Page 27 of A Summer Mismatch
Traffic, due to some road construction, was ridiculous, and by the time Julia dropped Cameron off—with assurances from Grandpa that they could pick up Cameron’s medication for her—she arrived at school just a moment before the children got there. Still out of breath after running from the parking lot, she wasn’t prepared when Principal Meyers walked into her classroom.
“Miss Peters,” he said as he typed on his phone. “How is your morning?”
“A little stressful,” she admitted.
“Good, good,” he said as he continued to type. He finally looked up from his phone. “I have something to ask you.”
Dread filled her. Nothing good ever followed those words.
“Mrs. Rogers is going to be out for surgery next week, and we need someone to run the craft program for the rest of the summer.”
Julia paused. Took a deep breath. Tried to manifest herself into the kind of person who knew how to say no to things. “Well, I’m watching my brother, Cameron, this summer.”
“Okay, perfect. It’s Wednesdays after school, starting today.” His phone rang. “What would I do without you,” he whispered before he answered, “This is John Meyers,” and walked out of the classroom.
Julia sat back in her chair. How in the world had that happened? She had to tell him she couldn’t do it, but they needed her. It was only an hour; Cameron would probably be okay with their grandparents for an extra hour. But she hated that Mr. Meyers had just assumed she would do it.
And that he was right.
She pasted on a smile as her first couple of students rushed into the class.
Julia knocked on Grandma Winnie’s door and opened it, surprised to find a group of people sitting around Grandma’s kitchen table. She recognized them all: Don, Nancy, Rosa, Walt, Harry, Polly, and Samantha, the activities director. They were Grandma’s best friends and had always been so kind to Julia.
Had Grandma Winnie told them that Timothy broke up with her? Probably. And they wouldn’t be surprised because it wasn’t the first time.
Since she’d stayed late to help with the craft, she missed seeing Grandpa, who’d left for an afternoon tee time. Cameron sat at the table between Don and Rosa, who were two of his favorite people at The Palms. He was watching a movie on Grandma’s tablet, with his headphones on, while everyone talked and laughed.
Julia dropped a kiss on Cameron’s head, which he ignored as he intently watched his show. She then went to give her grandma a hug.
“We got the medicine,” she told Julia. “I gave Cameron his morning dose and put the rest in his bag. Plus we treated ourselves to ice cream, so it all worked out.” The pharmacy had a hand-scooped ice cream shop inside of it, and Julia had always laughed at the joke that they took the concept of a sugar-coated pill literally.
“Thank you.” Julia hugged her grandma tighter, then suppressed a groan as she straightened. She’d been bending over tiny craft tables all afternoon to help her students, and she was feeling it in her lower back. “We’ll get out of your hair.”
“You look dead on your feet,” Grandma Winnie said. “Why don’t you go lie down in the guest room for a bit? Cameron is fine, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“Are you sure?” She did feel exhausted. She’d had a hard time falling asleep the night before, and the kids had been extra rambunctious that morning.
“Take this first,” Polly said. She handed Julia a plump cinnamon roll slathered in cream cheese frosting. Julia’s stomach growled. “Don made them this morning.”
“That looks amazing. Good job, Don.” She took a bite out of the roll as she walked toward the bedroom. Maybe she could lie down for just a moment. Take a few deep breaths. Regroup.
The group of friends spoke quietly in the kitchen, their voices a soothing murmur. Occasionally she thought she heard her name, but within just a few moments, their easy conversation had lulled her to sleep.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Winnie
Winnietiptoedintotheguest room to check that her granddaughter had fallen asleep. Her deep, steady breathing told her Julia had drifted off. She eased the door closed and went back to the kitchen and the Secret Seven.
“She’s out,” she said.
“Poor thing,” Rosa said. “I have leftover chili verde from last night. She can take it home for dinner.” Rosa loved to cook, and loved even more to have her big family over for meals. Winnie felt gratitude for her friend’s willingness to look out for her granddaughter.
“Thanks for being flexible and meeting here instead of the clubhouse today,” Winnie said. When Julia had called her, sounding so defeated about needing to stay after work, Winnie had made the arrangements to ensure that she could still watch Cameron.
“I’ll never miss a chance to hang out with my bud,” Don said, nudging Cameron’s arm. Cameron, who couldn’t hear anything but his movie and didn’t take his eyes off the screen for a second, nudged Don back.
“I’m concerned for her,” Winnie said. “She’s so worried about saying no to that boss of hers that she’s not taking care of herself.”
