“Clue me in, Rocky,” he invited.

“It’s exceptional, Mike,” she whispered and Mike’s gaze on her grew intense as his chest started to warm.

“Pardon?” he asked.

“It’s exceptional,” she repeated. “And when I say that, in all my years of teaching I have never, not once, seen anything the caliber of your daughter’s work. To say she’s advanced would be an understatement. We’re not talking a freshman doing junior or senior class work. We’re not even talking a freshman in high school is doing college-level work. I’m telling you that her report on Flowers for Algernon could be published.”

Mike blinked and he did it slow.

Rocky kept going. “This isn’t the first time I felt that with one of Rees’s assignments. At first, I hate to admit, I thought she was plagiarizing. This is because I’ve never seen anything like it turned in, not once, not in my career. But I checked it and she isn’t. Then I thought it was a one-time deal. But considering that assignment,” she tipped her head to the paper, “is her fourth exhibiting that level of talent, it’s not a fluke. She’s gifted and when I say that, she was already a maestro at fourteen but with each assignment, the quality becomes richer. And I wish I could say this was because of my excellent teaching skills,” she said on a grin, “but it’s not. For Rees, it’s coming naturally.”

Mike said nothing as he processed this information, the warmth in his chest intensifying and expanding.

Rocky filled the silence.

“It isn’t just her writing that’s exceptional, which it is, Mike. I fall into her reports. She has a unique style that’s remarkable. It isn’t like she’s doing an assignment, answering a question. She’s building worlds around the books she’s reporting on. They move her and she has absolutely no difficulty expressing how they do. But it’s more. She absorbs meanings and subtexts from the novels they’re assigned to read with a maturity that’s astounding. She sees things I don’t see, feels them and then is able to express them in extraordinary ways.”

Rocky’s words washed over him and Mike’s eyes dropped to the paper as he lifted a hand and touched his fingers to his daughter’s work like he’d skim them over the finest piece of crystal.

Rocky kept speaking. “I know on a cop’s salary it wouldn’t be easy considering, uh…your ex-wife probably isn’t in the position to help but with that caliber of work, Mike, Rees Haines has no business at Brownsburg High School.”

Mike’s eyes shot to her and she kept talking.

“She’s that gifted. She needs to be in a school for gifted children. At the very least, she needs to go to writing camps where she can be encouraged to explore her talent, expand it. I’ve spoken to her other teachers and although she struggles with math and science, any course closely connected with the arts, she excels. It’s quiet, not showy and her other teachers and I don’t think she understands her gift, even knows she has it. In fact, we all feel that she’s phoning it in which would mean that if she actually were to make a concerted effort, exemplary work would become something else entirely and all of it good. Her gift needs to be recognized and fed, Mike. And if you like, we can set a meeting where you, she and I can talk about this and I’ll be happy to research schools and possible scholarships. But I encourage you to find a way to help your daughter recognize her talent and further find ways she can be guided to explore it.”

“We’ll set the meeting,” Mike replied immediately. “And I’d appreciate it if you came to it with suggestions of schools which would be a good fit for Reesee.”

Rocky’s face softened and her lips tipped up. “Excellent,” she whispered then she held his eyes and asked quietly, “You had no idea, did you?”

Mike shook his head. “She asks for help on homework but usually geometry, biology. Not English Lit.”

Rocky nodded but her head tilted to the side and she went on, “And Rees? Does she understand her gift do you think?”

Mike shook his head again. “She has no clue.”

Rocky smiled flat out at that and whispered, “Then this meeting will be fun.”

Mike thought of his daughter, how, until recently with Dusty and Fin in her life, she seemed to be losing her way. He also thought of Dusty’s words on Sunday.

Then he thought, yes, it fucking would.

Mike smiled back.

Rocky reached out a hand and touched the report. “You read that. Layne said he’d drop it by the school if you’d swing by his office tomorrow and give it to him. Does that work for you?”

“Absolutely,” Mike replied.

Rocky smiled again and stood, throwing the straps of her bag over her shoulder.

Mike stood with her.

“Good news is,” she started, her eyes shining, “it wouldn’t be good to pull Rees now and move her to a new school so I get to have that one, beautiful, shining moment in a teacher’s life to recognize and educate a prodigy as I get her all semester.”

Mike studied her seeing, clearly, she got off on this shit. She loved her job but more, she truly was elated to have the chance to work with his daughter.

That warmth in his chest grew intense.

Mike grinned at her. “Thanks for takin’ the time to share this with me, Rocky.”

She leaned in, eyes warm, holding his and said with feeling, “My pleasure, Mike.”

He lifted his hand, she took it and he pulled her slightly to him. She tipped her chin back and he bent in, brushing his lips against her cheek. Her skin was soft, her hair and perfume smelled good and Mike liked that Tanner had that. Tanner was a good man. And Tanner’s ex made Audrey seem tame. A slightly nutty, easy smiling woman who smelled good, dressed good, looked great and loved her job teaching kids was so far better than the shit Tanner’s ex shoveled not only during their marriage but after it, it wasn’t funny.

They both leaned back, squeezed hands, Rocky promised to be in touch about the meeting and they said their farewells.

By the time she left, Mike had fifteen minutes to get to Mimi’s. It was a couple of blocks, a five minute walk. He had time and the time he had he didn’t use to pick up Darrin’s will.

He picked up Reesee’s report.

He read it and Rocky was right. By paragraph two, it wasn’t about him reading his daughter’s report that was deemed exceptional by her teacher. She’d sucked him in, he’d become lost in it and even after he was done, it didn’t strike him what he was doing and why he was reading it. Just that he found every word interesting and really fucking wanted to reread a book he hadn’t read since high school.

Unfortunately, he was so into it, by the time he was done he was supposed to be at Mimi’s and being late would piss off Audrey. He knew this because his job meant his hours could be erratic and her spending meant his overtime was constant. Still, she expected him when she expected him where she expected him and if he was late or a no-show, she didn’t mind sharing how much that pissed her off. And how much it pissed her off was a lot.

He didn’t need a pissed off Audrey considering he already didn’t want to give her this time or play whatever game she intended to play. She was his kids’ Mom, however, so he had no fucking choice.

He sucked in breath, folded Rees’s report in half, the will in half, shoved both in the inside pocket of his blazer and shrugged it on. Then he took off down the steps to the first floor of the Station. Moving by Betsy at reception, he flicked out two fingers, called goodnight and got the same in return.

Then he pushed through the front door and walked down the sidewalk to Mimi’s.

It was the beginning of March. Spring was there. The temperatures were rising; there was no snow to be found. Yards were greening up. Buds were on the trees. Bulbs were sending up shoots in people’s yards.

Mike lived in Indiana all his life so he was used to adjusting his day to the changeable and sometimes extreme weather patterns. It was second nature. He didn’t notice it. He didn’t savor spring heralding the end of winter. He didn’t give a shit. He was just pleased the warm up meant he could barbeque without freezing his ass off. And he was pleased that the change in the weather indicated that Fin would not have to go out and clear any more streets.

That was all the thought he gave to it.

He pushed open the door to Mimi’s already having spotted Audrey seeing she’d chosen a table in the window.

Seeing it, his mouth got tight.

Calculated. The ‘Burg was a small town and she’d lived in it a long while. Anyone driving or walking past would see him having a coffee with her. They’d wonder. They’d talk. They’d speculate. They’d even make shit up. And everyone by this time knew he was with Dusty. This was courtesy of Sully’s wife, Lorraine not to mention the quintuple threat of Cheryl, Jessie, Mimi, February and Violet, two of those working in the town’s most popular bar, one of them owning the frequented coffee house.

Jesus, Audrey and her games.

He saw she had a mug in front of her, another mug was on the table and a white bag was also sitting on the table.

He didn’t know what was in that bag but he was surprised by its presence. If she didn’t keep a handle on it, Audrey was the kind of woman who would pack on weight easily. And honest to God, sometimes he thought she’d rather slit her wrists than gain an extra pound. She stepped on the scale every morning and every morning he’d brace. This was because the results set the mood in their house until the next day when she again stepped on that fucking scale.

She, luckily, didn’t give a shit about what Mike and the kids ate though she would frequently bitch about the food in the house mostly because it tempted her. But she took great care with every morsel that passed her lips. She also speed-walked three times a week and went to the gym to swim twice. She was as obsessive about these things as shopping. So baked goods from Mimi’s didn’t make sense.

Her apparently having bought him a drink didn’t either. She’d never been particularly polite but after he asked for a divorce that evaporated completely. Any time she spoke to him over the phone or saw him in person, the acid spewed.

He did not like that mug of coffee sitting on the table. Not at all.

As he moved to Audrey, his eyes went to the counter to see if Mimi was there. She wasn’t and the lone girl behind it was with a customer so she didn’t glance at him.

He expected a terse, “You’re late,” when he arrived but Audrey just smiled up at him.

Then she said, “I got you a latte. Butterscotch?”

He stared at her, shocked as shit. Butterscotch lattes were what Reesee would order him if he brought her or both his kids here. He had no clue Audrey knew or even cared that was his preference.

“Yeah,” he grunted as he sat down then forced out a, “Thanks.”

She immediately reached a hand to the bag and slid it his way. “Those are brownies and cookies. For you, No and Rees.”

He kept staring at her.

She’d called No “No”.

Fuck.

And brownies and cookies?

Fuck.

Except for birthdays and Christmases, which she spent a fortune on with a glee that had nothing to do with celebrations and holidays, he didn’t know her ever to make a gesture to him or the kids like that. When they had children, her shopping extended naturally to filling the kids’ closets, dressers and rooms with shit they did not need but it wasn’t kindness or generosity. It was addiction.

“Thanks,” he muttered again and noted she’d told him they were for him, No and Rees but not Dusty. Understandable but also an indication that she was not moving on as she knew he already had.

He tagged his mug, took a sip then set it down.

“You wanna start this?” he invited. “No’s been instructed to order pizza in fifteen minutes and I gotta swing by and pick it up on the way home. I’m sorry I’m late but that means we have even less time. We should get this done.”

She nodded then shared conversationally, “Things are going well at work.”

Jesus. What the fuck? Was this just a chat?

He didn’t have time for this shit.

“That’s good. Pleased for you, Audrey. Now, do we have something to discuss?”

She rubbed her lips together and grabbed her mug to take a drink.

Stalling. Sucking his time. Playing games.

“Audrey…” he warned and her eyes shot to him.

“I don’t like you with another woman.”

Mike sighed and sat back.

Then, quietly, seeking patience, he explained, “We’re divorced. We’ve been that way a while. We’re gonna stay that way. I’m gettin’ that you’re strugglin’ with that now for whatever reason but it’s the way it is. You need to learn how to deal and however you do that is yours. I’m not involved. If this is about me and Dusty, that has not one thing to do with you. We talk, we talk about our kids. That’s it. Anything else in my life, for you, is off-limits.”