Page 44 of Bride Games

“Divorced.”

“Okay, so maybe you’re not a hopeless romantic.” Dr. Ryder leaned forward and locked eyes with the teacher. “But this is a clever way to teach students without their thinking they’re being taught. Do you get my drift?”

He squirmed in his chair. “To be honest, I’m not a crafty person. And I’m definitely not romantic.” He laughed. “I’m not sure I could even draw a heart without putting a knife in it.”

“I see.” Dr. Ryder smiled. “I believe we’re getting to the crux of this situation.” When Dr. Ryder noticed her assistant craning her neck to listen, she got up and closed the office door. “Mr. Snook, you excel and prefer math, not art. Correct?”

“Exactly. Thank you for understanding. I don’t have anything to offer in the way of weddings, artwork, or décor.” He stood to leave.

“I’m not finished.” Dr. Ryder cleared her throat and waited until Mr. Snook sat back down with utter confusion on his face. She steepled her fingers. “Since you love math and since your students are in the highest grade at Appledale and doing quite well, I think you—they—could offer something the younger students cannot. Something that will be of great importance to the wedding ceremony.”

“I sincerely doubt that.” His furrowed brows had already formed a crease line between his eyes. He held up both hands. “Like what?”

“I think you should have your students use their math skills to make an altar. Every wedding needs an altar.”

“How would that work?”

“Do I need to spell it out for you, Mr. Snook? Bring in a tape measure, hammer, nails, a level, and some 2’ x 4’s, 2’ x 8’s or whatever is necessary. That’s for you and your students to determine. Give them experience in measuring the wood. Using mathematics, have them figure the proper dimensions out on paper while you guide them at the board. You could teach your students how to draw as if they were studying to be young engineers or architects. Just the basics with you at the helm. Figure out how wide and tall the altar should be to accommodate the officiant, bride, and groom. Of course, you’ll have to oversee how to make the backdrop sturdy.”

After she finished her soliloquy, the principal studied the teacher’s flummoxed reaction. Noticing Mr. Snook’s grimace was gone, Dr. Ryder forged ahead while she had his attention. “Your class—or the younger students—could decorate the makeshift altar. Your class might collaborate with the younger kids to make it pretty. Maybe your students could use a combination of metal and wood or what’s that stuff called”—she snapped her fingers—“lattice. Lattice on the sides would allow the students to affix flowers or fabric or whatever they come up with.” She grinned, excited about her idea. “I can envision it. Can you? I know the younger students would love working with the big kids.”

Dr. Ryder paused for a half second before adding, “You could do the actual sawing and hammering since we can’t risk a student getting hurt. But there would be a great deal of lesson planning and prep work before you get to that point. You could also use math lessons to discuss a budget and have the students price the materials online, or even take a field trip to a hardware store.” Dr. Ryder rubbed her hands together. “I hope you like this idea because my brain is overflowing with ideas for your class. You could even discuss the difference between inches and metrics. As well as introduce a variety of tools, their functions,and the history behind each one.” Dr. Ryder leaned forward. “What do you think, Thadius? Are you on board so we can make this a school-wide event?”

Mr. Snook stared at the ceiling. “I don’t think I have a choice.” A half smile spread across his face. “Do I?”

“Of course, you have a choice. This is voluntary. But I’d hate for your students to miss out on the fun. I also thinkyouwould enjoy it more than you think.”

He met his boss’s stare. “I have to admit your idea of building an altar is something that never would have entered my mind. It’s worth considering since there are many ways to utilize math and critical thinking in my classroom.” Mr. Snook stared at his lap, took a deep breath, and admitted, “I’m not close to my dad since my parents’ divorce, but funnily enough, he used to teach shop in high school. I bet he’d be thrilled to sharpen his old skills and help out with this. Actually, the kids would love him.”

“Then, this sounds as though it’s a perfect solution all around.” Dr. Ryder stood and shook the teacher’s hand. He towered over her, but the principal never let her height deter her. “Are you in, Mr. Snook?”

“I’m in. I’ll call dad tonight. It’s been far too long since we’ve spoken.” The teacher’s eyes glistened as he quietly whispered, “Thank you,” and left.

41

Paige

Paige could hardly concentrate all day while awaiting Emma’s response about televising her wedding—her big community relations story to get back in her boss’s good graces. Emma had sent an ecstatic text that morning saying she and Eli were on board but they needed the principal’s approval. Frowning, Paige hoped the principal wouldn’t throw water on the entire idea. She needed happy news more than she ever had in her life; at least it felt that way.

Glancing at the clock every hour on the hour, Paige attempted to make the day go faster by chatting with the meteorologist, Stan the Man about his sports predictions, and eventually asked her assistant to schedule a few rah-rah staff meetings for the following day. Proud of the way she had risen above the bizarre, scary texts, the fact Zach was traveling with the effervescent Marie Fallon,andthe dreadful social media attacks—if only as a stiff upper lip front—Paige thought she had adeptly steered the focus off her and toward bettering ATV 10, namely staying number one in the rankings. She knew that alone would also keep her in a positive light where Mr. Hales was concerned.

Paige forced herself to avoid social media for her own mental health. But at times like this when she was nervous, she hovered over the X app to see if she was still trending in the worst possible way. Swallowing, she took a deep breath, stared at the screen, but forced herself to put her cellphone away.I need a break from the hateful games people are playing with my career.

As she stepped out of her office to get a coffee refill, she heard her phone ring and rushed back to her desk. “Paige Daniels.”

“Good news, Paige. I think we’re on! Dr. Ryder, the principal, thought televising our wedding was a brilliant idea and would give Appledale Elementary some great publicity. She thought the students, faculty, and parents would be excited.” Paige grinned as her best friend talked a mile a minute, only interjecting, “I’m thrilled, Em. You have no idea how excited I am.”

Emma continued. “Us too. Dr. Ryder’s going to send a blanket email and ask anyone to come forward if they have any objections. She’ll also take care of getting permission slips.” Pausing, Emma added, “She said she thinks the students will work even harder on decorations now since their wedding projects will be on TV.”

Paige grinned more than she had all week. “Oh, my God. I promise we won’t get in the way. This is so great. Thank you so much. By the way, I’ll make sure the station covers the video for the wedding, so that will save you guys several thousand dollars.”

“Really?”

Nodding, although Emma couldn’t see her, she said, “Really. This will be such a wonderful feel-good story. I think the whole world needs that. I know I do. Let’s get together soon.”

After they hung up, Paige sat at her desk forgetting about her desire for more coffee. She couldn’t wait to tell Mr. Hales abouther exclusive community story idea.I can’t wait until he gets back from his cruise.

EMMA

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