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I looked at him again, trying to see what the others did. Most male teachers I knew were attractive in that mussed, homey sort of way academics and graduate students have about them. Sort of like a worn-in couch. Not exactly stylish or sexy, but not altogether an unwelcome place to be.
Adam definitely fell into that category. Average height, floppy brown hair, tortoise-shell glasses, and friendly brown eyes. His legs did fill out his jeans nicely, even if they were stained with paint. His smile was bright and non-threatening. Patient, despite the fact that he was the definition of persistent.
“So tell me,” he said. “How are you doing these days? I feel like we barely get to talk.”
I tried not to point out that I didn’t really talk to anyone. It was hard to be close to your coworkers when you were leaving as soon as possible every day to avoid daycare overage fees. Twenty dollars a minute was no joke.
I shrugged. “I have a kid.” And a baby daddy. And maybe a pending lawsuit. “I’m busy.”
Adam clicked his tongue knowingly. “I get that. Your daughter—what’s her name again?”
“Sofia.”
“Right, right. And she’s how old?”
“Four.” I busied myself with rearranging my pencils. Where was this conversation going?
“Frankie.”
I looked up. “Yeah?”
Adam’s eyes were wide and guileless. Bright. Light. “I’m kind of fumbling this, but it can’t be that surprising that I’m kind of into you. Have been for a while now.”
I blinked. It wasn’t. I knew it. But I also wasn’t used to anyone being that direct.
“Like, since you started teaching here,” Adam rattled on, apparently unaware of my sudden discomfort. “You always seem too busy with your kid and everything, but I figured why not, you know? No one can be a nun forever. And no time like the present. So, maybe we can get a drink or something. Nothing major. Just a drink.”
I still didn’t say anything. I wasn’t sure how to respond to any of this. Honestly, I’d never even thought about Adam like this.
Maybe because he isn’t blue-eyed, British, and out for blood?Kate’s voice rang loud and clear.
I smarted. What did she know?
Adam didn’t seem to notice my internal dialogue. “Come on. You look like you need a break from this place. I’ll walk you out.”
He didn’t wait for an answer, just stood up and tucked the chair back under the desk. The rest of the room was pretty much in order, so I grabbed my messenger bag, pulled on my parka, and followed him out.
He chattered as we walked through the halls, waving to the remaining teachers we passed, commenting on the occasional student’s artwork, until we had crossed the playground and left school grounds. I offered the occasional “sure” and “yeah,” but just like every day of the past month or so, I could barely focus.
I turned in the direction of Sofia’s school with every intention of stopping for a cup of tea and some quality time with the newest romance on my Kindle before picking her up. But before I could, Adam threw a casual arm around my shoulder and grinned down at me.
“So, what do you say?” he asked. “Sound good?”
I blinked. I was horrible. So rude, and to someone who had been nothing but nice to me for years.
“I’m so sorry,” I replied, straining a little under the weight of his arm. “I totally spaced out there. Does what sound good?”
Adam just tipped his head good-naturedly. “Margaritas?”
I was going to say no. I was going to say I didn’t even like margaritas that much. That I didn’t like being touched without my consent, or that it was kind of inappropriate for him to be doing this to a coworker on school property. I was going to say a lot of things, namely that I had no interest in happy hour with Adam Klein now or ever.
But before any of those things could be said, I caught sight of a shadow hovering underneath a barren maple on the corner.
Xavier Parker stood wrapped in a black overcoat, hands shoved deep into his pockets, stone-still despite the chilly breeze floating off the nearby East River. His dark hair was combed back, waving softly in the wind, but that gentleness was erased by the way his dark blue eyes, with the precision of a dagger, were trained not on me, but on Adam.
I should have been terrified. It had been a month. I had taken him at his word that he was as successful as he seemed—if only because I was too scared to learn exactly how powerful Xavier really was. How easily he could ruin my life.
So yes, there was unfinished business between us, not to mention a threat he had yet to make good on. And now that business that needed to be resolved as soon as possible, if not for my sake, for my daughter’s.
