The Dark Side - Danielle Steel Page 0,38

waiting to go off. What if she played with any of those toxic substances? Constance wanted to cry as she thought of it. “But thank you for your advice, Connie,” Zoe said and walked away as Austin approached.

“What was that about?” he asked his mother in an under voice. He could see that Zoe was annoyed. She covered it well, but she looked furious at her mother-in-law.

“I just discovered that you keep all your toxic household products under the sink without a lock. I told her she needs to put a child lock on the cabinet or move them somewhere out of reach.”

“I know, she thinks Jaime has to learn to respect what’s dangerous and stay away from it. It makes me nervous too,” he admitted, feeling awkward and as though he was betraying his wife. “Maybe she’s right. Jaime doesn’t go near it. Zoe told her that she can’t.”

“She hasn’t gone near it yet. You can’t trust a two-year-old with rules like that. Hell, you can’t trust a fifteen-year-old with them. You and your brothers got into our liquor cabinet every chance you got. But bourbon wasn’t going to kill you. Rat poison and bleach would. Austin, be sensible for heaven’s sake. She’s an adventurous kid, and she’s only two. Move that stuff.” Connie looked at her son with fear in her eyes.

“I will. I promise. I’ve been meaning to.” He had intended to move all of it, but Zoe had made such an issue of it, so he didn’t. But he knew his mother was right. Zoe had blind spots about some things, and respect, even of a two-year-old, was all important to her. It was a theory he didn’t espouse, like not having gates on the stairs, which had led to a broken arm.

“Thank you,” Constance said quietly, and went back to talking to Pam.

He walked out to the kitchen then, looked under the sink, and realized that his mother was right. He hadn’t checked it in a while and there were products in easy reach and plain sight that could kill a grown man, let alone a two-year-old. He didn’t hear Zoe come up behind him, and she was glowering at him when he stood up and turned around.

“Did your mother complain about me to you? She told me to move the products under the sink. Jaime never goes near them. She knows she’s not supposed to.”

“Come on, sweetheart. She’s only two. This is like the gate on the stairs. I understand how much you love and respect her, but some of those theories are downright dangerous and just don’t make sense, like this one. Let’s not take the chance.”

“Fine. Do whatever you want,” Zoe said, and walked out of the kitchen in a huff. But the way she did it and her icy look spoiled the party for him then and there. They went through the motions after that until all the guests left. And then he went out to the kitchen and put it all on a high shelf. He had noticed that Zoe was chilly with his mother when his parents left.

Zoe saw what he was doing and didn’t comment as she got Jaime’s dinner ready.

“You don’t need to be mad at me,” he said gently. “My mom was right on this one.”

“She doesn’t like me, that’s what this is about. She never has.”

“That’s not true,” he defended his mother, hating the position he was in between the two. “She loves you, but she’s the original safety warden, and she’s old school, and so am I. The new theories are fine when they deal with how you handle bedtime, or discipline your children, not when dangerous substances are involved. I always stick up for you and your theories, Zoe. But this isn’t about nursing or preschool, these are poisons.”

“And Jaime’s never gone near them, has she? She understands.”

“And what if she doesn’t, or forgets? This is a crazy conversation and it makes no sense. Don’t make me the bad guy here, or my mom, it’s common sense. You’re worried about the goddamn toilet lid, this is just as dangerous. Why can’t you see that?”

“I respect my daughter’s intelligence. You don’t.”

“Then leave the toilet lid open and tell her not to put her head in it,” Austin said, raising his voice. He hated their fights, but it was crazy talking to her about issues like this, especially with their daughter’s safety on the line. He didn’t usually disagree with her, but this