“I’ll be right up,” I called after her. “Just have to organize my… Superman.”
CHAPTER 24
Maybe I Could Have Fun
ELLIE
“Any further business?” Winona asked.
None of us raised our hands. Cher was actively drumming her fingers on the tabletop.
Then Sarah stuck her hand up. “I’m so sorry. I just want to make sure I’m clear on the scope of work for the third floor before we adjourn.”
We all groaned. While we loved Heartbreaker, and Sarah, we all had other places to be on a Friday afternoon. Winona had called this emergency meeting in the offices of Heartbreaker Trades College, because there had been a hiccup in our permits. This building wasn’t new, but it had needed some upgrades to come up to code. The upgrades fell under all our areas of expertise, and we all happened to be in town, so here we were.
But today, Heartbreaker wasn’t at the top of my priority list. Tommy had presented a big project at school today, one Sam had helped him on. He’d called it “River Ecosystems on a Cellular Level” and had worked harder on it than anything I’d ever seen. Sam had even taken him down to the shore to collect samples and specimens for the presentation.
I’d planned on celebrating with Tommy after school, since completing something so involved was a huge milestone for him. I’d considered inviting Sam, but I also wanted to check in with Tommy about how he was feeling with Sam being around so much for Henry. Plus, if Sam came…
I swallowed.
If I didn’t leave soon, though, all of this would be moot.
“Sorry!” Sarah said. “But if I don’t get this sorted now, I’ll need to call another meeting next week.”
I knew Sarah was right. And Winona said as much. The floor opened back up to discussion.
My phone buzzed before I could come up with a plan B.
Sam’s name on my screen made my stomach flip.
SAM: Mrs. Oxford said she wasn’t feeling well. Want me to grab Tommy?
Sam and I had barely spoken since dinner at his parents’ place. The ride home after what we’d done had been tense, with neither of us speaking. He’d helped me get the diaper bag to the front door when he dropped us off, then lifted his hand up like he was going to high five me, like in the beginning.
“Just kidding,” he’d said.
I’d had to slam the door in his face so I wouldn’t laugh, or cry, or throw myself in his arms. I’d worn out the battery on my vibrator that night. And the one after. For the first time in a long, long time, I’d let myself picture Sam as I used it. I’d come so hard I scared myself.
Sam had started coming by twice a week to relieve Mrs. Oxford. But I’d arranged it so there was nearly no contact with me. He picked Henry up from Mrs. Oxford, and I got Tommy to answer the door at drop-off. I was being a chicken, I knew. And yesterday Mrs. Oxford had told me she was officially moving to Florida as soon as she sold her townhouse. So I’d have to deal with that very soon. But I couldn’t even thinkabout having to interact with Sam right now. I didn’t trust myself.
I didn’t realize until I’d closed that door two weeks ago that in the basement with Sam, I hadn’t once thought about my promise to Tommy.
I was failing hard on all fronts.
My thumbs hovered over the screen, guilt pulling at me from each side. It wasn’t Sam’s normal day to take over for Mrs. Oxford. And I desperately wanted to be there for Tommy. But I’d been back-tabling Heartbreaker Trades, and it was the whole reason I’d come to Quince Valley. Plus, everyone around the table had places to be: Cher’s daughter had a performance tonight; Kit and Chip were going away for the weekend; and Sarah had a plane to catch, though I guess she had a few minutes to bring up one more thing.
I typed out a reply.
ELLIE: That would be great if you could get Tommy, actually. Thank you. Please tell him I really wanted to be there. Tell him I’ll take him out for ice cream later. And you’re okay with bringing Henry too?
I knew he would be.
SAM: Of course. I can also do the ice cream if you want?
I wished I could say yes. Because I wished, right in that moment, that Sam was Tommy’s dad, too, and that it would be just as special for Tommy to have Sam take him as me.
But he wasn’t Tommy’s dad. I’d actually been given a harsh reminder of that last night when I’d accidentally seen a photo of Tommy’s dad on socials. He was on a yacht with his grown kids and a wife I was pretty sure was number four. As I slammed the laptop shut, I’d had the strangest thought: thatTommy’s father was a poison, and Sam was the antidote, hand-crafted for me.
