When her tears were finally spent she washed her face with a cool cloth and emerged from the bathroom determined not to let him get to her again. He was waiting outside the door the moment she emerged.
"Ready for a distraction?"
She glared at him. "Depends on what you have in mind."
"Well I was thinking along the lines of giving you an orgasm..."
He laughed knowingly at her vexed look, "...but if you're not up for that maybe a shopping trip would do?"
She stared at him in stunned disbelief.
"Shopping?"
"Yeah. Something along the line of a major spending spree at the mall on someone else's dime should provide a decent distraction, don't you think?"
She shook her head. "I've never been big on shopping malls. Plus, didn't you say you don't dare take me to town?"
"I'm not intending on going to town. The nearest shopping mall is 30 minutes beyond town. I highly doubt we need to worry about you being recognized and I'm no longer worried about you taking off. I know you're not naturally sociable but doesn't the thought of walking down a street with relatively normal appearing individuals have even the slightest appeal?"
She cocked her head as she considered his points. "Walmart is more my style you know."
He shook his head firmly. "No deal. It's the mall or the basement, take your pick."
She gritted her teeth before responding, "Fine, get your keys."
A short time later they were driving through a blissfully crisp snowy landscape on their way toward civilization.
"Now that I have a captive audience we can pick up where we left off. I'm not going to spend the next two and a half hours driving in silence."
She sighed and closed her eyes. "I should have known there was more to this than a shopping spree. Why don't you just turn on the radio? I don't feel like talking."
"Hannah, we need to talk this through. You can't deny what is going on between us. I'm beginning to think there are some things that are more important than revenge."
The girl clenched her fists and lay her cheek against the cold window. "James, don't. Please."
"Don't what? Don't tell you I am coming to care about you as a person and not just a coconspirator?"
"Don't put me in a position where I have to lie to you about how I feel to avoid being punished."
"I'm sorry sweetheart, I don't mean to put you in that predicament. You know I don't want to punish you, I just hate the fact that you consider yourself to be a wasted effort. I don't want you to lie, but I do want to help. I'm flying blind here. I'm not saying we should give up on bringing down the bastard, but what if what is between us is something more? Can you even entertain that possibility?"
The girl sighed in exasperation. "I've spent every minute of every day surviving for as long as I can remember. You are the one who pointed out that doesn't leave time or energy for loving myself, let alone bringing someone else into the equation. I can't do this James, I'm sorry. If we must talk can we please change the subject?"
Once again she left him bewildered. He didn't care much for the helplessness that accompanied that realization. He was naturally inclined to fix things and her obstinance rendered him practically useless. And yet that strong, bullheaded will was exactly what drew him to her. The cognitive dissonance was maddening.
"If you insist. How do you like the weather? Doesn't look like the snow is going to stop any time soon." The snow was falling lightly now, but was still consistently coming down.
"I'm not a big snow fan. One of the reasons I liked my little apartment in Arizona. Though I guess it could grow on me with a good book in front of the fireplace and a cup of cocoa."
"I've got the fireplace. If I take you to a bookstore and pick up a can of hot cocoa are you going to yell at me like you did when I bought you shampoo?" He felt like celebrating when the comment earned him a slight smile.
"Nope. Books and chocolate are always acceptable gifts."
The ice was broken and they soon were making casual conversation. It was a new experience for him and he realized they really hadn't spent time making small talk. He wondered if skipping vast aspects of a normal romantic relationship contributed to her apparently uncharacteristic strong emotional responses. He decided to do everything in his power to make this night as normal as possible for her. In many ways this night represented their first real date, though he wisely chose not to point that out to her.
Their chatting made the time pass quickly and they soon pulled in and parked in the lot of a large shopping center.
"Stay put, let me get the door." He moved to the passenger side of the vehicle and helped her out. She stood nervously, almost cringing as she observed several individuals walking through the crowded lot.
"I don't even know how long it's been..." The girl tapered off as if unsure how to finish her sentence and he reached for her hand comfortingly.
"Three months, two weeks and four days since your take. But whose counting. Come on, we'll take it slow."
He lead her into the building, directing her toward a bench where he sat in silence allowing her to people watch and to slowly acclimate to once again being surrounded by a crowd of strangers. When she seemed calmer he again took her by the hand and directed her through the crowd into a popular clothing store.
"We'll start with something simple. Why don't you pick out a few tops you like? Not that I don't like my clothes on you, but I'm sure they will have something here that's more your style."
She shook her head as if to clear it and began browsing a nearby rack. After slight hesitation she picked out several selections and held them up for his approval. She seemed drawn primarily to solid colors and simpler styles, which did not surprise him. After taking the tops from her he directed her to select a couple pair of pants, again she selected very conservative styles. They neared the women's dressing rooms and he was surprised to notice her nibbling her lower lip, a sure sign of discomfort.
