He hung up, went to the bathroom, served himself another bourbon, then sat down at the desk and turned on the tablet. His home screen showed an impending storm moving in, and he frowned. Maybe he should wait to check out the information Esme gave him and beat the cold front that would be sweeping east from Texas, making traffic a bigger headache than usual. He checked a sports score he didn’t care about, the headlines and markets, and then he realized he couldn’t bring himself to find out that Luz wasn’t who he believed she was. He couldn’t bring himself to find her a woman capable of injuring a child out of vengeance. Even if she’d been cleared, maybe…cursing at himself, he typed in her name and then added “Atlanta teacher.”
The stories popped up at once. “Atlanta Teacher Accused of Drugging Stepdaughter.” “Atlanta Teacher of the Year Placed on Leave.”
Reading through the reports chilled him. The little girl, Lily, had almost died of an overdose of a migraine medication. Luz carried her prescription for the medicine in her purse, and while she insisted the purse had been locked in the closet, Lily’s mother forged ahead with accusations that Luz had threatened Lily when Brian asked her for a divorce.
Anger directed at Luz faded as he followed the legal tangle through almost four years, and disgust at the people involved overwhelmed him. Rich-boy Brian apparently simply slunk away, not defending his wife, nor supporting his ex’s claims, simply vanishing from much of the media coverage.
Ultimately, though, Aaron loathed himself far more than the cheating ex-husband or the vicious, drug-addled woman or the fair-weather friends and colleagues who seemed not to support Luz until after the case ended in her acquittal.
He’d blown it. Just flat blown it to freaking hell. Furious at himself, Aaron grabbed the plastic bottle of tea beside him and hurled it across the room, watching it bounce off the wall.
Something akin to common sense pushed into his consciousness and he fought to control the fury scorching him from the inside out.
He looked at the clock—almost six-thirty. If he called Chloe, could he bear to hear her anger? Her hurt? But even when he’d traveled constantly, he’d called her every day. He couldn’t take the easy road and not call.
Chloe wouldn’t answer the phone. Esmeralda would.
He wanted to grab the bottle of bourbon and empty it. He’d already drunk more than he had since his aunt’s death, though, and he wanted to make the long drive back from Alabaster early. Try to get there soon enough to retrieve his daughter from Esmeralda’s manipulative hands. He jumped to his feet and walked around the room, kicking the couch once before reminding himself that he didn’t need to get himself arrested for throwing a temper tantrum.
He couldn’t blame Chloe’s temper on Stella alone, it seemed.
God, he hated being used. He’d let Stella use him, and the result had been to come within inches of losing his little girl. The counselor had used him, and he’d just rolled over and let her. Fallen for her tricks again.
He could hear the smugness now; the same cattiness the counselor had used to insult Luz’s taste in men—and the imaginary boyfriend. Why hadn’t he heard it when she first called? What did it say that he’d been so quick to believe Luz might pose a threat to Chloe? He tried to remind himself that Brian had turned up in her life again, but knew he was grasping at very flimsy straws. Suddenly, he had new understanding of why Luz struggled to believe that Esmeralda meant nothing to him. A carefully constructed piece of gossip and he’d been swamped with jealousy. But he hadn’t realized his own doubts until they’d completely destroyed every step forward he thought he’d taken by reaching out to Luz. By trusting her with Chloe. Luz wouldn’t forgive him. He searched for a lie, a reason why he’d had Chloe removed from her care. Nothing came to mind, and he wouldn’t use it if it did. She deserved better than what he’d given her, dammit, even if he’d been too stupid to see that in time. He walked back over and sank down on the couch.
“Atlanta Teacher Cleared of Wrongdoing.” The story still on the screen taunted him.
The picture under the headline was Luz, flanked by her parents—he knew them from the pictures at her house. She had her mother’s smile and there were tears in her eyes as the three walked down court stairs surrounded by a press of people. Those were happy tears, though. Was she crying now, crying for Chloe? Over his betrayal?
He almost wished remorse hadn’t hit him so quickly and so hard. Maybe he should have waited until he drove back to look up the news stories. Then he wouldn’t feel so worthless. How could he have listened to Esmeralda’s carefully chosen words and been such an ass?
He drew in a deep breath, feeling pain go clear through. Then he reached for the phone to call his daughter, but as he dialed the number, he didn’t see Chloe’s stricken face, but Luz’s.
• • •
Mrs. Carter reappeared at the door, her face full of worry. “Miss Wilkinson,” she said formally, “may I speak to you outside please?”
Luz followed her into the hall, surprised by the principal’s sudden change of tone. The woman sounded somber, not supportive as she had when she’d booted Brian out of the room. A chill shivered down her spine. Not again. The thought was insane, she’d done nothing wrong. But she hadn’t done anything wrong before, either, and she’d spent years and a small fortune proving it.
“I’ve had a call from Chloe’s father,” she whispered.
Luz’s heart thudded. Had something happened to him? The stab of fear she felt surprised her—he shouldn’t mean that much to her.
“He’s fine, but…” Surprisingly, Mrs. Carter fidgeted and colored slightly, obviously uncomfortable with what was coming.
“Ms. Salinas will be taking Chloe home with her and keeping her until he returns. She’s been counseling Chloe, you know, and well—he just wanted me to let you know.”
The shock of seeing Brian was nothing compared to the dagger thrust into her by Mrs. Carter’s words. She clenched her hands into fists, dug her nails into her palms, and waited for the roar of blood through her head to subside and the dizziness to stop.
Again. Dammit, again.
But why? He couldn’t have changed his mind after he talked to her last night. The three of them ate ice cream while Aaron presented lists of rules and phone numbers, and joked about being over protective. He’d left Chloe at her house around eight and everything was fine.
She forced herself to remain impassive, an employee listening to her boss give orders. Tried to force herself not to remember Chloe’s shy goodnight kiss, and how she’d gone to the bedroom door three times to lean on the doorjamb and smile in at the little girl sleeping in her own old room.
Last night she’d relished the feeling of having a child staying over again. Last night, Aaron had trusted her with that child, and she’d relished the feeling of him trusting her that much, too. But all that warmth, the feelings of renewed purpose—that had been last night, apparently. What had happened today?
For a minute, she tried to find an excuse, a reason. Some new problem turned up in Alabaster, and he’d wanted to be sure Chloe would be okay, psychologically. But that didn’t make sense. She pushed the futile effort aside. Better simply not to think.
“Ms. Wilkinson—Luz—are you okay?” Concern replaced the hardness in the principal’s face.
Luz smiled and nodded. “Of course, Mrs. Carter. Thanks for letting me know.”
She stood in the hall and watched the woman walk away, discarding every flimsy excuse she’d tried to conjure up. No. I will not cling to false hopes. I will not believe lies and truth are all the same—I did that before. And I lost Lily.
The first graders were lifting their chairs up on top of their desks. The unholy racket slowly penetrated, and she turned back to them with a huge fake smile. “Time to go, I guess? You all are a wonderful class.”
Someone— Miranda? —asked if she’d be back tomorrow. She said she would, but the circumstances of being hit with such dire news brought back unwelcome memories of Atlanta. She
’d been escorted out of her room without explanation, after the paramedics had taken Lily away. Only later had the significance of what had happened been driven home.
She nodded anyway. “Yes, unless Ms. Baker’s mom is well enough that Ms. Baker can be here.” Another forced smile. “I know she must miss all of you.”
She led the procession down the hall to the gym, and turned them over to the security personnel who released them. Chloe walked with the line, but ran up to her, green eyes joyful. “We can go now, right, Lu—Ms. Wilkinson?”
She took Chloe’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Let’s walk back to the room.”
On the way, Chloe babbled excitedly, but when Luz didn’t respond, she seemed to realize something was wrong. When Luz opened the door for her, Chloe barely walked into the room before she spun around to ask questions.
“Luz, what’s wrong? You aren’t saying anything! I know I’m not supposed to talk in the hall, but—”
“Ssssh.” Luz drew a chair over to her desk. “Sit with me.”
Chloe sank into the chair, and worry darkening her eyes. Luz’s eyes stung, but she blinked once and drew a deep breath. Chloe would be upset enough.
“Your dad called Mrs. Carter.” She hesitated, but couldn’t think of any way to explain, so she just said it. “Ms. Salinas is taking you home instead of me. I guess she’ll go pick up everything after school.”
“What—no. No!” Chloe pounded the chair with her small, clenched hand. “You said I could stay! Why don’t you want—”
Tears streamed down her face, and she choked on sobs.
“Sweetheart, I want you to stay. But for some reason, your father thought that Ms. Salinas would have a better place for you.” Helpless in the face of Chloe’s tears, she tried to think of something to offer the girl. Nothing came. “Maybe he was afraid we’d stay up all night visiting or riding.”
Chloe jumped up. “I’m not going! Call my dad! I want to talk to my dad!”
“Your dad will talk to you tonight, Chloe.” Esmeralda stepped into the room. For a brief moment, Luz could swear she looked embarrassed. Sorry. For what?
But she knew, didn’t she? Any chance of pretending this wasn’t what it looked like fled. Esmeralda Salinas had convinced Aaron that she was the better woman to leave Chloe with—the better woman, period.
“Chloe, let’s take you home. Mr. Thompson is letting me into your house to pick up enough for just tonight—your dad will be home tomorrow. And he’ll call in a bit to say hello to you.”
She nodded at Luz. “Good afternoon, Ms. Wilkinson.”
“Luz, I don’t want to go.”
Luz walked over and wiped her hands across the girl’s cheeks, drying her tears, then reached for the tissue box on the edge of her desk. “Here.”
After Chloe took a handful of tissue, Luz wrapped her arms around Chloe’s shoulders and hugged her. “Talk to you later,” she murmured, and drew away.
“Come on, Chloe. Let’s go get your stuff and some food,” the counselor said, and escorted her out of the room.
Luz closed the door and sank into the swivel chair behind the desk. She propped her elbows on the desk and covered her face. But she’d be damned if she cried.
Emotional and physical exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her, and unwilling to risk falling asleep and cause more speculation—undoubtedly everyone at the school at least knew about Brian’s visit—she straightened and fished in the drawer for her purse.
Behind her, someone tapped on the door. Half afraid to turn and find Brian again, she almost gasped when Ross Thurmond stepped into the room, tipping his ball cap.
“Hi, Lu—Ms. Wilkinson.” He gave her his mirthless smile. “I heard you were teaching today for Ms. Baker. Bet you’re glad to be back with little ones, after leaving your job to care for your momma and all.”
She stood, managing her own joyless smile, relieved that he didn’t know how her teaching career had ended. Did Esmeralda? She shook off her vague unease.
“I’m surprised to see you here,” she admitted.
“Oh, I work for the school off and on. They got their own, of course, but you know how it is—some things can’t wait for the maintenance guys from the main office to come. The big kids busted some faucets clean off the sinks, and they needed help pronto. Already fixed them.”
“Great.” She took a tentative step toward the door, but the handyman moved with her.
The school district employed him. There were cameras in the hall, and she’d known him, sort of, for years. She forced herself not to sidle a little farther away.
“Miss Luz, can I talk to you? You know, ’fore we get to the front and all those custodians and everyone listens in.”
“Well—”
He stopped, and she watched as he pulled the worn cap off completely.
“Just wanted to say, I figgered out that my showing up at your place, like when I went into your house and all—well, I just always did that when your mom was there. She’d have been hurt if I’d waited for her to ask me in. Your dad, too, but of course he was gone sooner.” He paused, worrying the hat. “Sorry. Don’t mean to make you feel bad. Just wanted you to know—I didn’t mean nothin’. Just what I was used to.”
She reached out and touched his arm. “Thanks, Ross. Living in a big city kind of changes our habits, I guess.” She felt relieved, in a way, that he’d stopped her. She’d let memories and Aaron’s apprehensions blind her to a man everyone in town thought eccentric but honest.
“Well, good afternoon. Be seein’ you around,” Ross finished, and ambled off toward the exit.
People in the office called goodbye as she signed out and left. Luckily, no one asked her about Brian. Or Aaron. But she realized as she got into the truck, she didn’t want to go home. She’d have to—the animals needed feeding—but she couldn’t face the unexpected feeling of aloneness just yet. So she headed to Ann’s office, glad it was just a couple of blocks away.
Ann didn’t have anyone in the waiting room, and her assistant Teri looked up from a textbook and smiled.
“Hi, Luz. You look dressed up today!”
“Subbed at the elementary school. How’s your semester going?”
“Good.” She smiled. “I might even finish sometime.”
“Is Ann—”
“Come on back,” Ann called from her office.
The vet looked pale and irritated, but she immediately focused a sharp gaze on Luz.
“What’s wrong?” she demanded.
“Hit me if I cry?”
“That bad?” Ann wiped a hand across her forehead and gulped air. “Okay. You hit me if I puke.”
“Morning sickness?”
“Yeah, but mine lasts twenty-four hours a day.”
“Like your job.” Luz hoisted herself onto the stool that she knew Ann once preferred, and tried to pretend nothing was wrong.
Ann shifted in her chair and reached for the glass of water on her desk. “Used to be this time of day Ram and I would have a beer,” she grumbled. “Now I’ll be drinking this crap ’til the baby comes.”
“That ‘crap’ is called water,” Luz reminded her. “You’ve been on my case since you met me because I don’t drink enough.”
“Yeah, whatever. So what’s up? Missing Aaron already?”
“Aaron!” She practically spat his name out.
“I see,” Ann muttered. “Come on over to the house, Luz.” I can drink crap and hate you while you guzzle wine.”
“Almost wish I could.” Luz sighed. “But I’m not a bum anymore, remember?” She looked around the tiny space and slid off the stool. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Fifteen
Luz wasn’t sure how she got through the next day. Chloe came, silent and withdrawn, answering politely but robotically. Then there was the chaos of fire drills and lockdowns, and lunch in the room because of a state test, but she could cope automatically with the regular craziness. She couldn’t deal with seeing Esmeralda up and down the halls, or th
e thought that when the final bell rang, she’d go home again. Alone.
But this time, at least, she knew it was coming. And there wouldn’t be another time. Chloe wasn’t to blame in any of this, and if her father wanted to drop her off again to ride, that would be fine. But there wouldn’t be any more dinners. Or hugs.
Or sleepovers. Even if they were nothing more than sleepovers to please a little girl who’d lost a lot.
On her way out, Mrs. Carter stopped her. “Luz, Joannie’s coming back tomorrow. Her mother’s doing fine now.”
“I’m so glad,” Luz replied sincerely. “Her class misses her.”
“Thanks for stepping in—I’d have been in a bind without you.”
“No problem.”
The principal seemed reluctant to let her escape though, walking with her to the door after she signed out.
“I’m real sorry about letting your ex-husband in. He just sounded so lonely, like he really thought y’all were getting back together—”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Well, if I ever need a teacher—” She cocked her head, considering. “Would you consider teaching again? Here?”
Would you fire Esmeralda Salinas for me? She shook her head gently. “I don’t think so, Mrs. Carter. I just don’t think it’s my calling anymore.”
“Well, keep us in mind if you change your mind,” Mrs. Carter insisted, and Luz nodded and stepped out, surprised to find that wind was beginning to sweep in from the north and dust eddied around the parking lot.
She hadn’t watched the weather last night. She’d stayed late visiting Ann and her husband, gone home to feed the animals, and fallen asleep.
Tonight she doubted she’d be so lucky. She didn’t have to wake up at the break of dawn. She’d probably be up late tonight, making sure the animals were secure, and taking all of Chloe’s things out of her room, where’d she stored them, and putting them by the door.
On the short drive home, the weather worsened. Clouds started moving in, and rain started to pelt the windshield as the temperature plummeted.
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