Chapter 2

Allison

Waiting tables wasn’t what I thought I’d be doing after working my ass off to secure a business degree, but it paid the bills, and sometimes in life, that was all you could hope for. Especially when you had a kid to raise and a deadbeat ex who wasn’t doing you any favors.

Katrina nudged me on our way through the swinging doors the led into the kitchen. “Come out with me tonight. You need a night out as much as I do.”

I rested my empty tray on my hip and shook my head. “That may be true, but I have a kid, and besides, I’m beat.” I had lower back issues from being on my feet all day, and if I needed anything, it was a decent pair of shoes with better arch support. I slung the tray onto the stack and grabbed another clean one.

“Get a babysitter. We’ll find a good table, scope out some men. You don’t even have to dance all night if you don’t want to. Come on, live a little.”

“I am living.” I held out my arms and gestured to the kitchen around us before lifting a tray with a big order weighing it down.

She rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. You need to find yourself a man.”

“A man is the reason why I have a degree in business, and yet, I’m working here. I think I’ve had enough of men for a lifetime.”

“That attitude is going to cost you a fortune.”

“What the hell does that mean?” I laughed and headed for the door.

“It means you’re going to spend a fortune on batteries.” Her voice carried across the kitchen and so did the laughter from our cooks and the other waitresses.

My cheeks burned as I headed out with the order and delivered it to the table. On my way back, Katrina came out, still laughing at her little joke, but then she went wide-eyed as the bells on the door chimed.

“This one’s all yours, sweetheart. Go for it.”

I looked up to see what she saw. A handsome man in a suit was taking a seat alone at one of my tables.

“Calm down, Katrina. He’s just a hungry man like all the others in here.”

“That’s right. See if he’s hungry.” She waggled her brows and made a lewd gesture with her tongue as I walked past her to wait on him.

Before I made it there, my phone buzzed in my pocket, and I knew that specific vibration meant the school was calling. I didn’t waste time seeking privacy. Half the diner knew my business, thanks to Katrina holding conversations with me over their heads on a daily basis.

I answered the call. “Yes, this is Allison Simon!”

I didn’t wait for them to tell me who they were because it didn’t matter. If they were calling from the school, it meant that Sierra needed me.

“Yes, ma’am. This is Sierra’s counselor. I need you to come down here. Her teacher sent her down about ten minutes ago. Your daughter has bitten another student.”

“Bitten? Where?”

“In the classroom, during their free reading time.”

“No, I mean where did she bite them?” Geez, the woman was a counselor. Thank goodness, she wasn’t a fucking teacher.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I misunderstood. She bit the other student on the arm.” The woman’s voice was slow and drawn out so much that it was about to lull me to sleep. “You’ll have to come pick her up. She’s been suspended for the rest of the day.”

“Fine, I’m at work, so you’ll have to give me a minute, but I’ll be there within thirty.” I hung up the phone and looked up at Katrina, who was already talking to the good-looking man.

“She’s nice. You’ll like her.” She gave him a nudge, and he smiled at me. I ignored him and focused on Katrina.

“Cover for me, please. Sierra has been suspended for the day.”

“But I was just telling this charming gentleman that he should give you his number.” She turned to him as he laughed. “Seriously, she doesn’t bite, and look at her.”

The man looked me up and down and grinned. He was too fucking cute for his own good.

I grabbed Katrina’s arm. “Look, I have to go. Cover for me or not?”

“Yeah, I’ve got this, but what the hell did she do? She’s six!”

The handsome man was all ears as Katrina waited for an answer too.

“She bit a kid.”

The man laughed, and I let loose a long breath of frustration. Katrina turned to the man. “I said she didn’t bite. I wasn’t talking about the kid.” She turned back to me. “Go, it will be fine. I’ll get his number for you.”

“No, don’t. No offense.” I looked at the poor guy who grinned and shook his head. Katrina had a way about her, and privacy and shame weren’t in her DNA.

I ran out of there and didn’t bother taking my apron off until I got out of my car at the school. I didn’t want them to see me wearing my name tag or the silly buttons Katrina, and the boss liked us to wear.

I walked into the office and found Sierra sitting with the principal in his office. I breathed a sigh of relief that I wouldn’t have to speak with the counselor. I’d need to pop some caffeine pills to stay awake through that conversation.

“Mommy!” Sierra jumped up from her seat and hugged my legs.

“Mrs. Simon, I’m sure you’ve already been filled in on the matter, but I’d like to encourage you to talk to your child about the dangers of biting, for her health and the health and safety of the other students.” The man looked down his nose at me, even though he was sitting.

“Yes, of course. And thank you for calling. I appreciate your care for my daughter.” I took her hand, and he stood from his desk and walked us to the door.

“She can return on Monday, and I’ve made a notation on her conduct record.”

I wanted to shove his conduct record up his ass, but instead, I thanked him again. I knew my kid shouldn’t be biting, and I planned on having a long conversation with her, but I didn’t understand a school that couldn’t handle small incidents or turned molehills into mountains.

We got into the car and drove away. Sierra looked up at me with her big blue eyes, which were much darker than her father’s eerie, pale ones. I’d been waiting years for them to turn brown like my own, but they hadn’t. And once again, like every time I looked deep into them, I got the feeling that she was an old soul, a lost part of me I’d known long ago, a kindred spirit.

“I’m sorry, Mama.”

“You can’t bite people, Sierra. Why did you do it? Do you like this little boy?”

“Yuck, no. He’s stinky.” She made a face.

“So, you think he’s stinky, and you thought it was a good idea to put your mouth on his arm and bite him? That’s yucky.” She turned red and made another face. “But worse than that, you could have hurt the kid or made him go to the doctor. Don’t ever do that again, stinky or not! And if you do like this boy, that’s not the way to go about it.”

“I don’t like him!” She folded her arms and poked out her lower lip.

“Don’t say anything about this to your father.”

“You mean I still have to go to his house this weekend?”

“Yes, you do, Sierra. I don’t have a choice. And if this is why you bit that stinky kid’s arm, you wasted your time. And I want you to apologize to him on Monday.”

“Please, Mama. I’ll be good. I won’t bite anyone else. Just don’t make me go.” Tears filled her eyes, and mine welled up soon after.

“I know. I’m sorry, okay. But we’ve gone over this every single time. I can’t keep you from your father. He loves you and wants to spend time with you.”

I wanted to bite my tongue off for having to tell such lies. The truth was, I didn’t know if her asshole father was capable of loving anyone. He’d not only made my life miserable but hers as well, with his negativity and verbal abuse. He didn’t even try to be pleasant to me anymore, and Sierra had seen it one too many times to like going with him.

“Can I bring something to do? It’s so boring, and he makes me go with him to play golf, and I have to sit in the cart, and he doesn’t even let me drive it.”

“You’re only six. You’re not allowed to drive the club’s carts.” I knew I had to talk to him about trying to do something she liked for a change.

“Doesn’t he take you anywhere you like going?”

“No, and he makes me go to bed at seven-thirty.”

I’d already talked to him about extending her bedtime a little, but he didn’t care about my opinions. Especially when he only did that so he and his new fiancé, Cindy, could have their playtime.

He believed that when she was at his house, she should follow his rules, just like when we were married. His way or the highway. I’d finally taken the latter option and divorced his sorry ass after too many years of his controlling ways and verbal tirades.

I hated to see her so upset, but there wasn’t a thing I could do about any of it. With Doug paying child support, he had every right to see his daughter. The divorce had been ugly enough, and the man had been unbearable for me to deal with until he found Cindy. Thankfully, she’d calmed him down just a bit. He was happy like he’d been with us in the beginning, when he’d been tolerable.

“I tell you what, when you get back, we’ll stay up late one night and paint our nails and watch any movie you want, and then the next morning, we’ll have donuts for breakfast.” I felt like I was always going to have to make up for Doug being a shitty father.

Sierra smiled and wiped her eyes. “Fine. But can I have two donuts?”

“One. You’re still being punished for biting Stinky’s arm.”

“His name’s not Stinky. He’s Dylan, and he’s got black hair and blue eyes. All of the girls like him.” She turned and looked out the window.

“My first crush had dark hair and blue eyes, too.” And that time, she didn’t deny a thing.

When I got home, just as I had unlocked the door, Katrina called. Sierra ran to her room while I answered the phone and settled down on the couch.

“How’d it go? Is she grounded for life?” She was about as concerned as an aunt could be who wasn’t blood-related.

“She’s okay. She’s more upset that she has to go to Doug’s than she is about being suspended. It didn’t help I promised her donuts for breakfast and a late movie night again.”

“You can’t keep trying to make up for that asshole’s neglect. As much as I want to spoil that baby, she’s going to get hip to your jive and start to take advantage.”

“Hip to my jive?” I laughed. “What are you, a time traveler?”

“Yes, and it’s what all the cool kids are saying back in good old nineteen and seventy-three.” She had something stuffed in her mouth, and her voice was muffled. “You know I’m right. About your kid, not the cool kids.”

“I know. It’s just so hard. Especially since I like donuts for breakfast, too.” I pulled the throw from the back of the couch and tried to get warm.

“You’re doing a great job, mama! So, who’s this boy she’s got a crush on. Did you get a name?”

Good old, Katrina. She had it figured out, too. “His name is Dylan, and he’s got black hair and blue eyes.” My first crush’s face flashed through my mind. Sierra had her mother’s taste in men.