Page 31 of Reckless

I sat down, anticipation making my heart beat fast. It was true that I found Hannah predictable, but I still wondered how she would react to me and my bullshit. Or more specifically, when she would just give up on trying to squeeze some good deed out of me.

“Just a glass of water. Thank you, Mrs. Spencer.”

“Call me Lauren,” she waved a hand in my direction. “With your sister getting married, it dawned on me I am getting old.”

“You don’t look old to me. I can see where your daughter got her looks.” I released my signature charming smile and she giggled. It was true though. Lauren Spencer had the same blue eyes and golden hair her offspring had.

“You were always a charmer. Ever since you were little. You could talk your way out of anything.”

“What the hell are you doing here?” Hannah’s voice boomed somewhere behind me.

I turned around and took her in. She was wearing a white formal shirt with thin black vertical stripes. Her hair was up in a bun. Not a messy one that a woman would normally wear at home. It was a bun that collected every lock on her head in a perfect hairdo. She had makeup on and from the waist up she looked like she was about to go on a business meeting. The thing that was happening below the waist had me laughing though.

She wore an old pair of daisy dukes that left her thighs on full display and …flip flops.

I liked the outfit, because I got to see her killer legs, but she looked ridiculous.

“I came by to say hi,” I grinned.

“Did you now?” Hannah said with a deliberately sweet tone, but you could see from a thousand miles, she wasn’t pleased to see me.

“I offered him some coffee.” Lauren looked between me and her daughter wide-eyed. She had no idea what was happening. Hannah shook her head, leaning down to take a folder from the coffee table.

I tried to ignore the view she revealed under her shirt. I saw black lace and that was enough for me to picture her wearing nothing but that and her daisy dukes. Definitely minus the flip-flops and that perfect bun. I wanted to reach over, undo it, and tangle her hair irreparably.

She turned her back on us, walking away with the folder, but stopped at the staircase.

“You know what?” She waltzed over to me again. “Since you clearly have nothing better to do with your day, maybe you could do something useful while I finish upstairs.” I wondered what she was doing upstairs dressed like that, but I didn’t have the time to tease her about it, because she threw the folder in my lap. “You fucked up the only thing Clem asked you to do. Make it up to her.” She pointed at my lap and the folder on it.

“Is she pissed?” I asked and I opened the folder, pretending to be looking through it while I was still trying to delete the image of Hannah in lingerie from my mind.

“Better,” Hannah said. “She feels like an idiot for asking you to go to the trip.”

“Yeah, well,” I shrugged. “You and I established it was a stupid idea when we were still in Boston. It’s a good thing she finally caught up with the rest of us.”

I was now starting to focus on the pages in that folder. I lifted my gaze up to meet Hannah’s.

“What is this?” I asked surprised.

“What does it look like?”

“You want me to call venues?”

“Yes. I have work to do.” Hannah walked away again, but continued talking to me while she took the steps to the second floor. “You know how to use a phone and how to sweet-talk people. You can manage.”

She disappeared behind a corner and seconds later I heard a door closing upstairs. I turned to Lauren.

“What does she do up there?”

“She has an appointment with a client,” Lauren said, assuming I knew what Hannah did for a living. Newsflash: I had no clue. Never cared enough to ask. “She had to reschedule after you called her to come pick you up this morning.” I heard amusement in Lauren’s voice.

“Was that so funny?” I asked.

“It was funny watching her squirm while postponing her appointment.”

“Does your daughter know you take pleasure in her suffering?” I asked faking disapproval. Lauren laughed.

“Hannah likes to help people and I love that about her, but she tries to please everyone. Sometimes life happens.” She pointed at me and it made my stomach flip.

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