Piper had given at least 50 professional talks about her book, and for the most part, they went off without a hitch. There were even a few occasions when she'd received a standing ovation. She had three "stock" presentations, depending on the school or organization's mission, and delivering any one of them was generally a no-brainer.

That night, however, she bombed.

She stumbled over words, sweat profusely, lost her train of thought and almost walked off stage halfway through. She had to dig deep to finish the talk, moving to the question & answer portion a full 15 minutes earlier than usual.

Piper couldn't concentrate on any one thing as her mind shifted gears like a new driver trying to operate a stick shift. Her son was having trouble at school, and she couldn't help but wonder if she was part of the problem considering how often she and Larry raised their voices. Then there were her incessant thoughts about Alex and what might have been and what could still be. When she wasn't thinking about either of those things, her mind settled on her rocky relationship with a husband with whom she'd fallen out of love.

She declined a late dinner with her agent that night, and informed her that she would try to catch an earlier flight the next morning. Although Piper didn't mention she might need some time off, she planted a seed that her family required her full attention. If that meant canceling speaking engagements down the line, so be it.

Piper slept restlessly that night and decided to head to the airport early in hopes of going standby. She didn't know how being home sooner rather than later might help, but she felt helpless in Oakland. She worried about Benjamin and how exposed he'd been to her and Larry's fights. She'd told Larry as much months ago, but he was always the first to yell, and it didn't take much for her to follow suit.

She texted her husband, letting him know she'd be home two hours early, so they could talk about how to best handle their parent/teacher conference. When she arrived at home, he was waiting.

She didn't even greet him with hello. "I e-mailed the principal last night, asking to be included on any e-mails the school sends," she stated, dropping her overnight bag at the door. "I also asked him to make sure the teacher calls both of us when something like this comes up."

"It sounds like you don't trust me."

She hadn't considered trusting Larry as an issue, but maybe that was part of it. "Why didn't you forward the e-mail from Benjamin's teacher to me?"

"I didn't think it was a big deal." He shrugged. "And like I told you on the phone, I had a talk with Benjamin, and he seemed to understand that he shouldn't yell at his classmates. I thought I'd fixed it."

"Anything that has to do with Benjamin's performance at school that raises even the tiniest red flag, I need to know about." She put her hands on her hips. "If you and I decide that being married isn't working for us, we'll still have an equal say in his upbringing."

He mirrored her position. "Is that what this is really about?"

"This conversation is about our son, Larry." Her throat burned with words she wanted to yell at the top of her lungs. "Our arguing may have caused him to act out at school. That's something worth examining, don't you think?"

He shook his head and looked away as if Piper was the audacious one.

"I don't want to fight with you," she offered. "And after we figure out what Benjamin needs, we can discuss our marriage."

"I don't want to lose you," his voice cracked.

"I don't want to stay together for the wrong reasons." Piper put a hand on his arm. "We need to focus on Benjamin right now."

He pulled her into a hug, and the only thing she felt was sorry for him.

"I'm going to freshen up, and then eat something before we head over there." She released him.

"Ok."

They arrived at school, and Piper hoped she didn't run into the principal or anyone on the Board—now was not the time to make small talk. She also didn't want to disclose that her son was having issues at school and hoped the matter would be resolved by the next Board meeting.

Before they entered the main office, a young woman approached the couple. "Hi, I think we met when you dropped Benjamin off on his first day." She smiled and shook each of their hands. "I'm Evie Wright, the Kindergarten teacher's assistant. Thanks so much for coming."

"I wish we were here for a more celebratory meeting," Larry said. "This is new territory for us."

They followed her down a covered walkway.

"There's certainly good news to share," she began. "Benjamin is doing well academically—his reading skills are top in the class."

Piper was impatient and not particularly fond of small talk on that occasion. "No offense to you, Evie, I'm sure you're an excellent TA, but I thought we were meeting his teacher?"

"You are; I'm just escorting you over there." She turned the corner and entered another building. "Would you mind if I sat in on the meeting? I'm an education major at the University of Washington, and this is my student teaching assignment."

She and Larry regarded each other. "I don't see a problem with that."

"Great, thank you." Evie opened the classroom door and the last two students in the room ran out. "No running, Veronica and Damian!" She let out an exasperated sigh and grinned. "Sometimes they just don't slow down."

"Tell me about it," Larry said. "I wish I had Benjamin's energy."

A woman with long, black hair stood in the back of the room, tacking student artwork to a bulletin board.

Evie stepped aside. "This is Benjamin's teacher, Ms. Vause."

"You can call me Alex." She spun around, half-smile quickly slipping off her face.

Piper's knees wobbled as her mouth hung open and eyebrows shot up.

The teacher's face looked like a corpse—all color drained except for the green of her eyes behind black eyeglasses. "Piper?"

"Alex?" Her mouth was dry and her palms sweaty. "What the fuck?"

Evie cleared her throat. "Is something wrong?"

"Do you two know each other?" Larry chimed in.

"I don't understand." As if the other two weren't even in the room, Piper fixated on Alex. "You're not a teacher."

"I am, actually." She wrapped her index finger and thumb around her glasses, wiggling them as if that would make Piper disappear. "You're Benjamin's mom?"

"Yes!" She raised the back of her hand to her forehead and tried to control the short breaths coming out in pants. "This doesn't make any sense."

Larry touched her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

She thrashed her head around and blinked several times as if opening and shutting her eyes would wake her from this confusing dream. "I need a minute."

"Would you mind stepping out for a moment, Evie? And take Mr. Bloom with you." Alex never tore her scrutinizing gaze from her.

"I don't know if I want to leave you here like this," Larry said, worry etched on his face.

"I need you to go," Piper replied slowly, nostrils flaring.

"We'll get something to drink in the lounge. Come with me, Mr. Bloom." Evie escorted him out and shut the door behind her.

"This can't be happening." Piper spun on her heels and gawked at the woman who'd stolen much of her mental energy over the past month. "You're a tattoo artist! I don't understand…How could you be a teacher?"

"That's my other job. This one pays the bills." Alex stood motionless in the middle of the classroom. "I had no idea your son was in my class."

"That's only the second problem with this situation," she shouted. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want to seem lame," she confessed with a tight shrug. "I don't identify as much with teaching as I do with inking up people's bodies."

Piper sensed she was telling the truth, but her lie of omission was no excuse.

"You weren't completely honest with me at first," Alex tried, gaze drifting across the room as if she couldn't bear to look at her.

"Yeah, and I fessed up within hours." She shook her head. "Being a teacher is nothing to be ashamed of—I probably would've had even more respect for you than I already do!"

Alex looked at the ceiling, shoulders high and tense. "Never in a million years did I think we'd be in this situation."

"What the fuck, Alex?" Her eyes raged and her throat burned with throbbing, furious words. "I'm on the Board of Trustees! Do you have any idea how much trouble we could both be in if this got out?"

The muscles in her face tightened. "Yes."

Piper was caught off guard by a tear slipping down her own chin. She knew she was emotional, but she hadn't expected tears, and she flicked it off like a roach crawling on her face.

"Benjamin's last name is Bloom. How was I supposed to know you were his mom? Your name isn't listed as a contact, and I certainly don't go searching our database for parent names," she offered.

"That's no excuse," Piper responded coldly. "If you would've told me you were a Kindergarten teacher, I think we would've figured this out pretty fucking quickly."

"Maybe." She lowered her head and looked contrite.

She took a step forward, now acutely aware of the tears pooling in her eyes. "I fantasize about you, Alex. How am I supposed to sit through a meeting with you and my husband to discuss my son, who apparently has problems in your class?"

"I realize this is awkward as hell, but right now, we need to focus on Benjamin." Alex reached out, touching the cuff of her shirt, fingers skimming her wrist and causing Piper to jerk away. "We'll talk about you and me and this whole thing later. Promise."

"I don't know if I can do this." Piper swiped the moisture off her face and took a moment to collect herself.

She reached for a tissue, handing it to her. "I'm sorry."

Larry peeked inside. "Is it ok to come in?"

"Yeah." Once again, Alex fiddled with her glasses. "I didn't realize Piper was Benjamin's mom. We shared an emotional time in our lives that we'd rather not discuss, but I think everything is ok."

He directed his attention to Piper. "What is she talking about?"

"Nothing." She hoped her eyes didn't look as heavy as they felt. "Let's get this over with."

Evie appeared uncomfortable as she sat in one of the low, plastic chairs in the middle of the room.

Alex joined her, followed by Larry, and then Piper.

"Benjamin is doing well in class. He has good manners, he's an excellent reader, and his math skills are above grade level," Alex began. "When he's at recess though, he yells at the other kids, often to the point of making them cry."

"He's not like that with us," Larry replied.

"There's a chance he could be modeling behavior learned at home," Alex stated, eyes averted from anywhere near Piper's vicinity.

"Larry and I have been known to raise our voices when we have a disagreement," Piper kept her head down, refusing to look up at the woman she'd wanted to fuck. Still wanted to fuck, truth be told, and her new, shiny black hair.

Damn her. Damn her for lying and for getting under her skin.

"Is it possible Benjamin has picked up on that, and he's yelling at his friends as a way of communicating?" Larry enquired.

"It's not only possible, but probable," Alex said, crossing her legs. "The good news is that kids his age can adapt to just about any setting. He might've learned that yelling was ok from you, but he can just as easily learn that keeping a steady voice while having a disagreement is a preferred way to communicate."

Larry leaned forward. "So, you're saying we should be concerned, but modeling civilized discussions for Benjamin could help with his issues?"

"That's right." Alex nodded. "And if the two of you tend to get into some heated debates, it's best if you do it when he's not around."

Piper chanced a glance at Alex, who was the epitome of professional. She also looked frustratingly sexy in her tight gray pants and blue, laced top—one of her tattoos peeking out from under the sleeve. She bit her lip and looked away again.

"Maybe we should come to you for marriage counseling," Larry chuckled.

Piper's eyes shot open—Alex was the opposite of a marriage counselor in their relationship—she was the other half of a latent affair.

"We'll keep a close eye on Benjamin over the next couple of weeks, and if we need to have another conversation, Evie will set that up." Alex stood. "It was nice meeting you, Larry. Good seeing you again, Piper."

"You, too." Larry shook her hand, but Piper couldn't touch her.

"Sorry about earlier," Piper offered quietly to Evie.

She smiled. "Don't worry about it."

She gave Alex a head nod, and then walked to the door without looking back, though she could feel Alex's eyes on her.

When they were halfway to the parking lot, Larry turned his attention to his wife. "What in the hell happened in there?"

"I don't want to talk about it, and if you want me to keep my voice down, you won't force the issue." She picked up her pace, eager to get to the car and ultimately home.

"I have no idea what's been going on with you this past month," he mumbled.

She stepped into the car, letting out a long, irritated sigh. "We need to take a break."

"You want to take a break now, when our son needs us more than ever?" He shouted, slamming the door after getting into the driver's seat.

"Benjamin needs two parents who don't argue over every fucking subject." She propped her elbow on the window sill, resting her head in her hand. "I want you to move into the basement."

"And how do you expect we explain that to Benjamin?"

"We'll tell him we both love him, but we need a timeout. He'll understand."

Larry huffed. "I'm not in favor of this plan."

"It's either that or one of us moves out." Piper didn't raise her voice; she was emotionally and physically drained. "You choose."

He gripped the steering wheel. "I have a feeling this isn't going to end well."

"Maybe not, but my top priority is making sure Benjamin feels safe and loved. We haven't done a great job of that this past year."

"If you weren't gone so damn much…"

"Do not start with me about that, Larry," she warned. "I want to pick up Benjamin from Polly's, feed him, and go to sleep. We can hash this out tomorrow after he's at school."

"It always has to be your way."

Piper ignored him and closed her eyes, damning herself for picturing Alex with her new, black hair.

Author's Note: I took great care to ensure Piper had no idea that Alex was Benjamin's teacher. Even if she would have seen the teacher's name on Benjamin's back to school records, in my mind, Piper wouldn't have connected the dots and could've assumed Alex was a man. Also, Piper didn't know Alex's last name until meeting her in the classroom. Larry has no idea that Alex exists in Piper's world, so when he received a call from her, the only thing that was amiss was Benjamin's behavior.

Can't wait to hear your thoughts on this chapter.