Sweet Baklava

by Debby Mayne

  "Oh, okay." A sense of relief flooded him. "I hear you just got another big wholesale order."

  "Yeah. I didn't expect it."

  "It sounds good, though. Business is thriving."

  "For now, anyway."

  "You sound worried." He sat down on the other end of the bench, not sure of how much space she needed.

  "I don't know how long this will last. It's a lot harder than I thought it would be. If I expand too fast, it might implode, but if I don't expand at all I'll never know how successful it might be."

  "So you're basically expecting the other shoe to drop." Nick should have realized this. After all, Paula had experienced one disappointment after another from the moment he'd first met her. When something good happened, something bad always followed.

  "Yeah, I guess."

  "Well, maybe things have changed, and it'll only get better."

  The downward slope of her shoulders said she didn't believe that would ever happen. Since he knew it was futile to try to convince her otherwise, he decided to change the subject.

  "So how's our little friend Amanda doing?"

  Light flickered in Paula's eyes as she turned to him. "That girl is very smart. I spent some time helping her study for English, math, and history, and she managed to catch on very quickly."

  Nick nodded. "She did seem smart." Then he snickered. "But more than that, she was a smart aleck."

  "Oh, she's definitely a smart aleck. I'd hate to get into a battle of words with that one."

  "For the first time, you might have met your match," Nick said.

  Paula frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

  "It means that you're better with words than anyone else I've ever known."

  "Until now," Paula said with a hint of a smile. "Now we have Amanda."

  He scooted closer to Paula, and when she didn't say anything he closed the distance. She leaned into him and sighed.

  His cell phone rang, and Paula pulled away. When he looked at the number, his heart thudded. "It's your shop."

  "You better answer it then. I left my phone in the car."

  As soon as he flipped open his phone, Alexa didn't bother waiting for him to say anything. "Is Paula there?"

  "She's right here. Why?"

  "I need to talk to her now."

  Nick handed the phone to Paula. "Alexa wants to talk to you."

  "What's going on, Alexa?"

  "Amanda's here."

  Paula glanced at her watch. "She's supposed to be in school."

  "I know. You really need to get over here right now. It's serious."

  "I'll be right there."

  Paula jumped up. "There's an emergency with Amanda."

  "I'll follow you," Nick said as he headed for his car. As soon as they were on the main road, Nick called the shop. Alexa told him she couldn't talk at the moment because someone very important needed her help. He knew that meant Amanda was standing there next to her. "Don't let her leave until we get there."

  "Oh, trust me, that won't happen."

  Paula pulled into the lot behind the shop then took off running without waiting for him. By the time Nick made it inside her store, Amanda was in Paula's arms, sobbing.

  "I promise, I didn't do it," she kept saying.

  Nick frowned and looked at Alexa, who motioned for him to follow her into the back room. Once there, she whispered, "She made an A on the history test, and Ms. Nelson accused her of cheating. She's been suspended from school."

  20

  Where's her mother?" Nick asked.

  "She went to the school, signed the papers, then kicked her out of the house."

  Nick rubbed the back of his neck. He had no idea what to do to help this girl.

  "Nick!" The sound of Paula's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

  Alexa nodded toward the front of the store. "You better go see what Paula wants."

  As soon as Paula saw him, she shook her head. "Someone has to talk to the people at the school. That old . . . Ms. Nelson has no right to accuse anyone of cheating, just because they did well on a test."

  Amanda's shoulders shook as she continued sobbing. "I should have known better than to get all smart and everything."

  "You didn't just get smart, Amanda, honey. You've always been smart. It's just that some people are too blind to see past their noses." Paula put her arm around her and rubbed her back. "We're gonna help you through this." She glanced up at Nick. "Aren't we?"

  He had no idea what he could do, but he nodded. "Yes, absolutely."

  Paula glanced back and forth between him and Amanda a few times before she finally settled her gaze on him. "Why don't I stay here with Amanda, and you try to talk to her mother?"

  Nick wasn't sure how wise that was. Kate Katsaros had been trying to get with him since high school, and until now he never had a reason to say more than a few words to her. But he couldn't very well let Amanda or Paula down.

  "Okay, but don't expect a miracle."

  Amanda sniffled and rested her head on Paula's shoulder. Nick felt an unfamiliar tug at his heart. He placed his hands on both of their shoulders and bowed his head. Paula lowered her head, but Amanda simply stared at him.

  "Lord, we pray for mercy on those who have falsely accused Amanda of cheating. Guide us as we try to resolve this . . .situation. I pray that my words to Amanda's mother Kate are uplifting and pleasing to you, Father. I also pray that everything will be okay at the school. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen."

  When Nick looked up and saw the twinkle in Paula's eye, he felt another flutter in his chest. Amanda's eyes were round and curious. He suspected she'd never heard such an intimate prayer before, and he vowed he'd do whatever he could to change that.

  "Okay, I'll go find Kate. Any idea where your mother might be, Amanda?"

  She nodded. "I think she's taking the rest of the day off, so she's probably at home." She gave him the address.

  Dread washed over Nick as he thought about going to Kate's house alone. But he couldn't very well back out now.

  He left Paula and Amanda at the shop and drove to the edge of town, where rows of smaller houses lined the street. A glance at the address confirmed what he suspected. The house with the peeling paint and overgrown lawn belonged to Kate Katsaros. The shiny red sports car in the driveway confirmed that she was home.

  He parked behind her, got out, and took a deep breath. Might as well get this over with. He trudged up to the front door and knocked. A few seconds later Kate flung it open.

  A slow grin spread across her face. "So what brings you to the ghetto, Nick?"

  His jaw tightened. "I'd like to talk to you about Amanda."

  Her smile tightened into a scowl. "My daughter is none of your business."

  "Your daughter is hurting right now, and she needs someone to listen to her."

  "You know what she did, right?" Kate tilted her head and planted a fist on her outthrust hip. "That girl had the audacity to cheat on a test and get caught. How stupid is that?"

  "She didn't cheat." Nick felt the tremor of fury, so he took a step back. How could a mother accuse her own daughter of something so awful without giving her the benefit of listening?

  "How do you know? Were you there?"

  "Not at the school, but I did see her studying hard for the test."

  Kate narrowed her eyes and glared at Nick. "You've been with my daughter lately?"

  "Calm down, Kate. There's some stuff I need to tell you, and it's gonna take a while." He nodded toward the door. "Mind if I come in?"

  She hesitated a second before taking a step back. "Okay, but I'm not sure how much talking you'll have to do to convince me my daughter didn't cheat. I know her a whole lot better than you do."

  The inside of her house was much nicer than the outside— the opposite of the woman herself. Plush furniture and lots of pillows made the living room very cozy. Very intimate. And very romantic. "Can we sit at a table?" he asked.

  Kate laughed. "Yes, of course."r />
  Once they sat down, Nick told Kate about Paula catching Amanda shoplifting. She slammed her fists on the table as she stood.

  "Why didn't someone come to me then?"

  Nick inhaled deeply and pointed to her chair. "Sit back down, Kate. I think she wanted to get caught."

  "That girl is sending me to an early grave. I've told her to stop stealing, but does she listen to me?"

  "Amanda needs you to listen to her, Kate. When was the last time the two of you sat down and had a calm mother-daughter conversation?"

  "It's impossible to be calm with a cheating thief."

  Nick thought about how Jesus dealt with the thief on the cross. He wanted to share his faith with Kate, but if he started that right now it would seem like he was preaching at her. Better to let Kate see Christianity in action.

  "I've seen firsthand how well Amanda responds to attention. Paula has been tutoring her in several subjects, and she's doing much better in school. In fact, that's the problem. Ms. Nelson assumed she cheated because she actually studied and made a good grade on the test."

  Nick paused to let Kate process the information. Her jaw clenched, but she nodded. "Go on. Tell me everything I don't know about my daughter."

  He explained how Amanda had been working off her crime when Paula agreed to help her with her schoolwork.

  "Why would Paula do that? Most people call the cops."

  Nick shrugged. "Paula's different."

  "You can say that again." Kate rolled her eyes. "I never understood what you saw in that girl."

  Anger flared in Nick, but he tamped it down. "I'm not here to discuss my feelings for Paula. This is about Amanda."

  "Mind if I have a cigarette?" She reached for the pack on the edge of the table.

  "I'd rather you didn't."

  Kate gave him an odd look. "No one has ever said that to me before."

  "What's the deal with Amanda not being able to come home?"

  She shoved the pack of cigarettes away and folded her arms. "I told her if she was so smart, she could make it on her own." Kate shook her head. "But she knew I didn't mean it. I say stuff like that all the time. When she gets all high and mighty, I tell her to go out there and find a way to take care of herself."

  "So you're saying you didn't kick her out?"

  "Not really. I might have said something to that effect, but she knows I didn't mean it. I just needed some time to cool off."

  Nick stood up, placed his hands on the back of the chair, and leaned forward. "Sometimes you have to accept the word of those you love."

  "That girl has lied to me since she said her first words. Why should I start believing her now?"

  "Kate, have you ever taken Amanda to church?"

  "You sound like my mother."

  Nick's frustration swelled, and he couldn't deal with her anymore. "Okay, I see that you're not listening to anything I'm saying. If you want to see Amanda and listen to her, you'll probably be able to find her at Paula's shop or my parents' house, where I'm taking her if you don't come and get her."

  Kate didn't respond. As she sat there staring down at the table, Nick left and headed to his parents' house. He figured he should give his mother a heads-up that they might need to get another room ready for a guest.

  "You know I don't like to interfere in another family's business, Nick," his mother said as she took off toward the guest room, defying her own words. She opened the door and started stripping the bed. "I have to wash these sheets since no one's slept here in months." As she bundled up the sheets, she mumbled about how Cletus would be furious with her for letting a thief sleep in their house. "I can't very well let a young girl sleep on the streets, though, can I?"

  "Mama, you're wonderful," Nick said. He planted a kiss on her cheek. "I gotta go tell Paula now. I hope we can get this thing resolved. Kate really needs to put her own personal issues aside and find a way to relate to her daughter."

  When he arrived back at Paula's shop, Alexa was there alone. "Paula and Amanda went to the high school."

  "Why?"

  "Paula called the principal and told him she'd been helping Amanda study. Ms. Nelson denied that anyone could catch up so quickly, so Paula challenged her. The principal agreed to let Amanda take another test on the same material in a room alone."

  Nick wondered how Amanda felt about that. "I sure hope it works out."

  "Yeah, me too. Amanda threatened to throw the test, since no one ever believes her anyway." Alexa snickered. "Paula lit into her so hard Amanda didn't know what happened. I have a feeling Amanda won't get a word in edgewise all the way to the school."

  "I think I'll go see my dad and come back in an hour or so. Call me if they get back before that."

  Alexa nodded. "This is gonna be a very interesting day."

  Paula felt like she'd been talking to a wall. Amanda kept saying she would throw the test, in spite of the fact that this was the best way to vindicate herself. When they got to the school, Paula turned to her and said, "If you throw this test, Amanda, you're not as smart as I thought you were. Wouldn't it be better to show everyone how mean-spirited Ms. Nelson really is and how she accuses people without knowing what she's talking about?"

  Amanda just looked at her without responding. They walked into the school together in silence. Ms. Nelson waited in the principal's office wearing one of her vintage smirks and a suit to match.

  Forty-five minutes later, Amanda walked out of the tiny room behind the principal's office grinning. When Ms. Nelson and the principal took off with the test to grade it, Amanda gave a thumbs-up. Paula sighed with relief.

  It didn't take more than fifteen minutes for Ms. Nelson to grade the test, but she didn't come back to the office, where Paula and Amanda waited. Instead, the principal handed Amanda the paper with a huge, red "100%" written across the top.

  "Good job, Amanda," he said. "I apologize for what happened. You've obviously studied very hard for this test, and I made a big mistake." He looked down then back up at her. "I'd like for you to come back to class tomorrow."

  Amanda opened her mouth, but Paula put her hand on Amanda's arm and shook her head. "Not so fast. I want you to move her out of Ms. Nelson's class."

  "But—"

  "You don't really think she'll be able to go back into that . . . Ms. Nelson's class and actually learn anything, do you?"

  The principal steepled his fingers and nodded his head. "You're right. I'll see what I can do." He smiled at Amanda. "Come in here first thing in the morning, and I'll have a new schedule for you. I'll try to keep as many of your classes intact as possible, unless there's something else you want me to change."

  Amanda's eyes flickered for a second before she shook her head. "That's the only change I want."

  "Good. Would you like for me to call your mother?" he asked.

  Once again Paula spoke up. "Yes, why don't you call her now and let her know we're on our way to her house?"

  As they walked to the car, Paula chuckled. "You had me scared there for a while, girl."

  "Why?"

  "All that talk about throwing the test."

  "I was just talking smack. When you said I could show how awful Ms. Nelson really was, there was no way I could throw the test." She paused when they got to the car. "Paula?"

  Paula paused with her hand on the door. "Yes?"

  "Thank you for doing all this."

  "You're welcome, but you don't think you're getting away without paying me back, do you?"

  Amanda grinned as she slid into the front seat of Paula's car. "I've swept your floors and studied my brains out. What more do you want from me?"

  "A promise that you'll never steal again—from anyone— and for you to go to church with me."

  Amanda scowled. "I don't know about the church thing."

  "So you're scared of church, huh?" Paula challenged.

  "I'm not scared of anything."

  "Then what's your problem?"

  Amanda looked down at her clasped hands then met P
aula's gaze with the most vulnerable look Paula had ever seen on her. "I've never been to church before. What will I have to do?"

  Paula reached for Amanda's hands and squeezed them. "Nothing hard. Just sit next to me and do what I do."

  "Are they gonna call on me and ask questions and stuff?"

  "No, it's nothing like that. What we do at our church is sing worship songs, read Scripture, and listen to a message about how much God loves us."

  "That's not what Mom said. She told me they try to make people feel bad for having fun."

  Paula wasn't about to tell Amanda how bad her mother was. "Maybe we should invite your mother to go with us."

  Amanda tilted her head back and laughed. "Now that's the funniest joke I've ever heard."

  "I'm serious."

  "As a heart attack?"

  Paula looked over at Amanda and winked. "At least. Maybe more."

  When they got to Amanda's house, her mother wasn't home. Paula was disappointed, but she didn't want to show it.

  "Wanna go back to the shop now?"

  Amanda looked out her window and shrugged, but she didn't say anything. Paula had a pretty good idea of how she felt, and she ached for the girl.

  When her phone rang, she pulled it out of her handbag. It was Nick.

  "Hey. I'm at my parents' house with Amanda's mom."

  Paula felt sick to her stomach, but she didn't want Amanda to know, so she took a deep breath before talking to Nick. "I have Amanda. Want us to come there?"

  "That's what I was hoping for."

  "We're headed there now." Paula flipped her phone shut and turned the car toward Spring Bayou. "Amanda, honey, I want to warn you. We're going to Nick's parents' house."

  "So?" Amanda still faced the window.

  "Your mother is there with Nick."

  Amanda's head snapped around so fast it startled Paula. "What?" she shrieked. "What is she doing there?"

  "Don't ask me. Nick just told me she was there, and he wants us to come over."

  "I don't want to go to Nick's parents' house."

  Paula pulled over again and put the car in park. "Amanda, I know how much you're hurting right now, but you need to take the high road in this relationship with your mother."