“No,” he ground out. “It means I’ll do my best.”
“Whatever, Cal,” I snapped, gripping the wheel tighter as I approached a red light.
I didn’t know why I was surprised. After all these years, I should’ve known better. Still, I always held out hope—for Sophia’s sake.
“I have to go,” he finally said.
“Yeah.” There was a hard edge to my voice. “Me too.”
My phone chimed with a calendar reminder, and I knew it was time to move on. I would continue to drive forward, regardless of what Cal did. And I would continue to put Sophia first.
By the time I arrived at Sophia’s school, the parent-teacher meeting had already started. I slid into one of the empty seats, silencing my phone as they continued discussing the business at hand. There were a few men in attendance, and I marveled at what it must be like to have a dad who was so involved. A man who was actually present in his child’s life, a man like Preston.
I shook my head. Preston was Sophia’s nanny. Her nanny,nother father.
He claimed he wanted a future with me, with us. But I had to remind myself that this was a job. He was present, he took care of Sophia, fed her meals, and took her out for activities because he was paid to do so. And after talking with his friends the other night, I knew just how badly he needed the money.
Not that it took away from their incredible relationship. He was great with her, and she adored him. But it was a reminder that come the end of summer, he’d move on to another family. Just like Cal had moved on.
“Alexis, does that still work for you?” Margaret’s voice floated to me from somewhere in the distance.
“Hmm?” I glanced away from the window, only to realize everyone was staring at me.Right.“Yes, that will be fine.”
We’d been discussing the back-to-school plans as well as the fall carnival and silent auction. My brokerage firm would be donating a number of items for the auction, which would raise funds for a new gymnasium.
“Great. Unless there’s anything else…” She glanced around the room, waiting for anyone to speak up. They didn’t. “Then we’re done.”
Everyone started to pack up. A few parents dashed out, but many lingered, discussing their exotic summer travels or their children’s latest accomplishments. Sophia was attending a music camp this week, and a STEM camp for girls next, but I didn’t feel the need to brag about it.
“Hey.” Margaret approached, speaking in a dulcet tone that told me she wanted something. “I wanted to talk to you about Cal.”
I frowned, wondering where she was going with this. Sophia had been attending this school for two years now. Everyone knew that if they had a question about Sophia, they could ask Gabriela or me. Cal hadmaybeattended one performance when she was in kindergarten, and he never picked her up from school. In fact, I wasn’t even sure his name was listed as someone authorized to give her a ride.
“What about him?”
“Do you think he’d be interested in donating something to the auction?”
I forced a smile as I struggled to get my tablet back into my purse. It was bursting at the seams, overdue for a much-needed purge. But I hadn’t had time. Like everything in my life at the moment, it had been pushed to the back burner. Between work, Sophia’s upcoming party, school starting soon, and struggling to fit in time with Preston where I could, I was always in a rush.
“I can see,” I said. “But I wouldn’t count on it.”
She nodded. “Okay. Well, if you can persuade him.” She gave me a devilish grin, and I tried not to visibly cringe. “We’d be most appreciative.”
“Sure,” I huffed, finally getting the tablet in. “Ava received the invite to Sophia’s birthday party, right?”
Margaret nodded. “Oh yes. She’s very excited about her mermaid party.” She placed a hand on my forearm. “I’m sure it’s going to be incredible. So much better than Bella’s Shellebration.” Her frown was disapproving. “I mean, come on. Talk about tacky.”
Wow.I could distinctly remember Margaret making a big fuss about how adorable the party was. She’d practically fawned over the decorations; now here she was, ripping them apart. It wasn’t entirely surprising, but it was disappointing nevertheless.
She patted my arm. “You always do everything with such style and grace that I’m sure it will be very…tasteful.”
“Thanks,” I said, knowing how much pressure there was to throw the perfect party, have the perfect child, the perfect house, the perfect life. If you wanted to do well, you had to fit in, you had to play the game.
“Did you hear about Hennessy and Staci?”
I shook my head, needing to get out of there. It was suffocating—the pressure, the expectations.
“Apparently, he was cheating on her with his assistant. Can you believe it?” Her smile was disapproving yet sinister. It was clear she relished the gossip, even if she pretended to be sympathetic. “What a cliché. And poor Staci.”
