Take a Hint, Dani Brown (The Brown Sisters, #2)

by Talia Hibbert

handling general anxiety disorder.

“Someone who won’t expect more from me than I can give.

“Since I made a request and now I’m waiting for a sign!”

try to be early to class in order to give the impression of omnipotence.”

what Zaf really wanted was to be happy, and he’d read enough romance novels to know

“Then have me. I’m dying for you, and you know it.”

“If I touch you tonight, I’ll make you mine,”

“Just kill me now.”

Traditionalists might find writing on the board unnecessary, but not all learners were aural, no matter their stage of education.

moonstone for destiny, garnet for success, rose quartz for determination.

affection and commitment, things Dani had learned not to bother with because she always got them wrong.

Dani’s efficiency would’ve been the first complaint. Are you seriously scheduling me in? What, am I just another job to you?

“You really believe that, don’t you?”

I miss being your friend, she wanted to say. Except that would be mortifying.

They couldn’t be trusted with the knowledge.

“Being beautiful for my people.” He let out a burst of laughter. “I wish I could carry you around all the time. You do wonders for my mood.”

“If I find out you haven’t had that looked at, you’ll be in deep shit.”

The word husband gave her hives. As if romantic relationships weren’t impossible enough

they also stayed in touch with their emotions and learned that dealing with mental health didn’t make them “weak.”

Hey, Eeyore. Why don’t you take a second to be proud of yourself? You can poke holes in it later.

I remember how hard you worked to get that under control so you could live again.

“When you’ve moved past something, you don’t focus on the rearview mirror. I’m good now. I don’t need to go back there.”

Buzz-buzz-buzz-buzz-buzz, just like Zaf’s heart when his anxiety really kicked off.

“I think my phone is having a panic attack.”

attention wasn’t always a good thing.

Pain was private. Some things weren’t for public consumption. There were lines.

“You need someone to keep an eye on you.”

“That I have anxiety,” he finished, his jaw tense. “I like to think I have some control over my life. Makes things easier. But you can’t always control what people say.”

The only thing you can control is what you do, and

He described his week-by-week program, and she realized she’d never seen him so passionate before.

I’ve been reading too many romance novels. No one fakes relationships in real life.”

If commitment wasn’t for Dani, then she and Zaf weren’t for each other.

“Am I aromantic? Sadly, no.

Coupledom simply doesn’t suit my constitution.

Then his lips brushed hers, and everything changed completely. So soft, so sweet, that butterfly graze.

the way he kissed her said care.

Hours had passed since he’d seen her, but she still dominated his thoughts.

saw Danika’s name and felt his heart kick happily in response.

Admit her smile gave him butterflies, and force her to let him down gently?

Almost as if he was amused, rather than annoyed, by her unsociable hours.

Unfulfilled lust was a funny thing.

Dani wasn’t good at this sort of thing—at making people feel like they mattered.

I know what a chaos demon you are, and I think it’s great.

when she texted him later that morning, her messages like little rays of sunshine no one else would ever see?

She didn’t like the idea of standing him up, not even for a library power nap.

Everything in life didn’t have to be black-and-white, did it?

How hard he’d worked to get past the grief, to get a handle on his anxiety, to let go of his anger and his regrets.

Zaf had survived by drawing lines.

Friendship was perfectly safe. It might hurt sometimes, but it had never crushed her heart and ruined her from the inside out.

had a feeling,” he said wryly, “that you might need a nudge.”