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Her face had to have flushed as hot as it felt. She wouldn’t have minded talking to the kids, but not as a teacher would. She didn’t have anything prepared for this. She was about to shake her head, smile, and politely decline when Logan said, “All right!”
Guthrie grinned and the other kids began to cheer her on. Probably anything to get out of discussing what Guthrie had been talking about. Not to mention that whatever she said wouldn’t be test material.
She rose from her seat, tilted her chin down at Guthrie to say she’d pay him back, and then walked to the front of the class. She thought he’d just stand there, like she was his pupil and she had to give a speech. But he went to the back of the class and sat down like he was one of the students, grinning at her.
What in the world had Julia said to Guthrie last night that had made him so…cheerful again?
She took a deep breath. “Most of you probably know that I have a party and wedding planning service that I started some years ago,” she said, loosening up as she started to talk about what she loved to do. “One thing I want to make clear is that even if you don’t make a whole lot of money at your job, if you really love your work and you make enough to live off it comfortably, that’s worth more than making one hundred times the income at a job you absolutely hate. My dad taught me that and I completely agree.”
The kids looked like they couldn’t believe anyone would work for a tiny bit of money if they could make huge amounts. Guthrie raised his eyebrows too. Logan’s hand shot up.
“Aye, Logan?”
“But if you make all that extra money, you can spend it on all kinds of fun stuff and then it makes the job worthwhile.”
“What is it that you love to do more than anything else in the world?”
“Work with the dogs.”
“Aye, good. What is it you hate to do most of all?”
Logan glanced at Guthrie, and she hoped math wasn’t what he was thinking of. Guthrie bowed his head to Logan to encourage him to speak freely.
“Um, my dad is the armorer for the clan. He keeps all the weapons in good shape and makes the new swords for those of us who are coming of age.” Logan wrinkled his nose. “I hate the firing of the weapons, working with metal all day. I mean, I do it to help my dad out, but what I really love to do is work with the dogs.”
She smiled. “Okay, good example. So let’s say you could earn a hundred times more working at the armory than you could working with the dogs. Which would you rather do?”
His friends grinned at him.
“Well…the question isn’t fair.”
“How so?”
“I have to do both and I don’t get paid for either.”
Everyone laughed.
“Okay, so if you don’t get paid and you had a choice?”
“Working with the dogs. I do what I have to when I work for my father, but I can’t wait to work with the dogs every day.”
“He’s our future veterinarian,” Guthrie supplied.
“Really?”
“Aye,” Logan said proudly. “But…I’ll still help my dad when he needs me to.”
She smiled. “Well, that’s just fine. And that proves my point.” At least she hoped it did. “All right. So with my business, I’ve managed to move from one location to another and still am able to gain new clients. Word of mouth has been really important. If I have a successful event, then people who attend the event spread the word, and before I know it, I have several more engagements scheduled throughout the year.”
“What if you have an unexpected sword fight at the party and then one guy,” Logan said, looking back at Guthrie, “socks another in the nose?”
The other kids laughed.
“Well, it can be a disaster,” she said. “Or sometimes something good can come of it.”
“Like?” Guthrie asked, sounding both amused and interested.
“Like how a future client asked if I could schedule a reunion for a family later next year, only they would like me to set up a sword-fighting demonstration. I thought if Ian was agreeable, some of his men might like to put on this show.”
“For free?” Guthrie asked, brows raised.
“Of course not. I would charge more, based on Ian’s suggestion, well, and yours, being his financial advisor. The extra proceeds would go to the MacNeill pack.”
“I want to do it,” Logan said, and several of the teens eagerly volunteered to help.
She laughed.
“Moneywise, how well do your parties do?” Guthrie asked, probably directing the lecture back to the math side of the business since this was a math class.
“All of you have learned about percentages, aye?” Calla asked the students.
They groaned.
“Okay, well, you want to make a high enough profit—income less expenses—to make the venture worthwhile. You have to include all the costs—getting there, your time involved, the cost of goods and services, et cetera.”
“And do you?” Guthrie asked.
She had the feeling he wasn’t asking just to teach his students something, or because he was the financial manager of the pack. This was more personal.
“If you consider making ninety-five a good income for the year, aye.”
“Ninety-five pounds?” Logan asked, looking as though she was crazy.
“Thousand. Ninety-five thousand pounds. Which, for anyone who knows anything about U.S. dollars, is close to one hundred and fifty thousand.”
That got everyone’s attention, even Guthrie’s. He gave her a small smile.
She gave them all kinds of suggestions for how they could start their own businesses, save money, and even invest it. Then she had an idea. But she couldn’t propose it to Guthrie since he wasn’t in charge of the pack.
“That’s all I have. Any questions?” she asked.
Guthrie looked like he was dying to question her about something, but the kids didn’t have anything else to ask. “Thanks to everyone for listening to me.”
She moved to the back of the class and saw by the clock that the class was about over. She’d fully intended to pay attention to Guthrie while he taught his class and not take it over herself.
Guthrie said to his students, “You have homework on page 131, the first thirty problems.”
She was glad she was no longer learning this stuff. Her father had been a real taskmaster.
