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Reaching the office, she found Jeremiah already seated, looking in every direction but hers.
“I need to see Principal Kennedy right now,” she told the secretary.
The secretary took one look at Jeremiah and picked up the phone. “He’ll see you now.”
Emma walked right into his office and shut the door behind her, leaving Jeremiah outside.
Principal Kennedy took one look at her face and gestured to the seat in front of his desk. “Ms. Wright? What’s wrong?”
Emma sat, willing herself not to break down in tears. “I—I have a problem with a student. He just had an outburst and—”
“Who’s the student?”
She looked down at the floor and then back up at Principal Kennedy, letting out a sigh. “Jeremiah Grayson.”
“Tell me exactly what happened.”
Emma paused, collecting her thoughts. “I had just handed out a study guide to the class and Jeremiah raised his hand...” She told him the entire story, not leaving out a single detail.
After listening to her account, the principal picked up the phone and dialed the secretary’s extension. “Can you have Jeremiah join us in my office?”
Jeremiah entered moments later and took a seat next to Emma, inching it away from her.
“Jeremiah, would you like to share what happened in Ms. Wright’s classroom?”
Jeremiah remained silent as he looked down and off to the side, avoiding eye contact.
“Jeremiah, I can’t help you if you don’t speak. Right now, the only evidence I have of what happened is what Ms. Wright has told me. Are we going to continue on with her word? Or would you like to say something?”
“She slept with my dad, so I called her a...”
Emma looked away, fighting back the tears as she squeezed the armrest on the chair.
“Enough, Jeremiah! You cannot speak to your teacher like that.” The principal’s voice rose a few decibels. “I thought we weren’t going to have any problems with you. But you’ve crossed the line. Out. Now.”
After Jeremiah left and shut the door, Principal Kennedy phoned his secretary again. “Can you call Jeremiah’s father and tell him to come in as soon as possible? Thank you.”
When he hung up the line, Emma let out a long breath she’d been holding in. “I’m sorry, Principal Kennedy. I’m mortified this happened in my classroom and I just—”
“No need to explain yourself. Why don’t you take the rest of the day off, Ms. Wright, and head on home? You can wait here while I go grab your purse and keys. I’ll have someone take over your classes this afternoon.”
A tear slid down Emma’s cheek as she nodded. “That’s probably a good idea.”
32
Luke
After dropping off Emma’s homemade dog treats at the local shops, Luke was looking forward to a quiet drive home. His thoughts meandered, mostly on the smile she’d have whenever he shared the good news. As he was passing Hadley Cove High, the unexpected vibration of his phone against the console jolted him from his daydreams.
Frowning at the unfamiliar number that flashed on the screen, he pressed the button on his steering wheel to answer, keeping his eyes fixed on the road.
“Hey, who’s this?”
“Mr. Grayson, this is Ms. Jameson, the secretary at Hadley Cove High. I’m sorry to bother you, but we need you to come to the school immediately. It’s about Jeremiah.”
Luke’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. “Is he alright? What happened?”
“Jeremiah’s fine, but I’m afraid I can’t discuss the details over the phone. It’s best if you come in as soon as possible to pick him up.”
