“What?” Esther nearly barked.

  “I’ve wondered, very much over the last six weeks, if you were as cold with the students as you are with adults, but I think you’ve got quite a soft spot for kids.”

  Esther eyed Melanie up and down, taking in the long wool jacket that reached her calves, the black briefcase she held between both hands, and the lightest touch of makeup on her eyes and cheeks. “Why would I become a teacher if I hated kids?”

  “You might be surprised,” Melanie mumbled. “I’ve seen a lot of teachers come through here who don’t like kids, or maybe they start liking them and end up hating them by the end of the year.”

  Esther clenched her jaw. “Then they don’t deserve to be here.”

  Melanie chuckled lightly. “Is everything so black and white for you?”

  “No.” Esther had meant to make it sound angry, but there was a wistfulness in her tone she couldn’t deny. Melanie, for all her annoyances, seemed to be squeezing her way in somehow. She had to figure out how to put a stop to it.

  “One more question, before I go inside.”

  “Hmm?” Esther faced Melanie, again struck by the strength she saw in Melanie’s posture, her stance, her eye contact.

  “Why are we like oil and water?”

  A smile bloomed on Esther’s lips before she could hide it. “You’ll find I’m more like acid and erode away everything I touch. It’d probably do you well to stay away.”

  Melanie’s lips parted in surprise, but Esther ignored her as she raised a hand up to give one of her own students a high five. She’d started that practice when they entered her classroom every morning and the students had taken it outside of her classroom. As her student continued inside, Esther kept her eyes out for a black truck, a truck that held the most precious thing in her life.

  Anthony had been at Skip’s all week, and it had thrown her off her game having the only time she saw him be when they were at school. She was lucky Anthony was even in school since before it had been silence for seven days straight. The few times Skip wanted to take his week, she had no other option except to allow him to do it. She knew it would be good for Anthony to see his dad in his full glory and spend some time with him, but it still stung, and the quiet in the house was nearly too much for her to bear.

  “I’m sure you remember from school, Esther, but acids can be neutralized. All it takes is a base.”

  Shock hit her first. She’d nearly forgotten Melanie was still standing next to her. She was about to spin around, a retort on the tip of her tongue, but Melanie’s daring gaze struck her dumb. This woman couldn’t possibly be flirting, could she? There was no possible way. No one had flirted with her since Skip—not that she’d allowed anyone to—but Melanie? Was it more than just a requirement that she kept popping up at the most random of times?

  “Excuse me?” Esther squeaked out.

  “You heard perfectly well what I said, and if you don’t believe it, why don’t you go ask Kelsey. One of her favorite subjects to teach is sixth grade science.”

  “I don’t need another lesson.”

  “Perhaps you do.” Melanie nodded happily. “I’ll see you at the staff meeting after school.”

  Stuttering to catch her breath, Esther stared at Melanie as she walked into the school, victory oozing off her in waves. “That’s ridiculous.”

  Esther tried to shake it off, but she couldn’t. Melanie had been chipping away at her for weeks by then, and she was bound to feel some of her armor weakening. She would have to find a way to fortify it. As the conversation spun in her mind, Esther continued to look for the black truck. When the bell rang for the start of classes and there was still no sign of Anthony, Esther’s stomach dropped.

  He could be sick. Skip could have taken him to the doctor. Her baby could be in the hospital. But she didn’t have time to check by the office to see if Anthony had been called in tardy or sick for the day. She had to get to her own class. Cringing, Esther knew she would have to wait to get to her room to call down and see what was going on because she knew damn well that if she tried to call Skip he wouldn’t answer. Cursing under her breath, Esther headed for the playground to collect her class.

  Melanie carefully watched children dive in and out around each other with her arms crossed as she stood in the middle of the playground. Her week for recess duty, and it was one of the few things she loved but rarely got to do. Too often paraeducators took on this role, but it was such an opportunity for Melanie to get to see her kids in an entirely different environment.

  She chastised a few of the kids for running in places they shouldn’t or getting too rough with each other, but all in all, they seemed to have life figured out for kindergarten recess and the rules that were in place outside. She held her ground as she stood, watching as the door swung open and Anthony came slowly outside.

  Instead of running toward the play equipment like she expected him to, Anthony stopped. He looked around then shuffled his foot, moving to sit on the small step by the kitchen door. Melanie frowned. Glancing over the rest of the students outside, she made her way to where Anthony sat on the small cement step and lowered herself to his level.

  “Hey, kid. You finally got here.”

  “Yeah,” Anthony muttered, not looking her in the eye as he shuffled his foot into the pebbles that littered most of the playground.

  “Why were you late?” Melanie cocked her head at him, watching every small movement he made. Something about this kid who was usually full of energy and light, happiness and joy being so sullen unsettled her.

  “Dad.”

  So they were on one word answers today. Seemed as though Anthony and Esther should get together. Maybe they could draw those single words out of each other faster. Melanie withheld the smile at the thought. Except she had gotten far more than one word answers from Esther that morning. Perhaps it was only to prepare her energy for this conversation.

  “Did he oversleep?”

  Anthony shook his head. “No, his new girlfriend forgot when I was supposed to go to school, and they were fighting.”

  “So they forgot to bring you?”

  Nodding, Anthony folded his hands together in his lap. Melanie gently put a hand on his shoulder and tugged him into her side slightly. “Sometimes adults make mistakes.”

  “Yeah, but I don’t like her. She’s not mean or anything, but I just don’t like her.”

  Frowning, Melanie held that comment in the tension of the moment until she decided she could break the silence. “Unfortunately, you don’t have a lot of control over that, do you, kiddo?”

  “No.” Anthony’s foot hit particularly hard on the pebbles. “I don’t like going to Dad’s.”

  “Do you go there often?”

  “No. He doesn’t like me around, so I mostly stay with Mom.”

  “Oh, kiddo, I’m so sorry. You’re having to deal with some really grown up things, and you shouldn’t have to. Do you need to just hang out with me for a bit or do you want to go play with your friends?”

  “I don’t have any friends.” Anthony pouted, his full lower lip poking out.

  Melanie loved it. Kindergartners were so resilient in some ways, and in others when one thing was wrong, it was the end of the world for everything. At least he felt safe enough with her and at the school to share with her. Her heart went out to him, too. She’d seen the same reactions in her own kids as they had grown up and been bounced from house to house with whoever their mother’s current fling was.

  She brushed her hands through the back of Anthony’s hair and sighed. “You have friends, but it’s okay if you don’t want to play with them today and if you want to sit here with me. I just want to make sure you’re going to be okay.”

  He glanced up at her, his eyes full of tears, and he sniffled. “Mom’s probably really worried about me.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Because I was late. Dad wouldn’t answer her phone calls, and I know how much she worries when I’m not where I’m supposed to be.”

  Melanie’s brow drew together as she eyed the playground to make sure the other teacher and para had everything handled. “Did you ask Mrs. Linda in the office if you could call your mom?”

  “She said I couldn’t.”

  “Really?” That didn’t sound like Linda at all, but if it had been a chaotic morning perhaps she had tried to convince Anthony that it wasn’t necessary. Still, Melanie could tell Anthony was obviously upset that he hadn’t been allowed. She wrapped her arm around him a little tighter.

  “Mom always worries, and I know she won’t be able to think if she doesn’t know where I’m at. She tells me that a lot.”

  “Does she?” Melanie stared out at the sea of other kids. She had met some nervous parents in her day, and in some ways, they were getting more nervous as the years continued, so it wasn’t that odd to find someone who was so thrown off by the situation. What she did find interesting was that Anthony seemed far more worried about his mom than the problem with his dad.

  “Do you want me to see if I can talk to Mrs. Linda about calling your mom?” Melanie gave in, some underlying desire to give Anthony what he needed. Normally, she probably wouldn’t, but the way he was acting was so out of his norm that it scared her.

  “Would you?” He sounded so small when he asked.

  Melanie nodded softly. “Yeah, give me a minute.”

  Getting off the step, Melanie headed to her colleagues and told them she needed to take Anthony inside for a minute but that she’d be right back out. When she got to Anthony, she held out her hand for him to take it. She led the way inside to the front office and stopped in front of Linda’s desk.

  She was a decent secretary for the school, but sometimes her sharp personality bothered Melanie. Linda stared them over and leaned back in her chair, her puffy cheeks and beady eyes not helping anything.

  “Weren’t you just in here?” Linda asked, though she didn’t sound angry, rather curious.

  Melanie nodded. “Anthony wants to know if he can call his mom so she knows he made it to school. He thinks she’s pretty worried about him.”

  “I told him his mom would be fine.”

  Anthony squeezed Melanie’s fingers tightly, his head drooping down. Before Melanie could even try again, Chris stepped out of her office, eyeing Melanie and Anthony over. She raised her chin up slightly. “What’s going on?”

  “Anthony wants to call his mom. He was late to school and it was his dad’s day, and he’s worried his mom is worried.”

  Chris’ stare was strong as she waved her hand for Anthony to come with her. Glee filled his gaze as he stepped toward her and into her office. Melanie gave Linda a sharp look of victory. “Just send him back to the playground when he’s done.”

  Without waiting for a response, Melanie headed outside to rejoin the crew there. She had duties she needed to follow, and there was no reason for her to stick around while Anthony made that phone call. Sometimes it paid to have an in with the principal, because she’s pretty sure the only reason Chris even tried to figure out what was going on was because she heard Melanie’s voice.

  She’d never seen Anthony look so melancholic. It was frightening, as if he had a dark side that could very easily rear its ugly head. She would have to pay closer attention to that throughout the rest of the year. She didn’t want him to feel as though he was on his own in the world.

  After five minutes, Anthony came bounding out of the school and onto the playground, this time with a much lighter step. He raced right for her, throwing his arms around her hips as he pressed his face into her belly in a big hug.

  “Thank you!” he squealed as he held her tight. “My mom’s happy.”

  “I’m glad, kiddo.” Melanie gave him a small hug back and then patted his shoulder. “Go play. I know you want to.”

  In seconds, Anthony ran off to the equipment even though there were only two more minutes of recess. Melanie smiled as she watched him run and play, once again the happy boy she knew and was coming to love.

  Chapter Six

  Esther wrapped her arms around Anthony in a tight hug as soon as school ended. She hadn’t managed to find a time throughout the entire day when she could do this, and she had needed it. His phone call earlier that morning had helped, but it wasn’t enough. She needed to touch him, see him, know that he was okay.

  “Mom, I can’t breathe,” Anthony whined.

  “Sorry,” Esther mumbled as she backed away from him on the playground. She straightened her spine and brushed her fingers against his hair. “Where’s your teacher?”

  “She left after lunch, so Mrs. R came to teach us.”

  Esther’s lips quirked. Mrs. R was a regular substitute for the lower grades in their school, and Anthony already had her a couple times. She put her hand against his back and led him toward her classroom. “What do you say we skip daycare and order pizza tonight and have ourselves a little party at home?”

  “Really?” Anthony squealed, his entire body shaking from the excitement.

  She so rarely let him have these moments, so rarely gave in to fun and adventure like this, but she felt it was well deserved after his week away and her week worrying. She needed to spend time with him instead of in her classroom. “Yes.”

  “You’re the best!” He wrapped his arms around her hips again and gave her a tight squeeze. Esther led him into her classroom and packed up the things she would need for the weekend.

  Within thirty minutes, they were walking out to her car, the daycare already called so they knew he wasn’t coming. As soon they were settled and Anthony was in his carseat, Esther turned the radio up, put the windows down, and drove the short few blocks home in a blaze of energy and excitement.

  Anthony settled against her as they snuggled on the couch and waited for the pizza to arrive. He pressed his forehead against her shoulder, shook it rapidly side to side—something she abhorred, but let him do it anyway—and then he sighed.

  “Ms. Przybyla let me call you today.”

  “What?” Esther’s eyes widened in shock, her tone biting even though she didn’t want it to be. He’d already told her why he was late, something she would have words with Skip about later when Anthony wasn’t awake to hear the conversation, but this was new information.

  He nodded. “Mrs. Linda wouldn’t let me, and when I went outside to recess, Mrs. Przybyla saw me and talked to me. When I told her Mrs. Linda wouldn’t let me call you, she took me back inside. I got to call from Principal Murphey's office. It was so cool.”

  Esther’s heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t expected that. Even though being a teacher at the school her son attended sometimes afforded her extra privileges, this wasn’t one she expected to happen. Skip had been an asshole to bring him in so late and not tell her why or what was going on, but to have Anthony’s teacher so generously argue on their behalf was more than she had anticipated.

  That armor she’d felt weakening had a definite chink in it now. Esther couldn’t deny it. She tried to hold back the emotion, but she couldn’t. Instead, she dropped a kiss onto Anthony’s head and snuggled him in closer. “What did she say?”

  “Principal Murphey told me to call you and then go back to recess when I was done.”

  “No, Ms. Przybyla.”

  “Oh.” Anthony frowned. “She was really nice. Gave me a hug because I was worried about you. I knew you would be worried about me.”

  “Oh, Anthony.” Tears welled in Esther’s eyes, and she nestled her nose into his hair. He smelled like Skip’s shampoo, but instead of feeling revolted, this time comfort surrounded her. This was her child, and there was someone else out there who cared about his well-being. Not as much as her—no one could manage that—but at least enough to make sure he wasn’t upset, or to give him the support he needed when he was.

  “I like her.”

  “Yeah?” Esther’s lips quirked up. “She’s a good teacher from what I hear.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, but…she’s nice.”

  Esther frowned at his phrasing. It was almost as though Anthony hadn’t met many nice people in his life, which she knew wasn’t true. Although he had met plenty of the opposite in his short five years as well. Saying nothing, Esther pulled him in closer and simply held him. It was a shared moment of serenity, one she was reluctant to give up when there was a knock.

  She stared at the offending door and waited as Anthony jumped up. She had to calm her racing heart, remind herself that not every knock would result in something bad. Brushing her hands down the front of her pants as she stood, Esther followed Anthony and opened the door as he had waited per the rule of the house.

  She gave a rueful smile to the delivery man when Anthony tried to take the pizzas straight from his hand and juggle them.

  “Sorry,” she muttered before taking the pizzas. “Get the door, bub.”

  Anthony held the door as she walked inside to put the food on the coffee table. It wasn’t long before they finished eating, and Anthony took his bath and went to bed. Hours later, as Esther bent over the work she needed to get done for the next week, she couldn’t stop thinking about the woman who had helped her son.

  In all her years as a single parent, no one had stepped in to help him in that way. Her family would have, if they were closer, Carissa for sure. But they weren’t, and it was so rare that they were able to spend time together that wasn’t a phone call. To hear from Anthony how special Melanie had made him feel warmed Esther.

  Perhaps there was more to Melanie than Esther had allowed. Then again, the niggling voice in the back of her head told her that since Melanie was Anthony’s teacher and since Melanie had been trying to get into Esther’s good graces, she could use one to get the other. But that didn’t seem like something she would do.

  From what Esther had seen of her in all their short awkward interactions, Melanie had never struck her as someone who would use a child to gain the favor of an adult. Not like Skip did, on numerous occasions.