“I don’t care! He’s mine! I’ll take care of him!” she insisted, gripping the raccoon tighter.
Ethan appeared behind me, hand on the doorframe, watching with that quiet intensity of his that made it impossible not to feel like the weight of the world was balancing on our shoulders.
“Maren…” he said, his tone low, a warning and a plea all at once.
I nodded. Okay. Team effort. We needed to diffuse this without a scratch. Or worse.
I crouched beside her, keeping my hands open and calm, speaking slowly. “Sadie, he’s not a pet, sweetie. He’s wild. He can get scared and bite. I don’t want him to hurt you.”
Her lower lip trembled. “But he’s so soft! And he’s lonely!”
Ethan stepped closer, his presence steadying in a way I hadn’t realized I was craving. “Maren’s right,” he said. “Your mom and dad aren’t gonna be too happy with me if something happens to you.”
“You’ll get in trouble?” she sniffled, and he nodded somberly, careful not to move too much in case he scared the little guy.
“We can watch him from outside, okay?” I coaxed gently. “Make sure he’s safe. And then we can come back and do something fun together. How about that?”
Emma, who had been silent until now, whispered, “I’ll help.” Her small hand found Sadie’s. “It’ll be fun.”
Sadie hesitated, and I felt Ethan’s hand lightly on my shoulder. A small touch, but massively moving in light of the conversation we were having in his office before this.
“Okay,” Sadie mumbled finally, relaxing her grip just enough for me to lift the raccoon carefully into a pillowcase, making sure it couldn’t escape. “Promise we’ll play with him again?”
“Promise,” I said with a relieved exhale, the tension in me shifting as the raccoon was released through the open window, scrambling back into the yard.
Sadie didn’t move from the bed. She crawled into my lap, tiny arms wrapping around me, and buried her face against my chest. I held her, heart pounding, feeling the strange mix of exhaustion and exhilaration that only this house could deliver. My hands rested on her back, and I realized, in a rush, that this had become more than a job. I’d been drawn in. I’d let that happen.
Ethan cleared his throat softly, stepping back toward the doorway. “You’re good with her,” he said.
For some reason, it made me want to run. Where to, I didn’t know.
Sadie sighed, curling closer, and I ran my fingers through her hair. The weight of her trust pressed against me in a way that made my chest ache. I’d formed bonds with several kids over my years of teaching. The youngest were often the easiest to grow attached to.
But this was different.
Emma perched on the edge of the bed, grinning at us like she’d been keeping a secret for too long. “I think Uncle Ethan likes you.”
I let out a nervous laugh. “Oh?”
“In a girlfriend-boyfriend kinda way,” Emma clarified, eyes sparkling like she was letting me in on some grand mystery.
18
Maren
“This is our kindergarten wing,” Mrs. Alcott said, her voice soft but proud as she led me down a hallway lined with bright, fresh paint and neatly laminated artwork. Everything smelled faintly of wood polish and brand new wax crayons. For years, this exact scent was home to me.
But I nodded too much, smiled at everything. At the mural of smiling sunflowers. At the bulletin board labeledKindness Garden. Even at the tiny cubbies that would have each child’s displayed. Perfectly in place. Familiar, in a way that made something behind my ribs ease.
“You’ll have twelve kids to start with,” Mrs. Alcott said. “Maybe fourteen, depending on enrollment. We want to keep class sizes intimate. Give the teachers time to really connect.”
“That sounds wonderful,” I said. I was being sincere, but my tone still held an edge of mania that I couldn’t shake. Like I was forcing it.
She eyed me for a second, then added, “I know you’re used to much bigger classes, but you’ll get used to it in no time.”
“I’m sure I will. I love really getting to know them. Seeing that growth up close.”
She smiled at me over the top of her glasses. “That’s what I remember most about you, Maren. The way your kids thrived. I still think about that end-of-year performance you organized. The one with the cardboard castle and the paper crowns?”
