“We can probably make that happen,” I say.
Victoria nods, her shoulders relaxing. She picks up her latte and takes a long sip, then checks the time on her phone. “Actually,” she says, looking back up at me, “I was wondering if it might be possible for me to pick Chloe up from school today? I know it’s last minute, but I’d love to surprise her. Take her out for ice cream or something, just the two of us.”
I turn this over in my mind. Part of me wants to say no, that’s not how this works, you can’t just show up and change the plan. But I think about Chloe, and how her face would lightup seeing her mom waiting for her at pickup. How excited she’d be.
And Emma’s not there today anyway. She was feeling under the weather yesterday and decided to take a sick day to recover. There’s no chance of an awkward collision in the school parking lot.
“Yeah,” I say finally. “I’m sure Chloe would love that.”
Victoria’s face breaks into a genuine smile, the first one I’ve seen from her all morning. “Really? Thank you, Theo. I can’t wait to see her face.”
“She’ll be thrilled,” I admit.
We spend the next few minutes going over the details—what time school gets out, where to park, and I even pull up a photo of Chloe standing at the door to her classroom on my phone to show her which door to wait at.
“She’s gotten so big,” Victoria says softly, looking at the photo. “I feel like every time I see her she’s grown another inch.”
“She has,” I agree. “Had to buy her new shoes last week. Again.”
Victoria laughs, and for a moment it’s almost like the old days. Before everything got complicated. Before we realized we wanted different things and were too stubborn to admit it. Just two parents, marveling at how fast their kid is growing up.
She checks the time again and starts gathering her things, tucking her planner back into her bag. “I should let you get back to your day. I know you’ve got the restaurant to run.”
“It was good to see you,” I say, and I’m surprised to find I mostly mean it.
“You too.” She stands, slinging her purse over her shoulder. “And Theo? I really am sorry about what I said earlier. About Emma. It wasn’t fair.”
“It’s fine,” I say. “Just... maybe get to know her before you judge her. She’s not what you’re expecting.”
Victoria nods slowly. “I’ll keep an open mind,” she says. “I promise.”
She gives me a small wave and heads for the door, her heels clicking against the hardwood floor. I watch her go, watch her push through the door and cross the street to her Audi, watch her pull out of the parking spot and disappear down Main Street.
Then I sit back in my chair, let out a long breath, and finish my cold coffee.
CHAPTER 22
Emma
I resist the urge to sneeze as kids stream past me toward the pickup line. Yesterday I’d been convinced I finally caught something from one of my students—schools are basically petri dishes this time of year—until I checked the pollen count and realized my “cold” was actually seasonal allergies staging an aggressive comeback. A Zyrtec later and I’m feeling mostly human again, apart from a mild headache.
I pull my cardigan tighter around my shoulders and scan the line of cars forming in the pickup lane, checking the dashboard placards against the names on my clipboard. I’m not usually out here for dismissal. That’s typically Mrs. Patterson’s domain, but the principal asked if I could cover, and I said yes because I genuinely don’t mind. It’s actually kind of nice, being out here in the crisp air, watching my students reunite with their families at the end of the day.
I’m thinking about tonight, about dinner at Theo’s place, about curling up on his couch with a glass of wine and telling him about my day while he tells me about his. He texted me this morning that he was meeting Victoria for coffee to goover the schedule for her visit, but I haven’t heard how it went yet.
“Miss Hayes!” Chloe appears at my elbow, her face bright with that particular crackling energy she always has at the end of the school day. “Are you doing pickup today? You never do pickup! This is so cool!”
“Mrs. Patterson had an appointment,” I explain, smiling down at her. “So I’m filling in for the afternoon. How was your day? Did you finish that story you were working on during writing time? I saw you were really concentrating on it.”
“I did! It’s about a mermaid who—Mommy!” She shouts it so suddenly that I flinch, and then she’s running, her sneakers slapping against the pavement as she takes off toward a woman walking toward us looking like the kind of person you see in magazine ads for luxury brands.
My stomach drops straight through the ground.
Theo’s ex-wife.
I wasn’t expecting to meet her today. I wasn’t prepared for this at all. Why didn’t Theo text me? Did he know she was coming? My mind races through possibilities, panic fluttering in my chest, but I force myself to take a deep breath.
Chloe crashes into Victoria with the force of a small missile, and Victoria catches her with a delighted laugh, wrapping her arms around her daughter and spinning her in a circle like they’re in a movie.
