Page 59 of Dancing in the Rain

“I’m good. I’ll just, ah, go mow the lawn.”

She nodded and Drew strode blindly down the hall.

This fucking sucked.

He stopped in the kitchen and gripped the counter with both hands. His head dropped forward.

It wasn’t a goddamn surprise. Sara had been honest with him that day in the coffee shop. She was dying.

A heaviness in his chest and limbs weighed him down. Once more he had that sensation of being overwhelmed, like it was all too much. How the hell was he supposed to handle this?

How were any of them?

Peyton and Chloe’s strength amazed him. How were they coping? How could Peyton bear to watch her sister decline like that? How could Chloe handle watching her mother die? She wasn’t even twelve years old, for fuck’s sake. He slammed a cupboard door shut, curled his hands into fists, and fought to control his breathing, his heart thudding wildly.Fucking fuck this bullshit.

Sara’s landline rang. Drew pulled in a deep breath, lifted his chin, and picked up the phone to peer at the call display. Chloe’s school. He’d better answer it. He exhaled roughly.

“Could I speak to Ms. Watt, please?” the man on the other end asked.

“I’m sorry, she’s not well. Can I help you? I’m Drew Sellers…” He paused. “Chloe’s father.”

“This is Ed Lowell. I’m the vice principal at John Adams School.”

“Yes, hi.”

“We need someone to come pick up Chloe.”

Chapter 12

Drew’s heart lurched. “Why? Is she okay?”

“She’s fine. However, she’s dressed inappropriately for school. Her attire doesn’t meet our dress code and therefore she has to go home to change.”

Drew frowned. “What? Inappropriate?” He’d walked out with Chloe and she was dressed fine, from what he could recall. “How can that be?”

“Are you able to pick her up?”

“Well, yes, I can come, but—”

“We can discuss it more then.”

Drew scowled as he ended the call and set the phone on the counter. What the fuck?

How could he have screwed up so badly on the first day he’d ever looked after her? What the hell was their dress code? Jesus.

He strode back to Sara’s room to let her and Isabelle know what was happening. Sadly, Sara just seemed confused by what he told her. “I’ll handle it, Sara.” He gave her a reassuring smile. “Everything’s fine.”

He jumped into his car and drove to the school where he’d just been last week. He found Chloe in the office sitting on a chair, wearing a fierce scowl but also looking like she might cry.

“Hey, Chloe.” He crouched in front of her. “What’s going on?”

“As I mentioned on the phone, her attire doesn’t meet our dress code.”

Drew looked over his shoulder at the man who’d spoken. “You must be Mr. Lowell. Where’s Mrs. Cardozo?” They’d met the principal the last time they’d been there and she’d been awesome, aware of Chloe’s home situation and understanding of the situation with the other kids, willing to let him speak to them.

“She’s at a conference this week.”

“I see.” Drew rose and looked down his nose at the other man. “I don’t understand what the problem is.”

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