“How was work?”
“Same as always,” I said. “I’m glad Josh is back. I actually got to draw today.”
“I don’t like him.”
“Oh don’t start. Josh is harmless.”
“He flirts with you.”
“He flirts with every girl,” I said, exasperated. “So was it quiet here today?”
“Except for Dad complaining about grading first year essays. He’s pretty sure we’re all going to be illiterate by the next century.”
“No reporters?”
“Not a peep.” He shook his head.
“Maybe we got lucky.”
“Kids!” John called up the stairs. “Dinner!”
It was funny how he called us kids. I guessed maybe we would always be kids to him.
“I love Mondays.” I sighed happily, taking a seat at the table. Mondays was John’s day off from teaching—he had no classes on Monday, just office hours in the morning. He always cooked something delicious on Mondays. He had already put all the food on the table and poured me a glass of milk. Dale had a bottled water and John had a beer.
“Most people hate Mondays.” John smiled. “Back to work day.”
“Monday is spaghetti day.”
Dale looked at me. “I thought that was Wednesday?”
“That’s Prince spaghetti day,” John said. “For shame. I make my own pasta.”
I nudged Dale on the table, smiling at him. I felt his hand on my knee and smiled. He gave it a gentle squeeze and a look that said, “Later.” It made me shiver.
“So it was quiet here all day, Dale says.”
“Except for his incessant guitar playing,” John joked. “When are you gonna go out there and get a real job?” John’s eyes were twinkling but Dale didn’t take the bait.
“That’s funny, I thought it was quiet except for all your whining about students who didn’t know the difference between there, their and they’re.”
“All sound the same to me,” I said, grinning.
“Oh the humanity.” John groaned. “To answer your rather obtuse question with a direct answer—no reporters called today.”
“Well that’s a relief,” I replied.
“However, I did get an interesting phone call from your mother, Dale.”
“What did she want?” Dale’s hand gripped my knee.
“Your sister wants to come live with us.”
Dale dropped his fork, staring at his father. I knew that look. My stomach knotted up tight. I’d been hungry but now there was no room for food.
“Let me guess. She wants to go to Rutgers,” Dale snapped.
“She did just graduate,” John reminded him. “And it makes the most sense, given that tuition is free since I’m a professor there. You could have taken advantage of that fact too, you know.”