Nora smiled. “How about twice a week?”
“It’s a deal.”
Once David released his hold on her hand, she placed a napkin across her lap. “What about Hailey? How was she while I was gone?”
“She spent every day testing me, asking me if she could go to the mall with friends I had never heard of before.”
“And what did you tell her?”
“I told her no. The same thing I would have told her if she’d asked for permission to dye her hair.”
The server came to their table, and David told her they needed another minute. After she walked away, David said, “I don’t think Hailey will keep her new hair color for very long.”
“Why not?”
“Whenever she walks into the room, I sing ‘Purple Rain’ or ‘The Purple People Eater.’”
Nora chuckled. “I guess we’re lucky she didn’t get any piercings or tattoos.” She clicked her tongue. “Speaking of tattoos, did Alex come to the house while I was away?”
David nodded. “He made a couple of appearances. He seems like a nice kid.”
“Do you think they’re just friends?”
“Absolutely not.”
Nora felt gutted by it all. “Why is our daughter so afraid to tell me the truth?”
“I’m not sure, Nora. But we have two good kids. We’ve done good.”
“So you approve of Alex?”
“Do I have a choice? If I tell her he can’t come over, she’s going to sneak out. I’d rather have them at the house rather than off somewhere I don’t know about.”
Nora was quiet for a moment before she said, “Dyeing her hair purple, or green, or whatever color she wants doesn’t bother me. It’s the fact that she doesn’t talk to me about those sorts of things any longer. We used to spend days discussing whether she should cut her hair, bangs or no bangs? We would look through magazines and at photos of people on social media who had certain hairstyles we thought might look nice. That’s what I’m mourning. That connection.”
After they ordered and their meal was brought to the table, Nora told David about her conversation with Jane when she was in Paris, and how Jane had said she’d missed her flight because of a panicked call from Christian Murray.
He nodded. “That was the same story I heard when I asked her what happened.”
“I talked to Christian Murray this morning. He was perfectly happy with the new software. Everything was going well on his end.” She leaned forward and said in a conspiratorial voice, “He never called Jane.”
“You’re sure?”
“That’s what he said. And there’s more.”
He waited.
She sat up taller. “Rumor has it that Jane used unethical tactics to steal a client from Levi Hale, one of our competitors.”
“If no one had signed on the dotted line, it’s all up for grabs, isn’t it? And since when do you listen to rumors anyway?”
Nora knew he was right, and yet she knew she wouldn’t be able to let it go until Levi Hale called her back. “I did tell the woman that it was only gossip, but I don’t know any longer.”
“What do you mean?”
“Too many things aren’t adding up.” The thoughts running through Nora’s brain made her shudder. “I have a strong feeling Jane planned the trip to Paris for the sole purpose of getting rid of me so she could swoop in and spend time with all of you.”
David shook his head.
“What?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “It just sounds a bit far-fetched.”
“Maybe you’re right. But the truth is, I don’t like Jane coming over whenever she feels like it. Making dinner for my family is one thing, but doing it night after night when I’m gone and hanging out with all of you is unacceptable.”
His eyes gleamed.
“What?”
“You’re jealous.”
“Maybe I am.”
“No need to be,” he said.
Nora watched David eat as she took a bite of spicy tuna. In their seventeen years of marriage, not once before meeting Jane had she felt this prickling unease when it came to him and other women. She didn’t like feeling so tense and alert every time Jane’s name was mentioned. Jealousy was a common emotion, even normal if she didn’t allow it to overpower her. But where was the jealousy coming from? She trusted David with all her being. And yet, since Jane had come into their lives, she’d seen a change in him. Or was it her imagination?
Nora had always prided herself in being a secure and independent woman, comfortable with being assertive when it came to expressing her needs and opinions. She was confident with who she was, damn it.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” David asked. “You seem a million miles away.”
“I’m struggling. I know it’s ridiculous, but my self-esteem has taken a hit since Jane came into the picture. I’ve begun to perceive her as a threat; she’s prettier, thinner, smarter. God”—Nora cupped her face with her hands—“what’s wrong with me?”
“Nothing is wrong with you. This has been a crazy year—the accident while in Hawaii, then the new job, your dad’s failing health, and now Paris and being away from your family. You’ve been dealing with a lot. Maybe you should take a few days off and just breathe.”
She was way too deep into her own head to let his advice sink in. “Did you know that Jane offered to buy Trevor a two-thousand-dollar software program?”
He shook his head.
“That was after I returned thousands of dollars’ worth of clothes that she’d bought Hailey.”
“Maybe you should talk to her.”
“That’s the thing. I did. After I returned the clothes, I told her I knew she meant well, but I would rather she not spoil our children.”
“And?”
“She handled it well, even apologized.”
“That’s good, right? And she didn’t buy Trevor the software, so no harm done.”
She sipped her water. No harm, no foul? But then the image of Hailey popped into her mind. “That blouse Hailey had on this morning was brand-new. That was not Goodwill.”
David looked skeptical. “You’re sure?”
“Pretty sure.” Nora didn’t like feeling so agitated. Mostly, she didn’t like being so easily manipulated. “Doesn’t it bother you that she let Hailey dye her hair purple without even mentioning it to us first?”
“Remember when your mom took Hailey to get her ears pierced?” David reached for his water and took a swallow. “If I remember correctly, she didn’t ask us for permission.”
“But that’s my mother you’re talking about, not a woman I hardly know. And Mom still feels bad about that.”
David dipped his sushi into his sauce and put the whole thing in his mouth.
“I thought I could be friends with Jane,” Nora said, “but I don’t know anymore. Sometimes I feel like she’s trying to take all of you from me.”
He wiped his mouth. “She can’t take us, Nora. Because I won’t let her.”
Nora smiled at that.