Hannah noticed Abby’s gaze fall to her arms. She’d gotten hot during the cleanup effort and shed the long sleeves she’d worn over her tank top. It was another step. Everyone here tonight already knew anyway.
“Matt told me what happened.”
“I know.” Stephen had admitted to telling Matt about her past and told her Abby most likely knew, as Matt would have shared it with his wife.
“I only want to say I’m sorry. I hope you’re not mad at Matt or at Stephen. I think Stephen needed someone to confide in.”
“I’m not mad.” And she wasn’t. It was more of a relief, really.
A burst of laughter from the front porch pulled their attention and the moment passed.
“Looks like the boys are getting along,” Abby said.
Stephen and Nick sat on the porch. On opposite ends and not talking but at least drinking a beer in the same space. “Not at each other’s throats is progress.”
“Yes. Progress.” Abby turned back to her and smiled. “Stephen seems happier than I’ve ever seen him. Not that I’ve I known him that long, not like the others. When I met Matt…Stephen wasn’t around much. He was hurting. I know Matt worried about him, felt guilty for not being there more.”
“When his fiancée died.” It wasn’t a question. She knew.
“Yes.”
“He must have loved her a lot to cut himself off from his brothers, his family.” So much he couldn’t love anyone else?
“I’m sure he did. I never met her. But people heal.” Abby covered her hand. “They learn to live again. Sometimes, most of the time, it’s finding the right person that does it.”
It was becoming more and more clear to her how badly she wanted to be that person for Stephen.
With more noise and scraping from the front porch, the men came in and interrupted whatever else Abby might have said.
Matt came directly to his wife. “Almost time for the news, girls.”
Zach walked over and turned the TV to the right channel, volume low. They talked around the news, waiting for the coverage of awareness day to air.
“There it is,” Nick said. “Turn it up.”
Stephen stood behind her, hands firmly on her shoulders for support.
“According to sources I spoke with today, the city of Norfolk has no plans to reverse the decision to take ownership of the property in question. And although the council feels for Ms. Walker’s plight, the land does fall under the state’s intestacy laws, which state, ‘When any person leaves property without a lawfully documented will and no legal relatives, all such property goes to the state.’ And in this case they have every intention of acting on that law and moving forward. Back to you, Scott.”
“Son of a bitch!”
Hannah might have smiled at the fact that Nick, Luke, and Stephen all said the same thing in unison, but it was hard to smile when her stomach was sinking. “So that’s it then.”
Stephen gave her shoulders a squeeze and kissed the top of her head. “Not necessarily. Sometimes you just have to find the right chains to rattle. Plus, this was about public pressure, and the public hasn’t had a chance to rally yet. They will.”
“They’re pushing,” Matt added. “We’ll push back harder.”
They talked about it a few more minutes, and after everything they’d done, she worked to keep a smile on her face.
Abby hugged her goodbye. “We’ll go to lunch this week. And Gracie will be out for her lesson on Tuesday.”
“Sounds great.”
Stephen thanked Matt and they did the guy handshake-backslap.
“It was fun.”
Luke and Zach also shook Stephen’s hand, gave manly looks, and left. A subtle acceptance, because it was obvious Stephen wasn’t leaving. At least not with everyone else.
Zach hugged her and walked out behind Luke. “Let’s go, Nick.”
Nick wasn’t giving over so easily. He paused on the porch. “One of these posts is loose.”
He pushed at the wood. She didn’t see it moving.
Stephen straightened from his position against the door frame. “I’ll take a look at it,” he said, looking right at Nick. “In the morning.”
Every muscle in Nick’s face twitched. Jeez. They never got tired of this pissing contest.
When Nick finally drove away, Stephen wrapped her in his arms and she leaned into him. “Do you have to push his buttons like that?”
“Yeah. I do. Does it bother you?”
“Well, it’s not making things any easier.”
He nuzzled the top of her head. “Okay. I’ll try.” She sighed and he read her mind. “It’s not over.”
“I wish I were as confident.” After the news, she wasn’t so sure.
“You’re tired. How about a hot shower, then I’ll rub your feet?”
She angled her head up to look at this man who had come into her life and made everything better. “I can’t believe all you did for me today. The food, the games, the prizes.”
“I didn’t do too much. The girls took over, and that was no hardship. Those women love nothing more than to plan parties, and it’s Lizzy’s dream to take over the world.”
“You paid for it all. Don’t deny it, your sister told me. How can I ever pay you back?”
Stephen’s lids fell heavy and a devious smile crept into his lips. “Oh, honey. Did you really just ask me that?” He shook his head. “I’m a man. There’s always a way you can pay me back. Maybe we can work something out in the shower. Maybe I can rub something besides your feet.”