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“Are you okay?”
“Did you come back here on purpose?” she asked.
“I figured he’d probably show up.” His hand loosened up, but he still seemed on high alert.
“Well thanks a lot, you… you…jerk.”
“I’m sorry, but I–”
“I should grab my stuff.” The tears were breaking through.
His eyebrows scrunched, showing that look of pity again, and it ground at her. Being Joel Destin’s daughter had never made her part of the popular crowd. It usually meant parents didn’t want their children hanging around her. Few said anything to her face, but they didn’t hesitate to say it behind her back. Nor did they bother to hide their expressions of pity. And there it was, on Mr. Marine’s face.
“You shouldn’t let someone treat you like that.”
Who did this guy think he was? She could feel the rage boil up inside her. It usually scared her to get so angry so fast, like a tsunami first pulling back, then smashing into the harbor. But this was all just too much. “Nobody asked you,” she snapped.
She turned away before she said something more, something she’d regret. He could pity her all he wanted, but he had no clue how sheletpeople treat her. He was just like the rest of the men in her life, he only wanted to control her.
“I was worried that he’d hurt you,” he called out as she stormed away, which made her angrier, because if she was honest, she had been worried, too. “I promise, I only wanted to help.”
She didn’t reply. She didn’t have time to deal with him. She needed to figure out a way to get her job back.
Chapter 2
Hannah waited until what would have been the end of her shift to talk to her boss, hoping he might have cooled off. But Lloyd Hooley told her he just couldn’t have her there, even if Troy’s actions were not under her control.
“I know you’re a hard worker, but that man needs to stay away, and if that means you can’t be here, then that’s how it has to be.”
Hannah felt sick as she stepped into her apartment. What was she going to do now?
She couldn’t afford the rent without a job. She couldn’t afford Emma’s afterschool program, or the soccer team she wanted to join, or the phone she wanted for her birthday in a few weeks.
She held the tears in, splashing her face with cold water as she waited for Georgie, who taught at Emma’s school, to drop her off. When she heard the car pull up, she opened up the door to greet them.
“How are you?” she said in a cheery voice, pretending her world wasn’t falling apart.
“Olivia asked me to invite you and Emma to dinner with us,” Georgie called out from the car window.
Hannah hesitated, but only for a moment. “We’d love to come.”
Emma leaned over the console and hugged Georgie. “Bye, Auntie Georgie.”
“What can we bring?” Hannah asked, although she worried Georgie might actually ask for something for the first time.
“Just yourselves!”
Hannah looked out at the mailbox, and could feel the panic crawling over her skin, remembering the unpaid bills on the counter. “See you soon!”
She tapped out two quick honks as she pulled away.
“How was your day?” Hannah asked her pre-teen, twelve-year-old daughter, leaving the mail for another day. She followed her Emma inside, picking up the trail of items she had already dropped on the floor – backpack, shoes, and sweatshirt. “Emma, put your things away.”
“Fine, but after I eat something.” Emma opened the refrigerator door. After perusing the shelves for a moment, she complained, “We have nothing to eat, and you work in a grocery store.”
Hannah’s stomach twisted. “Put these clothes away, and go do your homework before we have to leave. You don’t need a snack so close to dinner.”
And she couldn’t afford the kind of expensive snacks that Emma liked to eat, anymore.
