? If she’d hurt him, this was new and uncharted. They fought and threw daggers without injury. But right now it felt as though she’d found landmine territory, an area that could cause wounds. And she was mapless, unsure how to avoid them. One moment it felt as though he was throwing bombs at her feet, shrapnel and dirt flying up at her. The next moment he was pulling her out of harm’s way. Could she do the same for him?

“Maybe I’ll take the classes. Maybe I won’t. I don’t need to decide right now.”

“Don’t put others first, Hannah.” His tone was quiet, full of warning.

“You do understand how disruptive going back to school will be—could be?”

“Tell me about France.”

The air left her lungs.

France was a problem. One she didn’t want to talk about with Louis.

“It’s beautiful.” She had unconsciously crossed her arms, a bad habit that seemed to rear up around Louis a lot, and now she lowered them to her sides. “There are job opportunities for engineers. The people over there speak French, and their food is supposed to be divine.” She gave a defiant toss of her head.

“Tell me about howyoufeel about France.”

“I don’t want to move there,” she blurted.Dang.

“Then don’t.”

“Yeah? And how’s that going to work?” Tears of frustration and anger filled her eyes. “I’m a mom. I don’t get to be self-centered, Louis. And maybe your mom didn’t either. Being part of a family means being well-acquainted with give-and-take. Maybe she stayed home because she loved you, and being your mother was what mattered most to her. Maybe getting sick was unrelated.”

“You have a choice, Hannah.”

“My choices impact others.”

“And theirs impact you.”

She turned, striding toward the door.

As she fumbled into her boots, Louis stood close enough to touch. She looked up at him with an ache in her chest, afraid that if she made a peep it would unlatch the gate holding back the tears she was fighting.

“If something isn’t working for one family member,” he said, “chances are it won’t be working for everyone else before long.”

Hannah shakily zipped up her jacket, but before she could march out the door, Louis swept her into a hug, enclosing her in his warmth, his heart pounding under her ear. “Don’t be like me. Don’t run away.”

“I thought youwantedme to be like you,” she said in a choked voice, “and have the world bend around me.”

He didn’t answer, just kissed her with a tenderness that confused her even further.

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