Page 19 of The Perfect Secret

The next morning, Hannah still glowed from her date. Dan was complicated and guarded, but she saw something in him that made her want to stick around. She climbed out of bed and made her way into the kitchen. Her grandmother was already up, sitting at the table drinking coffee.

“The pot’s fresh,Hannahla, help yourself.”

Hannah poured herself a cup, added milk and sugar and joined her grandmother at the table.

“We need to talk about Jeff,” her grandmother said.

Like that, Hannah’s good mood dissolved. “Must we?”

“I don’t like how you left things with him. He’s trying. It would be nice for you to show him some encouragement.”

Hannah took a deep breath. Her grandmother meant well, but she was an enabler. “Bubbe, he’s done this before. He promises he’ll change, but he never does.”

“If you don’t encourage him when he’s trying, you’re helping him fail.”

“I’ve been burned by him too many times to have any faith this time is different from the multitude of other times.”

Sylvia patted Hannah’s arm. “You need to have some faith. He needs our support, not our condemnation.”

“Okay, I’ll try.” They were empty words, but Hannah couldn’t have this conversation any longer. She got dressed, grabbed her phone and purse, and headed out the door. Once outside, she let out a deep breath. Her grandmother saw the good in everyone, which was a great trait for a grandmother. Unless it blinded you to reality.

Her phone rang as she walked down the street and the caller put a smile on her face.

“Hi, Dan.” She cleared her throat.

“Hey, Hannah. I wanted to tell you how much fun I had last night.”

She paused and leaned against a building. “Me too.”

He expelled a breath, reminding her of air rushing out of a balloon. “I’m glad. Tess thought maybe you didn’t like the planetarium as much as I thought you did. I told her she was wrong, but…”

“No, in all honesty, I liked it. Everything else too.”

She started walking again.

“Hannah? Something in your voice is different.”

She sighed at his perception. “Family stuff.”

“Want to talk about it?”

Did she? Maybe he wouldn’t want to stay involved with someone whose brother was a drug addict. Maybe he’d think she was unsympathetic. Maybe… “Maybe,” she whispered.

“Where are you?”

She looked around. “I’m on my way toward Washington Street to do some errands.”

“Meet me at Elysian Park in…twenty minutes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Twenty minutes, Hannah.”

“Okay.”

She walked toward where Dan would meet her at the park. As she arrived, a taxi pulled up next to her and Dan climbed out. Concern showed on his face as he pulled her into a hug. The contact and the warmth made Hannah’s eyes fill. She tried to wipe them without his noticing, but he tipped her chin up and wiped a stray tear with his thumb.

“Whatever it is, we’ll fix it.”