Page 26 of The Summer Swap

Kristen sighed. They were so alike. Both single-minded and focused. They pushed themselves to their mental and physical limits, and sometimes beyond.

Ever since she was young, Hannah had put a ridiculous amount of pressure on herself. Kristen had been one of the few parents who spent her time trying to stop her child studying and encourage her to take a break. It was as if Hannah had taken it upon herself to fulfill her father’s expectations for Todd, too. She was the golden child. Todd was the rebel, although he wasn’t really a rebel of course. He’d just stood firm about doing what he wanted to do, and Kristen had quietly admired that about him.

And right at that moment, Todd strolled into the room. His hair was ruffled, his collar undone and there were several marks on his previously pristine white shirt.

Kristen stared at her son. “We’ve been looking for you. What happened?”

“I was dealing with a personal crisis.”

“Is that—blood?”

“Yes.” Todd rubbed at the mark on his shirt. “But only a relatively small quantity. And it’s mine. Nothing to worry about. There’s plenty left in my body. I don’t need Dad’s attentions yet.”

“Todd!” Driven by a whole new concern, Kristen hurried toward him. “What happened?”

“I fell against your holly bush and the landing wasn’t comfortable.”

“You fell—” She frowned. “How?”

Hannah helped herself to another grape. “Amelie pushed him.”

Kristen looked at her daughter. “How do you know that? You said you hadn’t seen him.”

“I didn’t. But I’m guessing he didn’t throw himself in a holly bush voluntarily. He’s not a masochist.”

“Are you serious?” Kristen turned back to Todd. “Did Amelie push you? First she tries to drown you in champagne and then she tries to lacerate you? Why?”

“It’s pretty obvious,” Hannah said. “That’s what happens when you hook up with a—”

“Thank you.” Todd gave his sister a sharp look. “When I want your opinion on my sex life, I’ll ask for it.”

“I can’t think of anything that interests me less than your sex life. Do you want me to look at that wound for you? My training is more up-to-date than Dad’s.”

“I’d rather consult with Dr. Frankenstein.”

“Stop it.” Kristen felt her blood pressure rising. “I have no idea what is going on between you two, or between you and Amelie, Todd, but it’s time we talked about it.”

Todd scrubbed at the blood on his shirt with his finger. “I’m handling it.”

Hannah rolled her eyes. “Have you looked in the mirror lately? Because from where I’m standing it doesn’t look as if you’re handling much. Is that the holly bush or her fingernails? You should maybe have a tetanus shot.”

He threw her a warning look and Kristen felt almost as worried about their relationship as she was about Todd’s relationship with his girlfriend. Why wasn’t Hannah supporting him as she usually would? Something had obviously happened between them. Was it to do with Amelie? And she still didn’t know what had happened between Hannah and Lily.

Her head throbbed. She couldn’t think about that now. If Todd said he was handling it, she had to believe he was handling it.

She almost said as much, and then remembered that at some point she was going to have to call Amelie’s mother back, so she needed some facts.

“Is this disagreement of yours the reason I have so many missed calls from Amelie’s mother on my phone?”

Todd winced. “It could be related.”

Hannah rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe her mother is getting involved. It’s not as if Amelie is sixteen years old. Which one of them are you marrying?”

“I’m not marrying anyone.” Todd ignored the wine and grabbed a beer. “I broke it off.”

Hannah’s eyes widened. “You’ve only been engaged for a week.”

“Longest week of my life.”

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