Chapter 10
NINA
Nina changed her outfit three times.
She told herself over and over that it didn’t matter what she wore, but she couldn’t help wanting to look nice and fit in with the other Holyoke Academy moms. In the end, she settled on a pair of slacks and a nice blouse.
She did her hair and makeup, too. The woman in the mirror didn’t exactly look like a wealthy private-school mother, but she didn’t look like a stressed single mother with too much work and too little money, either.
Downstairs, Theo and Jack were waiting to go. Theo wore slacks and a button-down, and Jack was in his nicest collared shirt and cleanest shoes. Though Nina suspected they wouldn’t stay clean for long.
“You look nice, Mom,” Jack said.
“Thanks, buddy.” She ruffled his hair, and Jack frowned.
“Hey!” He tried to arrange his hair again; it was so adorable that Nina had to hide her smile.
They all got in the car and drove to the brunch, which was being held at the school.
She’d expected that meant it would be a relatively relaxed affair, but when they arrived, her jaw dropped.
The play area at the back of the school had been transformed.
Tables with white cloths waited, filled with food, and there were bouncy houses and inflatable slides for the kids.
About twenty families were there, most of them sitting and eating or milling around in small groups.
Theo led them to a table, and they sat. Nina barely tasted the delicious food — she was so busy trying to look like she belonged.
Once they’d eaten, Jack ran off to play, and Theo smiled at Nina before heading off to hunt down Charles.
Nina sat alone at the table, her nerves building.
She should try to make friends too, probably, but she wasn’t sure how to talk to these people. They had nothing in common.
Theo seemed to instantly find Charles, in a group of dads on the far side of the playground.
They were all sipping drinks and laughing within moments.
Nina watched him, her heart heavy. Of course, the whole point of this arrangement was for Theo to be able to make connections, but part of her still wished he’d stayed with her.
That was silly, though.
“Nina!”
Amanda, the woman from the drop-off line, hurried over. She wore a red dress and sweater that looked a little too thin for the cool autumn day, as well as a string of pearls. She beamed at Nina.
“How are you?”
“Good, thanks. And you?”
“Oh, doing well, thank you. You know how it is with the start of the school year, though. It’s already October, and I still feel like I’m playing catch-up!” Amanda chuckled and waved a hand. “I can’t even imagine what it’s like for you, with Jack starting at a new school.”
“It has been a lot,” Nina admitted.
“We didn’t get a chance to chat much earlier, so I was hoping we could talk now.” Amanda took a chair beside Nina. “New faces around here are always fascinating. So many of us have known each other since we were in diapers!” She smiled.
“Of course we can talk,” Nina said. “I’d love to get to know you, too.” Her words sounded awkward to her own ears, but she tried to ignore that.
“First of all, did you just move here?” Amanda asked. “It’s unusual for students to start after the beginning of the year.”
“I’ve actually lived in Boston for years,” Nina explained. “But my… boyfriend Theo and I just moved in together, so we decided to send Jack to a closer and better school.”
“Theo Hillman?” Amanda asked. “That’s right, I saw you with him the other morning.
I had no idea he was dating seriously! I always saw him with such bimbos, if you’ll excuse me saying it.
A new one every week, it seemed. Or at least my husband, Lucas, thought so.
Anyway, I’m glad he’s settling down now. ”
“Me too,” Nina said stiffly. She got the feeling Amanda was making fun of her in some subtle way, though she wasn’t sure. Maybe this was just how rich people talked.
“How did the two of you even meet?” Amanda asked. “I haven’t seen you at any of the events.”
Panic spread through Nina’s limbs. She and Theo had never discussed their cover story. What if she said one thing, he said something else, and their ruse came out? She’d have to try to be as vague yet as truthful as possible.
“We’d seen each other around a few times,” Nina said carefully. “But in the end, we just ran into each other on the street and got to talking.” It was as close to the truth as she could get. Hopefully, Theo would have the same instinct to be honest.
Though Nina doubted it, the more she thought about it. He seemed more the type to concoct an elaborate but wholly believable lie.
“How did you meet your husband?” she asked quickly, hoping to switch the topic over to Amanda and avoid an interrogation.
“Oh, Lucas?” Amanda smiled. “He’s a neurosurgeon, you know, and my family have always been patrons of local hospitals. We met at a fundraising event, oh, ten years ago now. And we’ve been together ever since!”
“How nice,” Nina said.
“Of course, it’s hectic with his surgery career and my law career, but so it is.” Amanda shrugged with a smile. “The struggles of working parents, and all that. I didn’t catch your job, by the way.”
“I work in sales,” Nina said, again as vaguely as she could. Her gaze drifted back to Theo, who was laughing with the group of men he was standing with. If only she had his easy banter.
“I see,” Amanda said. There was a slight pause, then Amanda launched into another round of questions.
Nina was beginning to get a headache. At least Jack seemed to be having fun.
He and his new friend, Sam, were racing each other down the inflatable slide and shrieking with laughter.
They’d been joined by two other boys, who seemed to be enjoying themselves too.
Nina was happy for her son. And she was happy for Theo.
But she felt like a real fish out of water among the wealthy crowd.
Thankfully, after a while, two other women, friends of Amanda’s, joined them at the table.
The conversation moved on to school gossip (apparently, one of the second-grade teachers was dating one of the parents), and Nina forced her shoulders to relax now that she was out of the spotlight.
Still. It was going to be a long afternoon.