Page 3 of The Perfect Secret

“Strange coincidence, isn’t it? No damage done, no apology necessary.”

He backed away with a hitch in his step, giving her room to move. But his hand was still on her elbow and not wanting to upset his balance, she followed, engaging in a silent dance routine. Meanwhile, others in line backed away. He frowned, took another step back and again she followed. His grip was firm, warm, and made the little hairs on her arm stand on end. A part of her didn’t want him to let go. However, the practical side of her realized if he didn’t do it soon, they would block the vendor or land on the ground. She looked pointedly at her arm and his gaze followed. His eyes crinkled, his mouth curved in a smile as he huffed a breath and let go of her arm.

“Oh, so that’s how you do it,” he said. “Next time I’ll know better. Kind of weird, though, running into you here. Or maybe not weird, but…”

She laughed. He was awkward, charming, and chatty, which was a surprise after his aloofness yesterday.

“No worries, although maybe we should move out of the way.” Hannah tossed a glance over her shoulder at the hot dog cart. “We’re blocking the vendor from his customers. Or did you want to order a hot dog?”

“Yeah, I did. Wait a sec?”

“Sure.” She moved to the side, surprised he didn’t give her the brush-off, since yesterday he’d seemed eager to leave.

Moments later, he joined her. “I didn’t mean weird before.”

His body gave off warmth and an invisible string pulled her closer. “Yes, you did, but I understand. It is kind of weird.”

His shoulders relaxed. “I also owe you an apology. You were great with Tess, somehow making her smile when I never seem to be able to, and I was surprised. I never properly thanked you.”

“You’re welcome. She’s lovely. I enjoyed talking with her.”

He tilted his head as if trying to translate what she said. His gaze compelled her to look, and she couldn’t turn away. “Not many people say that about teenagers. Do you have any?”

“No, but I was one. And I have three older brothers, two of whom have children, and one of my nieces will turn thirteen this year, so…”

“So, you’re well prepared. I thought so when she talked to you rather than playing with her phone or running away.”

Hannah raised her eyebrows. “I doubt she would have run away without knowing if you were okay.”

He shifted from one foot to the other, looking uncomfortable. Hannah had an urge to comfort him. “True.” He cleared his throat. “Do you work near here?”

She looked around. Her thoughts had distracted her, and she’d walked much farther than she’d intended, almost ten blocks.

“Actually, no, I don’t. I walked to distract myself and evidently, I did a good job.”

They approached an empty bench and Hannah sat. “You can join me if you like.” A part of her hoped he’d stay. This was turning into the best part of the day and she didn’t want it to end too soon, not when she was getting to know him. With her luck, though, he would grab a quick bite to eat and return to work.

“Sure.” When he lowered himself onto the bench, she warmed at his desire to stay a little longer. He took a bite of his hot dog with mustard and relish, resting his cane against his leg. She wondered if he’d been recently injured.

“What do you do?” he asked.

“I’m a PR exec at a large firm. I work with a big pharmaceutical company client. You?”

“Forensic accountant.”

“Do you work nearby?”

He pointed to the cross street. “One block that way.”

“Uh-oh, you may need to find a new hot dog vendor. I think we might have annoyed him with our two-step.”

He laughed, more of a bark, and Hannah caught her breath. She got the feeling he didn’t laugh often. Or maybe he did…she wasn’t sure. But she liked being the one to make him do it.

Hannah took another bite of her hot dog and wiped her mouth. “So do you go to the JCC often?”

“Tess volunteers as a tutor. She’s there more often than I am. I dragged her to the concert last night, though.”

“What did you think of it?”