Page 32 of Look What You Made Me Do

“He suggested that I sleep with you to secure a place for him on the team.” She braved a look at him. “After all, that’s what Rachel would have done. Like mother, like daughter, right?”

The angle of his jaw tightened and his knuckles whitened as he gripped the clipboard tighter. “You’re not your mother.”

His soft rebuttal was more powerful than an outraged rejection and Ella swallowed hard. She was ashamed to admit there’d been a time when she’d wanted to be exactly like Rachel. When she’d been little and her mother had just been this beautiful creature with yellow-blonde hair and a laugh that could light up a room.

“I know that, Jake. You know it. But does he? I mean, half of the boys back home thought I was tarred with the same brush, didn’t they?”

“They were jerks. And Cam’s just yanking your chain.”

Ella nodded, pleased to hear Jake’s quick dismissal of the boys who had contributed to her Trently hell. “But why wouldn’t he think that, growing up in Trently under Rachel’s roof? Why wouldn’t he think that all women use their bodies for favors?”

“He knows right from wrong, Ella. You shouldn’t cut him so much slack.”

Where had she heard that before? “You sound like Daisy.”

Daisy had her own tough-love opinions on how Cam should be raised which were in stark contrast to Ella’s softly-softly approach. But there were so many years to make up for and Ella was trying to get by as best she could.

And a large part of her sympathized with the kid. Cam was exactly what she’d wanted to be all those years in Trently – tough and not afraid to take anyone’s crap.

Just like Jake.

He grinned. “I like Daisy.”

Ella knew full well that the feeling had been 100 per cent mutual. The phone on her desk rang and she was pleased for the reprieve from the irresistible humor in his green eyes.

“Yes, Bernie?”

“I have Gwen for you.”

Ella nodded, as her administrative assistant put Cameron’s biology teacher through. “Hi, Gwen.”

“Hi, Ella. Have you finished with Cameron?”

“Yes. About ten minutes ago. Hasn’t he returned to class?”

“No.”

Ella appreciated the gentleness of the reply. Unfortunately it didn’t make the situation any better. “Okay, thanks Gwen. Write him up.”

“Cam taking some time out?”

“That’s one way of putting it,” she said as she hung up.

Standing, Ella walked to the window, her impotence with the situation making her restless. A train had pulled into the Metra station across the street and she’d like nothing more right now than to walk out the gates, get on the train and never come back.

“Does he cut class very much?”

Ella placed her forehead against the glass. “Cam’s truancy record puts yours to shame.”

He whistled. “Impressive.”

“Yep.” She stared for a beat longer before turning back to face him, her gaze falling on the clipboard. “Is that the list?”

Jake eased off her desk and walked toward her, extending the clipboard. “Rest easy, you don’t have to sleep with me.”

Ella took it from him as he leaned his hip against the windowsill. She ran her finger down the list, stilling when she spotted Cameron Lucas neatly printed among the twenty-five names. Relief made her dizzy and she shut her eyes for a moment to compose herself.

When she opened them, she was steadier but a question nagged at her. Glancing at him, she asked, “Are you doing this as a favor to me?”

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