I laughed, but it came out a little too high-pitched. “Of course not! I was just making a joke. It’s just quite the career change you’ve had.”
Mr. McCabe brushed a lock of hair away from his eyes. “When you realize how fragile life is, you understand it’s important to chase your dreams.”
I tilted my head. “And your dream is being a primary school teacher. In Berkshire.”
“The buzz I get from teaching a kid to read—it’s just priceless.” He beamed at me.
My worst nightmare would be spending my days surrounded by twenty-three children and their twenty-three different demands for attention. I was struggling with two, and having given birth to them, I was naturally disposed to like them more.
I nodded in all the right places as Mr. McCabe proceeded to talk me through the phonics program he was using. Either he was an incredible actor or he really did just love teaching.
“And how has Bibi seemed otherwise?”
“There have been no more drawings of blood. Glad we cleared that one up!” He gave a little chuckle. “She can have her seriousmoments, but on the whole, she seems happy and well-adjusted. A lovely little girl.”
I smiled to myself. It felt good to hear someone confirm we were doing okay with her.
He shuffled the papers on his desk and checked his watch. “We’ve got a couple of talks about the importance of respecting your peers coming up. I’m sure that will help the children understand personal boundaries.”
He was getting ready to dismiss me.
“I used to have this imaginary friend.” Enough flirting around the issue; it was time to make a move. “I called him The Chameleon. I’d see him everywhere.”
“How charming! Impressive to even know what a chameleon is at that age. It’s so—”
“And then one day, I just stopped seeing him everywhere. Because he was dead. I killed him.”
“You…youkilledhim?”
I stared into his eyes and saw nothing but confusion.
“I killed him off, as I didn’t need him anymore.”
“Oh. Of course.” He let out a breath. “That makes sense.”
“So really, I know that children go through phases. And then one day they wake up and it’s over.”
Mr. McCabe was nodding vigorously. “Hopefully for Bibi, it’s not even a phase. Just a one-off incident. I will keep a close eye on things, so really, there’s nothing to worry about.”
I stood up. “Sorry to take up your time.”
“Not at all! I seem to be meeting with mothers here very regularly—it’s so heartening to see how involved you all are in your children’s education.”
I tried to suppress the smirk. Hot and oblivious to it. No wonder he was such a hit.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Fox
Mike was constantly texting “Harriet”with little updates and random questions.
Any musical talent? I have a good ear, apparently.
There is a recessive red hair gene on my mother’s side—have your children got it?
I could understand his excitement. This was a man who’d got to his seventies thinking he’d never had children. And now he’d discovered he had a daughter. I’d answered everything truthfully. Then, just as I got to the office he texted again.
Next week I’m going to be in Berkshire for a friend’s wedding. It would be wonderful to meet you while I’m here. I’ll be on my own as Sarah’s back is playing up and she sadly can’t really face the flight.
