Chapter Two

A week later, Susan had had a chance to regain her perspective and dignity, and had formulated a plan. She checked her look in the master bathroom’s full-length mirror, snatched up her comb for one last swipe at her short brown bob, and then did a complete turn for a final assessment. Dressed in a navy blue suit that fit snuggly on her tall, slim body, she outwardly looked like a professional woman. But inside she was a mass of insecurities.

I’m a forty-six-year-old divorcee, interviewing for my first real job. She took a deep breath, adjusted her jacket, picked up her newly-acquired briefcase off the foot of the bed, and headed downstairs to the kitchen. Megan was sitting at the breakfast table eating a bowl of cereal and reading a story in her English textbook. “What’s that, Megan? Homework?”

Megan looked up from her breakfast. “Where are you going all dressed up like that?”

“I’ve got a job interview in Indianapolis, so if you hurry I can drop you at school on my way. Unless you’d rather ride the bus?”

Megan gave her mother that yeah-right look and went back to eating her cereal. “Hey, Caroline, can you drive me to school?”

Susan turned around to see her oldest daughter taking some yogurt out of the refrigerator. Caroline was dressed in crisply starched jeans, an off-white linen blazer, and low-heeled sandals, her strawberry-blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. “Caroline! I didn’t hear you come in.”

“You look nice, Mom.” Caroline stuffed the yogurt into her bag. “Where are you headed?”

“I have a job interview,” Susan said, nervously smoothing out her jacket.

Megan continued chewing, not even looking up from her book. “What kind of job?”

Susan cleared her throat. “Well, I got a call from the English Department at Rosslyn High School in response to my application, and they have an opening for next school year, teaching ninth grade English.”

Caroline beamed as she gave her mom a quick hug. “Good luck and let me know how it goes.” She unlocked the door leading from the kitchen into the garage and hit the automatic garage opener button.

“Caroline!” Megan called. “I asked you…”

“Not this morning, Megs, I’m running late!”

“Yeah, late to a non-job!”

Megan dropped the spoon in her bowl with a clink. “Mom, why didn’t you just apply for a job at Belford High School? They’ve got a huge English Department.”

Susan blew out a puff of air. “I did apply there, Megan, along with about fifty other candidates, most of them fresh out of college.”

Megan got up off the barstool and set her bowl and spoon in the sink. “Mom, I know you’re exaggerating about Belford High, but aren’t there any other schools up here in Hamilton County where you can teach? Indianapolis is like thirty minutes away. That’s a long commute.”

Susan picked up her daughter’s dirty breakfast dishes and loaded them into the dishwasher. “Since I’ve had no response to my applications from any of the other districts up here, I guess an inner-city school in Indianapolis is my best shot.” She grabbed her briefcase and headed to the garage. “Are you ready?”

Megan picked up her book bag from the floor next to the breakfast table, stuffed the literature book inside, and zipped it up. “But, Mom, you aren’t even giving them a chance to call you back.” She followed her mother out into the garage with the door still open from Caroline’s hasty departure.

“Sweetie, I can’t wait for them to call. I have to have an actual paying job, and soon. Just wish me luck, okay?”

Megan shrugged and tossed her book bag into the backseat. “Let’s go. It’s almost eight, and I’ll be marked tardy again.”

****

Caroline pulled into the drive-thru at Peterson’s Coffee Emporium on her way to Meadows Advertising and placed her order for a caffeinated latte, skim milk, no sweetener. At the payment window, she dug into her bag for the cash and realized she was quickly running out of money. Not just coffee money. MONEY. “I’ll have to make coffee at home from now on,” she mumbled as she handed the attendant a five dollar bill. She glanced at the dashboard clock. If she didn’t hurry, she’d hit rush-hour traffic, so she decided not to think about her financial situation for the moment. Besides, the year she had negotiated with Richard was almost up.

“Working nine to five…” blasted through the radio. Caroline cranked up the volume as she made her turn onto Meridian Street, hoping to drown out her conflicted thoughts.

****

Susan sat nervously in a hard, wooden chair just inside the English Department office. It was designed as a waiting area for students, with several closed office doors belonging to various administrators and their assistants encircling the reception area. A row of chairs lined the wall, but she was the only one there at the moment, and she felt conspicuous because two of the office staff kept sneaking glances at her and whispering. Susan tucked her hair behind her ears and then pushed it back again, crossed and uncrossed her legs, opened her briefcase to check again for copies of her résumé, and looked anxiously around the room for signs that she hadn’t been forgotten.

“Ms. Benedict?” A distinguished-looking older woman emerged from an office.

“Yes,” Susan said, rising to meet her.

“I’m Catherine Renfrow.” Susan shook the woman’s extended hand and then followed her through the open office doorway.

“Please have a seat.” Mrs. Renfrow indicated a wooden chair opposite her oversized desk, and then settled herself into a comfortable swivel chair, its back turned to a large picture window. The view was breathtaking in late spring: lush green lawn, large stately trees, and a well-manicured flower bed surrounding the cement marquee that read ROSSLYN HIGH SCHOOL, Established 1925. Susan fumbled in her briefcase for a copy of her résumé.

“Oh, that’s okay, Ms. Benedict—or may I call you Susan?—I have the résumé you emailed with your application.” Mrs. Renfrow smiled at Susan as she donned her reading glasses and looked over the résumé on her computer screen. She was a matronly woman in her late fifties, wearing a navy skirt and loose-fitting cardigan sweater over her ample frame.

“Susan would be just fine.”

“Well, Susan, I see you’ve never had an actual teaching position before.”

Susan squirmed, sure the interview was over before it had even begun. “Yes, that’s true. But it’s not because I didn’t want to teach or that I don’t love children. It’s just that, what with my husband’s career—ex-husband now—and raising children, who are mostly grown except for Megan—she’s still in high school—substituting was all I had time for.” Susan realized she was rambling and stopped. Not a good beginning.

Mrs. Renfrow nodded. “I understand, and in my opinion, raising children to be productive adults is an admirable occupation.” She adjusted her glasses and went back to reading. “From your résumé, I see you’ve done quite a bit of volunteer work, though. Organizational skills can come in handy here.”

Susan jumped at the chance to talk about something she was so proud of. “Oh, yes, I’ve been involved with a number of different charities. I also spend time volunteering at the public library as a storyteller, and for years I taught Sunday school when my children were younger.” She stopped and swallowed. “Am I talking too much?”

“Not at all,” Mrs. Renfrow said with a polite head nod.

Susan took that to mean she should continue. “Well, then, I also read a great deal on my own, both fiction and nonfiction. I know what books are included in the ninth-grade curriculum, and I’ve read them all. I’ve kept up with all the latest research on how children learn, and I’m up-to-date on the new state standards.”

“Wonderful!” Mrs. Renfrow said as the corners of her mouth tilted up in amusement. “And I’d like to offer you the job.”

Susan nearly fainted. “What?”

“I know you lack experience as a classroom teacher, but I’m impressed with your community involvement and obvious love of children. I’ve interviewed several newly-graduated teachers, but frankly none of them seemed mature enough to take on the challenge of our urban students.”

Susan felt like clapping her hands together with joy, but managed to maintain her dignity. “Thank you for this opportunity, and I’m looking forward to the challenge. Oh, and I’m not planning to use this job as a springboard to someplace less demanding.”

“Well, you’d be surprised at how many teachers do that very thing.”

Mrs. Renfrow shuffled through some forms on her desk and handed them to Susan. “Of course you realize you won’t start until August.”

Susan nodded. “I appreciate you taking a chance on me.”

Mrs. Renfrow stood up and shook Susan’s hand. “Welcome to Rosslyn High School’s English Department. You’ll need to fill out these forms and turn them in to HR.” Susan placed the forms in her briefcase. “I’ll take you down and show you where your classroom will be.” She walked around her desk, opened the office door for Susan, led her through the outer reception area and out into the school’s main lobby. Susan felt like she was floating on air as she followed Mrs. Renfrow on the tour.

****

Caroline glanced at the clock as her car inched along in rush hour traffic along southbound Meridian Street. It looked like she was going to be late to work again. She loved working for Richard at Meadows Advertising Agency, even without a title or much of a salary, and she wasn’t ready to face the inevitable.

“You always seem to know exactly what I need even before I know it myself. And you have the ability to see the smallest typographical error,” Richard had told her during her first summer as an intern.

Caroline had blushed. “It’s a knack I have.”

During her internship year, Caroline gradually took over most of the copy editing duties as well as functioning as Richard’s assistant, taking his messages, scheduling his appointments, and fielding any unwanted phone calls. Now here she was a year out of college, voluntarily working full time with little pay, and all because Richard said he couldn’t do without her. If she was being honest, Caroline couldn’t tear herself away from Richard, either. Salary hadn’t really mattered until a week ago, because Dad was providing her with a generous allowance and she was living rent-free in their family home in Belford.

Now I need a job, probably one that puts some distance between me and Richard and—

Caroline slammed on her brakes as traffic came to a standstill. She glanced at the clock again. “Move!” she shouted as she pounded her hand on the steering wheel in frustration. She honked at the car in front of her, whose driver didn’t notice the light turn green. I’m good at what I do, I know I could earn more money, so why can’t I force myself to leave Meadows Advertising? She knew the answer: She could never refuse Richard anything, and in fact felt guilty telling anyone no. Life was so much easier in college. Have I learned anything since then?

In school she was always being asked to proofread other students’ college essays, for no pay of course. Despite the drain on her time, she’d managed to keep up with her own assignments and excelled in her classes. Junior year, Caroline’s academic advisor had suggested she sign up for a summer internship. Caroline had immediately called her father.

“Dad, do you know any ad agencies or marketing firms where I can get on as a summer intern?”

He said he’d give it some thought. The next day he called her back. “You know my friend Sharlene?”

“Yes, Dad,” Caroline had said as agreeably as she could.

“Well, she and her brother are willing to take you on as an intern in the family business.” Caroline cringed, just imagining what it would be like working for Sharlene. Friend indeed.

Her dad had met Sharlene—what? four years ago?—and Caroline didn’t think for a minute that Sharlene had made the internship offer out of the goodness of her heart. Sharlene never did anything without an agenda. Naturally her gesture had impressed Daniel. At least Sharlene had been useful in getting Caroline the opportunity, but work for her? Just as Caroline was about to politely turn down the offer, she’d met Richard.

Caroline rolled into the parking lot at eight-forty-five. She pulled the ponytail holder out and shook her hair loose, picked up her handbag with the now-warm yogurt, balanced her Peterson’s coffee and went into Suite 100. Meadows Advertising Agency was a small company consisting of Richard, the CEO, receptionist Lucy Rosen, a part-time sales associate who was rarely in the office, and Jack Anderson, Richard’s best friend from college and now his accountant.

“Good morning, Lucy,” Caroline said.

During Richard’s senior year at IU, his father’s sudden illness had forced Richard to commute back and forth from Bloomington, Indiana, to Indianapolis, finishing his last semester of school mostly online while keeping his father’s business running. His sister and business partner Sharlene was no help at all, since she’d all but abdicated her responsibilities when she met Daniel Benedict. Caroline couldn’t imagine how Richard had managed to juggle both school and work and still cope with his father’s death, but Meadows Advertising was thriving under his leadership four years later.

Caroline knew what a difficult position Richard was in a year ago, what with the tight economy and Sharlene controlling the purse strings from home, but never bothering to step foot in the office. Caroline had thought she had a possible solution. “Richard, I know you need to hire an assistant, but the finances aren’t there right now, so what if I work for half-time salary the first year after I graduate? I live at home with Mom, and Dad pays most of my expenses anyway. It’s a win-win.”

Richard had looked dubious. “That’s not fair, Caroline. You’re worth more than that.”

“Just for a year, until the economy improves. Then we can renegotiate.”

Richard had given that some thought. “Well, I guess Sharlene couldn’t object to that. She’d have to pay that much for a part-timer anyway.”

Caroline had felt elated about getting to stay on with Richard. Sharlene had gleefully agreed to the low-ball salary, and then of course bragged to Daniel about how she’d helped launch his daughter’s professional career.

“Morning, Caroline!” said a cheerful Lucy.

Caroline snapped out of her head just in time to save her coffee from spilling onto the floor. “Hi, Lucy. What’s new?”

“Not much, but the day is young,” Lucy said with a wink. “I’m ordering Chinese for lunch today. You in?”

“Absolutely!”

“The usual?”

Caroline nodded.

“I’ll meet you in the break room at twelve-thirty then,” Lucy said as she put her earphones back on and turned her attention to the caller on the line. “Meadows Advertising. May I help you?”

The small break room down the hall was shared with the other office suites on the first floor of the Koffman Building. Suite 102 housed a law firm, Suites 104-120 were a branch office of Kinley Real Estate Company, and Suite 122 was vacant at the moment. It was rumored that the “investment” company that had been renting the office had fled overnight amid financial improprieties that were being investigated by the state Attorney General’s office. Lucy had gotten a lot of mileage out of that piece of gossip. In fact, Lucy seemed to know everyone’s business and was always happy to spread the news.

Caroline headed to her desk in the far back corner of the suite, down a hallway and wedged between the file cabinets, adjacent to Sharlene’s former office. Sharlene had slowly removed most of her personal belongings, but there were still some photographs on the wall—Sharlene posing with the mayor, Sharlene posing with the runner-up of the Indy 500, Sharlene posing with Daniel in front of Truitt Wellness Corporation—all monuments to Sharlene’s social agenda. Caroline wanted the photos gone, as well as the dead plant in the window. She could make good use of that space, but it remained firmly “Sharlene’s Office.” Richard’s tastefully decorated office was right next to his sister’s nearly empty one. Above the mahogany desk, his father’s golfing mementoes hung on the wall along with Richard’s framed diploma and snapshots of him with family and friends. Four wingback leather chairs ringed the desk in a semi-circle, making the office both businesslike and inviting. Richard Meadows III—CEO read the sign on his open door.

Caroline set her coffee carefully on her desk and then logged on to her email. She pulled the tab on her yogurt, found a plastic spoon in the desk drawer, and sat down to concentrate on her messages. First and foremost, she wanted to complete whatever task Richard had for her, so she opened his message right away. Just opening an email from him made her tingle.

Good morning, Caroline.

I have several appointments today and will be in and out of the office. I know you will handle any phone calls in your usual professional manner until I get back. Would you proof that Hamilton ad before sending it to the printer? It needs to be ready as an insert for this Sunday’s newspaper.

Thanks! R

Caroline smiled to herself as she replied to his email.

Will do. Have a nice day. Hamilton ad will be a challenge—Mr. Hamilton can’t spell or punctuate!

Caroline steeled herself before reviewing the proof. Hamilton Hardware was one of Meadows Advertising’s big accounts. Mr. Hamilton had several stores in the Indianapolis area, plus one in Belford and one in Muncie. The man had built his business from the ground up, so Mr. Hamilton was very hands-on. He even wrote his own print ads, emailing them to Richard weekly, and those ads were always in need of correction. The current one had a picture of a bathroom sink, with the following copy:

If your in need of plumbing supplys, stop by Hamilton Hardware We have the best for lest!

Caroline smiled to herself, knowing it was an easy fix, and went back to her emails. She went through them quickly but decided she could handle them later, since that Hamilton ad needed to be at the printer by noon, and Richard had asked her to get it done. Then one more message popped up, from Sharlene. She sighed as she opened it.

Hi Caroline!

I changed my email address to reflect my new status as your dad’s wife.

Love, Sharlene

P.S. If thirty-five is too young to be your stepmother, you can think of me as Mrs. Meadows-Benedict LOL!

Caroline cringed and deleted that one. “A thirty-five-year-old stepmother,” she mumbled to herself.

Sharlene was youthful looking, medium-height with a Barbie-doll figure, and always wore the latest fashions bought at high-end stores. She was also a highly successful saleswoman and had been an asset to Meadows Advertising till she met Daniel Benedict, who was no match for her charms.

Medical insurance companies had attracted some bad press in the deepening recession. CEOs like Daniel were earning huge salaries while their employees worked for low wages and their clients’ premiums skyrocketed. Sharlene had arrived in Daniel’s office four years ago to sell him on the idea of a positive publicity campaign for his mega-corporation, a bold move for so small a company as Meadows Advertising. She had flirted with Daniel, flattered him, and generally inflated his ego to the point that he could not resist her or her advertising proposal.

Officially they were business associates, but when Dad divorced Mom a year later, no one was surprised. Sharlene had proclaimed her love for Daniel and her intention to marry him to anyone who would listen, and to some who didn’t care to listen, like Caroline.

Richard was as unlike his sister as two people could be and still share DNA. Both were very attractive people, even resembling each other somewhat. Both had dark brown hair and deep blue eyes, and since Richard was just under six feet tall and Sharlene always wore very high heels, they often appeared to be the same height. However, Richard was definitely overshadowed by his domineering older sister.

Despite losing Sharlene’s capable sales acumen to her social ambitions, Richard pulled in clients of his own, including the large contract with Hamilton Hardware. Sharlene no longer wanted to work, and she didn’t need to anyway, having the use of Daniel’s credit cards, the run of his penthouse, and soon, the Benedict family home.

Caroline laughed to herself, remembering what her mother had said. “Sharlene will fit in nicely with the suburban housewives in Belford.”

****

Caroline rushed back into the air-conditioned office a few minutes late for her Chinese lunch with Lucy. The late May temperature was hotter than normal, and she was already overheated, but she hurried down the hall to her office nook to deposit her handbag and the mail from the post office. She stopped to dig through her desk, looking for that half-drunk bottle of water she’d stashed in there yesterday, but after opening and closing every drawer, she came to the conclusion she’d either accidentally thrown it out or the custodian had gotten it off her desk for the trash bin. She sighed and dug two dollars’ worth of loose change out of the bottom of her handbag to buy a fresh bottle, and then headed down the hall to the break room to join Lucy. As she walked by Jack’s office she heard Richard’s voice, and they probably should have closed the door, judging by the conversation they were having. Caroline paused in the hall just out of view. She knew she shouldn’t eavesdrop, but she couldn’t make her feet move.

“…and anyway I have a date with that hot new attorney down the hall, the one with the long brown hair,” Jack said.

“Yeah, women always go for tall, blond, blue-eyed charmers like you.” Richard chuckled.

“You don’t have to settle for Misty, you know. There’s a certain petite redhead…”

Caroline saw Richard blush. “Caroline Benedict is my assistant. My intelligent, efficient, creative assistant.”

“Not to mention attractive,” Jack said with a wink.

“I like her business sense,” Richard shot back.

“Business sense. Yeah, right.”

Richard narrowed his eyes at Jack. “So did you figure out yet if we can afford to take her on full time or not?”

“Not with your assets alone. You’ll have to talk to your sister again, since you’re required to get her okay on company financial matters.”

Caroline thought she’d already heard too much, so she cleared her throat. Richard turned to face her and blushed.

“I just wanted to let you know I’m back from the printer and I’m going to lunch,” she told them, trying to sound breezy. But she didn’t fool anyone, least of all herself, because none of them wanted to discuss the elephant in the room—her lack of salary and status with the company.

Lucy was already in the break room, unpacking the just-delivered Chinese food in white cartons. Caroline shoved the change into the vending machine and pulled the bottle of water out of the tray when it landed with a thud.

“It’s getting hot outside,” Caroline said, fanning herself with a copy of the menu lying on the table and taking a swig of water. “And I’m starved. Where’s that moo goo gai pan?” She tossed aside the menu and began rummaging through the sack. “How much do I owe you?”

Lucy smiled. “Never mind, you buy lunch next week.”

Lucy Rosen had been working at Meadows Advertising for about five years. She and her husband Jonathan had a two-year-old son and another baby on the way. Even when not pregnant, Lucy was short and round, but despite her penchant for gossip, to Caroline, Lucy was a voice of sanity who could advise her about her insane family situation.

They sat down at a table under an air conditioning vent. Caroline tore open her chopsticks and began eating out of the carton.

Lucy handed Caroline some napkins. “How are things in Bel-ville?”

Caroline snickered and nearly choked on her food. “What?”

“Well, I’d have to be blind, deaf and dumb not to know that Sharlene is moving into your—I mean, Daniel’s house.” Lucy bit into her egg roll. “So how’s everyone handling it?”

Caroline put her chopsticks down and frowned. “Mom’s got a job interview today, Megan’s in denial mode, and Allie doesn’t even know yet. As you’d imagine, I’m crazed. And broke.”

Lucy pointed a chopstick at her. “You, dear crazy girl, need a career path. Like I’ve been telling you for a while now.”

“I need to do something fast,” Caroline admitted. “The last of my allowance from Dad is almost gone, and I can’t stay at Meadows indefinitely, at least not without a pay raise. And I really don’t know if I can stick around after the wedding. Talk about painful…” She pushed her food aside, her appetite suddenly gone.

“So what’s the plan? Tell Aunt Lucy all about it.”

Caroline laughed in spite of herself but shook her head. “I don’t have a plan.”

****

Susan walked in the back door dressed in her workout clothes: black calf-length capris, sleeveless t-shirt, and worn athletic shoes, her hair pushed back from her face with a headband.

“Megan? I’m back!” she called out. “Fresh from the gym!” She laughed at herself. Well, okay, not so fresh.

After the tension she’d built up this morning before her interview, a workout had been just what she needed. Susan never felt like she fit in with those suburban moms at the gym, but she should have. She had everything they had: good looks, a wealthy and influential husband, a large home in the right neighborhood, gifted children. When she and Daniel had first moved to Belford, she’d tried to make friends with the other moms, but Susan just couldn’t stand the incessant chattering about clothes, money, the country club, the latest parties, and the vicious innuendoes about each other. So she began spending more and more time with her old friend Emily Martin, who was then living in Indianapolis.

Megan was sprawled on the living room sofa, watching TV and munching popcorn. She was long out of her school uniform, lounging in shorts with her bare feet propped on the coffee table.

Susan walked over and tousled her daughter’s hair. “Hey, Megs. I have some news.” She waited for a response, which didn’t come. “I don’t suppose I had any phone calls?”

“Mom! You’re in the way!” Megan never took her eyes off the television but shifted her position to regain a clear view of the program, some rerun of a reality dating show. “No one ever calls you anyway, except Caroline or Emily.”

“Gee thanks.” Disappointed at not getting the important conversation started about her job, Susan went back into the kitchen to wait till her oldest and most mature daughter got home. Caroline will care.

****

Caroline pulled her year-old Kia, a birthday gift from her dad, into the garage right next to Susan’s five-year-old Jeep Cherokee, hit the garage door closer, and walked in the back door. She dropped her handbag on the kitchen counter, tossed her jacket on a chair, and went to the refrigerator for a bottled water.

“How did the job interview go, Mom?” Caroline twisted open the bottle and took a swallow.

Susan looked up from the stir fry on the stove and smiled. “Well, I was nervous at first, but Mrs. Renfrow put me at ease. I really liked her, and I also felt very comfortable inside the school itself. You know, it has a fabulous history.” Susan paused and a sly grin spread across her face. “Anyway, it turns out being a substitute teacher was pretty good experience after all—that and all my volunteer work…”

“So?”

“So—I got the job!”

“That’s great!” Caroline gave her mom a big hug and then called out, “Hey, Megan, did you hear that? Mom got that teaching job!”

Megan slowly got up off the sofa and ambled over to the kitchen island, popcorn bowl in hand. “What kinds of kids are you going to be teaching there anyway?” she asked. “Aren’t all inner-city kids, like, losers?”

Susan shot her daughter a withering look. Megan shrugged her shoulders and went back to the sofa.

Susan frowned but turned back to Caroline. “I report to work sometime in the middle of August, and school starts about a week later. Your mom has officially joined the working world! Well, almost.”

“Congratulations, Mom.” Caroline reached into the fridge for another bottle of water, opened it, and handed it to her mother. The two of them clinked the plastic bottles together in a toast.

Susan motioned for Caroline to follow her into the living room. “There’s one more thing.” Susan approached Megan on the living room sofa. “I drove around Rosslyn Village after the interview and wrote down some addresses of houses for sale near the school. Emily’s coming down from Chicago tomorrow, and we have an appointment with a realtor.”

No one said a word.

Finally Megan spoke up. “Rosslyn Village? What are you talking about? We can’t squeeze into one of those tiny houses down there!”

“We have to move somewhere,” Susan said, “and we have to do it soon. A small house of our own is better than an apartment. From now on, we only have my salary as a teacher and your child support to live on, which means we’ll be on a tight budget.”

Megan groaned. “Mom! All the way down in Rosslyn Village?”

“Some of those cottages are cute,” Susan replied.

“Cute? What does that mean? Small?”

Caroline saw the fear and emotion in her mother’s face and jumped to her defense. “Megan, stop it. Mom’s doing the best she can.”

Susan exhaled. “That’s why I called Emily. This is all so overwhelming. I need her moral support, as well as her real estate expertise.”

Caroline was dubious. “Emily and Sara have been living in Chicago for two years. Isn’t she kind of out of touch with the Indianapolis real estate market?”

“That’s what the Internet is for. And she told me she’s always available to help her best friend.”

“So you’re going house-hunting in Rosslyn Village,” Caroline restated.

Susan looked down at her shoes, noticed an untied lace, and propped her foot on the coffee table to retie it. “Emily knows people in Indianapolis real estate. That’s how she made a name for herself here. I’m sure between the two of us we’ll find something affordable.”

“Did you even bother looking up here in Belford?” Megan demanded.

“Even the small houses here are too expensive, Megan,” Susan sighed.

“Mooommm…” Megan whined.

Susan planted both feet firmly on the floor. “We’re running out of time, girls, because your dad and Sharlene are still planning to move in here June first.”

Megan sank listlessly down into the sofa cushions. She turned up the volume on the TV and pretended to be engrossed in the program.

Caroline grabbed the remote and muted the volume. She turned to Susan, determined to bring up the subject none of them had mentioned. “Mom, you still haven’t talked to Allie, have you?”

“No, not yet, although I’m sure she’s already had an email from the new Mrs. Benedict.” Susan shook her head. “That’s a sentence I never thought I’d say.”

“Okay, she probably does know that Dad got remarried, but you can’t keep the rest of this from her,” Caroline insisted.

“I think it would be best to wait until she finishes final exams.” Susan returned to the kitchen. She turned off the burner under the stir fry pan and slid it to the back of the stove. Then she went to the fridge and started pulling out vegetables for a salad.

Caroline got between her mother and the open fridge door. “You know Allie doesn’t handle change well, Mom, and she doesn’t like to be blind-sided either.”

Susan nodded. “All I’m trying to avoid is telling her bad news while she should be concentrating on her exams.”

“Maybe you’re not giving her enough credit,” Caroline said.

“I’m just going by past experience. Do you remember when she was in high school and she lost that statewide piano competition? She thought she played brilliantly, but she was upset because the boyfriend du jour had dumped her, and she lost.”

Caroline shuddered at the memory. A small private college in Indianapolis, Bradley University, was hosting the finals in their Central Hall. Allie played well despite her distraction, but unfortunately, her main competitor played better, and the judges awarded first prize to the other girl.

“Second place? Second?” Allie had screamed. “No way! I was better than that no-talent fraud!”

Obviously Allie hadn’t played her best, but she refused to accept that. She yelled and cried so much it brought on a migraine, and she went to bed for three days. It was the longest three days of everyone’s lives.

Caroline nodded. “Oh, I remember. All too well. But she’s not in high school anymore, Mom.”

“Allie may be older, but she still reacts in the same dramatic way, and I’d never forgive myself if telling her this news caused her to flunk.” Susan reached around Caroline for the bag of lettuce and went to the sink to start rinsing its contents.

“I should call her,” Caroline said, drumming her fingers on the laminate countertops. “She’ll be furious if we don’t tell her.”

“Not until after her exams,” Susan insisted. “She doesn’t know it, but this is her last semester at Bryce, so let her have a few more days to enjoy it. Please, Caroline, promise me.”

This secrecy didn’t feel right to Caroline, but for her mother’s peace of mind—and her sister’s—she finally nodded assent. “But what if—”

At that moment Megan yelled into the kitchen. “Hey, Mom, if Allie’s leaving Bryce and I don’t go back to Willowby, where am I supposed to go to school next year?”

Susan turned her back to both daughters while tossing lettuce into the salad bowl. “If we’re going to live in Rosslyn Village, probably Rosslyn High School.”

Megan jumped up off the sofa, looking both stunned and angry. She shrieked, “No! Transferring to Belford High would be bad enough. But Rosslyn? Are you crazy?”

“You’d have to live here with Dad and Sharlene if you want to go to Belford…” Caroline didn’t finish her sentence because Susan quietly shook her head and made a slash mark under her chin. Caroline understood what her mom meant. Sharlene would never allow that.

Susan tried to hug Megan, who pulled away. “I’m sorry, Megs, but circumstances being what they are, things have to change.”

Tears spilled out of Megan’s eyes as she ran up the stairs two at a time and slammed her bedroom door. Caroline and Susan both stared after her, helpless and frustrated.

“Mom, don’t worry. Megan will adjust.”

Susan nodded. “I hope Allie will, too…” Susan’s voice trailed off as she went back into the kitchen.

Caroline stood there bewildered. And despite her mother’s insistence that Allie be kept in the dark, Caroline made up her mind to at least give her sister a hint of what she was coming home to.