Page 44 of The Widower
She hesitated for a moment, eyeing me like she was debating whether to tell me. Then she finally said something that made my stomach drop.
“Hanna called Colin to stay with her at the park—and he went.”
I froze, the color draining from my face.
“Wait... why didn’t you tell me that sooner?”
“Like I said, it was a test. And thank God, it worked. It’s rare, but he actually left his room less than five minutes after she called him.”
“You’re going to be the death of me, you know that?”I sighed. “I’d better go see them.”
“All right, sweetheart.”
Helen kept smiling, and I honestly didn’t know how to process that piece of news.
Well… seeing Colin pushing Hanna on the swing was definitely not what I expected. The little one had actually managed to drag him out of his hiding place.
I stayed “hidden” for a few minutes, just watching. My daughter was laughing, chatting away with Colin, who looked… awkward, to say the least.
“I didn’t know what to do, Isabelle.” Jeanne appeared beside me, a little nervous. “I’m the one who called Colin when Hanna asked for him. I couldn’t find you in the house, so I went to ask Helen what to do, and she told me it was fine to call him.”
“Helen already told me what happened.Don’t worry about it.”
Jeanne exhaled in relief, a small smile forming on her lips. The tension on her face eased instantly.
“I’ll get back to work, then. I just hope I don’t get fired.” She smiled faintly and started walking away.
“It’s more likely he’d fire me…” I muttered, though she was already gone. The words were mostly for myself anyway.
“No one’s getting fired as long as they keep doing their job.”
Colin’s deep voice came from behind me, and I turned around.
“Hanna’s clearly bothering you,” I said, crossing my arms.
Hanna was now by herself at the playground, sliding down the slide, giggling.
“Let’s do this,” he said. “Don’t worry about her as long as she’s inside the estate. Let the girl do whatever she wants—even… bother me, if that’s what she wants to do.”
“Excuse me? Are you serious right now?”
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
“Yes, for a few minutes back there at the playground.”
I couldn’t help but throw that one in, smiling lightly—and, honestly, the world must’ve been ending, because I actually saw him smile back at me.Colin. Smiling. At me.
“Nice one,” he said.
“See? Smiling isn’t that hard.”
“Don’t push your luck,” he warned, though there was something softer in his tone. “Just remember what I said. She can stay here as much as she wants.”
“Well then,” I said, tilting my head, studying him with a teasing grin, “I should warn you—my daughter’s needy.”
“Needy?” He frowned slightly, as if unsure whether to be worried or intrigued.
“Yeah. Hanna won’t leave you alone—and that’s your choice, not mine.”
