Page 35 of Uproot

"That's kind of the theme I was going for," I respond, smiling as I think of her in all of her pink ensembles.

Mary rings me up and surprisingly doesn't bombard me with any more questions about Selah and me. I'm sure that's probably because Selah will fill her in on the details herself if they truly are good friends.

It's crazy that even though I'm developing all of these feelings for Selah, I still don't know enough about her to even know who her close friends are, or exactly what kind of flowers she likes.That is one of the reasons why I wanted to take her out to dinner tonight.

I want to know everything about her in a way that feels foreign to me. I never care to dig into someone's mind and soul like I do Selah's. I want to know and understand her on a deeper level, and I hope she will let me in so that I can show her that she can trust me.

I pay Mary for the arrangement and thank her before heading back to my car. I contemplate bringing the flowers into school with me, but decide that it would make Selah too uncomfortable.

I know she is already shy, and won't want to answer questions about why I brought them for her. Giving them to her tonight when I pick her up for our date will be much more intimate anyway.

I place the box with the vase carefully inside of my car, and take off to Upwood Elementary.

19

Beckett

Iparked my car in the school lot and I'm making my way to the front doors when I hear a voice calling out behind me.

I turn around, frowning in confusion as one of the mom's I recognize from the park last week comes trotting over to me from the car rider line.

She smiles brightly at me, her red hair frazzled and flying around her pale face. She's holding a silver tin in her hands that I look at cautiously, already having a sinking feeling as to why she's approaching me.

"Hey there! You're Edison's Uncle, right? Beckett Kade?" She asks, stopping in front of me.

"I am," I clip, glancing at the front doors.

She extends a hand to me, balancing the silver tin precariously with the other.

Her eyes widen as she looks over the tattoos on my arms and hands, but she quickly recovers. "U-um, I'm Monica Bell. Edison is buddies with my son Gunner," she says as I shake her hand.

I raise an eyebrow, remembering the nosy little red headed boy who asked about Charlie being in jail. I distinctly remember him saying that his mother had found out some information about what was going on.

"Right," I respond, moving to continue on to the front door.

Unfortunately, she hurries alongside me, stumbling when I stop with my hand on the door handle. "I-I just wanted to welcome you to town, Mr. Kade. I baked some sugar cookies for you and Edison," she offers, handing the tin to me.

I take it tentatively, not really believing this sweet "welcome to town" greeting, and her Martha Stewart gift giving are genuine. I stare at her waiting for her to continue talking, because I know that wasn't all she wanted from me.

If I've learned anything in life it's that if you stay quiet long enough people will just tell on themselves and save you a lot of energy trying to figure them out.

She shifts uneasily at my silence, pushing her hair over her shoulder. "I was wondering if Edison will be staying here in town? I heard you run Kade Technology in New York, so everyone is saying you won't be keeping him here. It would besosad to see him go," she says frowning glumly, even though her voice lacks any sincerity.

I sigh, unimpressed with how utterly predictable she is. "We haven't made any decisions. Thanks for the cookies.."

"Oh! Monica! Monica Bell," she says quickly, smiling again.

I nod at her and finally head inside the school, irritated that my meaningless interaction with this Nosy Nelly cost me precious time with Selah.

I haven't seen her nearly enough this week since I have been so busy with work and handling the custody issues. I miss her face and the sweet smile she always gives me.

When I step into her classroom I first look for Edison and see him playing happily with Lego’s. I then quickly find Selah tidying up her desk.

I walk over to her and she does a double take when she sees me, looking flustered, as always. She fidgets with the pens in her hands, giving me a shy smile, and I wish I could wrap my arms around her and give her a hug.

"How was your day, beautiful?" I ask coming to stand next to her.

"My day has been great. We did a little Science project, and got to do some finger painting, which the kids always love," she responds excitedly, her face lighting up.

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