Her Collateral Bride: A Lesbian Age Gap Romance

“Teach me,” Claire had said as she surveyed all the bowls

on the counter. “Please, Hannah. Tell me what you’re doing.”

She’d wanted a distraction. Anything to forget the tears in her

mom’s voice.

Hannah had taught her. That night and so many others.

She’d created a lifelong passion that Claire had let burn out

because of something that was beyond her control.

She’d let this be taken from her. The one thing she’d always

fallen back on. It was something that always gave her joy and

she’d let that passion be stomped out. She should have fought

back. She shouldn’t have let it happen.

Robert hadn’t just taken that restaurant from her. She’d

given it. She’d admitted defeat and she’d crawled into hiding,

retreating to the family business. She’d given up. Yes, it was

bad timing. Yes, he’d done something terrible. But she was the

one who capitulated. Hadn’t Haley asked her as much? Why

she didn’t fight?

“Holy hell, I know things are bad, but they must be really

bad if you’re cooking.”

Claire just about sent a big metal mixing bowl flying off the

counter at the voice behind her. She turned, her floury hands

making a mess just the way she’d seen Haley and Jean that

first afternoon. Her heart clenched and her pulse raced, and her

soul cried out in agony.

Jenny sauntered in. She was wearing jeans and a black long-

sleeved shirt, plus her regular combat boots. It was absurdly

late, or absurdly early, however a person looked at it, but she

looked like she was ready to go to work. Because Claire was

up, she was up.

Claire was about to tell Jenny to go back to bed and not