by Lee McKenzie
You were right about compromise. Thank you.
That should do it. It sounded formal but he couldn’t bring himself to use the accepted shorthand and symbols that kids used in text messages, though, so he left it as it was, punched in her number and sent it. Her reply came a moment later.
U R welcome. Knew U cld do it. Congrats! :-)
He smiled, set the phone on the counter, picked it up, read it again. Kate was right. Sarah was pretty cool. Maybe he should reply. He typed:
:-)
Delete, delete, delete.
He didn’t know why it seemed lame when he did it, but it did. Better to leave things as they were. Kate was home where she belonged. He and Sarah were on good terms. There was a school dance on Friday. For now he could finally say life is good, and he’d like it to stay that way.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON, Sarah was in her office when Kate arrived at the store.
“Is there anything you’d like me to do?” she asked.
“Before we get started, I’d like you to come in and sit down.” Sarah took her briefcase off the spare chair and patted the seat. “The first thing we’re going to do is set some ground rules.” She stopped short of tacking a stern “young lady” to the end of her sentence.
Kate, who apparently reserved her derisive eye roll for her father, sat with her gaze lowered to the hands folded sedately in her lap. “My dad knows I’m here.”
“I know he does. He called before he went to soccer practice to let me know you were on your way.” Half expecting some attitude from the girl, Sarah softened her tone a little. “He and I were worried sick when you and Casey took off after school the other day.”
Kate looked up then, and for the first time since that night, there was genuine concern in her eyes. “It wasn’t Casey’s fault. She was worried, too, and she wanted to go with me so I wouldn’t be alone, but I shouldn’t have let her.”
“You’re right about that, and you shouldn’t have gone, either.”
A spark of defiance glittered in the girl’s eyes, and faded almost as fast. “I know. My dad and I talked and he said he was going to lighten up.”
“He loves you, you know. He only wants what’s best for you.”
“I know, but he never used to ask what I wanted.”
Sarah took one of Kate’s slender hands in both of hers, thinking the iciness of the girl’s skin was a good match for her demeanor. “Did you ever think you should tell him?”
“No. I figured he’d think my ideas were dumb. He probably still thinks I should be a lawyer or something.”
“Did he say that?”
“No, but he’s all about wanting me to study all the time and get good grades and stuff.”
“So why don’t you tell me what you see yourself doing someday.” She had already heard it from Casey, but she wanted Kate to actually say it out loud to a grown-up.
“I want to work for a fashion magazine.”
“What’s your favorite magazine?”
“Seventeen.” She said it without hesitation.
“And what do you see yourself doing if you get a job there?”
The girl shrugged, as though nothing she dreamed of doing someday had any validity. “Photography, maybe. Writing articles about designers and celebrities.”
“Being a journalist would be a really interesting job.”
Seemingly buoyed up by a little positive reinforcement, Kate continued. “I wouldn’t stay doing that forever, though. Someday I want to be editor in chief of a magazine like that.”
“What sort of education do you think a person would need to land a job like that?”
Kate shrugged again.
“A college degree, for sure. Something like journalism, or maybe business administration.”
“I guess.”
“And good photography is all about light and angles and exposures. Remind you of anything?”
Kate scrunched her nose. “Science and geometry?”
“That’s right. And the editor in chief of a big fashion magazine would need to understand budgets and finances.”
“And that means math.”
The resignation in her voice made Sarah laugh. “I’m afraid so.”
“Did you help Casey figure out what she needs to do to be a veterinarian?”
Interesting question, and one that required a careful answer.
“Not exactly.”
Sarah had always known her daughter was not like most kids, and to draw a comparison between Casey and Kate wouldn’t be fair to either girl.
“Casey decided she wanted to be a vet when she was in kindergarten. I’m not sure how she came up with the idea. We didn’t have any pets and so she’d never actually met a veterinarian.” Her father had still been alive at that time, drinking heavily, burning through money faster than he could earn it. A pet, no matter how much Casey would have benefited from having one, would have been an extravagance they couldn’t afford.
“That’s so Casey,” Kate said. “For someone who’s supersmart, I figured she’d be a total nerd. She’s not, though. She’s pretty cool.”
Sarah’s heart swelled. These were things she’d always known about her daughter, but hearing someone else say them, especially one of her peers, was a gift. But this conversation was about another girl, one who was every bit as smart but, for reasons Sarah didn’t fully understand, lacked the self-confidence to believe it.
“There’s a chance I could be biased...but yes, she’s a pretty cool kid. And so are you. You’re smart. You’re really good with computers. The write-ups you’ve put on our social media sites are brilliant, you’re great with customers, and you have an eye for design. I’ve noticed the outfits you put together for yourself, and I saw how easily you put together the window display here in the store. I think a career in fashion is perfect for you, and any magazine would be lucky to have you.”
Sarah was reminded of a flower blossoming as she watched Kate’s features soften and her color heighten.
“Would you maybe consider telling this to my dad? He thinks all this stuff is lame.”
Hearing things from Sarah wouldn’t have half the impact on Jonathan as hearing it directly from his daughter. She’d been really pleased to hear he’d followed her advice and had a heart-to-heart talk with Kate after they’d brought the girls home, but it sounded as though they still had a way to go before the lines of communication were flowing as they should. Between Kate’s attitude and Jonathan’s opinions, she could imagine how that conversation might go.
“I have a better idea. How would you like to write a blog post for the store’s website?”
“Sure, but I don’t see what that has to do with my dad.”
“That’s because I haven’t given you the topic yet.”
A little of Kate’s earlier wariness was back. “You make this sound like school.”
Sarah laughed. “I hope it’ll be more fun than that. I’d like you to write about the things we talked about this afternoon. About your goal to work for a fashion magazine someday and about the things you’ll need to do to achieve that goal.”
“And you think he’ll read it?” Kate asked, clearly skeptical.
“I’ll make sure he reads it.”
“Really? What about your customers? Don’t they want to read about current fashion trends, the new merchandise you’re bringing in, stuff like that?”
“My customers will love finding out there’s a budding fashionista in our midst, I guarantee it. And your dad will be proud of you. I can guarantee that, too.”
“You really think he will?”
“I know he will.”
“Okay. I’ll do it! Is there anything you’d like me to do today?”
“I have to finish t
he accounts I’m working on. Juliet is on her own out front and it would be great if you could give her a hand with customers and the new window display.”
“Sure.” But the girl remained seated.
“Is there something else?” Sarah asked.
“It’s just...I just wanted to say that Casey...she’s lucky. You know, to have you as her mom.”
Even if Sarah could have spoken at that moment, she wouldn’t have known what to say. So instead she reached out and hugged the girl.
“Thank you, Kate,” she whispered when she was finally able to speak. “That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
Kate wriggled out of the embrace and jumped to her feet, keeping her head turned away. Sarah knew the gesture was meant to keep her from seeing the tears.
“Okay. That’s...it’s...all good. I’d better get out there and see if Juliet needs some help.”
Sarah watched her go, glad they’d had this talk. After dinner tonight, she would tell Jonathan about it. He was a good father, a great one, and Kate was a great kid. It bothered her that at no time during this conversation had Kate mentioned her mother’s expectations. Under the circumstances, Sarah hadn’t wanted to ask what those might be, but surely Georgette must have some.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ON FRIDAY EVENING, Sarah left the house with Casey and Kate in their freshman dance finery and drove to the school. As a teacher-chaperone, Jonathan had to be there before the doors opened. The girls hadn’t wanted to be the first to arrive, though, so Sarah agreed to drive them to the school at a time that was just late enough to be fashionable but not so late that they missed anything.
Inside, the school gym looked straight out of a movie set. A disco ball glittered high above the center of the dance floor and tables draped with white cloths lined the perimeter. She couldn’t identify the song that was playing although she had heard it on the radio. The dance floor was empty but that would change soon enough.
“Wow, you girls did a great job with the decorations.”
Casey and Kate had volunteered for the dance committee and had stayed after school to decorate the gym. Sarah had picked them up after she closed the store and they’d arrived home in time to enjoy Jonathan’s homemade spaghetti and meatballs, served with a big tossed salad and a loaf of garlic bread. There was a lot to be said for a man who knew his way around a kitchen.
After dinner, he had returned to the school and she stayed to clean up his kitchen while the girls fussed with hair and makeup and changed outfits several times before each was satisfied with her appearance. Kate’s preening didn’t surprise her one bit, but this was completely new for Casey. Sarah had to admit she was more than a little intrigued.
“Look what we did with the tables,” Casey said. “The centerpieces were Kate’s idea.”
“They’re beautiful.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Sarah had left the store in Juliet’s very capable hands so she could drive the girls down to Sechelt to shop for decorations. At Kate’s insistence, they had chosen small disco ball ornaments in several sizes, battery-operated LED candles because open flames in the school gym were strictly forbidden, and spools of silver ribbon. At the time Sarah had known the girl would come up with something amazing, and she certainly had.
Strings of tiny white lights had been used to disguise gym fixtures, and between those and the disco ball and the faux candlelight reflecting off the table ornaments, the room was filled with sparkle and bling.
“Great job,” Sarah said. “Very classy.” She would make sure Kate’s dad knew his daughter was the mastermind behind the stunning decor.
Speaking of Jonathan...
She scanned the room and found him on the opposite side near the DJ booth angled into a corner. Even from this distance, she knew his smile and nod were for her. The hands of the clock flew in reverse, the pages of the calendar flipped back in time, and for a few heartbeats she was at her very own first high school dance, wondering if the boy she liked might ask her to dance. Back then, he hadn’t. Tonight, he might.
Were chaperones allowed to dance? As if she cared! For once in her life she was open to breaking a few rules.
She turned her attention back to the girls, watching them rush to join their friends. Casey was wearing her powder-pink cap-sleeved top with a slim dark gray knee-length skirt that Kate had insisted she borrow and a pair of black ballet flats. She had refused to wear the heels Kate had wanted to lend her, saying she was already tall enough. Her long blond hair, freed from its usual ponytail, had been pulled away from her face, fastened at the back with a large rhinestone-encrusted clip and left to cascade down her back in a river of loose curls. And all the credit went to Kate. She had pulled off what Sarah had never been able to accomplish.
Now, as she watched her daughter, this amazing and exuberant kid who had suddenly blossomed into a confident young woman right before her eyes, she felt her chest tighten. She had anticipated this moment, so why did it feel as though it was happening too soon?
“Hi. You look nice tonight.”
She hadn’t seen Jonathan make his way across the gym, but she smiled up at him, happy for the distraction. He always looked good but tonight, in black jeans with a black turtleneck pullover under a charcoal jacket, he sort of took her breath away.
“So do you,” she said.
“Trying to look like an authority figure. Is it working?”
He looked like a movie star. “I’m sure all these kids will take one look at you and be on their best behavior.”
He laughed at that. “Then mission accomplished.” She watched him search out his daughter. “How long did it take the girls to get ready?”
“The better part of an hour, and that included several trips between your place and mine to figure out what they were going to wear. Kate even convinced my daughter to lose the ponytail and experiment with a little makeup. They both look great, don’t you think?”
She glanced up and watched Jonathan watching them. “They do,” he said. “The boys seem to think so, too.”
It hadn’t escaped her that right after Casey and Kate met up with Alycia at one of the tables, three boys joined them. Henry she already knew, and she was still trying to adjust to how much he’d changed over the summer. Thanks to a major growth spurt, he was now as tall as Casey. Sarah was willing to guess the other boys were Brody and Dexter. From listening to Casey and Kate, she knew Alycia and Brody were already an item, and it was clear that Henry had a thing for Kate. That left Dexter and her daughter. He was only slightly taller than Casey, which might account for her daughter’s reluctance to wear heels. He was a nice-looking boy, dressed in jeans and a leather jacket that were probably meant to make him look less clean-cut than he clearly was.
“I have a feeling the next few years won’t be easy ones,” Sarah said.
Jonathan sighed. “I did not need to hear that.”
Sarah smiled. “They’re smart girls. As long as they know we trust them, and as long we keep the lines of communication open—”
“Communication,” he repeated. “I think I’m finally starting to get the hang of it.”
“How have things been with you and Kate? The two of you seemed fine over dinner.” Kate had jokingly suggested he needed an apron after he sampled the spaghetti sauce and dribbled some down the front of his T-shirt, and he had affectionately pointed out that she was on laundry duty this weekend.
“Considering how it started, it’s been an okay week. She’s already caught up on homework assignments, and she got a C-plus on an English essay she turned in yesterday. And she talks nonstop about helping out at your store, so thank you again for giving her that opportunity.”
It was almost impossible to believe that less than a week ago he’d been so angry when he found out Kate had been coming to the store behind his back.
/> “No need to thank me. She’s a big help around the store, great with customers. I’d like to talk to you about putting her on my payroll—fourteen-year-olds are allowed to have part-time jobs as long as they have a parent’s permission, and there’s a little paperwork that needs to be done—but I didn’t want to mention it at dinner tonight in case you want to think it over.” Or say no altogether, which was his prerogative although she hoped he wouldn’t exercise it.
“I think it’s a great idea.”
She hadn’t expected such a quick response. “Thank you. Would you like to tell her?”
“No, I think you should. It’ll mean more if she hears it from you.”
“All right, but I’m still going to insist that she ask for your permission.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.”
In the flickering light, his eyes went from dark to blue and dark again, and for a second or two she almost forgot what they were talking about.
“Kate told me about the talk you had with her yesterday,” he said. “About the education she’ll need to work for a magazine.”
“Landing a job with a big magazine will take hard work and commitment, not to mention a good education.”
“And she took everything you said to heart. Over dinner last night she told me she’s going to look into colleges that have a journalism program. I sure wasn’t expecting that.”
Sarah was pleasantly surprised, too.
The music cut out then while the student council president, a senior who Sarah recognized as one of her customers, took the microphone and welcomed the freshmen to Serenity Bay High and then went on to describe some of the prizes that would be given out that evening. “But,” she said, “you have to be on the dance floor to have a chance of winning!”
The music was louder when it came back on, and conversation was no longer easy.
