Chapter 7
THEO
Nina was biting her lip, her hands clasped so tightly on her lap that her knuckles were white. She looked nervous. Very nervous. She kept stealing glances at the door, as though a monster were going to come through.
Jack, on the other hand, was playing with action figures on the floor. He made loud explosion noises as the toys flew into the air and crashed to the ground, and he looked perfectly content.
“Don’t worry,” Theo said. Nina glanced at him, her eyes widening as though she’d forgotten he was there. “We’ve got this.”
Theo had come home early from work for the Holyoke Academy interview.
He’d found Nina straightening the house up and distributing toys around, and he’d encouraged her to take a seat and relax before the interviewer arrived.
Now, he worried his advice had been counterproductive, because she just looked more nervous than before.
“I hope so.” She managed a smile, but her expression was still tight.
“This is nothing to be worried about,” Theo added.
Nina shook her head. “It is. So much could go wrong and… I just want everything to be perfect.”
Before Theo could reply, the doorbell rang, and Nina jumped to her feet. Together, she and Theo went to answer, with Jack running behind them. As Theo reached for the door handle, he gave Nina what he hoped was an encouraging look, and she bit her lip.
This is going to go poorly, Theo thought. There was no other way to proceed, though, so he just opened the door.
The woman on the other side was in her late forties, with gray hair in a bun at the back of her neck and a kind smile. She held a tablet in one arm and extended her free hand.
“Good afternoon,” she said pleasantly. “I’m Anita Rodriguez. You must be Jack’s parents.”
“That’s right!” Nina said a little too forcefully. Theo put a steadying hand on her shoulder. She needed to breathe and relax so they could get through this. Nerves were only going to make things worse.
“I’m Theo Hillman, and this is Nina Thompson,” Theo said. “And this is our son, Jack. It’s great to meet you.” He and Nina each shook hands with Anita.
“Hi,” Jack said. Anita knelt down to shake his hand, which Jack did very solemnly.
Theo wasn’t sure what Nina had told him about this event, but when they’d eaten dinner together last night, she’d said that a nice lady was coming over to chat with them a little.
Perhaps Jack suspected there was more to it, though, because he was extra well-behaved.
“Come on in,” Theo said, stepping back to let Anita inside. “Can I get you some coffee, tea, water?”
“Tea would be lovely, if you don’t mind,” Anita said.
“I can make it,” Nina said. “Do you prefer black or mint? I think we also have chamomile.”
“Mint, please.”
A few minutes later, the four of them were seated around the dining-room table. Nina had brought Jack a glass of juice, which he held with both hands. He was swinging his legs, as he usually did when he sat at the table.
“So,” Anita said, setting her tablet down, “I usually like to start by talking to the whole family together. Then, Jack can have a little break while I talk to the parents, and finally, I’ll talk to Jack alone. Does that sound good?”
“Sounds great,” Theo said easily, though Nina looked a little pale. He took her hand, which felt less strange than he would have expected. He tried not to think about that, focusing instead on the interview.
“Tell me a little about your family,” Anita suggested.
“Well, Nina and I met about a year ago and started dating,” Theo said.
“I fell in love with her right away — and with Jack, too. He’s a great kid.
We only moved in together recently, once we were sure our relationship would last, because we didn’t want to confuse Jack.
Now, it feels like we’ve always been a family. ”
“What kinds of things do you like to do together?” Anita asked. “Jack, maybe you can tell me.”
Nina’s grip on Theo’s hand tightened. Theo was nervous about what Jack would say, too, since he’d spent all of a few hours with Jack.
“We eat ice cream, draw, go shopping, play pretend…” Jack shrugged. “Stuff like that.”
Theo let out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding, and the interview moved on.
Anita asked a few more questions about their family life and Jack’s education.
Theo took the lead, easily orchestrating his answers to have the best effect.
It was a skill he’d learned in business that was applicable almost everywhere.
“And that’s why we prioritize family time over TV time,” Theo finished one answer about the family’s screen-time habits. Nina glanced at him. Her brows were slightly raised, and he got the feeling she was impressed.
“That’s great. Back to the topic of education for a moment. What’s your favorite thing to learn about?” Anita asked Jack.
“About superheroes!” Jack puffed up. “And it’s so cool, now we live in a supervillain house. Right, supervillain?”
Nina’s eyes widened, but Theo just smiled.
“That’s right.” He turned to Anita. “Jack and I like to play pretend that he’s a superhero and I’m a supervillain. Right, Jack?”
“Yeah!” Jack lowered his voice like he had before and held up one hand as though sharing a secret. “It’s just for pretend. He’s not really a supervillain. He’s Theo.”
Anita smiled, though she still looked a little uncertain. Theo hurried to continue. “Jack may only be my stepson, but I love him like my own blood. My only regret is that I missed out on the first few years of his life, but he’s every bit my kid now.”
Anita smiled, and Theo could tell that the words had warmed her heart.
“That’s great. Now, Jack, why don’t you take a little break while I talk to your parents?”
“Okay!” Jack went into the other room with his juice and his coloring book, and Anita turned to Theo and Nina.
“How would you describe your parenting style?” she asked. This time, Nina answered.
“We try to provide a supportive framework for Jack to make good decisions,” she explained.
“That means helping him in tough situations and being understanding and educational rather than blaming or upset. If he spills something or makes a mess, instead of scolding or imposing a punishment, we help him clean up and come up with a strategy to avoid repeating the same problem.”
Theo couldn’t help being impressed. Of course, it made sense that Nina had a parenting strategy, but it was interesting to hear her speak about it, and it helped him understand how she was with Jack.
“Theo,” Anita continued, “what’s it like adjusting to be a stepdad?”
“I’m not going to lie,” Theo said. “It was hard at first. I wasn’t used to being around kids, so it took some getting used to for everyone.
But like I said before, Jack is a great kid, and Nina is a great mom.
The two of them were so kind to welcome me into their family, and I think I’m getting the hang of things now. ”
“Definitely.” Nina smiled at him, and for a split second, Theo’s heart warmed — before he remembered that this was all fake.
Anita nodded and continued the interview. After a while, she called Jack in and let Nina and Theo into the living room. Nina paced for a while before Theo called her to sit on the couch with him.
“There’s no need to be stressed.”
“Yes, there is,” Nina said softly. “What if Jack says the wrong thing? This is a huge chance for us, but especially for him.”
“It’ll be fine,” Theo reassured her. “I think the school mostly wants to know that we’re a good family.”
“But we aren’t even a family!” Nina whispered. Theo smiled at her.
“Try not to worry.”
“Right.” Nina rolled her eyes. “Like telling someone not to worry ever helps them not worry.”
Theo chuckled, and Nina managed a smile.
A few minutes later, Anita called them in and thanked them for their time.
“It’s a little unusual for a student to join after the beginning of term, but I really enjoyed getting to know Jack and the two of you. I’ll get back to you with an admission decision in a few days.”
“Thank you so much,” Theo said. “And if you have any follow-ups, please don’t hesitate to reach out.”
“Of course.” They brought Anita to the door and said their goodbyes. Once she was gone, Nina turned to Theo.
“Thank goodness you were here. You’re so good at schmoozing.”
Theo chuckled. “I call it being friendly, but thanks.”
“I was just so nervous.” Nina smoothed her hands against the slacks she’d worn for the interview. “I kept thinking I was going to say the wrong thing and ruin everything.”
“But you didn’t,” Theo said. “You did great. Now, all we have to do is wait.”
“Easier said than done,” Nina muttered.
“Even if he doesn’t get into the school, I can still find a way to reach Charles Ackley,” Theo said. He wasn’t sure what that way would be, but he would cross that bridge if he came to it. “He’s a bright kid, though, and we said all the right things, so I’m not worried.”
“Maybe you can still get your deal without Holyoke Academy, but it’s important to me that Jack has a good education.” Nina sighed. “But you’re right. There’s no point worrying.”
Jack came running into the hallway. “Miss Anita’s gone, huh?” he said. “I liked her.”
“What did you guys talk about?” Theo asked.
“Mostly superheroes,” Jack said importantly. “And she asked me some logic questions and about my friends and what I like to do.”
“Well, you did wonderfully,” Nina said, ruffling his hair. “Good job, buddy. How about we visit the aquarium this afternoon as a special treat?”
“Really?” Jack’s blue eyes widened, and he began to dance with joy. “Yay!”
“Go upstairs and get your sweater and your backpack,” Nina said. Jack raced off upstairs, and she turned to Theo.
“Thanks again for taking the lead. I guess you have to get back to work, right?”
“Right,” Theo said. Some small part of him wanted to say no, that he could take the afternoon off and go to the aquarium with them. But he hadn’t been invited, and he really did have a lot to do.
Still, he couldn’t help imagining Jack’s eyes lighting up at the sea turtle exhibit or Nina’s soft smile as she watched her son.
It was tempting to pretend to be a family for just a little longer.
After all, he’d had fun with them over the weekend, at least when his house wasn’t being made unrecognizable.
“Well, have a nice day.” Nina waved and headed up the stairs after her son without looking back.
Theo grabbed his coat and went outside, ready to return to the office for the evening.
He didn’t want to look back, either, but he did.
As he got into the car, he glanced back one last time at the house that had become as much theirs as it was his.
Theo just wished he were more excited at the prospect of his board meeting and the documentation he needed to look over.
By the time Theo got to work, though, he’d managed to put Nina and Jack out of his mind. He was having fun with them, surprisingly, but this was only temporary, and they were only here to help him land Charles Ackley. He needed to remember that.
The rest of the afternoon was filled with meetings and spreadsheets and expense reports, and no thoughts of turtles or shining blue eyes at all.