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“S-she said she was proud of me.” Caroline frowned, staring at the bright orange petals. “For last night. For enjoying myself. How can someone who doesn’t know me be proud of me?”
“Huh. Maybe I have this all wrong,” Joy said, glancing up at Caroline. “Maybe she really is into you.”
“I don’t know how or why. But it doesn’t matter. Letting it go is for the best.”
Joy sighed, pushing the living room door open. “Yeah. If you say so…”
Chapter12
Caroline tookher work bag from the boot of her car, locking it as she traipsed towards the school reception. She’d come in early this morning, a staff meeting forcing her from her bed a little earlier than she would have liked, but it was Monday, and she was prepared to make this week count. Gail had set her up on some dating app that required you to swipe a particular way based on whether you wanted to see the person with the profile, but she’d only had a flick through it last night. Nobody had really caught her eye, but it didn’t matter because Gail had also set her up on a blind date with someone she knew from work. Caroline wasn’t fond of the idea, but she was done with moping around at home. It hadn’t changed a single thing, and neither she nor Hannah had contacted one another since Hannah had shown up at her door with roses.
That alone told Caroline that it wasn’t meant to be.
For three weeks, she had gone over the pros and cons of dating an escort. And honestly, her list of cons was much larger than her list of pros. But she’d somehow managed to find the strength tonotsee her time with Hannah as a regret as she initially had. Instead, she’d sent off a thank you into the night sky for bringing someone so caring into her life, if only for the shortest time. Caroline could continue to be angry with herself for taking Hannah home with her, or she could be proud of herself for taking that step with a beautiful woman and enjoying every second of it. She’d chosen the latter. Beating herself up never worked in the past.
As Caroline reached the main entrance, she found a familiar student sitting on a bench, her earphones in. She checked her watch. Edie was definitely far too early for classes.
“Edie?” She waved a hand in front of Hannah’s daughter.
Edie smiled as she removed her earphones. “Hi, Ms Baker. Did you have a nice weekend?”
“I did.” Caroline took a seat beside Edie, lowering her work bag to the floor. “You’re a little early for school. Is everything okay?”
“Oh, yeah. Mum had to work, so she dropped me early. I’m just waiting for the computer room key so I can do some work.”
“Your mum had to work? This early in the morning?” Who the hell was booking Hannah at this time, and since when did she extend her working hours to through the week?
“She’s got a new job. Today is her first day. I’m really excited for her. It’s for a big law company in the city centre.”
“Oh! That’s fantastic.” It really was. It meant Hannah wouldn’t have to escort anymore. Caroline knew how much she disliked doing so. “Tell her congratulations from me, okay?”
“I will.” Edie swung her legs on the bench, not quite tall enough to reach the floor yet. “Hey, Miss? How do you and my mum know each other?”
“We…don’t,” Caroline said awkwardly.
“Oh. It seemed you did when she came to pick me up the other week. Sorry.”
“I mean, we know each other. But we’re not friends. We just say hello in passing.” God, when had Caroline started to think it was acceptable to lie to her students?
“That’s a shame. I thought it would have been kinda cool if my mum knew my teacher.” Edie laughed, putting one earphone back in. “I got a new playlist. It’s really great.”
“Well, you enjoy your playlist. I have a meeting to get to.” Caroline offered Edie a gentle smile, pushing the fact that Hannah had a new job from her mind. “See you, Edie.”
“Bye, Miss.” Edie popped her other earphone in, back into a world of her own as Caroline got to her feet.
She wanted to ask more questions, to know exactly what Hannah had been doing for the last few weeks, but Edie wasn’t the person to ask…even if really, she was the ideal person to ask.
Caroline pushed through the double doors, heading for the staff room. She would come to terms with the fact that Hannah was now in a steady job. After all, wasn’t that what she’d wished for when they first met? Still, she felt a loss sitting low in her stomach as she took the long corridor towards fresh coffee and chatter. Hannah knew the one obstacle holding Caroline back was her work. That was no longer an issue. If she’d wanted to see Caroline again, she would have been in touch.
You barely know a thing about her!
And it was true. Caroline was pining for a woman she didn’t know. She was praying for something that could be a disaster, regardless of Hannah’s job. And the fact that she was Edie’s teacher still weighed at the back of her mind. It wasn’t forbidden, not at all, but Edie had enough going on without Caroline steamrolling into her life. The other kids would have a field day if they found out her teacher was dating her mother. And as fond as she was of Edie and Hannah, Caroline wasn’t sure she could put Edie through the potential hurt down the line if Hannah and Caroline didn’t work out.
“Caz!” Brenda rushed up behind Caroline, falling into step with her as she too hauled a heavy bag on her shoulder. “So, we missed you for the last two weeks…”
“Missed me? I’ve been right here.”
Brenda gave her a knowing look. “Friday nights? You’ve let us down now for the last two weeks. What’s going on? Does that gorgeousfriendof yours have you tied up for the weekend?”
