Page 28 of Rescuing Tobias

Give him an excuse to reply to Isabella’s texts. Assuming she hadn't blocked him, of course.

But when he glanced down the hall, he saw he didn't need an excuse to contact Isabella.

Because she was standing outside his door.

While he might not know her well, he knew her well enough to notice how she fidgeted, her fingers constantly fiddling with something, her clothes, her bag, her curls. Her feet moved restlessly, too, as though standing outside his apartment was the last thing they wanted to be doing.

It was certainly the last thing he expected to find when he got home.

Tobias knew the exact second she realized he was watching her, because her head suddenly snapped up, her gaze finding his as though drawn there by some unseen force.

For long seconds, they just stood there staring at one another.

A million questions ran through his mind. Why was she here? Had something bad happened? Had she had a fight with Becca and Connor? Had they thrown her out? Was she finding it as impossible as he was to fight against the pull between them? Did she miss him so much that she had to come by one more time?

Should he be happy to see her?

Should he tell her to leave because seeing her and knowing he could never have her was too painful?

Or should he drag her into his arms, kiss her like he’d been dreaming about, and then carry her inside, strip her naked, and sink inside her so he could recapture that feeling of home she gave him?

Instead, he did none of those things, asked none of those questions, just stood there like an idiot staring at the woman he couldn’t forget no matter how hard he tried. No matter howmany times he attempted to convince himself that he had no idea if he and Isabella would work as a couple.

She seemed as absolutely confused about what to do and how to act as he was feeling, because she made no attempt to move or speak either.

Eventually, he snapped out of his trance and closed the distance between them. It was almost impossible to describe, and it would sound weird to anyone else, but being near Isabella filled him with a sense of coming home. It was like when he was young, before his mom got her diagnosis, and he’d get off the school bus, walk inside his house, and the smell of freshly baked cookies would greet him. His mom would enfold him in a hug and ask about his day, and his dog would bounce about, licking his hand and begging for pets.

That’s what it felt like to be near Isabella.

“Hey,” he finally managed to croak the word out, his throat suddenly dry.

“Hey,” she echoed.

“You're here.” It was a stupid thing to say, and definitely stating the obvious, but being around this woman seemed to make him say and do stupid things.

“I'm here,” she agreed, also stating the obvious. It did help to know she was as deeply affected as he was by their connection.

“Uh, do you want to come in?” Of course she did. It wasn't like she flew into the city just to stand in his hall and stare at him.

“Yes.” She nodded, and it was like something cleared in her eyes, almost like she’d come here with a purpose, forgotten about it when she saw him, and then just remembered.

Moving around her to unlock the door, his hand automatically went to the small of her back as he guided her inside. She didn't shy away from his touch, and while he wasgrateful for that, touching her made him realize that she seemed to have lost more weight over the last month.

Now that he thought about it, he realized there were dark circles under her eyes. It was clear she wasn't sleeping well, and she looked worn out, like she wasn't taking proper care of herself.

He should have replied to her texts.

In this moment, he realized what a mistake it had been not to. His attempt at self-preservation had cost Isabella. The texts could have been just that, he could have controlled his desires and just been a friend to her. It certainly looked like she needed one.

“Can I get you something to eat? Drink?” he asked, unsure what he was supposed to offer her right now because he didn't know why she was there.

Isabella shook her head in response.

“You need to eat, firecracker. You’ve lost more weight since I last saw you.”

His words made her wince, and he felt bad even though they were the truth. He’d heard through the Prey gossip mill that she’d started speaking with Prey’s newest employee, Susanna Zangari, but the sessions with the psychologist didn't appear to have helped any.

While he might not know why she was there or how he was going to respond to the reason, Tobias did know that he could at least take care of her in the moment.

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