Aaron Jacobs is mean to everybody. He made Sara Hartley cry.”
Evan didn’t like to hear of someone bullying his child. “Did you tell the teacher?”
He glanced in the rearview mirror and saw her nod.
“But he won’t stop being mean to us girls.”
“Then I need to have a talk with his parents.”
“You will?”
He drove under the ranch archway. “Of course, Gracie. You should have told me sooner.”
He pulled up in front of the house. He climbed out and opened the back door as his daughter unfastened her seat-belt and climbed down. Evan squatted down to her level. “Gracie, you can always come to me if you have trouble with anything. I’ll always be there for you.”
She glanced away.
“What’s wrong?”
“Mommy always said not to bother you if you’re busy ‘cause you have a lot on your mind.”
He worked to keep his anger under control. “Remember this, Gracie Anne Rafferty. I’m never too busy for you.”
A bright smile appeared on her face. “Okay, Daddy.”
“Now, go take the bread to Grandpa.”
His daughter took the long sticks of sourdough and headed up the steps. Sadness washed over him. Had he been that distant from his own family? Or had Meg deliberately kept him from having a relationship with his daughter? He knew they hadn’t had the best marriage, but why had she prevented him from being Gracie’s father? If she had, he’d let her.
“Evan, are you okay?” Jenny asked.
“No. My own daughter is afraid to come to me.”
“A lot of children go to their mother first.”
“Did you?” Suddenly, he remembered Jenny saying her mother was too busy for her. “Or did you have to fight your own battles? How did you handle bullies?”
She shrugged. “I guess I did a lot of my own fighting.”
“What about your dad?”
She glanced away. “He was never in my life.”
His gut tightened as she tried to seem nonchalant, but he knew it mattered to her. “Well, I’m not going to let Aaron the bully get any more out of control. He has no right picking on little girls.” His fists clenched. “I plan to have a talk with this kid.”
“Whoa, Rafferty. As a teacher myself, I can tell you it isn’t wise to go running off half-cocked. Talk to Gracie’s teacher first. Better yet, to Lily Perry. She’ll look into the situation, then, if that doesn’t help, set up a meeting with the boy’s parents.”
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