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Jamie slings her lanyard around her neck and gives me one last look before stepping toward the door.

“Hate to break it to you,” she says over her shoulder, “but you met the right person ten years ago. You just need to buck up and tell him you’re still in love with him.”

My stomach drops.

“That’s not funny.” I call after her.

She just smirks and disappears into the hallway.

And I’m left standing in my classroom, heart pounding like she didn’t just casually say the one thing I still refuse to say out loud.

Chapter five

Simon

“Theo! Daddy’s here!” one of the afternoon teachers calls toward the playground.

There are a lot of young women who work the close shift here. Most of them smile a little too long when I show up. I try not to encourage it. I’m just here for my kid.

I’m usually one of the first parents in the pickup line. Some days they’re still waking Theo up from nap when I get here. Today traffic backed up on the highway, so it’s closer to three than two-thirty.

Theo prefers my days. Not because I’m more fun—though I absolutely am—but because I pick up earlier than Blaire. I’ve explained more than once that it’s barely an hour difference. He doesn’t care.

“Mr. Crane.”

I turn to see Ms. Alvarez, Theo’s lead teacher.She's one of the only staff members here who doesn’t look at me like I’m a piece of meat. So she's my favorite teacher here.

“This week is Donuts with Dad. We sent the flyer home with Mom a week ago, but we haven’t heard if you’ll be attending?”

Theo slams into my legs at the same time she finishes talking. I steady him with a hand on his shoulder and ruffle his hair.

“Uh, yeah. I’ll be there,” I say automatically. “When is it?”

“Wednesday at 9 a.m.”

Right. The flyer. I vaguely remember Blaire texting me a picture of it while I was in the middle of weapons training. Then Veronica came over that night and it slipped my mind.

“Mama said Papa will be there!” Theo announces proudly.

Of course she did.

Which means when I didn’t respond, Blaire assumed I might miss it. Assumed Theo would be sitting there without someone. So she called her dad.

Great.

Richard is a good man. Always has been. When my own dad was barely around and my mom was working double shifts, their house became my second home. Richard taught me how to change oil. Helped me study for finals. Treated me like family.

He also hasn’t let me forget that I walked away from his daughter.

I don’t blame him.

“I’ll be there,” I tell Theo, keeping my voice upbeat. “You’ll just have two people.”

Theo’s eyes go wide. “Two?”

“Two,” I confirm.

“Sounds amazing,” Ms. Alvarez says with a smile. “Have a good night, Theo. We’ll see you tomorrow.”