Page 18 of Class Act

Without thinking I opened my mouth to answer, “Oh, Ford’s . . .” I slammed my lips shut, shooting my eyes down to my plate. “It’s obvious he’s a dad first,” I tacked on with a terrible giggle that made the entire room feel awkward.

I’d almost given myself up! What would everyone think if I was suddenly an expert on his business? Especially Ford himself? I took a big bite and did my best to look at him as though I hadn’t read all about his company. Ignore me over here, I thought frantically, I have no clue what he does with his life.

I sent an apologetic smile around the table. “Sorry to interrupt. Bad joke.”

Dad looked down at his plate with a grin. “Not at all, hon,” he said to me. “Yes, Ford, what type of business are you in?”

One side of Ford’s mouth tugged up, but he looked away at the rest of the table. “I own an essential oils and supplements company. I started it about ten years ago, and it’s been quite an adventure.”

“Have I heard of this company?” I asked, in for a penny, in for a pound.

“Possibly,” he replied.

“Of course you have,” Leonard burst in. “You take their vitamins every day.”

Mom nodded. “Those Sun and Soil Essential Vitamins I got you. You said you loved them.”

“I do,” I said sincerely, doing a fantastic job of reeling my near catastrophe back in. “I’ve been using the oils diffuser in my classroom, too. It’s really great when you have twenty-five kids with assorted levels of cleanliness.”

The others laughed. “I’m glad to hear they’re working,” Ford replied.

“So how did you and Leonard meet?” Mom asked.

This was something I hadn’t found much info on, so I was glad she’d asked. I was genuinely curious about this one, too.

“Actually, we met up at an open house last year. You remember that sixtieth birthday open house for Jay Miller?” Leonard boomed, his voice always louder than necessary. “Ford was there with his two children, and their little faces were covered in chocolate cake. Connie and I wandered over to introduce ourselves, and pretty soon, we made the business connection. Ford was looking to take Sun and Soil to an international level, and as you know, I’m in international pharmaceuticals. Seemed to us that together we could do some good work.”

“It’s taken a year?” Dad asked.

“Yes,” Ford replied. “We had to develop a product that met all international guidelines, and Leonard had to network his contacts and find sellers to line up. Now it looks like things are set, so we’ve signed together on a new parent corporation that we’ll co-own, and . . .” He trailed off with a self-deprecating chuckle. “I won’t bore you all with the details. Let’s say it should be final this week.”

“What about that dinner on Friday?” I couldn’t help but ask, looking to Leonard instead of Ford. “I thought that was about finalizing plans.”

“Oh, that meal was a celebration,” Connie said, her voice soft. “The papers were signed earlier that morning.”

“Ah,” I replied softly as the wheels turned. “So, it really wasn’t a big deal that I bowed out, after all,” I mumbled.

“Bowed out?” Mom asked. “You were invited?”

“It doesn’t matter,” I gestured wildly, wanting Mom to save her questions for later.

Unfortunately, my wild gesture had the unintended consequence of knocking over my glass of sparkling red juice. The glass crashed onto my plate where it created a tsunami that gathered up mashed potatoes, some gravy, and bits of green beans before splashing over the edge, hitting me in the stomach, and running down to my lap. I was covered in a mess, and there was no way my white shirt was hiding any of it.

Mom leaned as close as she could to try to help, but she couldn’t make any difference. Ford, to my right, snagged my glass so it would stop spilling more juice and offered me his napkin at the same time. Obviously, his parenting skills paid off in his reflex time when it came to spills, because he was on it. I snatched the napkin and scooted back my chair, thanking him while excusing myself to slip away and see if I could do some damage control. Dad followed, saying he’d take care of what had landed on the floor.

“Hailey, you’re not yourself tonight,” Dad said under his breath as we reached the short hallway off the kitchen that housed a cleaning closet and a half bath. “It’s totally understandable. You were caught off guard by him being here. Maybe you could take a minute to do some deep breathing or mindfulness exercises while you’re in the bathroom to help you feel calmer.”

I’d thought I was playing it cool, but apparently I was coming off as tense and bewildered as I felt. “I’ll sure try,” I replied, stepping into the bathroom.

“One last thing,” he said, leaning his head inside. “Ford seems like a nice man. Try not to punish him for Leonard’s behavior.”

“He could have turned down the invitation tonight,” I replied.

“We don’t know that for sure.”

Dad’s retort rang in my ears as he bustled away. He was right. I still had no idea why Ford was here or what Leonard had said to him. Maybe Ford was as upset about it as I was, only he was able to keep conversation flowing while I was locked up tight.

I turned on the sink and wetted the napkin. While I did so I took a look at myself in the mirror. What I saw looking back was a total stranger. My normally smooth bob looked like I’d rubbed a balloon on it and gotten some static going. My cheeks were rosy; my eyes looked like I was fighting back tears. This was not who I was used to seeing. This was not who I was used to being. Dad was right, I was in an emotional state of some sort.

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