The way he says my name, with that little emphasis, makes me smile despite my lingering mortification. “Please, call me Emma.”
His hand is warm when I shake it, his grip steady and confident. “Emma, then. I’m Theo.” He releases my hand and glances down at Chloe, who’s watching us with bright eyes, clearly thrilled that we’re talking. “Though I have to say, I almost didn’t recognize you without a box of candy.”
I laugh and his eyes light up with amusement in a way that makes the rest of the pickup area fade out. “Well, no boxes today, but I’m not entirely without my stash.” I reach into my cardigan pocket and pull out a handful of wrapped candies. “You never know when you’ll need emergency licorice.” I look down at Chloe and wink. “Right, Chloe?”
Chloe nods enthusiastically, bouncing on her toes. “Miss Hayes and I are the only ones who like licorice in the whole class. Everyone else thinks they’re gross.” She giggles, looking proud of this shared preference.
“You and I have excellent taste,” I tell her, tucking the candy back into my pocket.
Chloe tugs on Theo’s hand, pulling him slightly closer. “See, Daddy? I told you Miss Hayes is the best.”
He laughs, warm and easy, then looks back at me. His expression shifts, becoming almost apologetic. “Look, I’m sorry it took this long to actually meet you properly. I missed parent night backin September because we had a restaurant emergency and I’ve been meaning to schedule a time to come in and introduce myself ever since.” He runs a hand through his hair. “This is embarrassingly late in the school year, especially since Chloe hasn’t stopped talking about her favorite teacher since the first week of school.”
My eyes prickle unexpectedly. It’s been a brutal first year—long nights lesson planning, constant self-doubt, that one week in September where I cried in my car during lunch break three days in a row. Hearing that makes every second of it feel worth it. I smile down at Chloe, who suddenly looks uncharacteristically shy, ducking her head against her dad’s side.
“Daaaaaaad,” she whines, drawing out the word, her face going slightly pink.
“There’s no need to apologize,” I say. “I don’t usually do pickup duty, so we probably would’ve kept missing each other anyway. Mrs. Patterson normally handles this, but she’s home with the flu.” I shift my clipboard to my other hand. “And I adore Chloe. She’s told me quite a bit about you too, actually. She says you’re a very good cook, except for when you try to sneak broccoli into her dinner.” I grin down at Chloe, who dissolves into giggles.
He laughs and reaches down to tickle her side, making her squirm away. “Is that true? You’ve been complaining about my cooking at school?”
“Daddy, you make the best pancakes. The best everything,” she says, recovering from the tickling with impressive speed. “But broccoli is not real food. Even Uncle Alex can’t convince me otherwise.” She flips her hair back with the kind of sass that makes me bite back a bigger smile.
“Uncle Alex would be devastated to hear that,” Theo says. “He thinks his roasted broccoli is a masterpiece.”
“Well, Uncle Alex is wrong,” Chloe announces with the supreme confidence of a seven-year-old.
I can’t help but laugh at her certainty. “You know, I have tosay, I respect someone who knows what they like and sticks to it.” I look back up at Theo. “Though I’m sure you’re doing your best with the vegetable situation.”
“Losing battle with the broccoli, though she likes pretty much everything else,” he says, shaking his head with this resigned smile that says he knows exactly how this war is going to end. “But I keep trying. Figure one day she’ll cave.”
“Good luck with that,” I say. “In my experience, the stubborn ones usually win.”
Chloe nods emphatically, crossing her arms with a triumphant grin.
“That’s what I’m afraid of.” His eyes crinkle at the corners when he smiles, and I notice for the first time that there are gold flecks in those warm brown eyes. He’s got this really nice smile, the kind that makes you want to smile back without thinking about it.
“Daddy, can we go get ice cream now?” Chloe tugs on his hand, looking up at him with big hopeful eyes. “You said if I had a good day we could, and I had the best day.”
He raises his eyebrows at me. “Was itactuallythe best day?”
“It really was,” I confirm. “She helped Noah with his reading during partner time without being asked, and her fish race car drawing is going up on the bulletin board. Definitely ice cream worthy.”
Chloe beams triumphantly. “See?”
“Alright, counselor. Let’s go get ice cream.” He ruffles her hair affectionately, then looks back at me. “It was nice to meet you, Emma. Officially this time.”
“You too,” I say, and realize I’m still smiling like an idiot.
“Bye, Miss Hayes!” Chloe throws her arms around my legs in an enthusiastic hug that nearly knocks me off balance. “See you tomorrow!”
“See you tomorrow, sweet girl.” I pat her back, steadying myself.
When she pulls away, Theo catches my eye one more time. “Thanks for everything you’re doing for her. Really.”
“She makes it easy,” I say honestly, because it’s true.
His smile deepens, reaching his eyes and making those crinkles more pronounced, and then they’re heading toward the parking lot. Chloe swings his hand between them, and I turn back to my clipboard, trying to refocus on the remaining students waiting for pickup.
