Page 50 of It's a Widow Thing

“It’s a piece of paper. If you mess it up, you mess it up.”

“I guess. I just don’t like making mistakes.” She resigned herself to her fate and folded the paper neatly. “Okay. First clue. Across. Four letters. A many-splendored thing.”

“Love,” he said, lightning fast.

“Oh. Sure.”Huh.She carefully wrote in the answer. “Three across. Per Franklin, a certainty. Five letters.” She tapped the pen against the paper, thinking. “Death?”

“Uh. Yeah.”

Sabrina was already not a fan of this puzzle, no matter how easily they’d breezed through the first two answers. “Five across. Ned Flanders, for example. Eight letters. He’s that nerdy guy from the Simpsons, right?”

“Yes. The answer is neighbor. And I’m starting to feel like this crossword is trolling us.” The irritation in his voice was plain.

“Maybe you’re just seeing things.”

“Maybe it’s a sign from the universe.”

“Do you even believe in stuff like that?”

“Not really, but I’m entitled to change my mind.”

She wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but she had a strong feeling that he was looking for an argument and she was not about to engage. Instead, she returned to the list of clues. “Talk rubbish, or for breakfast. Six letters.”

“I’ve heard enough. That crossword puzzle knows everything about us. The answer is waffle.” He was gripping the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles were bulging.

“Maybe this isn’t such a great idea.” She stuffed it back into her bag. “We can listen to music. Or a podcast.”

“Anything to avoid talking?”

“What? No. That’s not what I said. I’m just suggesting diversions. It’s what people do during car trips.”

“I don’t want a diversion. I think we need to talk.”

“Okay. Fine. Let’s talk. What do you want to talk about?”

He grumbled and squeezed the steering wheel even more tightly. “I have something I need to get off my chest or I’m going to explode. I’m… I’m… I’m frustrated.”

“With me?”

“With myself. With you. With us.” He groaned. “I’m fucking frustrated with words.”

He had to be talking about last night. “Because I said that I think I’m falling in love with you?”

“Yes. That’s part of it. And I get it. I’m more frustrated that I didn’t have the nerve to tell you the full breadth of my feelings. Which only made me realize that we are starting so far apart that I have to wonder if we’re ever going to be able to meet in the same place.”

It would’ve been so easy to throw that back in his face and point out that he was only bringing up exactly what she’d worried about from the very beginning. But she couldn’t do that. Because if he had bought into her logic then, her time with his family wouldn’t have happened. Axe throwing and walks in the park and him being there at her side at Echo Beauty wouldn’t have happened. She was glad he’d argued with her about that point. She was happy he’d poked holes in her theory. “Michael, I am falling in love with you.”

“Don’t feel like you have to tell me that. I’m not trying to pressure you. I’m trying to tell you how I feel.”

“I don’t feel pressured. Thisishow I feel.”

“But? I sense there’s a but.” He glanced over at her.

“There isn’t.” Now, she understood his frustration. She was feeling it, too. “Look, Michael this is a big deal for me.”

He kept his eyes trained on the road. “I get it. I do.” A low groan escaped his lips. He pressed his fingers to the center of his chest.

“Are you okay?”