Page 15 of When You Left Me Speechless

Logan: Guess who I just saw…

Tanner: Who

Logan: Poppy.

Tanner: Who

Logan: The girl from the bar that dipped the other morning.

Tanner: Oh shit where

Logan: In a meeting. Apparently, she is in graduate school and is shadowing our speech therapist.

Tanner: Did she say anything

Logan: It’s nice to meet you.

Tanner: Fuck that blows

I walk into my classroom to find my students are seated reading while the substitute is scrolling on her phone at my desk. “Thanks, I can take it from here,” I say, looking in her direction. She looks up, nods, and says bye to class before rushing out the door. The rest of the day is spent teaching. There are three groups of fifth graders, and throughout the day, they rotate through my class and the two other teachers on my team. They all see me twice. Once for reading and then again for writing.

When the bell finally rings at 2:20 p.m., I’m beat. Sitting at my desk grading papers, my mind drifts back to seeing Poppy in the meeting. When she shook my hand, her touch sent the familiar sensation straight down my spine, like it did last week at the bar.Fuck. I push those feelings aside. I’m at work. I can’t let my dick get hard over the new student therapist.

Especially the new student therapist who is pretending like she has no idea who I am.

No, I must get this girl out of my head, but something deep in my gut tells me she might be the biggest test I face this year.

POPPY

Poppy: HOLY SHIT! Lace, he works here…

Lacey: Who???

Poppy: The guy I went home with from the bar.

Lacey: No. Fucking. Way. Did he recognize you?

Poppy: I don’t know. He winked at me when he saw me.

Lacey: He winked? Oh, this is going to be fun!

Poppy: No way! I can NOT get involved with a teacher at this school. If Beth found out, it could ruin everything.

Lacey: Sounds even more fun! A forbidden romance… you know that’s my favorite trope.

Poppy: But this isn’t one of your books, Lace. This is my life. What am I going to do?

Lacey: Relax, I’m just messing with you. Did you say anything to him?

Poppy: No, not really. I told him it was nice to meet him.

Lacey: But you have met him…

Poppy: Well, I panicked, okay. Beth and the principal were standing there, and I didn’t know what to say.

The restof the day is filled with reviewing paperwork, meeting students, and being introduced to various staff around the building. My head is spinning with all of the new information that has been thrown at me and with thoughts about Logan. I’m unsure what to make of any of it, but I know he’s already distracting me, and he needs to stop.

“Do you think you could get here early tomorrow?” Beth asks after the final bell rings.

---