orange flyer tacked to the lobby bulletin board.
Personal Assistant Needed
Hours Flexible
Must Have Own Transportation
$20 per hour plus mileage
The bottom of the flyer had been fringed into tabs bearing a phone number, and Meredith ripped the first for herself. She frowned at the 504 area code. Why would someone in New Orleans post a job position at the University of Louisiana in Lafayette?
It might be a scam, but the job she’d had at Champagne’s only paid $9.25, two bucks above minimum wage. Twice the money and flexible hours? Maybe it was too good to be true, but Meredith would go in with skepticism. Any hint of a scam, and she’d pull back.
She stuffed the scrap of paper into her bag and headed to class.
Thursdays were her short days. Two classes. No labs. So after psych, she hopped on her bike — with the child seat over the back tire — and headed home. She crossed Johnston Street and passed Bisbano’s. When she pedaled past Studio Ink, her eye fell on a turquoise Mustang coupe in the parking lot. It wasn’t the car that caught her attention, but the couple in the front seat — arms inked up and down and locked in a searing kiss.
Meredith pulled her gaze away and tried to ignore the sudden pounding in her chest. It had been a long, long time since anyone had kissed her like that. She didn’t want to remember the fool she’d been then, and it would be years before she could meet someone new, so it was best not to think about kissing at all.
It was just after 12:30 when she walked through the kitchen door to find a sleepy Oscar finishing his lunch.
He drooped in his booster seat until he saw her. “Mama!” Oscar sat up straight and pointed a finger at her — a finger that was coated in peanut butter. “Sit down.”
Meredith let her book bag slip to the floor as she took a seat beside him, smiling widely. “Yes, Mama will sit. I don’t need to leave.”
“Mama sit?” Oscar questioned, smiling now, too, but still unsure. Her son was used to Meredith rushing in from school only to change into her Champagne’s uniform before setting off again. The fact that he was so accustomed to her leaving made her heart ache.
“Yes, Mama’s sitting with Oscar. I want to sit with you.”
Leona emerged from the utility room, shaking her head and giving a tsk. “Of course, you had to come back right before his nap,” she complained. “Now he’ll never settle down.”
Meredith ignored the woman’s tone and turned back to her son. “I’ll get some lunch and then take him back to my room. He’ll get sleepy again in a little while.”
Leona cocked a brow at her. “Oh? You mean you aren’t gonna run out and look for another job this instant? You’re actually gonna spend time with your baby?”
The stab of guilt was well aimed. Leona knew exactly how to make her feel awful, and, because Meredith sensed this, she tried to push the hurt aside. But instead of firing back, she rose to her feet and headed toward the fridge.
“Mama sit,” Oscar echoed, a whine creeping into his voice.
She turned and locked eyes with him. “Mama’s going to make a sandwich and sit with Oscar. Okay, baby? Mama’s hungry.”
“He needs his nap, Meredith. He’s just gonna get cranky.”
It was better to say nothing. If she said nothing, Leona would take her silence as surrender, and, in her victory, she’d consider the subject closed. Most of the time, Meredith could allow this. Bite her tongue and bow her head.
Today was one of those times.
She hid her head in the fridge as she searched for sliced turkey, mayo, mustard, and lettuce, and set about making a sandwich.
“Mama make lunch?” Oscar asked, hope lifting the question.
Meredith smiled over her shoulder at him. His big brown eyes watched her with unbroken focus.
“Yes, baby. Mama’s making lunch, and I’ll sit with you while I eat. And then we’ll take a nap. Okay?”
Oscar shook his head, smiling with mischief. “No nap, Mama.”
Leona tsked again. “Little man needs a nap,” she told him.
Oscar frowned at his grandmother. “No nap, Meemaw!”
“Four months early, and he’s already hitting the terrible twos,” Leona said, shaking her head. “I just hope he’s better than Jamie at that age. When that boy didn’t get his way, look out!”
And that’s changed how? Meredith wanted to ask, but she finished making her sandwich in silence.
“Mama sit.”
She carried her sandwich to