I killed the engine, flexing my fingers on the steering wheel a few times before turning around to look at Tammy. “You ready?”

“Of course.” She didn’t snort but she did roll her eyes, glancing over at Kitty. “Did you remember to bring the note from the doctor about letting you leave to use the restroom whenever it’s necessary?”

“Oh, yes.” The day of literal rest had done Kitty a world of good, putting color back in her cheeks and chasing away the shadows under her eyes. She was bright and chipper and entirely too happy for someone who was not only headed to school but also eight months pregnant. She patted the messenger bag I’d given her to use in lieu of a backpack and said, “I’ve got it right here, along with my vitamins and some granola bars and orange juice, in case my blood sugar gets low.”

“Seriously, Kitty, if you start feeling faint or sick or just not well, you eat something. If one of the teachers has a problem, they can contact me.” Kitty’s visit to the doctor the previous Thursday had turned out to be her first—apparently her parents didn’t believe in prenatal care anymore than they believed in being decent human beings. The only reason the doctor hadn’t flipped out about the lack of medical attention was Kitty mentioning she’d been taking all-in-one vitamins and drinking extra milk and eating lots of green vegetables and red meat. He’d put her through a battery of tests and the only thing which seemed a little off was her blood sugar, hence the snacks and the note. Shifting my gaze to Dolly, I said, “What about you? Are you ready?”

“Yep.” She beamed at me, as perfect ad put together as her older sister, something I knew wouldn’t be the case by the end of the day. “I want Abraham to take me.”

“Well, then, I would suggest you ask him.” I looked at him, suppressing a snicker as the color drained out of his face. He’d insisted on going with me to take the kids to school, even though I’d told him I was pretty sure I could handle it by myself. I’d wait until we were alone to say I’d told him so. “Dolly?”

“Abraham, would you take me to my classroom, please?” She leaned forward, resting her chin on the top of the seat, fluttering her lashes dramatically. “Pretty please?”

“Sure.” His smile was a shade on the sickly side but he managed to pull it off. “Uh, do you know who you have this year?”

“Mrs. Sheriff Pete.” She leaned over further, pressing a big, smacking kiss to his cheek. “Thank you, Abraham.”

“So that’s all squared away.” I ruffled Conway’s hair, laughing when he scowled up at me. “Look like you’re stuck with me, kid.” Which was probably for the best. I had a feeling I was going to have to spend more than a few minutes speaking with his teacher and I’d rather not have to worry about Dolly at the same time. I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened my door. “Let’s go kick Monday’s ass.”

“Aunt Jeannie—.”

“I swear to Jesus, Tammy, if you say something about my language, I’m changing my mind about that sleepover on Friday.” I waited for Conway to scramble out after me, taking the backpack he handed me and slinging it over one shoulder before lifting him up and settling him on the opposite hip. Slamming the door shut, I marched across the parking lot, trusting the others were following me. When we reached the front door, I paused, glancing back at Abraham. “So I’ll meet you here when everybody is settled—sound good?”

“Uh, yeah.” Even with his face tinged a pale, seaweed green, he was still attractive enough to have three quarters of the women, teenagers and parents alike, ogling him as they moved past him in to the building. He took Dolly’s hand, looking down at her and saying, “Lead the way, ma’am.”

“I have practice after school so I won’t be home until between four-thirty and five.” Tammy linked arms with Kitty, stopping long enough to kiss my cheek and, to both his and my surprise, Abraham’s before all but skipping inside the main building.

“Maybe I’m wrong but I get the feelings she’s excited about education.” I squared my shoulders and set my face in mock stern lines, leaning in and pressing my nose to Conway’s. “Let’s do this.”

Like the majority of everything else in Cotton Creek, the school may have had some improvement but overall it had seen better days. The school district may have painted the walls since I’d graduated but judging by the way my shoes stuck to the linoleum, the same couldn’t be said for the floor. The administration and teacher’s areas were still smack dab in the center, with the three school—elementary, junior high, and senior high—each branching off to their own wing. All in all, it was a neat and tidy setup, although the main building was something of a zoo first thing in the morning.

Yanking open the office door, I shoved my way inside just as what looked like the junior high pep squad started a ‘welcome back to school’ routine, practically stumbling headfirst in to the counter. I shook my hair out of my face, my smile freezing in place when I realized who was apparently running student check-in. “Dana?”

“Jeannie.” My one consolation was she looked as unhappy to see me as I was to see her. Her gaze drifted to Conway for all of five seconds before snapping back to me, widening her eyes slightly. “First day of kindergarten?”

“Uh, yeah, I didn’t know about the whole ‘meet the teacher’ thing so here we are.” Even to my own ears I sounded lame and scattered and I straightened my shoulders, smiling brighter in an effort to appear more like a put-together adult than I felt in the moment. “The two older girls already know the routine and Dolly claimed Abraham so it’s me and Conway.”

“Well, Mr. Conway is in luck because Miss Suzie Q is teaching kindergarten this year.” Dana’s smile was easily as bright as mine although hers looked as if it might actually be genuine. She turned to Conway, bracing her elbows on the counter and leaning toward him. “You know Miss Suzie Q from Sunday school, don’t you?”

When Conway didn’t answer right away, I gave him a small bounce. “Remember the conversation we had about answering adults when they ask you a question?” At least I thought we’d had the conversation. I’d certainly intended to talk to him about his tendency to act as if he didn’t have a tongue. Having an unexpected visit from the social worker because my nephew didn’t believe in being a chatterbox was most definitely toward the bottom of my massive to-do list. “Can you answer Miss Dana, please?”

“Yes. I know Miss Suzie Q.” His thumb started to creep toward his mouth and I grabbed it, determined to keep him from acquiring that particular habit. He took a second to scowl at me before telling Dana, “She’s very nice. She said she liked my dress.”

“Well, it’s a very pretty dress.” Whether Dana was simply being polite or was being sincere was up for debate but she wasn’t making snide comments so I figured we were doing good. Shifting her attention back to me, she said, “Do you remember where the kindergarten classroom is or do you need a map?”

“I’m thinking a map would probably be for the best.” I hadn’t been in the elementary school for over twenty years and I didn’t think anyone would appreciate me wandering in to the wrong classroom. I took the poorly photocopied map from her and said, “Thanks, Dana. Uh, is there any paperwork I need to fill out or bring in or...?”

“No, your sister took care of all of that when she enrolled him at the beginning of the summer.” She flashed both of us a smile. “Have a good first day, Conway. If you need someone to sit with, Jamie is in Miss Suzie Q’s class, too.” Some of my confusion must have shown because she added, “My son. It’s his first day, too.”

“Oh, okay.” Apparently everybody and their brother from my graduating class had reproduced at some point in the last fifteen years with the exception of me. And Abraham. I turned and pulled the door open, managing to not fall on my ass this time, taking a second to glance over my shoulder and say, “Thanks, Dana. I’ll see you around.”

I wasn’t quite willing to extend an olive branch, not the way I had with Beth, but I had a soft spot for single moms working two jobs.

A few minutes later, I was standing outside the kindergarten classroom, Conway still wrapped around me like a limpet. I squeezed him tight and looked down at him. “Are you ready?”

“No.” He shook his head, his eyes huge and solemn. “Are you?”

“Probably not but I’m pretty sure we can’t put this off for another day.” I smoothed his hair down, wondering when and why my hands had started shaking. “Let’s do this.”

I reached for the doorknob, jerking back when the door flung inward from the opposite side, revealing a tiny fairy of a woman, as pink and pretty as cotton candy with a voice like tiny bells when she spoke. “There you are, Conway! Look at your dress! It’s adorable! And it matches your eyes!”

“Thank you.” He gave her a shy smile before burying his face in my shoulder.

“Sorry we’re late—I had to stop by the office and find out where we were going.” I hugged Conway tighter, wondering vaguely if he was shaking or if it was me. “I’d offer a hand but they’re both full at the moment.”

“Oh, it’s no worry at all. New things are always a little scary.” Miss Suzie Q—and I was going to die of curiosity if I didn’t find out the reason why she was called that—went from bright and perky to as mournful as a puppy left outside for a minute too long, her big caramel colored eyes filling up with sympathy. Clapping her hands together and following suit with her kitten heels, she said, “Conway, why don’t you go put your backpack on the hook with your picture and then go sit down with the others? We’ve still got a few minutes before we officially start the day and I think your aunt wants to talk to me.”

“Right.” I knelt, setting him on his feet and helping him smooth out the wrinkles in his dress, the one he and Abraham had picked out together in Savannah. Tucking a slightly too long strand of hair behind his ear, I said, “I’ll pick you up this afternoon, okay?”

“Abraham, too?”

“I don’t know, I’ll have to ask him. He may have work to do.” I kissed his cheek, wondering where the hell all the knots in my stomach had come from and how I was supposed to get rid of them. I straightened and hand him his backpack, nudging him toward the wall of hooks and cubbies. “Have the day you have.”

“Well, that’s an interesting way to put things.” Miss Suzie Q laughed, hooking her arm through mine and steering me toward her desk tucked in the corner. “All the other parents have told their kids to be smart and work hard and so on.”

“That’s a lot of pressure for the first day of anything, let alone kindergarten.” I stared at the toddler-sized chair in front of her desk before looking at her. “Uh, I don’t think it would be good for my ego to try and sit in that.”

“If it makes you feel better, my own ego took quite the beating when I got down there and had to have help to get up.” She laughed again, flipping her cloud of near jet black curls behind her shoulder and beaming at me. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

“Dana mentioned you teach Sunday school so I’m assuming you’re used to Conway’s wardrobe preferences.” When she only continued to smile, I said, “It’s not going to be a problem, is it?”

“Why would it?” She took a step toward me and lowered her voice. “I’m not from Cotton Creek, Ms. Jackson, and I got my bachelor’s in education from Emory down in Atlanta. I don’t think I’m bragging when I say I’m a little more open-minded than some of the people here in town.”

“More like stating God’s honest truth.” And while the knots in my stomach loosened some, they didn’t dissolve completely. Leaning one hip against her desk, I crossed my arms and studied her. “How’d you wind up in Cotton Creek, then? Not to speak ill of my fellow town folk but Cotton Creek isn’t exactly down for its multi-cultural, inclusive society.”

“Well, my parents moved us here my junior year of high school and they’re still here. And so is my fiancé.” She shrugged, offering another sunny smile. “Figured I might as well start my own family here. Maybe I’ll stay, maybe I won’t, but I’m going to work while I’m here.”

“Understood.” I glanced over at Conway, engaged in what appeared to be a very serious conversation with a little boy who bore more than a passing resemblance to Dana, although his coloring was shades darker. “I put a change of clothes in his backpack—pants and a shirt, I mean—in case someone starts to make fun of him and he gets uncomfortable.”

“I have a very strict no-bullying policy in my classroom.” Before I could ask about outside the classroom, she said, “And the kindergarteners have a separate playground from the rest of the kids so they don’t get pushed around and ran over.”

“Okay.” The knots were almost completely gone now and I realized with no small sense of relief that my hands had stopped shaking. “Still, you know how kids can be.”

“Yes, I do, which is why I consider it part of my job to teach them to not be that way just because someone is different from them.” She paused only to wrinkle her nose and say, “I probably could have phrased that differently.”

“No, you’re fine. It’s fine.” I looked at Conway one last time before pushing off the desk and walking toward the door. “I’ll pick him up this afternoon.”

“We’ll be right here.” She clapped her hands together and raised her voice. “Okay, everybody! Are we ready for our first ever day of school?”

The door clicked shut behind me, cutting off whatever response the twenty-odd kids started to give her. I made it all the way through the elementary school and main building and was halfway across the parking lot when I realized two things—one, I had no idea where Abraham was.

And two, I was crying.

Not big, weepy, snot-nosed crying. But I was definitely teary.

“Jeannie!” I had about five seconds to process it was Beth calling my name before she swooped down on me, clucking her tongue and fussing over me like a mother hen. “Oh, honey. The first day is always the roughest.”

“I have no idea why I’m crying.” I took the tissue she all but shoved in my hand, patting my cheeks dry while waving my other hand in front of my eyes in an attempt to combat the stubbornly persistent tears. “It’s not like he’s going off to war. It’s just kindergarten.”

“Honey, I wept like a baby every last time I dropped one off. Ben refused to go with me when it was time for our youngest to start—stashed a whole box of tissues in my purse and sent me on my way.” She pursed her lips, her gaze sliding past me to some point in the distance. “Doesn’t look as if you’re the only one feeling a little emotional this morning.”

“Beth.” Abraham pressed a kiss to the top of my head before reaching out and grabbing a handful of tissues, blowing his nose with a great big honk of noise. “You might have warned me Dolly was a weeper.”

“You’re joking.” When he simply stared at me, I scrubbed one hand over my face. “Oh, God. I have to go check on her.”

“Oh, no, you don’t.” Beth grabbed my elbow, holding me in place when I would have started for the school entrance. “I promise you, she’s fine. If you go in there now, you’re only going to upset both of you.” Patting my shoulder, she said, “What you need is a good breakfast and a drink.”

“Yes, please.” I glanced up at Abraham. “Are you coming, too?”

“I never pass up a chance to drink mimosas, especially if I don’t have to make them.”