Free Practice Makes Perfect (Single Father) by Janice Macdonald

what I think was your question, Matthew isn’t interested in joining me, which means I have to look at other options.”
    “You could make things a lot easier for yourself if you just called CMS tomorrow. Probably start work Monday.”
    “No, thanks. I’d rather flip burgers.”
    Rose shrugged. “Want to stay for dinner? I picked up some pad thai.”
    “Antibiotics should clear it right up.”
    Rose shook her head. “You’re like your father.”
    “Actually, I meant to go to the library.” Sarah grabbed an envelope from the table, which was littered with newspapers, napkins with notes scrawled over them, grocery receipts and medical journals. Although Matthew had only mentioned tide pools, Agate Beach was also a great fossil-hunting area. Maybe Lucy would enjoy that. On the back of the envelope, she made a list of other things they’d need: crowbar, chisels, ice pick, a camera, tape measure. Notebooks, of course.
    Glancing at the list, Rose inquired, “You’ll be gone for one month, or two?”
    “Have you ever been fossil hunting?” Sarah asked.
    “No.”
    “Then don’t mock what you don’t understand.” She made a mental note to discuss rags, paper towels and newspapers to wrap the fossils in when she called Matthew later. “D’you think the library’s still open? I’d like to pick up a couple of books. Maps, too.”
    “Why are you making such a production of this?” Rose asked. “She’s a kid. Take her to the beach, let her run around and call it a day.”
    “This will be educational, as well as fun.”
    “Maybe the girl would rather just have fun,” Rose said mildly. “By the way, I was also going through some of those old boxes.” She reached for something on top of the refrigerator, then handed Sarah a notebook. Across the front, carefully printed in neat black lettering, it read: Sarah Benedict’s Book of Ideal Qualities.
    “Look at page one,” Rose directed her.
    Sarah felt her face color. Under the heading Ideal Qualities of The Perfect Man it listed the qualities he should possess. Handsome, Friendly, Loyal and Trustworthy. She’d underlined trustworthy. In the back of the book, something Rose probably hadn’t discovered, was a small envelope glued to the last page. Inside was a picture of Matthew.
    She looked up to find Rose watching her.
    “By the way, chapter two lists the Ideal Qualities of a Perfect Mother,” Rose said. “Didn’t recognize myself anywhere.”
    Sarah pushed her hair behind her ears. “Did you think you were perfect?”
    “No,” Rose said. “In most families, there’s only room for one perfect individual. You’d clearly assumed that title, I decided not to fight it.”

CHAPTER SEVEN
    E LIZABETH SIPPED her iced tea. George had taken her to Fidel’s, Port Hamilton’s only Mexican restaurant. The food wasn’t as good as the Mexican food she remembered from her childhood in L.A., but for Port Hamilton it was okay. Plus, after serving up food all day, it was nice having someone wait on her. And she really liked George. Enough that she’d started waiting for the phone to ring, obsessing about the weekends. He was a musician, too. She had this thing for musicians.
    “Where’s your daughter tonight?” he asked.
    Elizabeth eyed him over the top of her glass. He had a goatee, which made him look slightly devilish. She liked devilish. “Sleeping at her best friend’s house. Then tomorrow, my ex is picking her up.”
    George grinned. Under the table, she felt his foot touch hers. She smiled back.
    “So—” he was still smiling “—how’d your day go?”
    “Pretty good. This friend, well, she isn’t really a friend…but we grew up together and then she went off to Central America. She’s a doctor.” She saw George’s eyes widen slightly, just like they had when they first met and she’d told him Matt was a doctor. “Anyway, she came into the restaurant. She didn’t know I worked there and…it was kind of nice. We had this long