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“I came to see Mrs. Muldoon,” I told him. “And I was gonna check up on you before I left.” A deep flush crept over his entire face and I had to grip the back of Jake’s shirt before he laughed in Pete’s face. “Are you making friends?”
He covered his face in hands and he shook his head, causing Jake to chuckle. “That’s good, buddy,” Jake encouraged. “I met your sister and Beth here when I was your age.”
I missed seeing his growth. He was always in school, in speech or OT therapy, or asleep when I had been here during my school breaks.
Before Jake could respond, someone trotted in our direction. When I lifted my body up, Suzette Aiken shot me a baleful glance. Anger radiated off of her in waves. This must have been whom Jake had seen last night. Most people in Franklin Parks thought that either Mariska or I were dating Jake, or that one or both of us had dated him at some point. Suzette wasn’t the exception. No one here seemed to understand how two girls could be friends with a guy and not have some carnal benefit. Jake was like a brother to me and he was handsome in a flawless way. And I wasn’t responsive to that.
“Did you ask one of us permission to get up?” Suzette asked Pete in a chiding tone.
He ducked his head in the same way Mariska had when she was little. “No, Miss Aiken.”
“Certainly,” Jake started, and grinned—it was like watching Cindy flirt with one of her boyfriends, “he can be excused for not following the rules this one time, no?” He closed the small distance between them. She visibly shuddered as his breath fluttered over her neck. It was ridiculous. Was that what was shudder-inducing these days?
Suzette’s face relaxed and she seemed to forget that I was here. “Pete always follows the rules.” Jake lifted his broad shoulders and tipped her chin with his index finger. “I mean, how could he not when he’s got you to listen to? I’d be a very good boy if I were in his shoes.”
I rolled my eyes as Suzette gulped. Pete’s tittering slightly broke her away from her spell. She flicked her gaze in Pete’s direction, while the rest of body betrayed her reluctance to pay Pete attention. “Go back to your spot.”
“Yes, Miss Aiken.”
Hesitantly, Pete reached for my hand and looped his finger around one of mine before he darted towards his giggling friends.
“Last night…was amazing.” Suzette’s husky whisper caught my attention. As she trailed her fingers from his chest down to his definition of his lower abdomen, a cocky mien returned to Jake’s face.
“And you might have yourself a repeat performance,” he told her with a hint of humor in his voice.
***
Mrs. Muldoon’s office was covered in collages from various children. All sorts of toys and drawings covered her desk. She had faint lines on the corners of her deep forest-green eyes and a long emerald skirt that complemented them. Her gray hair was half down. I couldn’t imagine her without gray hair. She was one of those women who looked stunning with her aging hair.
“Thank you for seeing me, Mrs. Muldoon.”
“It’s always a pleasure to get a visit from my former students.” Her face warmed. “Good to see you’re still friends with Jake and Mariska.”
“Yes, it’s good,” I agreed.
“Take a seat.”
I complied and sat on the chair opposite me. “Your résumé and letters of reference make for a stand-out application. Unfortunately, we don’t have any openings at this time.”
She slid me a discomfited glance. My stomach clenched. Had I upset her? And if there weren’t any openings, then why did she ask me to sit down like we were going to have tea? It was pretty busy on the main floor.
“There’s something you should know.”
I cleared my throat. “Yes, Mrs. Muldoon.”
For an inordinate amount of time, she was silent, and then she said, “Your mom left town with John Baxter.”
I shot up from the chair, feeling the blood drain from my face. “But he’s married.”
Her mouth thinned grimly and my knees felt weak as I sank back onto the seat. “And understandably, Mrs. Baxter is beyond irate. I’d only found out because Denise, who cashiers at the Oscar gas station, had seen them kissing each other yesterday morning before they left town. She’d told…some people.”
Obviously, Denise had told everyone. Right after her mom, Opal, Denise was the biggest gossip in town. I was surprised I hadn’t found out about Cindy and Mr. Baxter as soon as I’d arrived home last night.
Out of all of the things that I thought Cindy was capable of, I really hadn’t thought that she was capable of being with a married man. Maybe I was naïve. One of the Baxter kids was playing with Pete as we were speaking. This was messed up. As a little girl, Cindy had told me countless times that family was important and that women needed to stand by each other. She had violated those principles. And I had to suppress the bile in my throat. The Baxter kids probably wouldn’t see their dad often or at all. I understood how not having a consistent male presence could make a kid feel lacking in some way. And the scandal about why Mr. Baxte
r left town would make the Baxter kids feel like they weren’t enough reason for him to stay.
Ireful, I fisted the sides of my slacks in order to maintain some composure. It wasn’t the messenger’s fault. Mrs. Muldoon had been my pre-school and afterschool teacher in my youth. She was doing me a favor by informing me before someone else did. And, yet, it wasn’t comforting at all.
