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My brows furrow. “Yeah.”
“I just wanted to apologize for earlier today.”
I swing my legs around the side of the mattress and stand, walking to the bathroom so that my voice doesn’t wake Krew. “Who is this?”
“Oh…sorry. I thought you had my number.” She sounds embarrassed. “This is Meg.”
I instantly cringe. “I do have your number. Sorry. I was rushing to the phone, and you caught me off guard. Plus, you called meMr. Dixon.What’s with the formality?”
“I’m formal because Diane thought it would be a good idea if I touched base with all the parents today about the Maturation Program mishap.”
I glance at the clock on my bathroom counter. It shows 9:47 p.m. “At this hour on a Friday night?”
“No! I emailed most of them earlier, but since I had your number, I figured I’d give you a call.” She stumbles over her words. “Since…you know…you were there.”
She called me when she could have easily texted or emailed. A shot of confidence fills me. “Yeah, that makes perfect sense.”
“So, I just wanted to apologize and see if Krew’s okay.”
“He’s fine. I mean, he’s asking about tampons now, but I’m sure it will pass.”
“Oh my gosh! Is he really?”
I laugh. “No, I don’t think he saw anything. And if he did, he doesn’t seem too worried about it.”
“Good.” She puffs out an audible breath.
“Have you had a lot of angry parents?”
“A few, but Diane said to refer all the upset parents to her.”
I fidget with a tube of toothpaste left out on the bathroom counter. “What else are you up to tonight?” It’s a dumb question, but I want to keep the conversation going.
“I’ve been texting my siblings.” She hesitates for a moment. “I guess my dad’s been hanging out with stupid Anna Mae every day this week.”
I smile. “Stupid Anna Mae?”
“Yeah, that’s what I call her in my head. I probably shouldn’t have said that out loud.”
“I’m glad you did.” At least, I’m glad she said it out loud to me. “So, I take it you still aren’t warming up to the idea of your dad dating her?”
“It's not that I don'tlikeher. I’m sure she’s a really nice person. She makes my dad happy, and I'm happy about that.”
I close the toilet lid and use it as a chair. “But?”
“But they’re moving so fast, and I worry that he’s just in love with theideaof Anna Mae. The idea that she’s my mom. But there’s no comparison.”
“You don't think he's old enough to decipher whether he likes Anna Mae, or if it’s just the fact that she looks like your mom?”
“The early stages of love make people act crazy. They don’t think rationally, and they let their heart determine their actions. That’s what’s happening here. I want to take my dad by the shoulders and shake some sense into him. It’s like I’m the parent, and he’s the lovesick teenager rushing into a stupid relationship.”
“I like that about your dad, how fearless he is when it comes to love. You might say he’s rushing it, but I admire how he just jumped right back in after your mom died, like life couldn’t get him down.”
“You make it sound admirable, but I’m not so sure.”
“Your dad is a smart man. He’s not going to do anything he’s not ready for.”
“That's what my sisters say.”
