Page 76 of Broken Grump

“Hayden . . .”

The expression on his face is mysteriously blank.

“I’m so sorry. That was uncalled-for.” I’m scolding myself for ever relating the trauma he went through at his father’s hand with the stupid bullshit my mother says. It isn’t comparable at all.

He sniffles and inches back slowly.

“Addie, it’s fine. You were right. Abuse is abuse. Especially when it’s happening to a child.”

As if on cue, Luna starts splashing around loudly.

“But I mean, can you imagine ever hurting your child like that?”

“No.” The very thought makes me sick to my stomach. “Absolutely not. I’d rather take a hundred years of my mother’s cruelty before ever letting my daughter experience an ounce of it.”

He then uses his thumb to trace his irresistible lips. “And that’s one of the many things that make you such a great mother.”

I blush. “Thank you. That’s very sweet.”

“I mean it.”

His words are very touching, but even they can’t erase the pain my mother’s venomous words left in their wake.

Perhaps sensing that, he says, “Hey! I’ve got the best idea. What if the two of us went on arealdate?”

Chapter twenty-one

Addie

A real date.His words are still buzzing through my ears.What would a real date with Hayden Cohen even look like?I keep wondering all and more about Hayden, my childhood crush, who magically re-emerged at the center of my life.

But my thoughts were interrupted with a ring of a doorbell. When I open the front door, I see Sam there with a pile of luggage.

At first, I was caught off guard, thinking someonemalicioushad broken in, but after I realized it was my dear friend, I relaxed.

But it was still a surprise to see her.

“Sam!” Luna exclaims before jumping into her arms.

“Samantha.” I use her full name for effect. “What on Earth are you doing here?”

I take my turn giving her a hug, and then I wait for her reply.

“What? I just really missed my girls!”

She’s still holding my daughter on one side of her body, and she takes one whiff of her hair and announces that she smells like a pool.

“That would make sense because she was swimming.”

Sam’s eyes bug out. “You’re kidding.” Of course, she knows all about my past issues with water and my reluctance to teach Luna how to swim. “Did you finally sign her up for classes, or what?”

“Not exactly.”

When Luna is down on her own two feet again, I instruct her to go take a shower.

“Yes, Mom.”

Then, Sam and I are left alone, and I drag her into the dining room.

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