Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 155405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 777(@200wpm)___ 622(@250wpm)___ 518(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 777(@200wpm)___ 622(@250wpm)___ 518(@300wpm)
“That was delicious,” Hayden says once he’s finished the last of his dessert.
“It sure was,” Mom agrees. “Maybe we should let the kids make dinner more often.”
“I did nothing,” I say, just to make sure I don’t get any credit I don’t deserve. “It was all Landon and Hannah. Clearly, we need to move Hannah in so we can all enjoy a delicious, peaceful meal much more frequently.”
Landon smirks at my subtle emphasis on the word peaceful. I didn’t mean to emphasize it, it just slipped out.
Hannah smiles faintly. “I’m afraid now that we’ve finished eating, I need to move out. Anae is probably home by now, and I haven’t started my own homework, let alone…” She trails off, grabbing her glass to finish the last of her water and grabbing her own dish. “I’ll put these in the sink. Would you like me to—?”
“Don’t you dare,” I interrupt her.
“I feel guilty just leaving so many dirty dishes.”
“I will do the dishes when I get back,” I assure her. “You don’t work for us. Until you live here, you don’t need to help with the chores.”
Hannah shakes her head, smiling, and then says her goodbyes while I grab my own dishes and take them to the sink.
Since I gave her a ride here, I have to take Hannah home as well. It’s not a long car ride and her phone is on silent, but I can tell it’s blowing up from the way it vibrates every other minute.
“Do you need to get that?” I ask, more to ask who is bothering her so much than because I think she wouldn’t feel comfortable enough to take a call around me if she did need to take it.
Hannah shakes her head, glancing my way. “It’s just Anae. She always hates when I’m not at her beck and call, but today she has been riding me even harder than usual. I think it’s because of this morning,” she says, looking down at her lap with a smile that lacks amusement. “If Dare was setting a trap, I think I may have stepped right into it by messaging him.”
“It’s none of her damn business who you message, frankly,” I say with annoyance on her behalf, even while knowing logic has no bearing on all this.
Hannah shrugs. “It’s fresh on her mind, so of course I get sniping, ‘I see how it is, you’ll answer Dare’s messages but not mine’ comments. She texted me a few times during the movie, but I didn’t want to be rude,” she adds, realizing I’m missing some context. “Obviously, she doesn’t like to be ignored, so on top of this morning… she’s just all riled up.”
Unease dances down my spine. “Are you sure you want me to take you home? We have all your school stuff. We can go straight to my room and start on homework if you want. I know you don’t have clothes at my house, but you can borrow something of mine. You could totally spend the night.”
Hannah shakes her head. “I’ll be fine. I’m used to her moods. But thank you.”
“Are you sure? Hannah, I hate leaving you here.”
“It’s my home,” she says gently as I pull up to the gate.
As if to edit the period and put an exclamation point at the end of my fears about what awaits her inside, her phone goes off again.
Hannah sighs softly and grabs the phone so she can send a text back.
“Why don’t I at least go inside with you?” I say, trying to ease my anxiety as I pull past the gate and down the driveway.
“That won’t help. It will only make her angrier if she sees evidence I was out having fun.”
“But then if she comes at you, I can grab a fistful of her fake hair and rip it the fuck out,” I point out.
Hannah smiles faintly. “I’ll be fine. I swear.”
I know she says that, and I know, according to Hannah, she’s always fine.
But I also know the reason she’s so good at using makeup to cover bruises doesn’t have a goddamn thing to do with hickeys.
I feel sick as I put the car in park. I want to say I didn’t mean to get her in trouble. I didn’t even consider that she would get in trouble. It has been so nice all summer not having Anae around to worry about, and I was distracted by needing to protect myself from Landon now that I live with him. I didn’t even think about what it would cost Hannah to play chaperone, and of course she didn’t mention it.
I’m not the only one with a psycho at home who wants to control me, but Hannah’s isn’t reined in by anyone else at home who cares to protect her.
I want to beg her to stay the night again, but I know she won’t.