Eden’s heart stopped. “A fight? Like... an argument?” Even as she said it she knew it was just a hopeful guess. As if she could actually persuade Mrs. Maker to change history.
“Oh, yes, dear. But it was also a physical altercation.”
Oh, God. Her heart thunked over like it had been thrown to the mat by a wrestler.
Probably one of the only kinds of teams Gabe hadn’t been roped into substitute coaching.
“Is she... are they... okay?”
“Oh, absolutely. She has a bloody nose and grass stains, but is otherwise unharmed. The other girl has a bloody nose, too.”
“The other girl is...”Dear God, cut me some slack, please don’t let her say...
“Caitlynn Pennington.”
God was clearly on a lunch break.
“But...why?” Although theories about the reason why were even now beginning to formulate, and she liked none of them.
“They’re in Mr. Caldera’s office right now. You or someone you designate will need to come to pick her up for a discussion, and I’m sure you’ll hear the whole story then.”
If only life followed a romantic comedy plot. It seemed needlessly awkward to have to see Gabe Caldera only a week after the snarly death of their romance. Like Lloyd Sunnergren’s dog, who stuck his nose up people’s hind ends and then stood back and smiled about it, the universe had no sense of timing or propriety.
“I’m on my way, Mrs. Maker. Thank you.”
Mrs. Maker ushered Eden briskly through the office as if she was a paramedic en route to a crash. Mrs. Maker’s guest chairs had been brought into Gabe’s office so that the culprits, Annelise and Caitlynn, could be installed in them on either side of their mothers.
Gabe was sitting behind his desk looking big and delicious and somber.
Jan Pennington swung her head toward her and whipped off her sunglasses. Her eyes practically bulged with outrage.
“Eden,” she said frigidly.
After she’d bulged at her for a telling moment.
“Hi, Jan,” Eden said evenly. “Mr. Caldera,” she said politely.
“Thank you for coming, Ms. Harwood.”
A sizzling, frisson of tension arced between them for a silent second.
He had not gotten one particle uglier since she’d last seen him. Wearier, maybe.
And then she dropped to kneel next to Annelise and cupped her face in her hands. “First, honey, are you okay?”
Annelise glumly nodded. There was only a little blood on the front of her shirt, some around the rim of a nostril. Not her first bloody nose by far. Nothing looked swollen, askew, or scraped.
“Okay. Annelise, I need to tell you—I am so disappointed in you.Howmany times have I told you that violence is not the answer to anything?”
“Eden, why don’t you have a seat.” Gabe’s voice, bass and smoke, reasonable, soothing, sexy as a pair of arms looped around her.
Fucker.
Eden took a seat in the chair they’d commuted to the sex couch in.
“I’m afraid your daughter started it, Eden,” Jan said. Because naturally she had to take control.
“Mom, I did not! Caitlynn saidIwas a liar and mymomwas a liar, andno onecalls my mom a liar! She’snota liar! And what I said was true!” She thumped a furious little ankle against the chair leg. “It’strue, right, Mom? He came over to our house and he had dinner with our family and everything.”