“At least a hundred things,” I answer, “and they probably all have to do with Mira. You know how she is.”
“Let’s get them.”
We get out of the car, leaving Lucky curled up on the seat counting sheep. Or does he count people? I peek through the café window and see that it’s packed. We step inside and look for Aidan and Mira.
“You think Lucky will be okay out in the car?” Seth asks.
“I don’t think Belle is going to run down the street and eat him, if that’s what you mean.”
We spot Mira down a hallway standing between two doors marked with restroom signs. She waves wildly when she sees us, and we make our way around crowded tables. A few of the patrons turn and look at us. Our school uniforms make us look like preppy security guards. “We need to lose these clothes,” I whisper to Seth.
“You’re Miss Got Bucks. Let’s go shopping.”
Mira jiggles like she has ants in her pants and waves us close.
“The restroom’s right there,” Seth tells her. “Why don’t you use it?”
“I don’t have to go!” she whispers, and points to the men’s room. “Aidan’s in there.”
Is Mira finally showing her true neuroses? She lets out a frustrated breath of air. “He’s in there with the president! Didn’t you hear?”
“What president?” I ask.
“The president!”
Seth laug
hs and leans back against the opposite wall. “You mean as in commander-in-chief president?”
“As in president of the United States?” I ask. “Oh, sure.”
“Yes! And his Secret Service agents too!”
“She’s lost it,” Seth says, putting his arm out to open the restroom door.
“I have not!” Mira insists, grabbing his arm and stopping him. “We found out this is one of the routes he takes on his way to his presidential retreat. He adores the blueberry bread pudding here, so he makes this a pee stop. When blueberries are in season, that is.”
The restroom door opens and two men step out, both wearing dark glasses, dark suits, and dark expressions. I hear Seth draw a deep breath. They certainly look like Secret Service.
The door opens again. Aidan steps out, a tight-lipped grin smeared across his face. He leans in close to the equally tight-lipped men and whispers, “He told me to tell you he had some other business to take care of. He might be a while.”
“Thanks, son,” one of them replies. “It was a pleasure to hear your thoughts.”
Aidan nods. “Any time.” He swaggers past us and makes his way out the front door. We follow after him like a three-car train, maneuvering around tables, Mira as the caboose, pushing on my back and stepping on my heels. As soon as we burst through the door, Aidan’s tight lips disappear and he jumps into the air hooting. “I peed next to the president of the United States! Side by side! He asked me a question!”
Mira’s and Seth’s questions tumble over each other, leaving no room for Aidan to answer.
“How could you pee?”
“What did he ask you?”
“What’s he like?”
“Were you nervous?”
“What did you say?”
Aidan’s eyes are wide as he speaks, his voice free of its usual reserve as he recounts his moment of glory. “I had no choice. I had to pee. I think the Secret Service guys saw it in my eyes and didn’t want an incident that would make the evening news. They let me right on through. It wasn’t until I unzipped that I realized who I was next to. He said he was on his vacation, and I remembered he’d been criticized for taking time off and that’s when I told him my theory.”