Page 61 of Habibi: Always and Forever

“No!” I shout, then panic when an old lady chooses that moment to enter the aisle. I smile at her before turning my attention back to the screen and whispering, “I’m not pregnant, Shae. Geez.”

“Oh, bummer. Then, what’s the big deal? What do you need to tell?—”

“There you are.” Tristan’s voice startles me, making me drop my phone face down.

“Nooo.” I pick it up and realize the whole screen’s shattered, but fortunately, that means Shae’s call dropped and he probably missed what she was about to say.

“I’m sorry, Hannah, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s not your fault. I was just distracted, that’s all.”

He looks at me, and I swear he can see through the lie, but he doesn’t question me.

Taking the phone from my hand, he inspects it and nods. “We can get it fixed before we go back home tomorrow.”

I tense at the mention of tomorrow and of what it might bring. I swallow hard and force myself to say, “Okay, that’s good.”

“Do you have everything you need?”

“No, sorry. I still need to pick up some sweetener for Dad’s coffee. I don’t think he’ll survive without his sweet morning coffee.”

“All right, let’s go get it.”

As we enter the baking aisle with all the sugar and baked goods options, we see two young girls, probably Holly’s age, arguing.

“I know we can’t afford much, but I think ready-to-bake cookie dough is our best bet. If we get the cookie mix, we still have to buy eggs and butter, and it’ll be messier.”

The other girl shakes her head. “You’re right, but still, this is so much cheaper, and we can buy more than with the dough.”

I’m about to move past them, and the girl holding the dough is about to defend her argument, when I feel something hitting me on the back of my leg, the same moment someone behind me shouts, “Kaiser, no!”

I look down and find a huge German Shepherd dog that watches me with his big brown eyes and its tongue sticking out.

“Hannah, get behind me.”

Tristan grabs my arm and tries to shove me out of the dog’s way, when the same girl who shouted from behind me closes the distance and grabs the dog’s leash. “I’m so sorry. He’s not aggressive at all, promise. He’s just goofy and likes to bump into people, looking for attention.”

I chuckle, and the dog tilts his head at me. It’s the cutest thing ever, and I can’t help but crouch down, getting closer to his face.

“Careful, Hannah,” Tristan warns with a serious tone.

“It’s okay.” I grab one of his ears and start petting him. He leans closer to my touch, and something inside me melts. “You’re just a big softy, right, buddy? Yes, you are.”

He starts licking my face, and I laugh and stand as the girl holding his leash speaks again.

“I’m really sorry. I don’t know what got into him, but the moment he saw you walk past the aisle we were in, he just ran from me.

I should’ve been holding him, but I was grabbing some stuff from a tall shelf and couldn’t react quickly enough. ”

“God, Claire, we can get in trouble if the manager sees him roaming around and scaring the customers,” the girl holding the dough scolds her.

“I’m so sorry,” Claire apologizes.

“Hey, it’s okay. We’re not gonna say anything. Right, Tristan?” I look at him, and he nods. “See? No harm done. I’m sure he just got way too excited, that’s all.”

“He’s usually pretty mellow. He’s twelve years old, and never seems to show any interest in anything besides his mealtimes and long naps. Oh, I’m sorry, how rude of us. I’m Chelsea,” the girl holding the cookie mix says. “And this is Claire and Cecilia.”

The other girls wave as a way of introduction and then Claire explains, “We’re volunteers at the local animal shelter, where this guy is from. And we decided to take him out for a couple of hours while we run some errands.”

I turn to look at the dog, and for a moment I forget that I should introduce myself, but luckily Tristan is able to do it.

“I’m Tristan, and this is my girlfriend, Hannah. It’s nice to meet you all.”

I nod and smile at them. “What did you say his name was?”

“Kaiser,” Claire answers.

I stare at him. And he stares right back with soulful eyes.

“Well, we’d better hurry. We still have stuff to buy before getting back to our dorm, or these cookies won’t be ready for tomorrow,” Cecilia finally speaks.

So, I was right about them being around Holly’s age.

When the words “dorm” and “cookies” register, I ask, “Are you going to be able to bake these cookies in your dorm? Do you have a kitchen with an oven there?”

“Well, we have an air fryer that we managed to sneak in without the dorm’s resident assistant finding out. That’ll have to do,” Claire states.

“There’s gonna be an event to raise funds for the animal shelter and maybe get people interested in adopting a dog too. We thought maybe some homemade cookies would be a good sale item.” Chelsea looks at the mix she’s holding. “But we probably should’ve stuck with a few drinks or something.”

I chuckle, then sober up when I see their worried expressions.

“I know we’re practically strangers, but why don’t you come over to my house? You can use my oven. Or better yet, I can teach you how to make the cookies in case you want to make more in the future.”

They stare at me with confusion all over their young faces.

“Hannah is a professional baker,” Tristan explains and then laughs lightly. “I might be biased, but trust me when I say her baked goods are to die for.”

Shit . Did I just really offer to have these girls come to my dad’s house to bake cookies when we’re supposed to catch a flight to New York tomorrow? And worst of all, I didn’t even think to ask Tristan first.

“Oh, wow, that would be amazing. You’d totally be saving our asses if you mean it. Just tell us what to buy, and we can meet you at your place after we drop Kaiser off at the shelter?”

“Sounds like a plan. And don’t worry about the stuff for the cookies, I got that covered.” I lean down to give Kaiser some ear scratches. “See you around, buddy.”

We wave goodbye as we watch them leave, and I swear I can feel my heart break when I hear Kaiser whimper as he tries to get back to us.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper as I turn toward Tristan. “I should’ve consulted with you first. I know we had a schedule for tomorrow, and I’ll understand if you want to go ahead and leave without me. I’ll just catch a later flight.”

Grabbing my chin, he tilts up my head. He kisses me softly. “I’ll stay with you if you want me to. We can figure out the rest when you’re done.”

I nod, feeling a smile tugging at my lips. He still manages to leave me breathless. Maybe tomorrow won’t be as bad as I thought after all.

* * *

TRISTAN

“Hey, what’s up?” Alaric answers, followed by, “What’s all that noise? Sounds like you’re at a party.”

I reluctantly stand from the couch, moving away from the noise. Hannah, the shelter volunteer girls, and even Holly have been baking cookies and other desserts for the last couple of hours, and it’s been amazing to witness. Their laughter and Hannah’s enthusiasm finally made it all click for me.

“I need your help. I’m sending you a couple of links for you to check. Full background and all.”

Once I send them, I can hear the rustling of sheets, probably from him getting out of bed. Which is understandable since he’s three hours ahead. He stays quiet for a minute too long.

“So, you’ll help me? I need the info before tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll make sure to send it ASAP,” he states.

“You’re not gonna ask me what this is about?”

He sighs. “I have a pretty good idea of what this means. It sucks, but hey, whatever makes you happy, brother.”

I can’t help but smile. “Thank you. I’ll talk to you soon.”

I hang up the phone and turn toward the kitchen, watching the girls with their drinks in hand, probably waiting for the baked goods to be ready.

Hannah looks my way, and a huge smile lights up her face. Yeah…she makes me happy.

* * *

HANNAH

“Tristan, I thought we were going to the event at the animal shelter. Where are we?”

He cuts the engine, his body turning toward me as he sighs.

“You once told me that one of your dreams was to open a bakery with your mom. With your dad and sister helping out too. A big family business.”

I swallow, trying to get rid of the lump in my throat, as he asks, “You don’t want to go back to New York, do you?”

Unable to utter the words, and fighting to keep the tears from spilling, I shake my head no.

“Watching you last night, full of excitement and in your element, like the old you, I finally realized what I failed to see before. You haven’t been happy. And I’m sorry.”

“Hey, no.” I grab his face between my hands, “From the moment I met you, all you’ve done is give me everything I could ever dream of.

You make me happy, Tristan. It’s just that…

I miss my family. I miss my hometown. New York is exciting, but I just don’t think I fit there anymore.

And I’m sorry if for one second I made you doubt my feelings for you.

I was scared because I know your life, your family, and your work are there, and I don’t know how to make this work without losing you. ”

“Silly girl. I’m yours, for as long as you want me.”

His lips crash into mine. His kiss is rough, demanding. And I match his intensity with my own. With a practiced ease, he pulls the lever and slides his seat back before grabbing me and settling me over his lap. My arms go around his neck, and one hand dives into his hair, tugging on the strands.

He groans, and I feel it straight into my core as I rub myself over his erection. I’m about to ask him to fuck me right here, not caring if there are people around in broad daylight, when he pushes me back, ending our kiss.

“Wait. We need to stop.”

“Why? I want you.” We’re both panting, and I can see the lust behind those blue eyes that I love so much it hurts.

He groans. “Baby, you’re killing me. I want you so fucking much right now. But we need to talk first.”

I climb off his lap and back to my seat.

“This is the reason why we’re here.” He points at the building a few spots from where he parked. “I think it would be perfect for your bakery.”

I turn to look at him so fast that I’m afraid I just gave myself whiplash. “What?—?”

“I once told you I would give you anything you want. All you have to do is ask. I know it’s hard for you to do that, and it took me a while to figure it out.

But if this is what’ll make you happy, I’ll make it happen.

We’ll find the perfect place to call our own, near your family.

Near your business. Big enough to have our friends and family visit often. What do you say, pretty girl?”

“Tristan…” Unable to control my tears any longer, I hug him, needing to feel him closer. Craving him.

“Just promise me that whatever happens, if something is bothering you, we’ll figure out a way to work it out together.”

“I promise. Nothing would make me happier than to start this new chapter here with you. Thank you for loving me so much.”

“Well, there’s one more thing.”

I lean back, watching how the huge smile on his face lights up his beautiful eyes with amusement.

“What’s that?” I ask.

“How do you feel about adding a member to our family?”

I arch a brow as he clarifies, “I was thinking of a certain old, grumpy dog that seems to have fallen in love with my girl too.”

I laugh. “Let’s go get our grumpy, old child and make it official.”

THE END