Page 9 of Recipe for Rivals
Alice noticed my defeat. “I think peanut butter sounds good,” she said.
“You’re just saying that,” Ben snapped.
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes you are.”
“No. I really think it. Ilovepeanut butter.”
“Not by itself you don’t.”
“Enough, please,” I asked, and the sharpness in my toneworked. I finished the sandwiches and cut up apples to go in their lunch bags.
“Can I have school lunch instead?” Ben asked, then stuck his tongue out at his younger sister.
It was the final straw. I put down the knife and looked at him. His blond hair stuck up a little in the back and his brown eyes were so defiant, I didn’t want to find any other reasons to put him on edge. This kid was nervous. I could see it in his challenging stare and closed jaw.
“Yes. You can have school lunch. Alice?”
“I want the peanut butter sandwich,” she said, sitting on the floor and looking through the keychains hanging on her backpack. A few of her friends in New York had given them to her as going away presents, and my stomach clenched in response. I wasn’t going to think about the fact that we still didn’t have a couch, let alone a kitchen table, chairs, or real beds. We had lunch and school registration and I had a job. In the triage of my life, I couldn’t let myself think about what I was lacking right now.
“Great.” I pasted on some semblance of a happy face, tossed Ben’s lunch into the fridge for me to eat later, and Alice’s in her backpack. “Let’s go meet your teachers.”
Arcadia Creek Elementary School,home of the Panthers, had the friendliest front desk attendant I’d ever met. Her hair was highlighted and curled within an inch of its life, and I was fairly certain none of her perfect teeth were real, but her smile when she welcomed us gave me a warm, buzzy feeling.
“The Walker family, isn’t it?” she thundered when we entered the office, coming out from behind her desk to greet us. She had the kind of voice that didn’t need a megaphone to reachacross a room. “Welcome to our little school. We areoverjoyedto have you.”
I could sense Ben trying to make up his mind about whether he liked this woman or not, since she was nothing like the staid attendants he was used to. Alice had already begun to soften, though. Her hand still held mine with ferocity, but she wasn’t trying to hide behind my legs any longer.
“I’m Ms. Corbin,” she said, then crouched to reach the kids’ eye level. Her voice lowered in conspiracy. “You both are so lucky—you got the best first and third grade teachers we have. When I read your transcripts, I knew right where you needed to be.”
I glowed a little at this. “That was kind of you.”
She lifted her eyes to me as if just remembering I was in the room. “Oh, don’t mention it, honey.” Her attention returned to the kids. “We want you to have the best experience at Arcadia Creek Elementary. Go Panthers!”
“Isn’t that the same mascot as the high school?” I asked, unable to help it.
“These kids are Panthers now, and they’ll stay Panthers clear until they graduate.” She returned to the computer. “Let me see your driver’s license and I’ll get you in our system, Mrs. Walker.”
“Ms. Walker,” I corrected, fishing in my purse for my wallet. I retrieved my New York license and handed it over.
She put it in a scanner and clicked around the computer for a bit before giving it back. “If you’ll follow me.”
Ben’s teacher was a young woman with curly black hair and a faint drawl. She welcomed him eagerly and showed us around the classroom. She had me write my email address on a Post-It note so she could send me everything I needed to know later. It was seamless. Ben waved at me as his teacher took him by the hand and led him through her back door onto the playground.
Alice’s teacher, Mrs. Vick, was precisely what I’d imaginedMrs. Claus to look like, with white hair drawn back and a rosy-cheeked smile. She spoke softly, ushering Alice toward her desk. “I’ve put you between Lily and Kendall because they are both very kind girls, and they have agreed to help when you need extra guidance. Do you want to come to the playground with me now and we can see if they’ve arrived yet?”
Alice looked at me.
“Go,” I ushered. “I’ll be here to pick you up when school is over.”
She crushed me in a desperate hug that made the back of my eyes prick with emotion.
“We’ll have a lovely day, Ms. Walker. Don’t you worry about us,” Mrs. Vick said, taking Alice by the hand.
I left the school feeling like my world was imploding, and I didn’t quite know why. Cold air stung my nose. I reached for my phone, finding Carter’s number like a reflex. It was ringing and nestled against my ear before I could think better of it.
“Nova? Is something wrong?” He sounded out of breath.