Chapter 52
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
POLLY
Lehabah still pushed. Still shook with terror. Yet she did not stop. Not for one heartbeat.
“My friends are with me and I am not afraid.”
Sarah J. Maas, House of Earth and Blood
T he school board meeting the following Friday had an exceptional attendance . . . or so I was told. After all, this was my first one.
I’d arrived early to the high school auditorium with Jace, who gave my hand a little squeeze before Rose and I went to find our seats at the tables onstage.
Rose introduced me to school board members as they arrived. Most seemed nice and curious, until I saw the bottom dweller, himself, walk onstage. Brad stiffened when he saw me, then looked away, nose in the air.
Well.
A few minutes before the meeting started, nerves threatened to overtake me. I searched the audience, finding solace as I spotted Jace in the front row. He winked at me. Sitting on either side of him, were his parents. They both smiled and waved at me.
I’d met them for the first time last weekend, face blotchy and red, and engaged to their son. They took the news of our engagement remarkably well. On the other side of Jace’s mom was a woman who looked like the female version of Jace. I’d been warned, before meeting Sarah, that she was a ball buster. True to form, within two minutes of meeting her, she threatened me with bodily harm should I hurt her brother. She could also execute one hell of a fast prenuptial agreement.
Jace’s best friend, Sam, sat next to her. He kept giving Sarah puppy-dog eyes despite her shutting him down every time.
I gave a discrete wave back to Rae and Sienna who were sitting next to their very hunky, very bearded husbands, both of whom I’d met at my wedding earlier this week. In fact, Jace’s entire guest list was more beard than not.
Butterflies danced in my stomach as I recalled wearing a white summer dress while someone I’d never met before but had curls that rivaled Jace’s and an impressive bushy beard, played soft bluegrass guitar as I walked down the grassy aisle in Jace’s parents’ backyard, hand in hand with my children.
To the man that was now my husband.
As Jace and I recited our vows, my face hurt from smiling. We laughed and teased and cried our way through it, like we did everything. Like we would for the rest of our lives.
Sitting beside Rae and Sienna was Charlotte, who gave me a covert thumbs up. I’d gotten to talk to Charlotte during Young Wills practice this week, learning about her kids and her work in the school. She was incredibly knowledgeable about school accommodations and even helped Rose and I last night as we reviewed our materials for today.
I elbowed Rose, who was sitting nervously beside me onstage, as I spotted the three women who made up the majority of the bride’s side at the wedding: Tiffany, Margo, and Eliza. They’d given me and Jace matching Kindles as wedding gifts. My matron of honor, Leah, protested when I asked her to watch Max and Ryla during the meeting. She reluctantly agreed when I told her I needed to focus, and I couldn’t do that if my kids were here. I needed to know they were safe and happy, to do what I needed to do today. Before I left her house, she pulled me into a fierce hug, whispered how proud she was of me and to fight, then slapped me on the ass for good measure, before cackling and closing her front door.
And fight I shall.
“I call this Green Valley School Board meeting to order,” the sniveling Mr. Goldenstein called out from his place at the center table. There were about fifteen of us in total, arranged at separate tables in a semi-circle on the auditorium stage.
“First item on the docket,” a member next to Brad announced. “Approval of the new medical director of the school district, Dr. Polly Alberton. Welcome, Dr. Alberton.” The member then smiled politely at me and nodded, and soon the other board members gave me professional nods and smiles, too.
“Thank you,” I said into the microphone in front of me, fisting my trembling hands in my lap.
“I’m sorry to bring up an issue first thing,” Brad cut off the member next to him as they were just opening their mouth to speak, an insincere smile on his face. “But I’ve been informed of a disturbing allegation about Dr. Alberton. Of course, I’ve emailed her repeatedly this week, urging her to step down to avoid discussing this in a public forum, but she has failed to do so. Thus, I have no choice but to bring these concerns to the board’s attention now.”
Reggie, who was sitting on my other side, stiffened. I felt a pang of guilt for not warning him; I wanted to save him from any backlash that may cost him his job if this went poorly. I’d been expecting what was about to happen, having been on the receiving end of several angry emails from Brad this week, making it clear what he was going to bring up today.
But that was Brad’s mistake. I mean, he knew that my father was a judge, right? You don’t announce your strategy to the opposing counsel before trial.
My father was a notable absence from my wedding. Of course, he also wasn’t invited.
I’d emailed Jeffrey on Tuesday, informing him that the kids and I were moving out of the judge’s house in one week, that I was marrying Jace, and that I would no longer be attending Sunday brunches or any future campaign events.
I hadn’t heard anything from either of them since.
At Brad’s declaration, I studied the faces of the school board members. Most looked shocked or confused, which gave me hope.
“Mr. Goldenstein, I don’t think it’s appropriate to discuss this in an open forum. We should bring this matter up at a closed school board meeting.” That was from one of the few women on the board.
Glancing at Jace, he flashed a reassuring smile as I leaned forward into the mic.
“No, that’s quite alright. I have no problem discussing this in public. Please proceed.” I looked directly at Brad as I said this. My eyes silently communicating, Bring. It. On.
I could tell Brad lost some of his bravado, but he recovered quickly. “It has come to my attention that an inappropriate relationship has been discovered between Dr. Alberton and someone in her employ.” I heard a few murmurs from the crowd as Brad continued, “She has been engaged in a sexual relationship with a young man who is the nanny for her children.”
“Brad, can you tell us why it’s inappropriate?” asked a male member of the board seated next to Brad.
“Certainly. The young man is only twenty-four years old, and she hired him to be her children’s nanny.” Brad looked from side to side, but the majority of the members were looking at him with persistently confused expressions.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Goldenstein. I still don’t see how this is relevant to our proceedings today, nor appropriate on your part,” the female member across from me said again.
Brad sneered. “She’s thirty-eight years old. And clearly used her position of authority to seduce a subordinate. I do not think that someone like that should be entrusted to make sound decisions for our children.”
I placed my hand over Rose’s. She’d been fisting her pen so hard her knuckles were turning white. Yes, his words had a barb in them, but nothing compared to what I’d heard on a regular basis from my own father.
“How old did you say this young man was?” a member asked.
“Twenty-four.” Brad leaned too close to the microphone, causing feedback that made everyone flinch. Silence descended as Brad craned his neck around him, likely realizing this was not going to be the easy win he anticipated.
Another member spoke up. “This seems to be a private matter. As long as it was a consensual relationship between two adults, I don’t see how any of this is pertinent. It should have no bearing on our approval of Dr. Alberton today. We have all reviewed her impressive CV and personal statement. I propose we move to approve Dr. Alberton before Mr. Goldenstein embarrasses her, or himself, any further.”
“Seconded.”
I had to bite the insides of my cheeks to keep from smirking.
“Now, wait just a second,” Brad thundered. “I also have it on good authority, that the only reason she wanted this position was because of her own son’s mental health problems, which were so severe he was dismissed from his past school. That alone is a conflict of interest, and she should have no place on this board.”
Metaphorically throwing down my gloves, I grabbed the microphone and spoke directly into it.
Loudly.
“Excuse me, members of the board, if you may allow me to speak?”
I was met with nods as Brad sneered at me.
“It’s true that I hired Mr. Jace Vargas, who is twenty-four-years old, to be the nanny for my children when I moved to Green Valley. I was a single mother and took overnight call for my job. If I was called into the hospital, I couldn’t bring my kids along with me, for obvious reasons. I needed someone to care for them. And while I am appalled that anyone would suggest that I would use a position of authority to pursue an inappropriate relationship with anyone, whether in my employ or not, I can appreciate that Mr. Goldenstein was working to uphold the principles of morality and fairness. Those are essential qualities for anyone in the community who works with children?—”
“Or adults!” Rose piped up into the mic beside me, staring daggers at Brad.
I nodded at Rose and continued, emboldened by the few encouraging smiles as well as head nods from the surrounding tables. “The truth of the matter is that yes, Mr. Vargas and I started a relationship when he was in my employ. It was absolutely consensual,” I looked to Jace and he winked, “and then we fell in love. I will also say that Mr. Vargas is no longer in my employ, but he does live with my children and I.”
Brad sneered. “If he’s no longer employed by you, why does he live with you and your children?”
“Because he’s my husband,” I answered calmly.
Gasps and murmurs, along with a loud piercing whistle, erupted from the crowd. Brad was practically seething, his face an alarming shade of red.
I leaned into the microphone once again, heart racing, palms starting to sweat. “As for the other matter. Yes, my son has an anxiety disorder. He was not dismissed from his last school, that was quite incorrect on Mr. Goldenstein’s part, but he was forced to leave school because the special education programming at his school was inflexible and understaffed. I had no choice but to remove him from a school that was unable to meet his needs. When this position was offered to me, I was hesitant to take it. I was a single mother at the time, and caring for children with mental health challenges takes a fair amount of time. I couldn’t help other children, at the expense of my own.”
I took a deep breath, finding Jace’s beaming face in the crowd, filling me with confidence.
“But I’ve found a family here. I’ve found friends. A community that supports us. Just like a school is the community that supports a child. I believe that with my expertise and personal experience, I am the exact right person to do this job. So that I can help as many children as I can, children like my son, who need help so they can succeed in school both socially and academically, but the backlogged and outdated systems don’t allow him to get it.”
I sat back, relief flooding me. Reggie clapped me on the back, a wide smile on his face. I studied each board member’s face. Enthusiastic smiles and polite nods greeted me at every single seat.
Except of course, from the smarmy smarmerton sitting in the middle.
“Repeat motion to approve Dr. Alberton as the medical director of our school district.”
This was quickly seconded, followed by a chorus of ayes from the board and one exuberant “Aye!” from Rose, next to me.
But it didn’t stop there.
“Aye!” Jace shot up from the audience, followed almost immediately by three more ayes from Rae, Sienna, and Charlotte.
“Aye!” came Jace’s parents and Sarah, who turned and glared at Sam, who shot up immediately with a high pitched, “Aye.”
“Oh hell, I’m doing it too. Aye!” yelled Tiffany as my friends and family all stood up, one by one, to support me.
I glanced at Brad, who looked madder than a wet hen, but he leaned into the microphone and muttered, “Motion passed.”
Heart bursting, the entire audience broke into applause, then quieted quickly because we were still at a meeting and had work to do. As I sat down, I let my gaze linger over my friends and my family, my family, feeling truly home for the first time.