(Hannah doesn’t say anything here about coming back to Charleston on Monday house hunting. Write in the alligator. he had it with him when I carried him up in the elevator.)
Gus sleeps peacefully, and at seven o’clock the next morning, he’s raring to go. Hannah wraps her arms around him, drawing his squirming body close to hers. “How do you feel?” She places her hand on his forehead. His skin is cool to the touch. “You had a fever last night. Maybe we should go home early.”
“No!” He jumps to his feet and bounces on the bed. “I wanna see my daddy.”
She presses her finger to her lips. “Shh! I doubt your daddy’s awake yet.”
Gus drops to his knees. “I’m hungry, Mommy.”
“Of course you are. You hardly ate any dinner. But it’s still early. We have to wait a while.” Accessing one of his learning apps, she hands him her iPad. “You play with this while I read.” She retrieves her romance novel from the night stand. Hannah doesn’t approve of entertaining her son with her iPad. But this is the closet thing to a vacation they’re liable to get.
At eight o’clock, she can’t hold him off any longer, and they pad in bare feet down the stairs to the kitchen. Hannah pauses in the doorway when she sees Ryan and his father seated at the breakfast room—Ryan wearing athletic shorts and a T-shirt and his father dressed for golf. Hovering over them with a coffee carafe is Sylvia, as fresh as a daisy in a plaid bermuda shorts and a pink top, her platinum blonde hair in a bun at the nape of her neck.
“I’m sorry,” Hannh says. “I didn’t think anyone was awake yet.”
Ryan motions for her to come in. “There’s a coffee cake on the counter. Or eggs in the refrigerator if you feel like making them.”
Translated, he won’t be cooking the eggs for us. Hannah helps Gus into a chair at the table and goes to the refrigerator, removing a carton of eggs, milk, and butter.
“Coffee, dear?” Sylvia asks, holding the carafe over an empty mug at the table.
“Yes! Please. How was your dinner last night?”
“Wonderful,” Sylvia says.
“But it was a late night,” Patrick adds in a grumpy voice.
Ryan comes to stand beside Hannah at the stove. “One of dad’s friends invited Dad and me to play golf at Caldeonia. I realize the timing sucks, but Gerald Wagner is the senior-most partner of one of the largest law firms in the state. I’m hoping he’ll consider hiring me after I pass the bar. I can’t pass on this opportunity.”
To hide her irriation, Hannah focuses her attention on scrambling eggs. “Of course not.”
“Or you can run errands with Mom,” Ryan suggests.
Hannah glances up in time to see a look of horror cross Sylvia’s face. “That’s okay,” Hannah says, forging a smile. “Gus isn’t great at running errands. We’ll be fine hanging out on the beach.”
Ryan pulls her in for a half hug. “Thanks for understanding. We’ll be back early afternoon.” He drops his arm from around her. “I guess I’d better get changed.”
Hannah scoops eggs onto a plate and sits down beside Gus at the table. Sylvia and Patrick exchange a look, an understanding between husband and wife that Hannah isn’t privvy to.
Sylvia returns the carafe to the coffee maker and joins them at the table. “Mr. Stevenson . . . Patrick and I would like to have a word with you, dear. We have some concerns about your relationship with our son.”
Patrick adds, “Not about you specifically, Hannah. you seem like a nice girl.”
Syliva goes on. “It’s just so soon. Danielle broke up with him less than two weeks ago.”
Hannah glares at Sylvia. “Interesting. Ryan told me he broke up with Danielle. Not that it matters to me. I’m here because of Gus. Ryan wanted you to meet your grandchild.”
Tears sting Hannah’s eyelids, and she leaves the table with Gus’s empty plate and her half-full coffee mug. Dumping the coffee down the drain, she rinses the dishes and places them in the dishwasher. As she turns her attention to cleaning the egg pan, she hears Patrick talking to Gus in a hushed voice. Something he says makes Gus giggle. But Hannah’s afraid to look over at them, for fear they’ll see her tears.
From another part of the house, Ryan calls for Gus, who runs off to find him.
Sylvia crosses the room to Hannah. “We didn’t mean to hurt your feelings, dear. We only want what’s best for our son. Patrick and I were taken aback the way you and Gus came crawling out of the woodwork.”
Hannah drops the pan in the sink and turns to face Ryan’s mother. “We didn’t come crawling out of the woodwork, Mrs. Stevenson. I’m not sure how much you know about my realtionship with Ryan. We dated for a few months our senior year in college. Until he cheated on me. I thought I was in love with him, and he broke my heart. I never told him I was pregnant, and I never wanted him to find out about Gus.”
“Are you saying you’re not romantically interested in Ryan?”
Hannah sighs. “Ryan asked me to give him another chance. For Gus’s sake, I agree to try.”
Sylvia’s jaw tightens. “There’s no denying Gus is our grandson. If he weren’t the spitting image of Ryan, I’d insist on a DNA test. Is it money you want? Because, we can work out a deal. A monthly allowance, perhaps. But a family like ours . . . well, we have to protect our interests. Ryan will have other children. Legitimate children who will be intitled to his inheritance.”
A sob escapes from Hannah’s throat. She’s never once considered Ryan’s inheritance. Angry tears stream down her cheeks, and when Ryan enters the kitchen with Gus on his shoulders, she rushes over to them. “Put him down, Ryan. Before he gets hurt.”
“What’s wrong, Hannah?” His looks over at Sylvia. “What did you say to her, Mom?”
Through gritted teeth, Hannah says, “Put. My son. Down.”
Ryan lifts Gus off his shoulders and sets him on his feet. Hannah scoops Gus into her arms and brushes past Ryan as she exits the kitchen.
Ryan comes after her, following her upstairs to her room. “Hannah, wait! What’s going on? What did she say to you?”
Hannah finds a movie for Gus on the iPad and places headphones over his ears.
“You lied to me, Ryan. You told me you broke up with Danielle.”
His mouth falls open. “I did break up with Danielle. My mom doesn’t know what goes on in my relationships.”
“Your mom basically called me a gold digger.” Hannah jabs her finger at Ryan’s chest. “I don’t want your money, Ryan. And I never wanted you to be a part of Gus’s life.”
A wounded expression crosses his face. “You don’t mean that. I’m crazy about that kid. I’ve already missed three years of his life. I don’t want to miss another minute.”
“You’ll have other children. As your mom just pointed out.” Hannah hooks her fingers in air quotes. “Legitimate children who will be entitled to your inheritance.”
Patrick’s voice booms out from downstairs. “Come on, Ryan. We’ve gotta go. We’re gonna miss our tee time.”
Casting a nervous glance at the door, Ryan says, “Look. This golf outing is important. Otherwise I wouldn’t go. I hate leaving you upset like this. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Our tee time is at nine. I should be back no later than two. We’ll spend the afternoon together. And we’ll talk.”
Hannah shakes her head. “I don’t know, Ryan. I can’t promise I’ll still be here.”
“For Gus’s sake, I hope you are.” Ryan walks toward the door, stopping before he reaches the hallway. Without looking back, he says, “We can either make nice, Hannah, or we can get the lawyers involved.”
Hannah stares at his retreating figure as he disappears down the hallway. How dare him threaten her? She’s Gus’s biological mother. He’d never win in a custody battle. Or would he? His father is attorney general of the state of South Carolina. He has the power to take Gus away from her.
When her legs begin to wobble, she sits down on the bed beside Gus. She can’t let that happen. She’ll have to try harder with Ryan. Even if she feels nothing for him romantically, organizing visitation and making decision for Gus will be easier if they’re on friendly terms.
Hannah stays in her room until she hears the front door close and Sylvia’s engine start in the driveway. After getting Gus ready for the beach, they go to the kitchen where she packs cheese sandwiches and snacks in a cooler with bottled water. She’ll avoid Sylvia by staying at the beach until Ryan returns from golfing.
Fortunately, Gus is in a low-key mood, content to play quietly in the sand while she reads. When two o’clock comes and there’s no word from Ryan, she takes him up to the house for his nap. She’s relieved to find Sylvia’s car still absent from the driveway. She must have had a lot of errands to run.
While Gus is sleeping, Hannah showers, blow-dries her hair, and dresses in a floral sundress. Ryan texts at three-thirty. Sorry. Gonna be a while longer. Wagner insisted we have lunch with him.
When Gus wakes with a fever at four o’clock, she gives him a dose of liquid Advil, packs up their things, and leaves the cottage, careful not to disturb Sylvia who is sleeping in the hammock.
Gus begins to sob as they pull onto Highway 17, and he doesn’t stop until he wears himself out and falls asleep forty-five minutes later. When her phone rings, she declines the call from Ryan and sets the volume to silent. She’s approaching Mount Pleasant when it begins to storm, the driving rain so thick she can barely see in front of her despite her windsheild wipers being at full speed. She’s on top of the Cooper River bridge when her engine sputters. She glances at her dashboard. A light on her gas gauge beams red. Empty. She’d been too angry at Ryan and distracted by Gus’s crying and the storm to pay attention to her gas gauge. The engine sputters again and then dies.
Please, no! Not now. Not on top of the bridge.
Turning on her hazzard lights, she eases the Wrangler to the far right lane. Panic grips her chest. She’s heard tragic stories of people being killed in such situations. Chill, Hannah. You can’t fall apart on top of the bridge. Her immediate thought is to call Birdie. But her mother is more than an hour away. She needs someone closer. Liza is probably at the hospital. She doesn’t want Chris to know how irrepsonsible she is. Ethan.
Removing her phone from the cup holder, she ignores the twenty-two missed calls from Ryan and clicks on Ethan’s number. He answers on the second ring. “Hannah. This is a surprise. Where are you?”
“I ran outta gas,” she blurts. “On top of the Ravennel Bridge. I’m scared, Ethan.”
“Take some deep breaths,” he says calmly. “Is Gus with you?”
“He’s asleep in his carseat. Should I call the police?”
“Yes. In the meantime, I’m on my way. My parents usually keep gas in their garage for the lawn mower. Hang in there. Your hazard lights are on, right?”
“Yes. I’m in the southbound lanes.” She hangs up and calls the police.
Time ticks slowly off the clock as cars and trucks speed past her. Rain pounds the roof and streaks of lightning dance across the sky in the distance.
Gus wakes up. “Where are we, Mommy? Is my daddy here?”
“No, sweetheart. We ran outta gas. Ethan’s coming to help us.”
Gus tries to wiggle free of his car seat. “But I have to go pee.”
She angles her body toward him. “You’ll have to hold it, sweetheart. Ethan will be here in a minute.”
Gus squirms some more. “But I’m hungry.”
“Once we get gas, we’ll find somewhere to eat and use the restroom.”
Gus starts to cry again. Hannah is on the verge of tears herself when headlights pull up behind her. Seconds later, Ethan taps on her window.
She rolls the window down. “I’m so glad to see you.”
Rivulets of rain stream off the hood of his black raincoat as he holds up a red gas can. “There’s about three gallons in here, which will get you to my apartment.”
She gives him a grateful nod. “Thank you!”
Ethan pours the gas in her tank before returning to his car. Hannah follows him closely as he drives slowly through the downtown streets of Charleston to his condominium building. Parking in the first-floor garage, Ethan helps Gus from his car seat and they ride in the elevator to the third floor. “Gus needs to use your restroom, and then we’ll be on our way.”
“Seriously? In this weather? Have you seen the radar?” Ethan tugs his phone out of his coat pocket and shows her the blob of yellow, orange, and green sliding across the lowcountry.
“But I have to feed Gus dinner, and I’d rather not get home too late.”
“Why don’t you eat dinner with me? I can make grilled cheeses with bacon or we can order pizza, although it might take a while to come in this storm.”
“But we had pizza last night,” Gus says.
“Then, grilled cheese and bacon it is.”
Ethan unlocks his door and steps out of the way so they can enter. He holds his hand out to Gus. “Come on, buddy. I’ll take you to the restroom.”
Hannah roams around the living room while they’re gone. His home, much like his office, his handsomely decorated in masculine colors and furniture with mounted wildlife, ducks and geeze, on the walls.
When Gus and Ethan return, the three of them gather in the kitchen. Ethan lifts Gus up to the marble countertop and fills a small bowl with goldfish.
Gus’s blue eyes grow wide. “You like goldfish?”
Ethan grins. “I mean ye-ah. Who doesn’t like goldfish?”
Hannah can’t help but compare the way the two men in her life interact with her son. Ethan is patient and gentle, whereas Ryan is more rambunctious. One is the teacher and the other the classmate.
Ethan pops the cork on a bottle of red wine. When he offers her a glass, she hesitates. “I probably shouldn’t. I’m driving.”
“Then don’t. I have a spared bedroom. Stay the night and leave early in the morning.”
Gus comes off the counter. “Please, Mommy. Can we have a sleep over with Ethan?”
Hannah consults her radar app again. There’s no end in sight to the long line of storms. “We’re probably safer spending the night. If you’re sure you don’t mind having us.”
“It would be my pleasure.”
Ethan moves about the upscale kitchen with the ease of a man who spends a lot of time cooking. He cooks thick slices of bacon in an iron skillet and enlists Gus’s help in spreading mayonaise on toasted slices of grainy bread. When the sandwiches are ready, he adds a spoonful of potato salad to each of their plates, and they eat on barstools at the island.
After dinner, Hannah takes care of the dishes while Ethan and Gus go down to the car for their bags. Ethan helps Gus into his pajamas, and after brushing his teeth, the threesome watches tv on the sofa until he falls asleep. Ethan carries him into the guest bedroom and Hannah tucks him in tight.
“Would you like more wine?” Ethan asks when they return to the living room.
“A little, please.”
He goes into the kitchen and comes back with two half glasses of wine.
“Your home is lovely,” Hannah says standing at the window, looking into the inky night.
“The view is spectacular when it’s not storming.” He opens the french doors, and they step out onto a covered balcony.
He motions her to wicker chairs tucked back in a corner, away from the storm. “How was your weekend at Pawley’s?”
“A disaster. I was supposed to stay until tomorrow, but I left early.” She walks him through her brief visit with Ryan’s family, including Sylvia’s insults and Ryan disappearing for the day to play golf. “I’m glad I went, though. I’m no longer confused about my feelings for Ryan. I thought I still cared about him. But what I really wanted was for Gus to have his mother and father living under the same roof, the quintessential nuclear family.”
“I’m sorry,” Ethan says.
Hannah sips her wine. “I’m not. It wasn’t mean to be. I’m thrilled about starting my new life in Charleston.”
Ethan touches his wine glass to hers. “You’re gonna love it here. The carriage house is still available if you’re interested.”
“It’s a wonderful opportunity, Ethan. The rent is generous and the house is ideal. Gus would love running around the grounds. But, after living with my mom for three years, I need a no-strings-attached living situation. Gus and I need a fresh start. We need to be completely on our own.”
“I don’t blame you for that.” Taking her wine glass from her, he sets it on the ground. He stands up and pulls her to her feet. “I hope this no-strings-attached mentality doesn’t include you and me? What do you say, Hannah? Will you give us a chance?”
“I’m falling for you, Ethan, and I’m powerless to do anything about it. Even if I wanted to, which I definitely do not. But I have Gus to consider. I won’t always be free to go for drinks after work. Or take off on a whim to the beach for the weekend. We’re a package deal.”
“I understand.” Cupping her cheeks, he brings her face close to his, kissing her softly on the lips.
“Do you? Because I’m not sure you can.” Turning away from him, she moves to the edge of the porch where the rain has slowed to a drizzle. “You haven’t seen him when he’s sick, or grumpy, or having a temper tantrum. I would like to give us a chance. But I’m not sure I’m ready yet.”
He comes to stand behind her, his breath near her ear. “I’ll give you all the space you need. We’ll start out as friends.”
Hannah leans into him. “Friendship I can handle. I’m scared, Ethan. The last time I had sex, I got pregnant.”
“We’ll take it slow. You’ll call the shots. You can trust me, Hannah. You may not believe that now, but you will in time.”
She wants to trust him. But, thanks to Ryan and her father, she has trust issues with all men. Will Gus grow up to be untrustworthy like his father and grandfather? Not if Hannah has anything to do with it. All the more reason to find an honest and dependable male father figure who loves Gus as his own. Is Ethan that guy? He could be. He dropped everything when his father had a heart attack and stayed by his side until after his surgery. Only time will tell. For now, where Ethan is concerned, she’ll keep an open heart and mind.