Page 26 of Dangerous

“Do you think you’d be done before mom has to work?”

I shrugged. “I should be, but I can’t guarantee it. Normally, it’s the one on Friday that’s the longest because we must finalize student numbers and classes by early the following week. Why?”

“If we didn’t want to move the car seat base, I could just drive your car home, and you could bring mom’s home when you’re done.” Liam let out a loud burp that had us chuckling. “Such a loud noise from you, Little Man. Does that make your tummy feel better?” He grinned up at her as he tried to put his fingers in her mouth. She was a vision. A masterpiece. A modern Madonnaand I doubted that anything could take my gaze from her when she was like this, but that didn’t stop the universe from trying.

“Oh, there you are Peter. I was looking for you at the daycare, wanting to spend some time with you and your darling son, but they said you and him weren’t there.” Ashley pouted as she sashayed into my classroom, totally ignoring Katy and Ethan with her display of unprofessionalism. Even if I welcomed her advances—which I didn’t—or had her involved in my son’s life—which she wasn’t since I’d never even shown him to her—walking into my classroom and intimating that there was some type of relationship between us was crossing the line.

I pushed myself to my feet, standing so I could block some of Ashley’s view of Katy and Liam. “Only parents or those on the approved list are to be in the daycare, Ms. Williams. So, unless you have a child there, you’re not allowed to be there.”

Her pout deepened as she stepped into my personal space, pressing her finger against my chest. “Don’t be like that Peter. You know I just want to get to know your son since I absolutely adore babies.”

I wanted to step back, but that would put her that much closer to Katy and Liam. And that wasn’t about to happen. Instead, I brushed her hand away before shoving my hands in the front pockets of my dress pants. “You might adore babies, but I get to control who has access and when they have access to my son.” I spun around, putting my back to her as I gazed down at Katy. I wanted to get her and my son out of this classroom and out of Ashley’s presence without delay. But I also didn’t want to let Ashley know what was happening. I could only hope that Katy understood my cryptic statements. “I’ll let Jarrod and Jason know what’s happening. The seat is probably where it was left.”

She nodded and began to stand as I gathered her books together. If need be, I’d bring home her school stuff. Anything to get her out of the classroom before anything else could be said.

The echo of footsteps in the hall grew louder.Fuck me. What else can go wrong?But this time, the footsteps heralded help in the form of Greg. His gaze darted around the room, taking in Ashley’s presence, Katy, Liam, and Ethan. A flash of understanding crossed his eyes before he schooled his expression into the casual indifference he usually sported when dealing with Ashley. “There you are Ms. Williams; I was looking for you.”

Over my shoulder I watched as Ashley spun, pout fading into a smile of seduction. “Were you, Greg?—”

“Mr. Taylor.”

But she ignored his admonishment and carried on, “I’m flattered. What do you need me for?”

As he talked to her about something, I quickly withdrew my car keys from my pocket as I leaned down towards Katy. “Take these. And I’ll see you later, okay?”

Proving once again how well Katy knew me, she exchanged my keys for hers. “You will. I’ll make supper for everyone and invite mom over.”

“That’s fine. I can’t wait.” I glanced up at Ethan. He’d proven numerous times that he’d help and protect Katy so even if I hated calling on him again, pushing them closer together, I wanted to make sure that she wouldn’t be alone until she left school. “Watch them, please.”

“Of course. You don’t have to ask.” He picked up her school bag and the diaper bag as Katy stood, covering Liam so he wouldn’t be seen.

I kept Katy between us, blocking her from Ashley as I led them towards the door. As soon as she stepped outside the classroom, I closed the door, spinning back to face Ashley. What she was doing had to stop. I didn’t want to make an official complaint because she was a good teacher. But this sexual harassment had to stop.

“We. Need. To. Talk.” Each word was punctuated with a step towards her and Greg, but if I had any illusions of her understanding and stopping her behaviour, it was stripped away by her look of glee darting between Greg and I as she licked her lips.Fuck. Save me from conniving women.

20

Jarrod

“Well, that’s all I have for me. I’m so glad my lovely wife talked me into looking for a new accounting firm for my business. I truly believe that going with your boutique firm will be better than the impersonal care I receive in Winnipeg. And since we decided to relocate our family to Voyageur Bay this past summer, going with a local firm makes the most sense.” Richard reached over the handcrafted, wooden conference table and shook my hand.

“I’m glad that we could provide the services you need. I’m excited to work with your company and to see how we can grow your business.” I went to stand, but Richard motioned for me to remain seated as he stood.

“Don’t bother. I can see myself out, but my wife would like to talk to you about some of her accounts.”

Call it intuition or maybe a snap judgement, but I doubted that she wanted to talk about any business accounts. And while we didn’t handle personal ones, I wasn’t about to flat out and refuse when her husband had just signed a contract that wouldbe one of the biggest ones, we were handling. As I watched him lean down over her to speak in her ear before pressing a kiss to her forehead, I figured I could always hear her out and then politely explain that we couldn’t handle her accounts. If she really wanted someone, I had numerous friends I could recommend. It was the least I could do if she was the reason for her husband seeking us out.

“Misty”—both her and Richard had told me to use their first names at the beginning of the meeting—“before we begin, I wanted to thank you for recommending us to your husband. Word of mouth recommendations are always more valuable for a company, especially a new one, as they signify that we’re doing something right.”

She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table which allowed her shirt to gape, revealing skin all the way down to her bellybutton. Unease filtered through me as I realized that Richard had closed the door behind him, leaving me alone with his much-younger-than-him wife who seemed to have no qualms about flashing herself. After the initial glance, I focused on her face. Thank goodness we had installed discreet cameras, so I’d have photographic backup if she ever suggested anything inappropriate happened, but I really didn’t want to go that route. Just that revelation on top of a scandal would damage the company’s image as well as my own.

“Your husband said that you had something you wanted to discuss.”

In the bottom of my vision, I saw her lift her hand and move it towards the low neckline of her shirt. Not wanting to see what her next move would be, I dropped my gaze to the papers spread in front of me.

“Yes, Jarrod,” she purred, raising my hackles. “I have some new investments that I’d like to have managed.”

“I’m sorry, Misty, but we don’t handle those types of accounts. We’re focused on business, but I do have some recommendations for personal financial advisors if you’d like.”

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