by Kim Mckade
“Still, those kids haven’t shown that they’re exactly responsible citizens. Are you sure they can handle it?”
“I think they can. Besides, this would be a good way to teach them responsibility. Like I said, he’s okay most of the time. We could schedule hours for them to check on him, make sure he’s eating, things like that.”
“What are we going to do when the time comes that he does need full-time care?”
Toby looked at her softly for a moment, a slight smile on his lips. She realized then that she’d said “we,” not “you.”
“I don’t know,” he admitted finally. “We’ll cross that bridge when there’s no other way to go.”
She nodded. “Well, if you want to give it a try. I don’t think the kids will like it too much. And I’m not sure how Mr. Davis will feel, having fifteen baby-sitters.”
“See, I think he might like it.” Corinne smiled thoughtfully as his eyes grew bright and he gestured with his hands, growing excited about his plan. “I was reading up on the disease, and they say that long-term memory, and something called remote memory, sticks around longer than recent memory does. For instance, he’d remember who was president when he turned eighteen before he’d remember if he paid the water bill. Which means, he’s more likely to remember most of the stuff he taught all those years. Especially since he taught the same classes for so long.”
Corinne nodded as she realized what he was getting at. “He could help them with their schoolwork.”
“Exactly. They wouldn’t be baby-sitting him—he’d be teaching again. I don’t know, but I really think that will help him more than anything. Don’t you think that if someone has something they really care about, they’re more likely to be able to fight off disease?”
He looked so optimistic, she didn’t have the heart to tell him she didn’t think all the hope in the world could stave off this disease.
“One of the kids would tell him the truth.”
“Maybe not.”
“He’d figure it out anyway.”
Toby sighed a little. “Maybe.”
She didn’t like being the lone voice of negativity. “But even if he did, it would probably be worth it to him, to be able to work with the kids again. I’d be happy to give them extra assignments to work on with him.”
Toby grinned. “That’s my dragon lady. So, you think it will work?”
Corinne shrugged. “It’s worth a try. You’re still going to keep an eye on him yourself, though, right?” It would be necessary, she knew. The students might be able to help, but there was no way she would trust the care of an elderly man to the likes of Carl Buchanan and his bunch.
“Sure. I drop by there every day anyway. And I already talked to Mom about helping out. She was a nurse for thirty-five years, and will know what to do. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll think of something else.”
And he would. Corinne couldn’t help but admire his compassion If anyone had found their true calling in life, Toby had. It was silly to feel a twinge of envy, but she did. Wherever John Haskell was, she thought, he must be very proud of his son.
“Maybe you could go ahead and arrange to meet with Mr. Davis occasionally, talk about school,” Toby said. “I was thinking that if he felt like he was necessary to someone...”
Corinne leaned back against the door. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea. Heaven knows, I could use all the help I can get, and he was the best teacher I ever had.”
Toby nodded, brows arched in innocence.
“And that way I could help you keep an eye on him.”
He shrugged, and the corner of his mouth tipped up.
“I don’t mind,” she said quietly. The setting sun played across Toby’s face, highlighting the reddish glints in his hair. At his warm look, Corinne felt her mouth go dry, suddenly remembering with intense clarity the kiss they’d shared.
She cleared her throat and looked down at her feet. “Okay, so I’ll be happy to look in on him. Did you have a specific time in mind?”
Toby shook his head silently, his eyes still on her face. Corinne met his gaze tentatively, then looked away again. She kept expecting him to say something smart about last week, but he didn’t. Finally she couldn’t stand it any longer.
“Listen, Toby, about last week...”
He braced one hand on the door above her head and leaned close, his brows raised in question, a slight smile on his face. “Yes?”
“I just wanted to say...I mean...I’ve been thinking, and I feel.. ” The words stuck in her throat, then came pouring out in an awkward tumble. “I’m sorry for the way we...we parted. I’d really rather we didn’t fight every time we get around each other.”
“So would I.”
“I know, but you—”
“It’s okay, Corinne. I’ve already decided to back off. I have a job to do here, a big responsibility that needs all my attention right now. So relax.”
She felt foolish, and strangely, a little peeved. Because it would be silly to frown, she smiled. “It’s better this way.”
“You’re right. It is.”
“Just friends.”
“Yeah, just friends.” Toby tapped the porch rail, cleared his throat, and stepped back. “I’ll just be going, then.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.” Two more steps back, his eyes still held hers.
“I’ll see you.”
“Yeah.” He halted.
“I’ll call Mr. Davis tomorrow.”
“Yeah, do that.”
“Okay.”
He moved another step.
“Toby,” she said, moving toward him without intending to.
“No,” he said quietly. “Look, you’re not the only one who doesn’t need a complication right now. You’re not the only one who has other things going on in their life.”
She wanted so badly to ask him what he meant by that. Was he talking about the situation with the football players? With Mr. Davis, or Jeremy? Or all of it? Were his duties as sheriff catching up to him?
But she didn’t ask him, because she didn’t feel she had the right. She’d pushed him away; was it any wonder he’d taken the hint?
“Good night, Corinne.”
Corinne stood in the doorway and watched him drive away. A slow lump built in her throat and a totally irrational part of her wanted to call him back.
Chapter 10
Maybe it was the chilly October air that invigorated her. Maybe it was the shrieking children, running around the community center in Halloween costumes, playing games and winning prizes and stuffing themselves with candy, that gave her this warm glow of content. It could have been the mingled scents of roasting corn, hot dogs and caramel apples.
But maybe, just maybe, it was the fact that she finally had what she wanted, she had a quiet, peaceful life in Aloma The students saw her as a teacher and nothing more. She had made sure there were no complications in her life.
Even Toby hadn’t talked to her lately except to discuss Mr. Davis and his chaperons.
It was enough to bore a person silly
The senior class was sponsoring the Haunted Hayride after the Halloween carnival. As she watched the trailer pull into the parking lot of the community center, she heard herself cheering along with the kids. She was pathetically glad to be out of the house and socializing, such as it was. She caught herself smiling at nothing in particular. She was even excited about the ride.
When she was in high school, she had considered the carnival the epitome of small-town corniness. The same people wore the same costumes, pretending fright, pretending not to know who was under the mask.
Now it felt charming, the very picture of Americana. She felt ridiculously warm and cozy about the whole thing, as if she were a part of the excitement. It could only be the result of intense social deprivation.
Either that, or the double-fudge brownie she’d bought from Becca’s concession stand a few moments ago.
Corinne was dressed as a Southern belle. Her hair w
as done in ringlet curls, and she wore a powder blue dress with a skirt wide enough to park a car under. She’d worn the dress in her own senior play, and unearthed it from the attic that afternoon, when she decided it would be fun to dress up, even if it was silly. Besides smelling of dust and being a bit too tight through the chest, it was in decent enough shape for one night.
She gathered up the skirt of her antebellum dress and climbed awkwardly into the back of the trailer, where she sat on a bale of hay and tried to smooth her voluminous skirts out of the way Students crowded in, lining the edges of the trailer, laughing and teasing each other. Becca climbed in and sat beside Corinne
“Okay, Miss Maxwell, this had better be good. Carl Buchanan told me it was going to be a lesson in abject terror,” Becca said with a dry smile.
“I have no idea what they’re up to. I just arranged for the trailer and the hay, and asked Luke Tanner to lead a sing-along. The senior boys are taking care of the scary parts.”
“You don’t know what they have planned?”
Corinne shook her head. “They said it wouldn’t be fair if I knew—I might give it away. They’re excited about it, though, so it must be something bad.”
“That’s frightening in itself,” Becca said frankly.
Corinne laughed. “I’m sure it’s just something silly like jumping out of the bushes when we ride by, waving fake axes or something. Josh Baxter will probably dress up like Freddy Krueger and scare all the girls.”
“Including this one.” Becca pointed to herself. “I wish there was at least one adult who knew what was going on. Wait, there’s Josh.”
Josh Baxter, wearing a cowboy suit and holding a stick horse, climbed into the back of the trailer, following closely on the heels, as always, of Cindy Wells. Cindy was dressed as a fairy princess, but had opted to wear her own slightly irritated expression.
“Josh, what are you doing here?” Corinne asked. “Why aren’t you out with the rest of the boys?”
Josh shrugged. “Buchanan said he’s got it all under control. He wants some of us on the trailer so we can stir things up from in here.” He looked off as he spoke, watching as Cindy sat next to a freshman boy.
“Get up, man. That’s my seat” Josh motioned to the boy with a toss of his head
“Find your own seat, Baxter,” the other boy said “I was here first.”
Josh poked the other boy gently but firmly in the leg with his stick horse. “You’re sitting next to my girl, kiddo Move.”
Cindy said, “I’m not your girl,” at the same time the boy said, “No.”
Josh gave a long-suffering sigh, then leaned over and whispered something in the boy’s ear. The boy moved to another bale.
Josh plopped down next to Cindy. “Hi,” he said, flashing white teeth. “You look beautiful, as always.”
Corinne whispered to Becca, “What did he say to that boy?”
“I have no idea,” Becca said. She stood and bent over Josh’s ear.
After Josh whispered back, Becca sat down. “He promised the boy twenty bucks when we get back to the community center.”
Corinne laughed “Unbelievable, what some guys will do.”
“Yes. They remind me of you and Toby in high school.”
“What?” Corinne’s eyes grew wide with disbelief. “We were never like that.”
“Sure you were Toby followed you around like a lovesick puppy dog, and you let him. It was disgusting.”
“I never ..” Corinne let the thought drift off as she watched the bored expression on Cindy’s face. Cindy was crazy about Josh; Corinne had watched them from the beginning of the school year. Cindy pretended to be uninterested, but she always made sure she was in a position for Josh to notice her.
Corinne had often felt like shaking Cindy, seeing the two dance around each other day after day. Didn’t the girl see what a sweet boy Josh was? A boy like that would grow up to be a steady, dependable man. A man who would cherish her, would be there for her for the rest of his life. Was Cindy too blind to see that?
No, Corinne thought. She saw it. But she took it for granted. She enjoyed the constant adoration, and she didn’t have to give anything in return. She was completely safe.
Her thoughts turned, guiltily, to Toby. She had been in love with Toby when she was Cindy’s age. He had known that. No, she’d never told him. But he had to have known.
“Speak of the devil,” Becca murmured. “I don’t believe that phrase has ever been more appropriate.”
Corinne looked up, and her breath caught in her throat. A pirate was climbing into the trailer. A very sexy pirate.
“Oh, my God,” Corinne murmured to herself “That’s Toby.”
“I know,” Becca said. By her tone she was as stunned as Corinne was.
From the ground up, he looked every bit the marauding bandit of the high seas. He wore shiny black boots, with black pants tucked into the top of them—pants snug enough to leave little to the imagination. Tucked into the pants was a flowing white shirt with loose sleeves, the front unbuttoned far past the point of decency
He wore a black patch over one eye. His hair was dyed jetblack.
He stepped onto the trailer and flourished a fake sword. “Shiver me timbers!” he roared. “Are you ready for the adventure of your lives?”
The crowd on the hay bales cheered.
“I warn you, it’s not for the squeamish or the faint of heart.” Toby walked up the middle of the trailer, swinging the sword smoothly beside him. “I suggest you take this opportunity, this second, before it’s too late, to—” he whirled on a group of freshman girls clumped together on one bale “—run for your lives!” he growled, thrusting his face into the group.
The girls obligingly squealed in terror and hugged each other. More than one of them gave him frankly admiring looks. The trailer lurched to a forward roll. Toby grinned, a wicked flash of white teeth against tan skin.
Corinne smothered her laugh of delight when Toby’s gaze landed on her. He pointed his sword at her. “Ah-ha! A beautiful damsel, ripe for the plucking.”
Corinne rolled her eyes. He was going to try to embarrass her in front of her students. She pursed her lips and turned away.
And saw her own expression mirrored in the eighteen-year-old face of Cindy Wells.
The recognition hit her like a thunderbolt. .Oh my God. I was like that I am like that.
“I believe I’ll bundle up this little morsel and carry her back to my secret island cave, safe from the prying eyes of decent human society,” Toby growled, standing over Corinne with a wicked leer on his face He waggled his brows suggestively and brandished his sword. The kids around them laughed.
Corinne started to pull up her old standby: aloof disdain. But she couldn’t. She just couldn’t. This was one of those magical moments that memories were made of—of playing along, of fitting in and joining the group and laughing over silly things. Of not taking herself seriously.
One of those moments she’d always made herself miss out on.
So she squealed and feigned terror. A grown woman, pushing thirty, holding her hands up and squealing like a teenager. She felt like, and knew she looked like, an idiot.
Toby looked at her in surprise. Obviously, hers was not the reaction he’d expected.
“I can’t help it,” she said dryly. “I don’t have a lot of experience at squealing. Sit down.”
He did as he was told. “It wasn’t such a bad squeal, your first time out and all,” he said, dropping back to his normal voice. He settled beside her as the hayride picked up speed and headed out of town.
“Oh, it was stupid and you know it. I can’t pull off the terrified damsel thing.”
“That’s okay. You gave it your best shot. What are you doing here, anyway? I figured this kind of thing was way too hokey for you.” He fiddled with the patch over his eye
She opened her mouth to retort. She could use her duties as senior class advisor as an excuse. That she was here because she had to be, not
because she wanted to be. It would be a familiar response, for both of them.
Instead, she shrugged and smiled weakly. “It’s fun, don’t you think?”
“Well, sure, I think it’s fun. I always loved Halloween. If I recall, though, you said it was a silly holiday for people who couldn’t deal with the fact that they were no longer children.”
“Okay, okay,” Corinne said irritably. “Must you remind me of my faults constantly?”
He drew back in surprise. “Faults? What faults?”
She glowered at his faked innocence. “Okay, so maybe I was wrong—” At his shocked look, she lifted her chin defiantly. “Maybe I was wrong.”
He shook his head as if to clear it. “You? Wrong? I—I don’t understand.”
“You’re getting a kick out of this, aren’t you?” she said with asperity. “Did you ever stop to think that maybe I was a little insecure back then? That I was afraid of letting my guard down because—because I might make a mistake?”
He remained tactfully blank-faced.
“Maybe I acted like a snob—”
“I never said that,” he objected.
“But maybe,” she continued, “maybe some people are afraid to relax. Did you ever stop to think about that? They might look stupid, and nobody would have any respect for them. Or they might make a mistake, one they’d regret. So they weigh the consequences before they take action. Some people don’t find it as easy as you do, Toby, to just jump right in and let themselves go. Did you ever think of that?”
“Of course I did,” he said frankly. “Did you?”
She sighed and turned away, plucking a strand of hay from the bale beneath her. She could feel the magic of the moment slipping by her, out of her grasp. “Yes,” she said glumly, looking at Cindy Wells. “About fifteen seconds ago.”
He followed her gaze, looking first at Cindy, who was pointedly ignoring Josh’s attempts to hold her hand, then back at Corinne. “Ahh,” he said, nodding slowly. “I see.”
“She’s missing out on a lot,” Corinne said, her eyes on Cindy.
Toby nodded. “Yeah, but look at him. He’s a complete goof. No wonder she won’t give him the time of day.”