“No. And before you came over, I was sitting here trying to think of the right way to let her know it.” Although he was now of a mind to wait. There was no need to wake Willow in the middle of the night just to reject her, not when he could easily do it during the day.

Finished with his brownie, Uriah dusted the crumbs from his hands. “Those aren’t too bad. I say you give her a chance. Maybe she’ll bring more.”

Tobias chuckled. “Sorry. Not interested. Even if I was, can you imagine what her friends and family would think if she brought home a guy like me?” He was no longer talking about Willow, but Uriah didn’t need to know that.

“I’d be happy to have you marry my daughter if I had one,” he said. “Matter of fact, I’d consider her lucky to have found such a good man.”

The tension Tobias had been feeling suddenly eased. What with Harper going home the way she had, Atticus landing in the hospital and Carl causing so many problems, he hadn’t realized how uptight he’d become. But, other than Maddox, it was Uriah who’d helped stabilize him after he was released from Soledad, Uriah who’d made him feel as though someone was willing to give him another chance. And his landlord was still playing that role, which was why Tobias felt so much loyalty to him.

“You’re getting sentimental in your old age,” he teased. Neither one of them was comfortable showing emotion, but nothing meant more to Tobias than hearing those words, especially from someone who was familiar with his history—and could forgive him for it.

11

Harper woke with a headache. She hadn’t slept well. Despite being exhausted, she’d tossed and turned, replaying the time she’d spent in Tobias’s bed as well as the terrible moment right after, when she’d realized she’d somehow placed a call to Axel. She cringed every time she thought of it, doubted she’d ever get completely over the embarrassment and prayed he wouldn’t tell anyone besides Rory, who already knew.

For the past eight months, she’d also been watching as the day of her divorce marched inexorably closer—and now, here it was. That hit her hard but, fortunately, she was beginning to transition from hurt to anger. She’d read that was a normal part of the grieving process and was grateful for it. Without anger, she would never have the strength to pull herself together.

At least she hadn’t cried since her last contact with Axel. That was an accomplishment. She hadn’t called him since then or texted him, either. Living without him wasn’t anything she would’ve chosen, but she had to stop trying to go back, had to deal with reality and start moving forward again.