Page 98 of Stolen Kisses

"I was so happy when Chase said you were coming too. I really wanted to apologize for the way I ambushed you the other day,” Susan told me once we were away from the others.

“It was unexpected, but I’m not mad,” I assured her. “I was happy to meet you two.”

“Oh good. That takes a weight off my chest.” She smiled. “Let’s look at every book and see if it's in good condition. If it is, then I might even take it upstairs to my floor and put it on an actual shelf.”

“You’ve decided what you want to do with the building?”

“Pretty much. The plan is that I'll offer pottery classes on the second floor. Bruce wants to open a fishing store. There's no need for a general store like the one we used to run. If I’m honest, it was outdated even back then, and we struggled a lot. It was one of the reasons for the tension between us. But now, he can do what he enjoys, and he loves fishing and all the equipment that goes with it.”

She spoke with a lot of affection about her ex-husband, which surprised me because Chase made it sound like his parents were at odds.

"We're so grateful for our boys looking out for us all the time," she went on.

"It’s a kid's privilege to be able to do that."

"Well, I think it should be the other way around. We always insist they don't have to do anything, but they've got minds of their own. And Chase... well, you know how he is. We'll never be able to repay him."

"He just wants you to be happy," I assured her.

"Even as a kid he was like that. Always making sure those around him were taken care of, even Duncan, although they were close in age.”

Chase truly had this desire to see everyone around him happy. It filled my heart with joy. The grumpy best man actually had a soft side—and I meant that in a very attractive and sexy way.

Susan continued, “Being here reminds me so much of when the boys were little. They were all such pranksters until Bruce and I divorced. It hit them hard. I couldn't protect them from it, as much as I wanted to."

"You did your best, but some things are hard. Having been divorced myself, it’s something you really don’t see coming until it happens.”

She nodded. “True.”

We started dusting off the books but ended up putting each of them in the “Keep” box because they were in good condition.

"After that, Chase was even more protective of his brothers, and so was Duncan. Knox and Finn seemed to take it the easiest. They were younger, and I don't think they understood half of what was happening. They were just happy that they were getting two Christmases, two birthday parties, things like that. Wyatt and Griffin drew the short stick because they weren't old enough to understand, but they knew things weren’t good. I'm not proud to admit it, but Bruce and I could barely be in the same room and not fight after the divorce.”

“Situations like these are tough for everyone involved.”

She nodded. “True. For a while there, I thought none of my babies would ever bring home women.”

“But Duncan's got Jeremy. Having a grandchild has to be fun.”

“Yes, and he’s such a gift. But the relationship with Jeremy’s mother didn’t work out at all. It left him with scars. I swear, when Jeremy told us about you, I figured there would be something between you and Duncan. But the second I saw you and Chase, I knew you were meant for each other.”

"Really?" I asked with a smile. That sounded like something Gran would say. Whenever she talked about Mom and Dad, I’d hang on to every word.

"Yes. You two give off such a good energy when you're together. I've never seen my son so fulfilled." She looked up and winced. "Oops. I think he knows we're talking about him because he's coming over here.”

Chase stepped right next to me. "Mom, stop monopolizing Hannah."

"I was helping her with the books," I said.

"Yeah, and she was talking your ear off. I heard my name a few times." He put an arm around my waist.

Susan winked at me as if to say, "See? That's exactly what I mean."

“What's up with the books?" Chase asked. We’d filled two boxes.

“They go to my floor," Susan replied. "I’m keeping them.”

"All right, we'll take them up." Finn took one of the boxes. Chase took the other.

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