Chapter 5
“What happened here?” a vaguely familiar voice asked. Although it was apparent what had happened. Hannah had clipped Joy and Ben’s mailbox. Which meant she had to be just about the worst driver ever. And when she turned and saw it was Spencer, she wanted to die. He looked all grown up and even more handsome than she remembered with his dark wavy hair and intense hazel eyes. Eyes that were scowling at her. And she didn’t blame him.
She bit her lip and took a breath before speaking. “I feel awful. I was just trying to get close enough to get the mail before heading into my aunt’s house and I misjudged the distance. I’m not used to driving this car. I’ll pay for it, of course.”
Spencer assessed the damage. The post itself wasn’t damaged, just pulled out of the ground, which was soft from recent rains.
He nodded. “It’s not a big deal. I can fix it. I’m Spencer, by the way. Spencer Smith.”
“And you’re Joy and Ben’s grandson. She was talking about you this morning. I’m Hannah Brewster. I’m staying with my aunt for the summer.”
He studied her quietly for a moment as if trying to place her. “I was a year ahead of you in high school,” he said. “Where do you live now that you don’t have to drive?”
“I’ve been living in Brooklyn for almost ten years. Today is the first time I’ve driven in several years,” she admitted.
“Well, you’re lucky this is an easy fix. Maybe be a little more careful till you get used to driving again.” His tone had a sharp edge to it that took her by surprise and she stepped back.
“Of course. I’ll get out of your way. Thank you for helping.” She turned to walk back to her car. He was the same as ever; she didn’t know why she thought he might have changed.
“Hannah.”
She glanced back and Spencer was smiling and his eyes were apologetic.
“What?”
“It’s nice to see you. I’m sure I’ll see you around.” He picked the mailbox up and pounded it back into the ground. “See, good as new.”
Hannah was relieved that she hadn’t killed the mailbox. “Thank you.”
Hannah climbed into her car and drove up her aunt’s driveway. She thought back to high school and wondered what Spencer thought of her now. She was pretty sure that he’d thought she was flaky in high school. She’d always been creative, hung with the artsy crowd, and she’d had a tendency to run late. Whereas Spencer was always early and he used to roll his eyes when she would rush into class late. She liked to think that she’d matured since then, but running over his grandparents’ mailbox wasn’t a great look.
“I can’t believe you ran over Joy and Ben’s mailbox!” Sara looked thoroughly amused as she reached for her glass of chardonnay and took a sip.
Hannah was sitting at a table at the Impudent Oyster with her aunt and sister. She’d just shared her embarrassing run-in with Spencer Smith and the poor mailbox.
“I wanted to die,” she admitted. “I used to have such a crush on Spencer and after not seeing him in years, that’s what happens. I’m so glad the car wasn’t damaged.”
Her aunt waved the concern away. “I’m not worried about the car. You weren’t going fast enough to damage it. And Spencer put the mailbox back in place. He’s pretty handy around the house and he’s over there often. Joy and Ben pretty much raised him.”
Hannah hadn’t known that. Her aunt had only moved into this house a few years ago. “What happened to his parents?”
“Drunk driver. They were on their way home from a night out and were killed instantly by someone going the wrong way on Route 28. I think he was only two or three when it happened.”
“How awful,” Sara said. “Does he have any siblings?”
Aunt Maddie shook her head. “No, it’s just Spencer. He was so little that he probably hardly remembers his parents. Joy and Ben showered him with attention. I think he did very well in school.”
“He was valedictorian,” Hannah confirmed. “And he may be hot, but he’s still insufferable. He told me to be more careful. How rude!”
Sara laughed. “Well, can you really blame him?”
Hannah smiled. “I suppose not. But still, he annoys me.”
“He’s probably just being protective of his grandparents. I wouldn’t take it personally. I’m not worried about your driving,” Aunt Maddie said.
“I will be more careful though,” Hannah assured her.
“I know you will. So, what are you two having?”
It was hard to choose. The menu had so many things that sounded good. They decided to share two appetizers, fried calamari and the oysters Rockefeller, which they always ordered. They were local oysters baked with fresh lobster, sambuca, spinach, and cheese béchamel sauce, and they were to die for. For their meals, Sara ordered the steak au poivre and both Hannah and her aunt got the filet and lobster tail.
Everything was delicious. They all packed up half their dinners to take home and shared a piece of cheesecake topped with cherries and whipped cream for dessert.
“Have you lost weight, Sara?” Hannah’s aunt asked. Sara had the most food left over from her dinner and she only had one bite of the cheesecake that Hannah and her aunt devoured. Sara had always been the thinner of the two of them. She was more active and had never had to worry about her weight. Hannah hadn’t noticed it before but now that her aunt mentioned it, Sara did look a little thinner and she had dark circles under her eyes, more than usual.
Sara nodded. “I haven’t gotten on the scale but my clothes are looser. I haven’t been trying to lose weight, I just haven’t been as hungry lately.”
“Are you feeling okay?” Hannah heard the concern in her aunt’s voice.
“I feel fine. I’ve just been more tired than usual lately. I love my boys dearly, but I need to find a part-time job soon. I’ve been looking for a while, but there’s nothing out there. And Tom’s been working such long hours lately. It’s just getting to me.”
“Something will turn up soon,” Aunt Maddie said. “It will be good for you to get back out there and have more balance in your life. Tom will have to help more though. You can’t do everything you do now and work, too.”
“Do you miss your day job at all?” Sara looked at Hannah and the question surprised her, at first.
“Not even for a minute. I never loved the work. I did like the people, and sometimes I do miss going into an office and having coworkers. Writing is a solitary job. Thanks to the internet and my phone, I am in touch with writer friends while I work. We have Facebook groups and there’s a group of us that meet up on Clubhouse most afternoons and chat in between writing sessions. That’s what I missed the most and now I sort of have it again.”
“I love working from home,” Aunt Maddie said. “Maybe it’s partly my age, but the daily commute gets old fast. It’s the best of both worlds for me now, as I still go into the city occasionally and meet up with editors for lunch, and that gets me out of the house.”
“Will you be meeting with editors next week?” Hannah asked. She’d always thought her aunt’s job sounded glamorous. When Aunt Maddie used to live and work in the city, she was always visiting publishers and going to lunches or dinners to build relationships with editors. Some of those editors regularly sent her emails telling her what they were eager to see in submissions, so when she’d come across a manuscript set with a knitting theme, she might know of an editor looking for exactly that.
“I have a bunch of meetings set up and most of them are lunches or after-dinner drinks. One of my favorite editors told me she’s looking for a female Jack Reacher book. I’m curious to chat with her more about that.”
“That would be difficult to find, I would think,” Sara said.
“It does seem impossible. But I want to find out how flexible she might be. I just read a story last week that has a similar vibe, but the book is set in a small town and the woman is a sheriff. I’d like to tell her about it and see what she thinks.”
“Do you think other publishers will be interested, too?” Hannah asked. She was already intrigued by the little she’d heard. Though she wrote romance, she also loved reading mysteries and thrillers.
Her aunt nodded. “I think they may be. I plan to talk about this book to most of the editors that I meet with and tease it a bit. The author is revising it slightly. My hope is when it’s ready to be submitted, we’ll have editors eager to read it.” She smiled. “I like to build that anticipation ahead of time, so then they read more quickly.”
“That sounds right up my alley. I love edge-of-my-seat suspense,” Sara said.
“I’ll send it to you if you like, when she sends it back with her revisions. I should have it in a few days. And I’d be curious to get your impressions.”
“Oh, I would love that!” Sara looked excited to read it.
Hannah felt her chest tighten as she thought about how far her current book was from having edge-of-the-seat suspense. One didn’t expect that in a romantic comedy, but still, there needed to be a reason for the pages to turn. She took a deep breath and tried to will the sense of panic away. If she needed them, she had the bottle of Ativan in her purse. But she’d already had a glass of wine and didn’t want to mix them. She decided to change the subject.
“What are you up to tomorrow, Sara? I’m going for a long walk in the morning and thought I’d head to the coffee shop in the afternoon again to try and get a little more writing done.”
“Sundays are crazy around here. I’ll be running around with the boys for various sports practices and Tom’s parents are coming for dinner tomorrow night. Your day sounds much more relaxing.”
Hannah sighed. It would be more relaxing if she wasn’t so stressed about her lack of production. But she’d had a good writing session today and hopefully a good, long morning walk would help her shift into a more relaxed and productive state.
“That sounds like a good plan, Hannah. I may need a ride to the airport later in the afternoon, if you don’t mind. I have a five o’clock flight to New York from Hyannis.”
“Of course!” It would be strange having the house all to herself with her aunt in the city all week, but maybe it would help Hannah to focus.