Until There Was You by Alessa Martel

Author:Alessa Martel
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Alessa Martel
Published: 2021-02-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Wendy pulls out a chair opposite me and Candace takes this as a cue that her time with me is over, racing out of the room.

Her mother takes the elastic out of her hair and starts to tug at her scalp, pulling her hair back into a ponytail again.

“Zane can’t keep her hands to herself, and I wonder why I bother to even brush my hair nowadays.”

Zane must be the toddler, and I wonder if she’s been put down for a nap.

“So Jonah came to give Dan a ride and help him out with his truck. Like I said, he’s a good guy.”

Before I can respond, although I’m not sure how to do so, she’s back up and headed to the coffee pot, which has about an inch of liquid left in it.

“I can’t imagine how the guys can drink this. But she insists on helping, and I can’t say no just because she can’t do it perfectly, can I?”

I wonder what it would have been like to grow up in a home like this. Parents who didn’t play nice together all the time, as if nothing was ever wrong, with siblings and noise and chances to learn something new without the fear of failure.

“Madison Carter babysits on Saturday nights so we can go bowling, and her boyfriend’s on the football team at the high school. Dan loves having a football buddy since Candace took an interest, so we give Madison a ten dollar bonus once a month for the football education.”

This conversation is all over the place, and I absorb every detail.

“Jonah’s convinced that the auto repair class at the high school can handle the ongoing issue with Dan’s truck, but Dan doesn’t trust them since it’s free. But Jonah says he knows the teachers and it’s reliable, so Dan’s going to call them. Seriously, I don’t want him taking the SUV, or I’d have no way to get Tyler to preschool, or go to the grocery store.”

She dumps the coffee into the sink and rinses out the pot, then starts to make a fresh one.

“Anyway, what do you think about Candace’s reading trouble?”

I shrug, sorry that I don’t have anything definite to tell her.

“I think you should have her evaluated. The school should do it, and soon so whatever is going on can be addressed.”

She doesn’t say anything, so I continue.

“Obviously, I’m not an expert, but I do know that the earlier any problems are detected and understood, the better. I also know that she’s embarrassed that her little brother can read books that she can’t.”

I hope I’ve convinced her to have Candace tested, although she seems reluctant to do so, and after we talk for a bit about Valley Vale news, including the new Collins baby, I decide it’s time to go.

“Oh, I hear you’re helping with the holiday festival. Make sure we get a Santa who doesn’t look like he’s twenty, okay? Last year I had a hard time explaining to Tyler why Santa didn’t have wrinkles.

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