Page 2 of Delay of Game
“Do I reallyhaveto go to school?” Mila asked as I closed the book. She tugged at the hem of her princess dress. Her soft brown eyes skittered to the kitchen, where Gloria had retreated to start dinner.
I nodded. “You do. And I know school feels scary right now because you’ve never been, but I promise, we’re going to have so much fun.”
She pursed her lips, averting her eyes. “But what if the other kids don’t like me?”
My heart wrenched, even though I’d had this conversation dozens of times before. I shifted on the couch, meeting her eyes. “The other kids are just as nervous as you are. And they’re worried they won’t make friends either. So, I want to make you a promise. If you can’t find a friend by the end of the first week, I’ll help you. But I bet you’re going to have more friends than you know what to do with by the end of the first day.”
The worry didn’t completely extinguish from her eyes, but she nodded, eyes steely and determined. “Okay.”
“Well, Mila,” I said, putting away my book. “It has been so nice meeting you today. I’m really looking forward to showing you around the school next week. Would that be okay?”
Mila nodded, brown curls bouncing.
“Great,” I said, standing. “I’m going to talk to your grandmother for a few minutes before I leave, but thank you for having me over.”
“Thank you,” Mila said, scrambling up for a quick curtsey before launching off toward the stairs.
“Gloria?” I called, following the sound of sizzling meat and the smell of rosemary. I poked my head into the kitchen and found her preparing dinner. “I finished reading with Mila.”
Gloria wore a frilly apron, silver hair collected in a low bun. She set down a spatula and faced me. “How did it go?”
“Mila’s a great kid,” I said truthfully. “She’s a good listener and very polite. I really enjoyed meeting her.”
“I’m glad to hear it. I’m surprised you haven’t met her before. She’s my little shadow.” She crooked her finger back to the oven, and I followed her as she checked on dinner.
“Maybe because you haven’t dragged her to a bunco night yet,” I laughed, remembering the first time I’d attended. Aunt Mercy had traveled out of the country, Tahiti or Japan, and asked me to go in her place.
I expected a quiet, boring night of board games, but instead, I’d witnessed absolute debauchery. Despite the average age hovering around seventy-five, all the players drank too much, cheated every chance they got, and shit-talked like it was their job. I’d had a blast, but it wasn’t exactly child-friendly.
“And let Mila find out that her sweet grandmother is really a wine-swilling, trash-talking dice fiend? Never.” Gloria tipped her head back with a smile. “I am going to miss her when she’s in school, though. That girl has been my shadow for the past six years. I’m not sure what I’ll do without her.”
“And her father…” I grappled for the name of her son. “Robert, right?”
“Rob.”
“He’s…” I glanced around the kitchen as if he lurked in a corner.
“At work. They keep him at all hours this time of year, or I’m sure he would have cleared his schedule.”
All the information I’d gathered about Gloria’s son came secondhand. The snippets of conversation I’d gathered from Aunt Mercy swirled and muddled in my head without an actual face to attach them to. Someone’s son was a lawyer. Someone else’s a doctor.
But at least Gloria had hinted at him being an involved parent.
“And Mila’s mother?”
Gloria’s back stiffened. “She’s…not involved in Mila’s day-to-day life. Rob has custody and full parental rights. I’m sure he’d be happy to provide that paperwork.”
I held up a hand. “No, of course not. I’m sure the school has whatever paperwork is necessary. I just didn’t know.”
She relaxed, blinking her eyes and shaking her head. “Right. Of course. For Mila. Sorry.”
The tension behind the innocent question piqued my attention, but I batted it back down again.
“I have the school handbook here,” I said, rifling through my bag for the folder labeled “Grant.” “And I wrote some notes on how to go about signing her up to ride the bus and pay for meals at the cafeteria.”
Gloria wiped her hands on her apron and rounded the kitchen island, picking up the folder and flipping through the pages. “Things sure are more complicated than when my Rob went to school. I just waved down a passing bus and sent him off.”
I laughed. “Unfortunately, it’s a little more involved these days. All easy enough, though. We’ll make sure Mila gets exactly what she needs.”
