When the students come in laughing about fifteen minutes later I sit calmly behind the desk smiling. I wait for them to get settled the same as I did earlier.
“I’m going to call the roll. The principal was kind enough to pay us a visit while you were all outside getting your extracurriculars in. The problem is, while I support exercise in the morning, you were supposed to be in class. Each of you will be in detention tomorrow after school for an hour and twenty-five minutes. You will write an essay about why pranks can sometimes be a bad thing and you’ll all be in class on time tomorrow.”
There are a few gasps and moans throughout my speech, but I continue.
“If you’re late tomorrow we’ll spend Saturday here together in detention. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes,” come back a lot of half-hearted replies.
They aren’t smiling and giggling anymore. I decide to stick it to them just a little bit harder just so they know that I’m no longer playing nice.
“Yes, ma’am,” I say opening my eyes wide.
“Yes, ma’am,” they all reply.
When Friday morning comes I go into the classroom and am pleased to see all the students are present and even a little early. I once again catch Hallie and Penny outside the classroom. This time, I don’t ignore them.
I walk to the door and open it. “Morning ladies, may I help you?”
Catching them off guard makes them stumble back from the door and look at one another. From their frustrated faces, they had been hoping the students were once again not coming into the classroom. Maybe I should cackle at them.
“We just wanted to make sure you had your students under control. We know how hard it is for substitutes to gain any respect,” Penny said with sugared poison dripping off each word.
“I had a bit of trouble with my students, but I made sure the punishment fit the crime. Do you two not teach homeroom?”
“No, we actually don’t have homerooms. It’s our free work period,” Penny explains.
“Well, next time you can substitute for Madeline then,” I say with a smile and walk back into my classroom. I don’t know where these big balls I’ve suddenly gotten have come from, but I think I’ll keep them.
Chapter Fourteen
Charlie
“I’ve never been this nervous,” I tell Thomas when he comes to pick me up. He’s got a driver to take us to the restaurant and bar because he thinks it will show Addy what she could be experiencing if she decides to work with us. If I know Addy, she won’t care about having a driver.
“Don’t be. You already have that girl smitten. I think she’ll do whatever you want her to.” Thomas all but rubs his hands together in glee.
“You don’t know that.”
We’re on our way to pick her up from the school and I just want everything to go smoothly. If she doesn’t want to sing with me I’m a little nervous Thomas will drop me. He might not, because I’m paying him, but I’m always worried he’s just looking for the next big thing. And without Addy, I have a feeling that won’t be me.
“I do, you’re talented and she’s going to love singing with you.”
Thomas is the biggest cheerleader I have. He always has my back and makes me feel like the smartest person in the world. Well, that is what I pay him to do. His words ease some of the fear that he’s going to drop me. My whole thought process has been thrown off by the girl I’ve been thinking about all week.
When we pull up in front of the school, there’s an audience. I kind of wish we’d waited until the students and teachers had cleared out. There’s no way to avoid it now.
Addy appears, her bright features lighting me up from the inside. My heart slams against my chest at how wholesome yet sexy she looks. Before we can get out Addy is hurrying into to car and shutting the door firmly.
“Hi,” she says shyly looking out at the mass of people now staring at the car as it pulls away.
“Hi,” I respond sounding almost breathless.
“Where are we going?” she asks her cheeks turning an adorable shade of pink.
“We’re going to Sunfire, I think you’ll love it there,” Thomas says to Ada. “Well, Lila says you’ll love it there. She was supposed to come but had some emergency PTA things. Is she lying? I didn’t think teachers worried about PTA.”
Ada laughs and it’s a beautiful sound. “No, she’s not lying. The English teachers run the PTA and they take it very seriously. She probably had to be there to make sure they had the right fundraising advertisements or something equally mundane. Poor Lila.”