17
Selah
"M s. Lansing! You have a delivery in the front office!"
I set down the romance novel I was wrapped up in, and go over to the intercom on my desk phone. "A delivery for me ?" I ask confused.
"Yes ma'am! Come on down and get it while it's hot," Sherry, the front desk administrator answers chuckling.
I head to the front office wondering what I could have waiting for me. My class is down in the cafeteria for lunch, and I just sat down to enjoy my thirty minutes of quiet before we go outside for recess. I have no idea what could be waiting for me in the office, but I feel excited to check it out.
I open the front office door and go inside. Sherry gets up to come hand me a bag with Vicks BBQ written on the front, and I shake my head.
"Oh, I think there must be a mix up, Sherry! I didn't order anything from Vicks," I say, trying to ignore the amazing smell of barbeque sauce floating from the bag.
Sherry laughs, putting the bag in my hand. "Oh it's definitely not a mistake, Ms. Lansing. The delivery driver handed me the bag and said that it was sent to you from a friend. Enjoy!"
I take it and smile as I peek inside. "Wow, ok. Thank you, Sherry," I say, and head back out of the door.
When I get back to my classroom, I unpack the bag and pull out a barbeque pulled chicken sandwich and a small house salad that both look amazing. I check my watch and see that I still have time to eat before recess, so I sit down and dig into the food.
"Oh my gosh," I mutter, my eyes rolling back as I bite into the tender meat. "This is incredible."
I dig into the salad, realizing that I'm hungrier than I expected. I ate the breakfast sandwich that Beckett brought me this morning, but I still feel surprisingly starved anyway.
The realization hits me that Beckett may be the mystery friend that sent this for me too. He didn't seem very happy when I told him I don't normally eat much during the day.
I've never had a man pay such close attention to me and try to look out for me in the way that Beckett does, and I don't quite know how I feel about it. Part of me thinks it's incredibly charming, but the other part of me worries about how each time he does something sweet, I fall a little harder for him.
I take out my cell phone and quickly text him a message:
Hi Beckett! Did you send me lunch today from Vick’s? Thank you again for breakfast btw!
I read it over twice before sending it and quickly finish eating my tasty food. I grab my phone and go to get a bottle of water from the teachers’ lounge before I pick up my class from the lunchroom.
Just as I'm leaving the lounge, my phone dings and I see a return message from Beckett:
Beckett: You're welcome, angel. Yes, lunch was from me. Did you enjoy it? I'd love to know more of what you enjoy.
I close my eyes, holding my phone tightly in my hands. I almost feel like this has to be some kind of a cruel twist of fate having an amazing man come into my life, only to have him have a life (hell an entire empire) so far away from mine.
I write him back another thank you for lunch and tell him that my favorite foods are steak, pasta, chicken, and salad. I leave out my affinity for cookies, worried that he may go buy out an entire bakery and have it delivered to me next.
The rest of my school day goes by smoothly with only one argument between my students during computer class. By the time the final bell rings, and my bus riders and after school kids head out, I still have a surprising amount of energy.
I know it probably is because I've eaten more today than I usually would thanks to Beckett, but I just push that out of my mind, knowing that tomorrow I need to get back to my diet.
" It tastes good on your lips, but it adds to your hips ."
I hear my mother's grating voice interrupt my thoughts but quickly shake her words out of my head. I focus on helping Edison and a little girl in my class draw some pictures to take home.
A few minutes later, Edison looks up from his Ninja Turtle drawing and smiles excitedly. "Ms. Selah, Dragana is here!" He exclaims, putting down the crayons in his hands.
I stand up and walk over to greet Dragana as she comes into the classroom. Edison gives her a hug, and shows her the picture in his hand.
"Hello Edison! Hi Selah! How was school today?" she asks, giving me a hug too.
"It was so fun, Gana! Look at what I just made! And we got to paint today too," Edison answers.
"Good job! That is a very good drawing," Dragana cheers, rubbing his head. "Go on and get your things now, it’s time to go."
Edison takes off towards the cubbies and Dragana gives me a warm smile, "Helen brought me over to do pick up today. Beckett had an emergency meeting. She's in the car waiting," she explains as we watch Edison getting his bag.
I try to hide my disappointment realizing I won't be seeing Beckett again today. "Oh, ok. Is everything alright?" I ask.
She waves a hand through the air. "Oh, yes. Just some things he needs to go through with Child Services to get things in order for Edison," she answers, as Edison comes back over to us.
"Oh, ok. I hope that it is all going well," I say. I give Edison a hug goodbye and watch as he and Dragana leave, before going to help my other kids get ready to go home.
◆◆◆
I open the door to my house, set down my keys on the table, and then take off my shoes. "Hey Willy! Are you hungry Hun?" I ask, heading over to my fish tank.
I take out some food and feed my Betta fish, smiling at him through the glass. I head into my bedroom to change into my ratty home clothes so I can finally relax.
Once I've changed, I sort through my bookshelf until I find the coloring book that I want, then grab my colored pencils and go to sit down on the floor of my living room.
I scoot my legs under the coffee table and turn on the tv to a summer baking competition. I get lost coloring a picture for twenty minutes until my phone rings. I reach to get it from my couch and answer quickly when I see it's my friend Evy calling.
"Hey Ev! Are you done with work?" I ask, propping the phone on my shoulder so I can keep coloring.
"Nope, not yet! Just on a break so I thought I'd call you to see how you're doing," Evy responds cheerfully.
The two of us have become really good friends since I moved here in the Fall. We have a small group of women that love to get together and hang out whenever we can make it work. I'm so thankful for all of the time we spend together and the support we give each other.
"I've been doing well! Edison is doing much better too, thankfully," I respond.
Evy knows all about the situation with Edison, not only because of the bits and pieces I've told her when I was worried about him, but because she's in a relationship with Sheriff Vaughn.
"I'm so happy that things are turning around for him. That poor boy has really been through hell and back," she sighs.
"He has. I'm glad he has his uncle now to help him through all of this. I am hoping that everything goes smoothly for him with getting the permanent guardianship in place," I say, tapping my colored pencil against the table.
"So, is Beckett really moving him to New York then? You won't get to see either of them again?" Evy asks, sounding disappointed.
I frown, my heart sinking like it always does when I think of them leaving. "Yeah, they are Ev. I mean I get it though. Beckett's whole life is in Manhattan. I guess you can't really expect a guy like that to live here in Upwood. He did ask me to come visit them there but.."
"But you feel like he will lose interest once he's back in Manhattan?" she asks gently.
"Yes. Exactly," I mutter. "No matter how much of a connection I feel with him, or how well we get along, I know what happens when people get distance between them. Plus he's taken a lot of time out of the office and will probably be swamped when he gets back home."
Evy is quiet for a moment before responding, "I know it seems a bit hopeless, Selah. But just don't give up on him yet, ok? I feel like everything that is happening has a purpose that you just can't see clearly yet. Just be open to any possibilities, even those that seem far-fetched right now," she says. "I mean, a month ago it probably seemed impossible that a man like Beckett would literally show up at your front door, right? But it happened!"
I laugh, loving how sweet and optimistic she always is. She's been through hell and back when it comes to romantic relationships, but she hasn’t let it stop her from seeing things in a positive light.
"You're so right, girl. I'll definitely keep an open mind," I agree.
We talk about how things are going with her and Rockwell, and some plans we want to make for summer. Soon her break is over so we say our goodbyes' and she heads back to work at Reece's, and I get up to start trying to figure out something for dinner.
Since I had a big lunch today, I decide to look through the fridge and put together a nice salad for dinner.
I turn on some music on my Echo Dot and go in the fridge to take out some ingredients. It only takes me 10 minutes to finish and I move to sit and eat at the table. I scroll through my phone and startle as it rings in my hand. I set my fork down when I see Beckett's name.
I clear my throat and try to push the nervousness from my voice as I answer. "Hi Beckett. How are you?"
His raspy voice greets me like a warm hug, "I'm good, angel. Sorry I didn't see you this afternoon, I got swamped with some paperwork from Upwood C.S.," he apologizes.
"Oh, I understand! How did everything go?" I ask, sitting back in my chair.
"It was tedious, but I feel like we are on the right path to getting things finalized soon," he says, sounding tired.
"I hope that everything will work out. I know this is all really stressful for you," I respond, wishing that I could do more to help them.
"I'm ok, but thank you Selah. How are you feeling? You must be having dinner soon, right?" he asks, and I don't miss the sternness in his voice.
"I'm doing well, and I'm actually eating dinner right now," I say, smiling to myself.
"Good girl," he responds.
My fork clatters on to my plate as my brain short circuits.
I don't know why, but I feel that small offer of praise float through my entire body like a small electric current.
"And how about your lunch?” he continues, unaware of the heat flowing through me on the other end of the line. “Did you enjoy it? I can order something for you from there again. Maybe you can try something different next time?"
"I-no, no," I stutter, trying to regain my composure. "I..um..try not to eat out too much. But thank you."
He's quiet for a moment, and for some reason his silence makes me squirm in my seat uneasily.
"I see," he says slowly. "But surely you wouldn't mind a dinner out. Right, angel? Just us? I really want to get to know you better. I feel like most of what we have always talked about is the situation surrounding my family. I need to know more about you ," he says.
I sit silently for a moment feeling a bit stunned by his invitation. Maybe Evy was really right about me needing to keep an open mind with where this can go.
"Yes, I'd love to have dinner with you, Beckett," I respond quietly.
"Good. There's not much to choose from here in town, so we can take a little drive to Charlestown one night this week," he says.
I smile excitedly, already mentally sorting through my closet, and thinking of all of the things I want to get to know about him.
"I can't wait, Beckett."