Page 32 of Hidden Desire

“Give it time.”

“Can I ask you something?” Grace asked.

“Sure.”

“Where is Hannah’s mother? I haven’t heard anything about her. Is she dead?”

Taylor wiped her hands on a towel. “No, she’s very much alive. They divorced when Hannah was about one. He found out about her affair with a college friend of his.”

Grace’s mouth dropped open. “Why in the world would she do that?”

“I have no idea. I think she gets bored easily, and she’s a selfish bitch.”

Grace covered her mouth and tried not to laugh. She’d never heard Taylor curse before.

“Where is she now?” Grace asked.

“Last time I heard, she’d gone to Paris with someone’s husband.”

Grace’s mouth dropped open. Jesus, what kind of person was she? “What about her daughter?”

“She gave Robert full custody in the divorce because she didn’t have the time or patience for a child. I think she only got pregnant to force Robert to marry her. When she found out it wasn’t the glamorous life she envisioned, she wanted out.”

“God, I can’t imagine a mother doing that. Poor Robert.”

Taylor shook her head. “I can’t either. I don’t think Robert liked her, and I know he didn’t love her, so he wasn’t hurt by her actions. He thought it was good because he didn’t want her around. The only bad thing about the situation was the time it took for him to deal with the divorce and custody battle. He finally just paid her off if she signed the papers, never to come near them again, and we’ve not seen her since.”

Grace opened her mouth to ask another question when they heard the pitter-patter of little feet telling her Hannah was awake.

She set her cup down and went to the girl. She crouched in front of her, smiled, and pushed the hair from her face. “Good morning, Sweetie. Did you have any good dreams?”

Hannah wrapped her arms around Grace’s neck. “Yes, I want to draw a picture of it first,” Hannah said.

“Okay. How about you eat breakfast? We’ll get you dressed, and then we can draw,” Grace said.

Hannah squeezed her tightly. “Yes!”

Grace chuckled, stood, and led the little girl to her seat at the table. She was just putting on her bib when Taylor set two plates down in front of them.

Hannah clapped excitedly. “Yeah. Bear pancakes. My favorite.”

Taylor and Grace shared an amused look because she said that every morning, no matter what they were eating.

Breakfast was peaceful, and Grace smiled several times. She let go of her anxiousness so she could concentrate on Hannah.

The doubts came rushing back when Hannah showed her the picture she drew of her dream. The picture showed her dad on one side of her and Grace on the other. Taylor stood beside her with what looked like a spatula in her hands.

“It’s our family,” Hannah said.

Grace had to bite her lip to keep from crying. It took her a moment to gain enough stability to comment. “This is wonderful, Hannah. You are a very good artist.”

Hannah giggled. “I’m going to show Taylor.”

“She might put it on the fridge if you ask her,” Grace said.

Hannah ran from the room, yelling Taylor’s name. Grace heard their voices but couldn’t understand the words.

Hannah skipped back into the room. “She loved it.”