Page 119 of Here and Now
I stand and extend my hand. “You’re hired.”
Violet lets out a long sigh. “Thank you. I’d like to go by my maiden name, if possible?”
“Of course, whatever you’d like.”
“Thank you, Miles.”
“Welcome to being a teacher at Ember Falls High School. You start next week.”
twenty-three
Penelope
“Why am I so nervous?” I ask Miles as I pace the kitchen. “I mean, he’s going to be happy about this.”
He stands and holds my shoulders. “Areyouhappy about this?”
“I’ll be happy to stop having you sneak out of my bed each night. Not that I think having sleepovers right away is a good idea, but we don’t have to hide it.”
Miles moves his hands up and brushes my cheek with his thumb. “I want to be with you, Penelope. Not just sex, which is fantastic by the way, but I want tobewith you. Dinners, movies, more golf, even though I suck. I want it all. However, I told you that I’ll wait until you’re ready. If you don’t want to tell Kai, we don’t have to.”
My fingers wrap around his wrist. “I do want to tell him. He loves you, it’s not that, it’s just ... it’ll be so official.”
“Yes, it will.”
And that is really freaking scary.
For the last three weeks, we’ve spent each night together. We lie together, talk about our day, make love, and then he leaves before the morning. It’s been ... incredible.
He’s tried in the last week to get me to go out publicly with him. To be more than just sneaking around. But before I can agree to anything more than what we’ve been doing, I want to talk to Kai.
“I’m ready to talk to Kai, and then we go slowly with this, okay? I’m still not sure this is a great idea.”
His boyish grin makes my chest tighten. “It is definitely a good idea if I get to stop passing coffee cup notes and I can walk into the store and kiss you. It’s a good idea if I don’t have to pretend that each time I look at you, I don’t want you more than the air I breathe. It’s a good idea if I can take you and Kai to dinner, talk about everything we do when we’re hiding in your bed. Not that I want that part to stop.”
I laugh. “I bet you don’t.”
“Do you?”
“Not even a little.”
“See, good ideas everywhere.”
I let out a deep breath and nod. “You’re right. I know it’s time, especially because your free time is getting less and less.”
School started two weeks ago, and it’s been better than I could’ve hoped for regarding Kai. Meeting Ethan in the hockey clinic was the best thing that ever happened. Ethan really does know everyone, and Kai walked in on day one being welcomed into the group.
In his last school, he didn’t have anyone. He ate alone, and I cried all the time.
Not this time. He’s truly fitting in, and so am I.
However, with school starting, Miles has been really busy, and it’s getting only worse as more and more after-school functions and issues keep arising.
Miles grins. “All of this will be good. Now that you’re really only working during school hours, and Kai goes to my sister’s on the days you’re late, we will have the evenings, not just the nights.”
I nod. Hazel adjusted my schedule so I can take Kai and Ethan to school each morning, and I work a little past when school is out. Eloise has been amazing and keeps Kai until I’m home the three days a week I work. Which is only really an hour.
“We’ll talk to Kai, see how he feels, and then we can go from there. If he’s reluctant or struggles with it ...” I trail off, because he comes first, and I want to ease him into it.
