Meanwhile, I was massaging Ellie’s hand in my lap while Cher grilled Ellie about our new babysitter.
“So Dana’s good with all ages?”
“She’s the most responsible kid I’ve ever met,” Ellie said.
“She goes to some prep school in Greenville,” I said. “‘Home of future presidents’. That’s what she’s always telling us.”
“Don’t get me started,” Conrad grumbled, taking a pull from his beer.
Cher frowned. “Wait, why?”
“Archie’s in love,” I said, grinning.
“She’s got him convinced he needs to go there next year,” Conrad lamented.
“Didn’t he get you to buy a bunch of science books after she moved in?” Ellie asked.
“Yes,” Kit said. “I think it’s great. And it’s not just to impress her, either. He’s convinced he could qualify for the ‘Super-Achiever’ scholarship.”
“Getting in is definitely to impress her,” Conrad said to Kit.
“Okay, yes at first. But now he’s really keen. He’s working so hard!”
Conrad grumbled. “I guess.”
“What’s wrong with the school?” Cher asked.
Something definitely wasn’t adding up. Conrad was normally his son’s biggest cheerleader.
“They’re… traditional,” Kit said. “For the non-paying students, anyway.”
I frowned, already not liking the sound of that. “What does that mean?”
“It means,” Conrad said, tugging at his collar, “They don’t generally accept applications from single parents.”
Ellie nearly spat out her soda water. “What?”
Anger rippled over me too. “What kind of school can do that?”
“A private one,” Conrad said.
Kit held up a hand. “Okay wait. To be fair, we don’t know that it’s necessarily a family values thing. They said on the website that the school requires a huge amount of parental involvement. Too much for one person who also works full-time.”
“So what if someone had a supportive grandparent or something?” Ellie asked.
“That could work,” Kit said. “Right?”
Conrad rubbed his forehead. “All I know is they’ve never accepted a kid with unmarried parents into the Super-Achiever program. Not in fifty years. So whether theythink they’re open-minded or not, the odds are stacked against him.” Conrad took another swig.
He wasn’t annoyed. I could see that now. He was upset that his situation was in the way of making his son happy.
“So that’s something that should change,” Ellie said.
“Definitely,” I agreed.
“We could write a letter?” Sarah said.
“A petition?” Jamie added.
