It was a nice restaurant. She wished she could be more attentive. But even Todd was distracted, quiet, and had been since he picked her up. They were a matched set of silence, playing with their fancy food while neither of them ate a bite.
"He said something to you, too. Didn't he?" It was the only explanation, why Todd was so distant.
He looked up. Dropped his eyes. Set down his fork. "Yes."
Damn him. Damn him! Take her brother away and the guy she... shied away from the obvious word. Because it wasn't so obvious. She had no idea what love felt like. Not really.
"What did he say?" She tried not to get mad. It wasn't Todd's fault his father was a sick bastard.
"Just that I'm not supposed to see you any more."
"He didn't say why?"
"No. Did you want to tell me?" He looked up again. There was hurt in his face. He looked so young, like he needed her to fix it.