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“Can I have some?” Ruby asked.
I laughed. “You know the answer to that, young lady. Maybe in a few years.”
Ruby shrugged as if to say ‘worth a shot.’ “Anything else you need me to do before dinner, Dad?”
I noted that she’d already rolled the pizza bases, grated a small pile of cheese, and diced the other toppings. “Nah, you go do your homework, Rubes. We’ll finish everything in here.”
She gave me a thumbs up and left the room.
Hannah rounded the counter. “Should we start assembling these?”
“Sure. I’ll spread the sauce and you can add whatever you’d like.”
She nodded and stood back while I ladled sauce onto each pizza base.
“You don’t seem very enthusiastic about the job offer,” she observed.
“I’m glad they made it,” I said, keeping my tone neutral. “You deserve it.”
“Yeah.” She crossed her arms. “But do you actually want me to accept it?”
I accidentally slopped sauce onto the counter, surprised by the question. My instincts blared at me to yell that yes, of course I would like her to accept it and stay in Destiny Falls with us, but I didn’t want to pressure her. Whatever came next, it was important that it was her own decision.
“Sweetheart,”—I placed my hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead—“I don’t want you to make your decision based on us. Or for our relationship to be a factor. Just think about what you want, and go for it. If that means staying here, great. If not, that’s okay too.”
She stiffened. “Do you even care which way I decide?”
“Of course I do.” More than she could imagine. Damn, I was fumbling this. “But I don’t want you to choose to stay for our sake and regret it.”
She pulled away. “Iwantto factor you into my decision, but the way you’re talking makes me wonder if you’d do the same for me, and if you actually see a future for us. Because if we’re going to build something together, it should be taken for granted that I’d consider the impact on our relationship.”
I didn’t like the flash of hurt in her eyes. I reached for her, but she slipped away. “I care about what’s best for you, Hannah. And what’s best for Ruby.”
At that moment, Ruby bounced back into the room, interrupting the conversation. She didn’t seem to notice the tension in the air. “Hannah, can you come and explain part of the homework to me please?”
Hannah backed away from me even further. “You got it. I’ll be there in a minute.”
Ruby nodded and hurried back to her room. Hannah turned away. I considered pushing the conversation, but I got the impression it would be better to give her time to think, and then try again.
I cooked the pizzas and then we ate together at the table. Afterward, all three of us huddled onto the couch to watch a movie. When Hannah left at the end of the night, I knew things weren’t resolved. She’d been too quiet.
“What’s wrong?” Ruby asked as the door shut behind Hannah.
I sighed. “Relationship stuff, kiddo.”
She scrunched her nose. “Like what?”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You really want to know?”
“Yeah.” Her expression said I was stupid to ask. “I want Hannah to stick around, so fixing whatever you did wrong is kinda important.”
I scowled. “What makes you think I did something wrong?”
“Dad, please.”
I rolled my eyes. “I think she was upset about how I reacted to her job offer.”
“You were a bit weird about it,” she said. “Like, you were saying the right things but didn’t seem to feel it. Don’t you want her to stay with us?”
