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“Why? Look at me. You could have hurt yourself lifting me.” I wave my arms around to show him my rolls.
Hudson drops his feet and sits up so fast, I jump back. “Don’t put yourself down. I don’t see rolls. I see someone that is beautiful inside and out. I won’t sit here and listen to you bash yourself. Do you understand me? Beautiful.” His eyes are a dark brown and they’re staring directly at me. His eyebrows are raised so high, they’re almost in his hairline. “I asked you a question. Do you understand me?”
“Don’t talk to me like I’m a little girl.” I turn away from his glare. “You’re a guest in my home.”
I feel his fingers under my chin, turning me to face him. “Beautiful” he whispers.
We stare at each other for a few seconds, and I agree and nod. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“For everything. Last night and this morning included.”
“You’re welcome. How are you feeling? Ready to go get some actual food?”
Huh? He wants to go out to eat with me? I shake my head. “No. I’m fine. You’ve done enough for me.” I smile at him. “I release you of your duties.” I sway my hand towards his monster truck in my driveway.
“Oh, no you don’t. You owe me and I’m cashing in right now. We’re going to go get something to eat.”
“We are?”
“Yep. You ready to go?” Hudson stands up and collects my empty water glass. “What do we do with Wilbur? He’s running around the yard right now. Are his wings clipped or something?” He walks into my house, and I’m forced to follow him.
“Wilbur is fine roaming the neighborhood. He has a schedule he likes to keep.”
Hudson stops in his tracks. “Your goose has a calendar? Appointments?”
I laugh at the look on his face and nod. “He’s more like the mayor of the RV park. He visits the ducks at the pond, wanders around the park, and sees some neighbors who give him treats. So, in a sense, yes, he has appointments.”
He shakes his head. “Weirdest thing I’ve heard in a long time.”
“Don’t you have a pet?” I ask him as we walk out the front door and over to his truck. I unplugged all the appliances Hudson used to make me toast this morning as we trekked through my house.
We both climb into his truck, and he starts it up, making quite a loud noise. “Yeah. I have an English Mastiff, Pepper. The only thing she cares about is my mother and treats.”
He slowly steers us around and out of the neighborhood.
“That’s Wilbur’s thing. Treats. And the ducks. He seems to think he’s in charge of them.”
“How did you end up with a pet goose?”
I look over at Hudson and he’s sitting back in the driver’s seat, relaxed, with one hand draped over the steering wheel, smiling at me. He’s got the most adorable dimple, and suddenly I just want to lick it. What’s wrong with me?
“He just showed up one day and never left. So, I built him a tiny house, got him a kiddie pool, and bring him in at night. He just never left.” I shrug my shoulders.
Hudson shakes his head as he pulls into Jack’s Place, a local greasy spoon. “We’re here.”
After being seated and ordering coffee and the greasiest breakfast on the menu, we find ourselves just staring at each other.
“So, what made you decide to take me home last night?” I ask for no other reason than to fill up the silence between us.
“You’re having an awful week and I wanted to make sure you got home safely.” He answers without missing a beat.
Confused, “What do you mean, ‘I’m having an awful week’?”
He sips his coffee and shrugs. “I don’t know the details, but it’s written all over your face. You’re deeply sad. It’s something that wasn’t on your face the last time we met. So, deduction tells me, something is about to happen or already has that you’re not happy about. Bad. So, which is it?”
“I’m hung over. That’s what you see.” I blow off what he just said because it’s too close to the truth and quite honestly, none of his business.
