Chapter Fourteen
Cora sat listening to Susan Hythe drone on about what frosting to have on the cupcakes for the end of the year event.
Really, who cared just what amount of sugar was in them? It was frosting. Cora barely refrained from rolling her eyes as she held onto Adam and fervently wished she had been able to do her volunteer hours at the beginning of the school year.
However, she and Nate had been fighting over her pregnancy and it wasn’t the best idea to open herself up to the scrutiny of the local moms.
And one dad. Dillon was present, filling in for Kelly.
He was the lone male in the room and seemed quite comfortable.
Dillon had been a single dad for some time before he remarried, Cora reminded herself.
He was used to the PTA meetings. Not that Nate would ever be bothered to do something so mundane.
She really needed to stop comparing other men to Nate. It wasn’t worth her time, Cora firmly told herself.
Her cellphone indicated that she had missed a message and Cora quickly hid it under the table to read it, feeling like a naughty student at school. If caught, she would be sure to get a lecture from Susan, self elected leader of the PTA.
To be fair, no one else wanted the job.
Cora certainly didn’t. It would mean being at all the meetings, organizing all the events, getting reluctant parents to do their part, forcing children to fundraise which even though it was an expensive school, Livingston Academy did value philanthropy, and leading talks like this one.
It was a lot of hard work that Susan seemed to thrive on.
Sneaking a look at her phone screen, Cora saw it was a text from Henry. Suddenly worried something had happened to him or the boys, she swiped the screen to go to the message.
How is the meeting?
Relieved Henry was simply asking her how things were going, Cora carefully replied using one hand while the other kept Adam steady.
Boring. I wish I were somewhere else.
Three dots appeared as Henry typed. I can get you out of the meeting. Tell them I’m sick. It’s the truth.
Cora almost smiled but she didn’t want to attract Susan’s attention. Tempting…
I’ll go on the ring camera on the porch and fall down.
You can show them the video and pretend you’re rushing home to save me.
You’ll never be invited to a parent meeting again this year.
All you have to do is tell them how horrible my health is and you can’t possibly leave me by myself.
You’ll have the video to prove it, typed Henry.
Cora’s smile suddenly left. Her thumb rapidly touched the letter. Don’t you dare.
Except, knowing Henry, he would. Henry would do whatever it took to get her out of a boring meeting if she simply asked. He had always been like that, a mischievous manchild during college who was up for anything innocently fun and dragging her along with him.
He had made her smile and laugh so often, Cora thought with warmth at the memories. Henry still did, joking with her and sometimes saying silly things.
You know you want me to. I’m on the porch right now. Just type fall and I’m in.
You’ll hurt yourself, Cora protested as she saw the ring camera alert her that there was movement on the porch.
Come on, you hate sitting in that boring meeting. Let me get you out.
“... agreed, Cora?”
Cora jerked her head up to see Susan Hythe looking at her in complete satisfaction like the cat who just had cream. Cora had no idea what was going on so tentatively responded, “Yes?”
“Great!” enthused Susan. “I will put you down for baking and icing the cupcakes. They need to be homemade from scratch. You remember the dietary restrictions and the amount we will need, right?”
“Um,” croaked out Cora, drawing a complete blank. Her thumb typed a single word, probably misspelled.
Fall!
“I don’t think I can. New baby and all,” she managed to say before swiping to her ring camera app.
“Cora, you just agreed,” huffed Susan, a dangerous glint coming into her eyes. “We need three hundred homemade cupcakes specifically made for the children’s dietary restrictions.”
“Three hundred? I can’t possibly bake three hundred cupcakes.” Cora shook her head. She looked down at her phone and gasped.
Henry made it look so real, tripping over the first step and sprawling on the porch. He didn’t move a muscle as the wheeled walker slowly drifted away.
“Those cupcakes need to be iced as well,” snarkily said Susan.
“Cora, is everything okay?” questioned Dillon in concern.
“It’s Henry. I have to go,” stuttered Cora. She deliberately put the phone on the table while putting Adam in his carseat and gathering her stuff. If some of the moms happened to look at the video of Henry sprawled on the porch because the app was open, it really wasn’t Cora’s fault.
“Oh wow! He really tripped. Should you get an ambulance?” asked one of the moms in alarm. She had picked up the phone and even backed up the video to see exactly what Henry had done.
“No. It’s five minutes away. I’m just going home and I’ll decide then,” responded Cora, her voice a little tight and unnatural. She snatched her phone from the woman’s hand.
“I’ll come with you,” mentioned Dillon, standing up.
Cora blinked, there was no way she could turn down Dillon’s help. He was a part of the family. She gave a quick nod before rushing out of the room.
In the parking lot, Dillon followed her. “Do you want me to drive you? Or do you want me to follow you in my car?”
Cora hit the ring voice button. There was a tremor to her voice. “Henry, you had better be playing possum. That fall looked all too real.”
Henry slowly sat up, a grin on his face. His voice came over the app. “Did it look good?”
“Too good. You scared me,” breathed Cora with some relief.
“What just happened?” questioned Dillon, his brow furrowed in confusion.
“Cora said the meeting was boring. I got her out of it,” shrugged Henry. He pulled his walker towards himself, putting on the brakes.
“You faked a fall to get Cora out of a meeting?” wondered Dillon in disbelief.
Cora felt her face flush. “Three hundred cupcakes, Dillon. Frosted. With dietary concerns. Handmade, home baked cupcakes.”
Dillon paused then nodded. “Okay, the fall might have been a bit dramatic but you could have just said no. Or told them you would get them from a bakery.”
“At the risk of the wrath of Susan Hythe?” Cora feigned a shudder. “No thank you. Henry saved me.”
“I’m a hero,” modestly stated Henry as he managed to get to his feet. “Now this hero is going to take a nap.”
“Thank you, Henry,” fondly smiled Cora. She shut off the ring app after Henry had made his way inside the house.
“He’s going to teach your boys some bad habits,” ruefully mentioned Dillon. “I’m sorry, I don’t really mean that. Henry just enjoys pranks every once in a while.”
“Henry is going to teach them they can have spontaneity and some joy in their lives,” softly countered Cora as she put her phone away.
She gave Dillon a smile. “I am going grocery shopping then will be back for pickup. There is no way I am baking cupcakes for the school. Susan can find some other poor soul who is willing.”
“I think I will run a few errands myself. If you or Henry need anything, give us a call,” offered Dillon before he went to find his car in the parking lot.
A few hours later, Cora had her groceries. She picked up Nick and Oliver with a minimum of questions about Henry from concerned moms. Fortunately, Dillon seemed to have told most of the curious people that Henry was okay and it was just a stumble.
She was grateful for that. Being naturally shy, Cora didn’t like to be the center of attention.
Oliver was happy to see her, chatting about his day. Nick however, still seemed unhappy and closed off. He got into the van, doing up his seatbelt and immediately just stared out the window.
“How was your day, Nick?” Cora tentatively asked.
Nick shrugged. “Fine.”
All other questions were met with one word answers and Cora eventually gave up.
She wondered if this attitude was due to something new that had happened at school, or if it was still from Susan’s cruel words the other day about Cora moving on from Nate and basically accusing her of having an affair with Henry.
Had Nick understood the full context of what Susan had said? He was smart and a mature boy for his age. Were the accusations bothering him?
Cora bit her lip as she pulled into the driveway of the house. She would have to speak to Nick, but didn’t know how to delicately broach the subject.
As soon as she parked, Nick was out of the van, grabbing some bags of groceries and heading inside.
Well, at least he hadn’t run upstairs to his room like the other day, Cora thought with a small amount of relief. Oliver helped to grab some groceries, while Cora got Adam, bringing him into the house.
Nick and Henry were in the kitchen putting items away while Oliver grabbed Daisy’s leash. “I’m going to take her for a walk. Do you want to come, Nick?”
“Not today,” muttered Nick as opened the door to the fridge to put away some items.
Oliver shrugged. He and Daisy went outside.
“Any reason you didn’t want to go for a walk?” questioned Henry as he gave Nick a curious look.
Nick closed the fridge door, glancing at Cora before giving his attention to Henry. He squared his thin shoulders before saying, “I was hoping to talk to you. Privately.”
Henry and Cora’s eyes met and Cora wished she had told Henry what had happened. She had been too embarrassed to, and now it was likely that was what Nick would want to talk to him about. She bit her lip, wondering if she should say something now.
“Sure,” Henry said easily. “We can go to the living room if you want.”
“Could we sit on the deck outside in the backyard?” questioned Nick.
Henry nodded. “Let me grab my coat.”
Cora carefully transferred a sleeping Adam to the bassinet as she kept an eye on Nick and Henry who headed out onto the back deck. They settled on the patio furniture. She could see Nick talking while Henry listened.
Nick looked so serious.