Page 85 of A Hard Habit to Break

It was so cute watching her dad so happy, and yeah, she knew he’d been happy with her mom, but maybe because she was younger, she hadn’t fully appreciated what love looked like. Her parents had worked so hard. Her dad always looked stressed and exhausted. Her mom hadn’t fared much better, with a farmer’s schedule from sunup to well past dark. And then she had gotten sick, and then she was gone.

Rachel was meeting a whole new side of her father, the man who wanted and sought out love. Seeing him laugh, smile, and relax with Bethany, Rachel was happy that they had each other. This was what real love looked like: open, honest, and comfortable. It was not secretive meetings with a mayor she couldn’t trust, not impressive home offices. Real love was built on transparency, not lavish gifts and convenient omissions.

She thought of Noah and wondered if this was the type of love that they would have. Or was she setting herself up to get her heart broken again, but this time with a better backdrop?

“I’ll shower first. Then drive us to the school. We can head into town for a dinner on your old man. You rolling with us, BW?”

Rachel liked that her father had fallen into a familial yet respectful relationship with Benji.

“Yes, Mr. J. Fresh air will help me prep my argument for solar power.”

“In coal country?” her father bellowed, shaking his head. “Be sure to sandwich that idea between the clinic’s purpose and the community’s possibilities.”

“Will do.” Benji stood, closing his tablet cover. “I’ve also teed up the input, the information, and specs we’ve revamped into the EPA and Appalachia grant applications.”

Bethany paused, worrying her teeth with her lip. “Will that hurt our chances with securing our share of the community redevelopment grant?”

“Mom, more than one project can apply for every grant. I say the more, the more.”

“That’s merrier. But, yes, Amarie is right. Three is better than one, Bethany. Great watching out, Benji. Eggs in more than one basket is a smart approach.” Rachel considered that the energy-saving measure would sell the disaster preparedness aspect of the proposal.Good to have an engineer on the team, she thought.

“Agreed, RJ. Keep it up, Benji, and you’ll be a permanent Service resident.”

Whoa.

How had Rachel missed what was happening right under the window? If it was a nail gun, it would have banged her between the eyes. “What’s going on?” Was everyone in her life making life-altering decisions without consulting her?

Her father answered before her friend. “Benji loves it here.”

Rachel scoffed, eyes still on Benji. “Oh, my goodness, you have got to be joking,” she exclaimed, not sure why the town of Service insisted on claiming the men she loved. “California surfers can’t do that here in the mountains of West Virginia. Tell me Dad’s joking,” Rachel insisted, waiting for Benji to agree.

Benji didn’t flinch away from her questioning gaze. “I’m contemplating staying until the project is complete.” He grinned. “Maybe.”

How could he leave San Diego without a second thought? The town would love him, of course. They’d seduce him with praise and adoration. And he’d stay and never want to leave.

“Hey,” Bethany chimed in. “It’s okay. Life is too short to miss an opportunity. Rachel, you may have found Benji’s next assignment.” Bethany hugged her father, not a bit concernedwith the sweat and the grime on him. “I’ve known stranger things to happen.”

“Stranger or better?” her father fussed.

“Definitely better.” Bethany laughed.

“You two are just icky sweet.” Rachel gave a laugh. She loved Service, but everyone suffered from a lotus room effect. Loving the place came easy, but the only ladders to climb in this town led to water towers and barn lofts, not c-suites. That was what she wanted to share with Noah—her life. Then, maybe they could bring their adventure back to Service. Why did she feel like she had to choose one over the other or she’d lose—again?

“Yeah, well,” her father said, playfully patting Bethany on the backslide, “I’m not going to ask any questions about you and Noah.”

Rachel felt her face heat. “Please don’t.”

“You got yourself a deal.” Her father paused for a minute, and then he shook his head. Had she given a sign of her internal turmoil? Maybe she was worried, in a tiny place in her heart, that she and Noah wouldn’t be icky sweet because their relationship had a fourteen-day time stamp. Or would this rekindled flame flicker out when she asked tough questions?

Or maybe this issue down at the fire station that required Pete’s help was more of a problem than Noah was letting on. What if Noah was in real trouble and he was too proud to tell her? Or worse, what if he wasn’t, and he had reverted to his old pattern of keeping her in the shadows while he played the hero?

As much as she tried to focus on the here and now, they had to make it through the wedding. Pete popping up with false offers of whatever type of help Noah thought he could provide would put a nail in any future for her with Noah. Pete… a helper? Rachel wasn’t convinced. The man always had an angle, and most people didn’t see it coming until they caught the point right in the hind parts.

Twenty minutes later, her father held the door open that led to the attached carport. “Let’s go, family.”

Bethany ducked under his arm. “I like the sound of that.”

Rachel also liked the sound of…family. She followed Amarie out. Benji pulled the door closed behind them. Their house, which had been a quiet mausoleum of buried hopes and lost dreams, was once more filled with love and laughter.