Chapter 3
ALLIE
Allie left the meeting and headed out across the parking lot.
The cold air felt good against her heated cheeks and the bright taste of snow was in the air.
Parent meetings always made her nervous, but today’s had gone about as well as possible.
Maya had really thought about ways to confront someone without resorting to pushing.
Eloise also seemed to take it to heart that jumping ahead in line wasn’t okay.
And even her parents eased off a little once they understood the whole situation.
I’m glad Maya was brave enough to tell the truth.
So many times, children had the instinct to clam up or lie when they were faced with punishment. But Maya Tailor had stood up and taken responsibility for what she had done. It was pretty impressive for a five-year-old.
Now I have to do my part, and help her find ways to learn without getting distracted.
“Miss Lawrence, Miss Lawrence,” a little voice called out.
Allie turned to see Maya running toward her in that bright red coat, a familiar piece of paper fluttering in her mittened hand.
Allie automatically patted her pocket in case she was wrong, but came up empty. The brochure must have fallen out when she was leaving the school.
“You dropped this,” Maya panted, holding it out.
Maybe it was the way the glossy paper caught the glow of the afternoon sunlight, but all the magic that had drained away from it earlier in the day seemed to be back now that it was in Maya’s hand.
Allie took it, resisting the impulse to hug it to her chest.
“What is it?” Maya asked as her father caught up to them.
“Oh,” Allie said, suddenly feeling flustered in the presence of the tall man with the dark eyes that were fixed on her with such interest. “Just a project I thought would be fun.”
“You’re thinking of putting up a greenhouse?” Mr. Tailor asked.
“No, no,” she said, shaking her head. “It was just a silly idea I had.”
“What’s it for?” Maya asked.
“Well, if we had a greenhouse here at school, it could stay warm all year long,” Allie told her. “And we could grow things in it, like carrots or beans.”
“What would we do with them?” Maya asked, frowning.
“We would take care of our crop and help it grow, and then harvest it from the ground,” Allie said with a smile. “And then we could eat it.”
“You would grow it in the dirt and then eat it?” Maya asked, looking aghast.
Allie glanced up at Mr. Tailor, who was now frowning like his daughter had been a moment ago.
“It’s a great idea,” he said suddenly. “You should do it.”
“Thank you,” Allie said, feeling seen. “I wanted the kids to have a chance to get their hands dirty and know where their food comes from. But it’s obviously too expensive, so we can’t really move forward with it.”
There was a defiant flash in his eyes that suddenly reminded her of Maya when she told the adults that Eloise had cut in line in front of Timmy.
“Miss Lawrence, I liked our new games today,” Maya said, tugging shyly at Allie’s coat before Mr. Tailor had a chance to voice whatever he was thinking.
“Thank you, Maya,” Allie said, warmth spreading in her chest.
“It’s nice to play sometimes,” Maya said.
“I have a hard time being still all day at school too,” Allie told her honestly. “It’s nice to move around a little between our lessons.”
Maya’s eyes widened with wonder, as if she couldn’t imagine that her teacher also wanted to get up and work off some excess energy.
Allie couldn’t help smiling down at the sweet little girl who reminded her so much of herself.
Maya smiled back, then suddenly her eyes went to something behind Allie.
Before Allie could even turn to look, Maya took off down the sidewalk that bordered the parking lot.
“Eloise, Eloise,” Maya shouted as she ran.
Allie’s breath caught in her throat and she jogged after the little girl. She could sense Mr. Tailor’s presence right behind her.
She knew she shouldn’t worry about this interaction after the positive parent meeting, but she couldn’t help being half-worried anyway. At the speed Maya was going, a push would send the other little girl flying.
“I’m sorry, Eloise,” Maya said, stopping right beside the girl with the blonde ponytails. “I won’t ever do that again, not ever.”
“Okay,” Eloise said. “Want to play?”
“We have to get home for dinner, Eloise,” her mother said. “But maybe you can find Maya on the playground tomorrow.”
“Five minutes, Mom?” Eloise asked. “Pleeeease?”
“All right,” her mother relented.
The two little girls took off in the direction of the big tree at the corner of the school property. It was a maple, but the groundskeeper had wound a string of white lights around the trunk, making it look like something out of a fairytale.
Eloise’s parents trailed the girls, but Mr. Tailor hung back.
“Thank you,” he said, his deep voice quiet and gentle. “She loves you, you know?”
“I loved my kindergarten teacher too,” Allie laughed. “It’s one of the job perks. But Maya is very special to me. She’s all heart.”
Mr. Tailor smiled down at her, but his eyes were still serious.
“She’s had a hard time,” he said. “At her old school, they said she was a disruption.”
Allie could tell that those words had cost him.
She wondered if her parents had felt that kind of frustration back when she first started school and had her own troubles adjusting to so much time behind a desk.
Allie remembered feeling like a caged tiger, chained to that desk while the meadows and barns and creek were out there begging to be explored.
She knew most of her brothers had been the same way, and Tripp had certainly been even worse, but teachers seemed to hold girls to a different standard when it came to having a little too much energy.
“Maya is smart and kind,” Allie said firmly. “She just needs extra opportunities to stretch her legs so she can settle down and focus. She’s only five, Mr. Tailor.”
“Ash,” he corrected her, his deep voice sending a flutter through her chest.
“Ash,” she echoed, enjoying the way his name felt in her mouth.
Stop that, Allie, a little voice in her head yelled at her. You can’t have a crush on a parent, it’s unprofessional.
“Daddy, Daddy,” Maya yelled as she ran back to them. “Eloise has to go now, but we’re going to play dinosaur tag tomorrow.”
“Maya, I’m so proud of you,” Ash said, crouching to look at his daughter eye-to-eye. “You made a mistake, but then you made it right.”
Maya looked at her father with shining eyes, like he hung the moon.
“And I’m glad you were looking out for your friend, Timmy,” Ash went on. “Maybe he’d like to play with you and Eloise tomorrow?”
“We can ask him,” Maya said excitedly, wiggling in place like she wanted to bound off down the sidewalk again. “We can ask him tomorrow.”
Allie watched as the big man patted little Maya gently on the shoulder before she plowed right into him and hugged him hard.
After a moment, Maya let go and her father straightened up.
“Thank you for coming in,” Allie said, clearing her throat.
“Thank you for staying late,” he said.
“Maya,” Allie said, turning to the girl. “Your dad is absolutely right. You should be proud of yourself for today. I can’t wait to see you in class tomorrow.”
“Me neither,” Maya said. “I’m going to walk like an elephant tomorrow.”
“That was a fun one,” Allie agreed, laughing and picturing the kids doing the elephant walk during one of their movement activities today.
“We should finish our conversation one of these days, Miss Lawrence,” Ash said.
“Allie,” she corrected him shyly. “And maybe I’ll see you at the parent-teacher conference tomorrow night.”
“Right,” he said. “It’s in my calendar. I’ll see you tomorrow night, Allie.”
Something about hearing her name in his deep voice sent a little tingle through her.
Stop that, the little voice scolded her again.
She hurried off to her car, hoping a little distance would help her find her bearings. It wasn’t right to feel tingles and flutters over her student’s father.
As the engine of the old wagon faithfully roared to life, she remembered that she had choir practice.
That will help get my mind off of Ash Tailor, she told herself cheerfully.
Driving through the little village, she couldn’t help smiling at the beautifully decorated shops and the lights and holly bedecking the pavilion in the park.
Life in Sugarville Grove was sweet and simple, and the holidays were always a really big deal. Of course most of the decorations were trimmed from the local trees, or reused every year, but that was part of what made it special.
Allie wondered how many people in the world could say that they had participated in the same happy traditions all their lives.
She passed the family’s ice cream shop, where the hard work from their little dairy farm really had a chance to shine, thanks to her best friend and sister-in-law, Charlotte, who had come to town five years ago to bring the shop back and mend her broken heart.
Of course, Charlotte had almost immediately fallen in love with Allie’s big brother, Tag. But that was a whole other story.
Turning left onto Moose Avenue, she passed her other brother West’s office. West was the family doctor for most folks in Sugarville Grove. Two years ago, he had fallen in love too, and now he liked to say he was the happiest man in town. He certainly seemed like it.
Cupid had been hard at work in her family over the last few years.
Her brother Cash had come home last year and found the woman he’d been dreaming about for years but thought he’d lost. And even Zane, her quietest and most introverted brother, had fallen passionately in love with Becca, a new second-grade teacher at the elementary school.
Now Allie and Tripp were the only single kids left in the Lawrence family. Honestly, Tripp seemed like he would be an eternal bachelor, chasing fun and reveling in his family.