Page 47 of The House on Blueberry Lane

“How do you like teaching at the junior school you’re at now?”

She glanced at him as they continued jogging. “It’s great. The other teachers are all nice and of course I love my kids, but...”

“But what?”

Velvet didn’t say anything because when they’d been together before, Jaye had this thing about not discussing work—only if there was good news to share. He didn’t like discussing anything about work that he thought of as unpleasant. That’s why one would imagine he’d always had good days at work since he never discussed the bad ones. The few times she’d tried to tell him about her unpleasant days, he would cut their conversation short or deliberately change the subject. After a while, she’d known to only share good news with him about her work, just like he did with her.

She would tell him how well her students were doing, especially when they received any national mathematics achievement awards. However, she would never tell him about any problems she encountered. She wondered what he would do if she told him now. Would he change the subject or cut the conversation short like he was known to do? There was only one way to find out.

“I have this slight problem at work.” She waited, fully prepared for him to do what he’d normally do.

“You want to tell me about it?”

She almost missed a step. Looking over at him, she saw he was watching her, waiting for her response. “There’s this great student who’s letting his grades slip because he honestly doesn’t think math is important. He plans to become a professional baseball player one day and believes that as long as he has the basic math, he’ll be able to count the millions of dollars he intends to make.”

Jaye shook his head. “I’d think he’d want to understand other aspects of math that include investing. As a sports agent, Mercury would share with me the number of young professional athletes who end up broke before they hit thirty. But I’m sure you’re going to do whatever you can to help bring his grades up, right?”

“I’m going to try. My biggest obstacle is his dad. He feels his son should get special treatment because of his potential as an athlete.”

He looked at her, frowning. “That’s not how it works.”

“I know that, but evidently when his father was in high school here in Catalina Cove, he was a great baseball player, destined for the pros. He wasn’t a great student, and the teachers gave him extra credit and passed him, anyway.”

“And now he wants you to do for his son what those teachers did for him?”

“Obviously.”

“Unfortunately, I see that kind of stuff all the time in my profession. You wouldn’t believe how many people assume we should give their son or daughter a loan for a car, although their credit is bad, because some bank did the same for them.”

She nodded. “How do you handle those type of customers?”

“I stick to my guns and let them know I’m a banker who goes by the rules. I bend them when I see a need to do so and not because they feel that I should. In your case, the bottom line is that you can’t give the kid a grade he doesn’t deserve. Have you talked to your principal about it?”

“Yes, but there’s no help there. The principal used to be the father’s coach when he was in senior high school, the one who boosted him for the pros. They see the son as a future pro baseball star who will achieve what his father did not.”

“Why didn’t the father make it in the pros?”

“He got signed up by the Dodgers, but he was released after a wrist injury.”

“That’s too bad, but you’re doing the right thing in sticking to your guns. The father shouldn’t expect special treatment. I don’t give a damn if the kid has a golden arm. He should do the work. And if you ask me, the principal isn’t doing his job if he doesn’t have your back on this.”

Velvet thought basically the same thing. “I agree.”

They slowed and then came to a stop when they had finished the first lap and were back where they’d started. “This is where we part ways,” he said.

His words surprised her. “It is?”

“Yes, I have four more laps to run, and you need to shower and get ready for work.”

Yes, she did. She was surprised that he hadn’t suggested they shower together. The Jaye Colfax she knew would have jumped at the chance. Not only would he have insisted on showering with her, but he would also have made love to her before she got dressed for work. “Okay. Thanks for inviting me to jog with you today and listening to my problem.”

He pushed a strand of hair back off her face. “Don’t thank me, Velvet. One of the things I realized after you left was that during the time we were together, we failed to communicate. It was all about the physical with us.”

She frowned up at him. “That’s the way you wanted things.”

“Yes, that’s the way I wanted things and I’ve come to regret it.”

She was surprised he’d admitted that. She was about to ask when he’d reached that conclusion when he asked, “What are your plans for the weekend?”

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