Page 40 of Sweet Surrender

Zane blinked in surprise, amazed that he hadn’t been questioned further.

“Now, we might normally begin with a conversation about which teacher might suit the children best,” the principal went on. “But as an experienced teacher, Mrs. Staley is already equipped to work with a student with extra energy, like your lighthearted Nicholas.”

Zane tried not to smile at her obvious tact. She was trying not to say Nick had behavior issues, and to make sure his father knew that she liked him.

“That’s not a problem for me—” Becca began.

“Nick’s needs were a consideration when we were setting up the classes in the first place, Miss Hawthorne,” the principal told her kindly.

Suddenly, Zane stopped wanting to smile. Had they set Nick up for a bad year by putting him with a no-nonsense teacher like Denise? Nick needed a teacher who understood that he had a bit of a wild streak, a teacher who wouldn’t take it personally.

“A newer teacher might struggle with classroom management with a higher energy child like Nick,” Denise put in. “He needs to be with a more seasoned educator. I don’t likeswapping out students. And I already have a larger class this year, so I don’t see how this can work?—”

“I’ll take them,” Becca said suddenly, her crystalline voice a hair louder than normal, and unyielding as steel. “I’ll take them both. I would love to teach Nick and Cal. And like Mrs. Staley said, her class size is larger, so it makes more sense for both boys to come with me.”

The principal opened her mouth as if to argue, but Zane spoke up before she had a chance.

“I want them with Miss Hawthorne,” he heard himself say, his voice firm and sure.

“Very well,” Principal Chittenden said, nodding crisply. “But please keep in mind that moving a student is very disruptive to the class culture. We don’t want to be back here doing this again in a week.”

“We’re going to be just fine,” Becca said right away, smiling with her eyes lighting up, like she couldn’t be happier about adding ahigh energyboy to her class.

And Zane felt his heart squeeze a little at the thought of his boys being with someone who really understood them.

13

BECCA

Becca stood by her desk the next afternoon, looking over her class, which now had one extra child, with satisfaction.

Nick and Cal were seated beside each other in the front row. While she was certain that Mrs. Staley had been telling the truth about Nick’s energy, Becca could tell that he was trying to behave well today.

She wasn’t sure if it was just the new experience of being in a different classroom, if his dad had warned him to be good, or if being near his twin reallydidhave a calming influence. But she was grateful that he had paid attention today and he had certainly done well in class, putting himself right to work each time she asked the class to write something down, rather than leaving his papers blank, as Mrs. Staley had warned her he might do.

Glancing down at his math quiz as she collected papers, it actually looked like he’d gotten quite a few problems correct. She couldn’t wait to take a closer look.

And all day long, Cal had been more confident and happier than she had ever seen him. Even now he was sitting up straighter and stealing glances at Aubrey Jensen.

We did it,she thought to herself happily.Things are better for both of them. And the class doesn’t seem disrupted at all.

In fact, the children had moved through their work so smoothly throughout the day that she was rewarding them now with ten minutes to work on holiday cards for their families before the final bell.

On her first day, she had brought in the colored paper, stickers, glitter, glue sticks, and other supplies for the children to use for cards. It turned out to be a big hit. The kids were so excited each time they got to spend a few minutes on the quiet project. She even heard them whisper to each other to pay attention at times throughout the day, clearly hoping to be rewarded with free time at the end.

Her budget didn’t stretch to buying as many extras out of her pocket as she would have liked. But the art supplies for cards had been a really wonderful investment, and she was glad she had splurged on them.

The afternoon sun glittered on the snow outside and she enjoyed the soft sounds of scissors snipping and children murmuring to each other as they passed around the sticker bin.

Teaching wasn’t exactly a peaceful activity. It required a vigilant eye and a ton of stamina. But moments like these were priceless and brought her a deep sense of satisfaction. After all, children couldn’t be calm like this until they had spent their energy on the playground and exercised their minds on their schoolwork.

Her timer went off, and she tried not to smile when she heard a few sighs of disappointment.

“What a wonderful day we had,” she told the children, meaning it. “Let’s clean up so we can be ready when the bellrings. The faster we get cleaned up today, the less time we have to save for clean-up next time. Let’s see if we can beat yesterday’s record.”

She set the stopwatch feature on her phone and the kids sprang into action. Every second grader loved the idea of beating a record.

“May I use the broom and dustpan?” a bright voice asked.

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