Informed Consent (13 page)

“They try to keep us
with the same kids as much as possible.
 
So everybody feels comfortable.”
 
The man had the door now and he looked from Denise to her husband and back
to Denise.
 
“So. O.K. I’ll check in
after drop offs to get the next day’s schedule.
 
Bye!”

Andrew kept an iron grip
on her shoulder even after the young man left.
 
“Here’s the plan, Babe.”

He turned her and headed
them towards the kitchen island where the decimated pizza and the salad
sat.
 
“You get dinner on the
table.
 
I’ll round up the
heathens.
 
At dinner, after we talk
about how everybody’s day went we’ll talk about how everybody’s day will go
tomorrow.
 
That way you’ll know the
plans to give Tom.
 
Better late
than never.” He let her go but she didn’t feel any better because he swatted
her rear hard.

“By the way, if Zander
hasn’t mentioned a slight problem he had at school today we’ll have to bring it
up.”

“What problem?
 
And how would you know?”

She was ready to be
furious because the school had no business calling him.
 
She was the emergency notification
person.
 
He was nobody as far as
the school knew.
 
She hadn’t added
him, for Pete’s sake.
 

 
She focused her annoyance on him instead
of Zander because it was easier to be mad than worried.
 
“They have no business calling you.”

 
Andrew shook his head and gave her an
odd look.
 
“Way to focus on the
important things Denise.
 
The vice
principal?
 
The guy who called
you?”

Wary, she nodded.
 

“He was my roommate in
college for three years.
 
The man
knows we married.”

Denise had generations
of stubborn people in her veins.

“It’s still not
correct.
 
You aren’t listed as a
contact! They have no right to call you.”

“Great. So tomorrow,
when we meet with them, what do you say we let them tell us what they think is
wrong with Zander?
 
We’ll all talk
about it and try real hard to come up with a good plan for him besides the ‘get
your kid another private school option,’ not that it would be a bad idea by the
way.
 
Then you can tell them about
the lawsuit you intend to pursue because when you didn’t answer the phone --
because you never do, and they’d left four messages already, they called your
husband and asked for a meeting instead of you.”
This time it sank in.
 
Denise felt
knots -not the hot I want to have sex kind - form in her belly.
 
“What happened?”

Andrew bent down and
leaned in until his face was only inches from hers. “I.don’t. know.
 
He wouldn’t say because I haven’t been
added to the contact list yet.”

He stood up and shot her
a look with more than a hint of coolness layered on.
 
“Which doesn’t make me very happy and you can fix that
detail while we’re there tomorrow.”
 

Denise opened her mouth.

Andrew clamped his hand
over it.
 
“Don’t.”
 
He scowled down at her.
 
“If you bite me I swear to god I’ll
whip your ass right here in this kitchen regardless of who sees.” He paused for
a second, waiting to see if she’d be stupid enough to do it.
 

She decided to
demonstrate that she too could focus on the important things.

 
“Zander?”

“After diner we’ll do
something wholesome.
 
We’ll wash
the dishes.
 
Maybe play some
scrabble.
 
I’ll read the newspaper.
 
Maybe you’ll watch something on
TV.
 
Later on babe, we’re going to
our room.
 
And there are quite a
few things you and I will discuss.”

He grinned. It didn’t
make her feel any better at all.

 
“Mostly I’ll discuss.
 
You’ll listen.”

He patted her
cheek.
 
“And apologize.
 
I suspect you’ll cry, too.”