Pages of the Past (Bellingwood Book 9) by Diane Greenwood Muir Page A

Woods tonight and a breakfast meeting in the morning for them."
    "What's going on?"
    "It's some leadership retreat thingie. I have no idea. They're staying at the Inn. Didn't you know about it?"
    "No, but that's not surprising."
    "Jeff's been in and out all day. They checked in last night, had breakfast at the Diner this morning and Davey's catered lunch. I'm doing dinner and breakfast tomorrow."
    "Do you need anything from me?"
    "Nope, it's not a large group, so Rachel and I have it."
    "You're amazing," Polly said. "How late do you need Andrew to stay here?"
    "Eliseo said he'd take the boys home after Jason's done. They're old enough to be on their own now. At least that's what I've been told by my eldest over and over."
    "Okay, well let me know."  Polly went up the steps to her apartment and found the three kids sitting at the table in the dining room. Rebecca and Kayla each had a glass of water beside them and Andrew had poured himself a glass of milk.
    "Is it okay we got something to drink?" he asked.
    "Of course it is. Thanks for asking, though. Do you need anything else?"
    "Just those brownies," he said. "Any time now."
    Polly ruffled his hair as she walked past the table. "You'll notice that these two are very comfortable here, Kayla. If there's anything you need - anything at all, be sure to speak up."
    She nodded and went back to the work in front of her, whispering to Rebecca about one of the problems.
    "It's okay," Rebecca said quietly. "Polly doesn't care if we talk about our work together. Sometimes she even helps us if we have trouble. Don't you."
    "If I can figure it out, I do." Polly pulled out the cocoa and other ingredients. "Do you all like nuts in your brownies?"
    "I'm allergic," Kayla said.
    "Then brownies with no nuts. Smooth brownies, we'll call them. How about frosting?"
    "I love frosting." This brought the first smile Polly had seen to Kayla's face.
    "Smooth brownies with chocolate chips and chocolate frosting. How about that?"
    "They won't be smooth," Andrew said.
    "Smart-aleck. So, chunky brownies with chocolate chips and chocolate frosting."
    The kids were still working through math problems when Polly put the brownies into the oven. She cleaned up the kitchen and opened the refrigerator door to look for supper ideas. There was some left over pork loin in a container, but not enough for a whole meal. She opened the freezer. There was nothing in there that could be defrosted in time for dinner.
    She texted Henry. " I'm a failure as a mom and have no idea what to cook for supper."
    "We need to buy a crock pot and try to plan better in the mornings."
    "You know I'll never remember to do that."
    "I might."             
    "Uh huh. I'm tired of pizza and sandwiches. What if we take the girls to Davey's tonight?"
    "That's always fine with me. I'll be home about five thirty or six. Okay?"
    "Great."
    Polly leaned over the peninsula and asked, "What time will your sister be here to pick you up tonight, Kayla?"
    "She gets off work at five thirty on Mondays. Is that okay?"
    "You bet. I was just checking. How are you guys doing?"
    "I'm working on my poem," Andrew announced.
    "You finished your math?"
    "Yeah. It was no big deal."
    How about you girls?" Polly asked. She walked around the peninsula to stand between the two girls and put her hand on Rebecca's shoulder, carefully avoiding Kayla. Bending over to see what they were working on, she said, "You're almost done, too. Right?"
    "We only have to do the even numbered problems."
    "Do you ever do the odd numbered ones too?"
    That stumped Kayla. "Why would we do that?" she asked.
    "For practice. To make sure you know what you're doing."
    "No," Rebecca announced and firmly set her pencil down on top of her paper. "I'm done. I don't want to do any more."
    "Are they right?" Polly asked.
    "Isn't that why the teacher grades them, to see if they're right?" Kayla asked.
    "Rebecca?" Polly asked again.
    "Polly says we're supposed to do our very best and