“He’s probably out spending all the money he’s making because, unlike me, he still has a job,” she grumbled sarcastically. “If he doesn’t go to the gym after work, he has his teeth bleached, gets Botox injections or goes to the tanning salon—and that’s if he’s already had a facial, a manicure and a pedicure.”
Dallas chuckled as his mother came into the house.
“Smells like heaven in here,” she said. Aiyana looked tired but she had good color in her face. Dallas knew she worked too hard, but there was no getting her to slow down, so he’d stopped trying. He hoped, once she married Cal, that Cal would be able to persuade her to take it a little easier. “Emery made dinner,” he told her. “Mexican food. And what I’ve tasted so far is incredible.”
“That’s wonderful. I’m hungry.”
“Me, too. Where’re Liam and Bentley?” he asked. “The food’s almost ready.”
“Liam’s with a friend, so he’ll miss dinner. Bentley went over to Eli’s to play with the kids. I’m sure he assumed it would take me an hour or so to get a meal together. This will be a pleasant surprise. I’ll text him to let him know we don’t have to wait tonight—thanks to Emery.”
A timer went off, and Emery donned a pair of oven mitts so she could pull out a pan of enchiladas that were bubbling in a cheesy sauce with green chilies.
“Look at that,” Dallas said.
“I’m going to run upstairs and change,” Aiyana said. “I’ll be right back.”
Dallas pulled some plates from the cupboard. “I’ll set the table.”
After starting toward the stairs, Aiyana doubled back. “By the way, thanks for helping out this afternoon. I don’t know if Eli told you, but Susan is sick again. Otherwise, I could’ve had Tobias Richardson step in. He’s usually the one who substitutes on the afterschool stuff, if we need him, but today he had to go over to the cookie store.”
“Jada couldn’t do it? Susan’s her mother.”
“No. With the baby and her social media business, Jada can no longer take that on, too,” she said. “Maya goes over when she can, of course. She loves to help her grandmother. But a fourteen-year-old can’t manage the store all by herself. And you know that Maddox is too busy here.”
“Why doesn’t Susan hire someone?”
“It’s hard to hire an employee for such a short time. Business will die down again in just a few weeks.”
“True,” he allowed, and Aiyana went upstairs.
“Who’s Tobias?” Emery asked when she was gone.
“He helps with the grounds and maintenance here at New Horizons—and, apparently, the coaching, if necessary.”
“How is he related to Susan?”
“He’s not, technically. He’s Maddox’s brother—Maddox is the principal of the girls’ side of New Horizons—so there is that connection, I guess. She owns Sugar Mama, a cookie shop in town.”
“I’m familiar with it.”
“Sounds like, with Christmas coming up, she’s extra busy. So it’s a bad time for her to be sick.”
Emery poured the refried bean mixture she’d been making into a bowl and carried it to the table. “I hate to ask, but...she doesn’t have cancer or anything serious, does she?”
“Not cancer, no. Lupus. And she lost her husband a couple of years ago, if I remember right, so she’s on her own with the store. She has a son who helps out when he can, too, but Atticus has his own job and his own life, and I’m sure he can’t be there whenever she needs him. He’s in a wheelchair besides, so it’s hard for him to reach into the cooler to dish up the ice cream for the cookie sandwiches and other stuff she sells.”
Aiyana’s voice came down to them from upstairs. “Emery, would you mind if I asked Cal over to dinner?”
“Of course not! I would love to see him.”
“Great.”
As Emery dished up the Spanish rice she had waiting on a back burner, she lowered her voice. “I expected Aiyana and Cal to get married years ago. Why do you think they’ve waited so long?”
“That’s a mystery to me, too.” Dallas was so loyal to Aiyana that he almost left it at that, but he thought it might be encouraging for Emery to know the truth. “She’s hinted that, like me and the other boys she’s tried to help, she has a past and that past informs the present,” he added.
“Are you saying something happened in her childhood to make her reluctant to marry?”
“That’s my guess. But she won’t open up about it, so I don’t really know.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to be too nosy. My curiosity got the best of me, I guess.”
“No worries. I’m curious about it, too. She seems to have everything figured out, so it’s hard to imagine that she ever lost her way. But as she often says, anyone can make a tragic mistake.”
“That’s true.” Emery seemed thoughtful as she brought the rice and beans to the table. “How often do you think Susan needs help?”
“I couldn’t tell you.” He looked closer at her. “Why? You’re not considering offering to step in, are you?”
She lifted her hands palms up. “I’m available, right? I doubt I can get another job so close to Christmas, and I wouldn’t want to get one here, anyway, since I don’t plan on staying long-term. But I could help this Susan get through the Christmas rush.”
“That’s really nice of you,” he said. “But...it would mean facing the public on a daily basis.”
She suddenly seemed less certain. “I realize that. But someone told me I can’t let anyone or anything hold me back.” She offered him a half smile. “I have to get back out there at some point. And I would hate hiding here while someone is too sick to run their business, especially so close to the holidays.”
Lying low for a little longer would probably be more advisable. After running into the likes of Mrs. Seamus, Dallas understood that. But it was nice of
