Page 10 of Sworn to Defend

She hit send and then reread the text and cringed. She was rusty at this whole dating thing—not that she had ever been an expert. Collin’s father was the only person she had dated, and even then, their relationship was very different than what she was building with Hunter. More casual, as if both of them knew the relationship was fleeting despite having mutual respect and friendship. She never felt the overwhelming tightening in her gut or the anticipation coursing through her blood like she did when Hunter was close.

She sat in bed and started typing another message, biting her bottom lip.

Sorry, I didn’t mean that to be so blunt. I’m not good at this.

She was about to hit send when her phone alerted her to a new message.

Hunter

Nothing will make me change my mind, and I look forward to convincing you of that. Have a good day, beautiful. Tell Collin I’m looking forward to later. I have a briefing with the guys, but I have a feeling the day will go by slowly. Can’t wait to see you later.

Hannah sat up in bed and ran her fingers through her tangled mass of hair. Beautiful. She’d be the first to say looks didn’t matter. She couldn’t care less if someone found her attractive. How a person treated others was what mattered. Still, his words were ones she hadn’t heard often, and they gave her a thrill. A burst of pleasure that swelled like a bubble inside her chest. The bedside clock caught her eye, and she bolted out of bed, tripping on a tangled sheet and stubbing her toe in the process. She hopped on one foot to the dresser and pulled out shorts and a T-shirt. Collin would be late for school if she didn’t get her ass moving.

She padded across the hallway to his room and knocked softly on the door. “Collin. Wake up, it’s time to start the day.” He was asleep, lying on his side with his mouth slightly open. She smoothed the lock of red hair resting on his forehead, and he opened his eyes. “We have to get ready for school, bud. I got a late start.”

“Hunter stayed for dinner.” His expression was serious as he processed the information, before a smile overtook his face. Warmth spread through her chest. Nothing compared to her son’s happy face. So full of joy, it took her breath.

“Yup. And he’s coming to your baseball practice later.” She straightened, stunned by the words that left her own mouth. Usually, she didn’t tell Collin about plans with other adults because he would have difficulty adapting to the schedule variation if they changed. Some internal piece of her already trusted Hunter not to break his word. If he said he would be there, he’d be there.

Collin beamed and sat upright, tossing aside his comforter and sheets. He began pacing his room, snapping his fingers.

“Let’s get ready. I’ll make you breakfast while you’re doing your morning routine.” She handed him a laminated chart that held his morning schedule. As he completed the tasks he needed to do before school, like brushing his teeth, combing his hair, and applying deodorant, he’d move the Velcro pictures from the “to do” category to the “all done” category. Visual schedules helped Collin quite a bit, saving them both from her reminding him of what he should be doing every few minutes.

She rolled up on her tippy toes, kissed his cheek, and went to the kitchen. Collin had a limited number of breakfast staples—a toasted plain bagel with butter, a vanilla meal replacement shake, and, more recently, breakfast pizza, something he’d first made with Hunter. Since she didn’t have time to figure out the breakfast pizza, she plugged in the toaster for Collin and the coffee maker for herself. The coffee machine hissed out its last stream, filling the air with the bitter scent of roasted beans when Collin entered the kitchen and sat at the table.

“Moss, Christmas trees, grass,” he noted as he glanced at her deep green shirt. She grinned and placed his bagel on the table.

“And you chose firetruck, strawberry, and cherry,” she said, nodding at his shirt. Red was one of Collin’s favorite colors. She kissed the top of his head before turning back to the counter to add sugar to her coffee.

Collin had just finished breakfast when his van pulled up to the house. She walked him outside. It was already hot and muggy, but the sky was fairly clear. She smiled, waved at the van driver, and popped her head in to say hello to Jacob as Collin boarded. Since the day Jacob enrolled in public school, they’d been best friends. She was so thankful Brynn, Ransom, and Jacob lived just a few neighborhoods away. Jacob smiled at her. His wheelchair was securely attached to the floor of the accessible van.

She waved as the van backed out of the driveway and chuckled at how Collin pressed his face against the glass, making a silly expression. He gave her a thumbs-up as the van took a left down the street, and she went back into the house with a smile on her face; even though she had overslept by fifteen minutes, the ever-present weight on her shoulders was lighter. She completed one load of laundry and mopped the floor when her phone rang. She’d gotten more phone calls in the past few days than she had in months.

She pulled her phone from her back pocket, and all the good feelings accompanying her during her morning chores evaporated. Her mother’s name was illuminated on the screen. She puffed up her cheeks and let the breath whistle from her lips. There was no use ignoring the call. Her mother would just call repeatedly until Hannah answered. Agatha Day waited for no one.

“Hi there,” she said, tucking the phone between her ear and shoulder.

An annoyed sigh echoed in Hannah’s ear. “Where did I go wrong with you, Hannah Elizabeth? You have the same upbringing, did the same etiquette courses as your sisters, and even a proper phone greeting is too much effort.”

“Nice to hear from you, too.” She cast her gaze to the ceiling and shook her head.

“Sarcasm? Really, Hannah, it’s beneath you, darling.”

Darling. What a farce that was. “As much as I would love to chat, I have a million and one errands to do before Collin gets out of school.”

There was a few seconds of dead silence. “I received a call from Rochelle this morning. Imagine my surprise when I find out from someone outside the family that my daughter is not only seeing someone but has invited them to Vivienne’s wedding.” Agatha sounded positively put out.

“Doesn’t that busybody have better things to do, like planning Vivienne’s wedding, rather than to stir up trouble?” She’d expected this, but the anger coursing through her chest and tightening her muscles was palpable.

“Hannah Elizabeth.” Agatha’s voice went from her “company tone” to sharp. “No one likes to stir the pot more than you do. You’ve been testing boundaries in this family since birth. Who is this man? I don’t want anything to embarrass your sister on her big day or bring any scandal to our family with the upcoming elections. Vivienne’s fiancé will become CEO after the wedding when his father is elected, and Regina’s husband is running again.”

She closed her eyes for a brief moment, then tucked the phone between her chin and shoulder. “Hmmm, well, there’s not too many sordid details in his past. He is part of a motorcycle club. Has had a few arrests, but don’t worry, they were just for drunk and disorderly conduct. Nothing the neighbors will be too interested in.”

The intake of breath was audible. And satisfying. “That’s not even a little bit funny. You have no idea about the stress involved in planning this event for Vivienne. It needs to be perfect, just like she is.”

She picked up the bucket of water she’d been using to wash the floors, and some of the water sloshed over the lip. “You know, I don’t think that’s what she ever wanted.”

“What are you talking about?” There was a bite in her mother’s tone. Hannah was the only person who could ever rile Agatha Day.