“Hello?” Claire was staring at her. “Earth to Mom.”
“Sure.” Anne stood and fished a twenty out of her pocket. “Would you pick up a bag of onions at the store, too? I need them for dinner.”
“Yeah, okay.”
“Thank you.” She pulled her daughter in for a hug. “I’m so proud of you. And things will get easier. You’ll see.”
Claire nodded and then escaped through the front door.
Anne stood there chewing her lip, fretting over Claire’s first day of school. At least she was going to be a freshman; it would be the first day of high school for everyone her age.
Eventually she went into the kitchen and funneled her nervous energy into dinner prep. Claire would be going to Kea?au High, which hadn’t even existed when Anne was a kid. Hopefully it would be a positive experience. And if not, at least she would be the easygoing mom who let her kid make a change instead of the weirdo who forced her to stay home.
She was so steeped in worry that she didn’t even notice Noah walk in through the front door. He was nearly next to her before she saw him, and she just about jumped out of her skin.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to pick Zoe up.” He tilted his head, watching her closely. “Are you okay?”
“Just worried about Claire.”
“I saw her on my way here. She was walking into town.”
“Yeah, she’s just going to get some shave ice.”
“So what’s the matter?”
“I offered to homeschool her, but she wants to go to public school to meet other kids.”
“And you’re worried she’ll have a hard time,” he guessed.
“You know what public school was like for me.”
“Not too bad, I hope, by the time you got to high school.”
She grinned and glanced away. “Yeah, well. She doesn’t have Noah Kapono on her side.”
“Sure she does.”
“It’s not the same when you’re notthere.”
“The twins will look out for her. This will be their second year at the high school.”
Anne nodded, but her lips twisted uncertainly when she remembered Jayce’s black eye. She wasn’t entirely sure that she wanted Claire hanging out with him. But maybe Jasmine was alright. Gardening was a healthy hobby.
“Thanks,” she said. “So where are you and Zoe going?”
“We’re taking the twins camping in Volcano.”
“Oh. Cool!” Some small, selfish part of her felt hurt that she hadn’t been invited.
The logical part of her mind knew that Zoe wasn’t ready for something like that, and she didn’t want to take away from Noah’s time with his foster kids. But simmering beneath all of that logic was an irrational jealousy… and she despised herself for it. It seemed like being home dredged up all the youngest, smallest parts of her psyche.
Beneath the jealousy, she felt a deep remorse.
Noah had created a real family – albeit an unusual one. He had forged a strong relationship with their daughter, despite a rocky beginning.
And Anne wasn’t a part of any of it.
