Page 48 of Why We Break

Hannah and Margaret both look at her like they’re about to cry, and Seth, Theo, and I just make eye contact across the table, unsure of what to say. Finally, Hannah shakes herself out of whatever she’s feeling and teases. “Damn, Caro, enough of the sappy shit. You already know we love you. Now, let’s eat.”

We all laugh and Margaret adds, “Yeah, please do. You know I need all the feedback on these recipes.”

“Like you don’t already know that they’re incredible,” Caroline says, rolling her eyes, before turning to me while everyone starts to eat. “So, Will, speaking of family, I’ve been meaning to ask, how are your siblings doing?”

“They’re good. Kit loves her school in Georgia, and the twins are still attending school in Wyoming. Ollie’s got some new job in Indianapolis and he seems to really like it too. I hate that I don’t get to see them much, but we check in as often as we can. And Mom loves living in Maine. She’s running her own art business now, and last I heard, I think she might have found herself a boyfriend.”

“That’s great. I’m so happy she’s doing something she loves,” Caroline replies, and I nod in agreement.

“So, Seth, when will you start practice for baseball?” Theo asks, and I listen to the two of them start to talk about the season before Hannah slides her hand over to place it on my leg, squeezing my leg under the table.

What the hell is she doing?I wonder,trying to keep my face neutral, waiting to see what else she’ll do. But she just rests her hand on my thigh and continues eating with her other hand like she just wants to be near me.Damn, what I’d give to be able to pull her into my arms right now. Across from us Theo and Caroline are huddled together while they eat like they can’t stand to be away from each other, and I feel a flash of jealousy—not at my best friends—but at desperately wanting that with Hannah.

I know she keeps saying that whatever this is between us is just sex, but I know, at least for me, that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m completely gone for this girl, and there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to keep her.

CHAPTER 36

WILL

SEVEN SUMMERS AGO

Iwalk in the house after a long day on the farm and smile when I see my siblings all sitting around the kitchen table talking to Mom. I’ve been spending so much time with Hannah, I don’t know the last time I was home for dinner.

Pulling off my boots at the back door, I call out, “Hey, kiddos. How was your… Wait, what the hell is wrong?”

I feel my panic rising as all of my siblings and my mom look up at me and I see tears and anger in all of their expressions.

No one speaks for a moment, and I look around, waiting for one of them to say something. Eventually, Ollie breaks the silence. “Mom just got something from Dad’s lawyers. He’s filing for sole custody of us?”

“What?” I roar, feeling anger surge up in me like I’ve never felt before. “Why the hell would he do this, Mom?” I ask, looking down at the paperwork she’s holding in her hands. Tears are streaming down her face, and she just looks up at me, looking more hopeless than I’d ever seen her.

“My bet is he thinks he can get out of paying child support since he got in trouble for not making payments over the last few months. I guess he thinks forcing them to live with him will save him some money.”

“That’s bullshit,” I yell, feeling a fury at my shithead father I haven’t felt since I first caught him cheating on my mom all those years ago.

“Language, honey,” my mom scolds me, but there’s no heat behind her words.

“Aren’t we old enough to get a say?” Ollie asks, looking as angry as I feel. “I don’t want to move to Crestview for my senior year. I’ve been in Springside my whole life.”

“Yeah, I just finally made the varsity cheer squad, and if we have to leave, I’ll miss out on a whole year,” Kit cries, tears streaming down her face.

Andrew and Luke just nod in agreement until finally Luke says, “Yeah, I have no desire to live with that asshole. Plus, there’s no way we’re leaving you here alone, Mom.”

She smiles at that despite the tears in her eyes, and she just nods at them, trying to look hopeful.

I take the papers from her and flip through them to see if anything sticks out. Ollie only has two months until he’s eighteen and can make his own decisions, but the others have a couple years left of high school. It figures that my fucking dad wouldn’t take any of that into account before making this decision.

“Okay, everyone, calm down. This isn’t happening. Mom, call your lawyer in the morning and see what he says. I don’t know of any judge who would make this decision, but I’m gonna do what I can to make sure it never gets there. I’ll go see Dad next week and try to figure out what the hell he thinks he’s doing. I think I can figure out what he’s actually after.”

My mom’s eyes widen in surprise, before she argues. “Will, baby, you don’t have to do that. This isn’t your battle.”

“No, it isn’t but it shouldn’t be yours either. It’s not your fault you married an unfaithful and selfish bastard,” I tell her, and she cringes.

“But, Will, you haven’t seen him in over five years. I can’t ask you to do this,” she says, and I look at my siblings to see a mixture of fear and anger along with a little bit of hope at my declaration.

“Good thing you didn’t ask then, Momma,” I tell her, giving her a quick hug before turning back to the table. “All right, enough of this crap. Let’s eat.”

CHAPTER 37

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