Chapter 26
Quinn
I’ve done nothing for the last day but make m
yself sick over this entire affair. Mr. Steele had been understanding when I explained what has been happening. The honest truth is I’d wanted to provide my side of things to administration before getting yanked into a meeting where people would be looking down on me for what they think I did. What we’d done. I’d needed them to know that I had been seeing Liam before any of this mess started, before I even knew Olivia was his daughter. This whole thing is just a series of unfortunate coincidences. Coupled with teenage gossip, the whole situation has spiraled out of control.
After my first class ends, students scramble out of the room quickly. All except Olivia, that is. She slowly puts her notebook in her bag, eyes specifically avoiding mine, but she lingers for some reason.
With a sigh, I sit on the edge of my desk as she walks toward me up the aisle to the front of the classroom. The look on her face is so wounded, I wish there was something I could do to make this right with her. I’m not sure there is, as she’s living through this ridiculous gossip attack right alongside me.
When she reaches where I’m sitting, she stops, her eyes flicking up to mine. “Is there a way to switch out of this class?” She licks her lips. “I think I’d be better off with another teacher right now.” Her face flames red.
My lips part. “Olivia, it’s never been my intention to hurt you.” I search her eyes, and all I see there is hurt. “I’m so sorry, but there isn’t another biology class taught at the same time.”
She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment, then nods and heads for the door. Right before she walks out, she whispers under her breath, “Just leave me alone.”
Later that afternoon, I wait until the halls have cleared before I head down to the library for lunch with my girls. When I arrive, Madison, Hadleigh, Piper, and Zoey are huddled around the table eating sandwiches that they had delivered. I wrinkle my nose as I approach. The last time we’d ordered from that place, it’d tasted funky. Hopefully, it was a one-time deal.
I sit down in the chair Madison pulls out for me and glance around the table. “Where’s Sophia?”
Zoey raises her brows. “She and Heath have a conference call with their wedding planner.” She pauses a second, eyeing me. “She mentioned this morning she wouldn’t be joining for lunch. Remember?”
I shake my head, closing my eyes. “Right. Sorry, I’m out of it.”
Hadleigh presses her lips together. “It’s been two days. You’d think the rumor mill would be grinding to a halt by now on this particular topic. It could literally pick up on anything else, and it would be a welcome change.”
“I can’t believe the way stuff is just getting made up now and passed around. Just awful.” Piper winces. “How are your classes going?”
“Pretty quiet, actually. I think it’s just something titillating for their teenage minds to focus on.”
Madison leans in and gives me a side-hug.
“Thanks. And I’ve got other stuff on my mind, too. We finally scheduled Mom’s surgery for next week, so I’ve been anxious about that on top of everything else. Especially now that it appears I won’t be tutoring Olivia anymore. It’s going to make this so much more difficult because I was counting on that money to help pay for whatever Mom’s insurance doesn’t cover. I feel physically sick at the drop of a hat these days thinking about everything.”
Piper puts a potato chip in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. She juts her chin toward my lunch. “You haven’t touched your sandwich.”
“I just have no appetite at all.” I glance around our circle at my friends’ faces seeing nothing but concern in them.
“I really hate all of this for you. It seemed like you and Liam were getting along so well, and then …” Zoey makes a sound like everything is blowing up, complete with hand gestures.
I sneak a chip from Piper’s open bag. It’s the only thing that seems remotely appetizing to me right now. As I chew, a few different things hit me all at once. I’ve been exhausted. Not feeling like myself. I mentally do some lady math in my head.
Another chip halfway to my mouth, I pause. Oh boy. Could I be …?
Chapter 27
Liam
This is what our life has become, silent meals side by side. Both sad. Both hurting. I sneak a peek at Olivia as she pokes at the dinner of baked chicken with a side of mac and cheese. When I angle my head toward her, she looks away. When I try to speak to her, she shoves food into her mouth and chews, giving me a cold stare. It’s like she’s daring me to say something just so she can lash out.
I can’t fucking believe what a mess everything has become. I’d gone from thinking maybe, just maybe I’d talk to Olivia and she’d be okay with welcoming Quinn into our lives somehow. That whole evening, right up until Olivia walked in on us in a lip-lock, had been everything I’d dreamed about. It’d felt like the life I’d been hoping for—but never thought would be mine—was finally within my grasp.
And then, it’d all slipped away. My daughter is embarrassed and upset. Angry, even. The woman I have some strong, almost terrifying feelings for has stayed away because we thought it would help. But it hasn’t. Not one bit.
I check my text messages for about the tenth time since we’ve sat down to dinner. I hoped for a response, but there’s nothing new, only the last one she’d sent and my response.
Quinn: I think I just need to be your daughter’s teacher right now.