Page 86 of Of Pucking Course

He rolls his eyes. “You don’t get to tell me what to do. My taxes pay your salary.”

My mouth falls open. “Excuse me?”

“Dad, don’t be mean to Miss Richards. She’s really nice.” I glance down at Henry, his wide eyes brimming with tears as he gazes up at his dad. His lip quivers, clearly trying not to cry. My heart breaks at how upset he is seeing his dad so angry, how sweet he is to think of me too.

“It’s okay, Henry. I’m okay,” I say in a soft tone.

“You teachers are such pieces of work,” he mutters. “You think you can do whatever you want. You get summersoff. Off at three every afternoon. Easiest job in the goddamn world.”

“That’s not at all what I think. I care about each of my students and try my best to make school fun for them.”

“You’re lucky I don’t sue your ass for endangering my kid,” he says.

Anger and frustration pummel me square in the gut. This guy is nuts. He really thinks I’d be so careless as to endanger my own students?

The urge to cry hits me, but I hold it back. Just then, the school principal, Mr. Gonzalez, comes over to us.

“What is going on here?” Mr. Gonzalez says. “Why are you raising your voice at Miss Richards?”

“You hire some real idiots at this school, you know that? Especially this one,” he mutters before walking off with Henry.

Mr. Gonzalez turns to me. “Dakota, what happened?”

My voice is wobbly as I tell him everything. In the middle of it, Abby runs over to me and hands me a tissue. I thank her and dab my eyes.

She pulls me into a side hug. “I’m so sorry I missed what happened.”

I sniffle. “It’s okay.”

Mr. Gonzalez pats my arm. “I’m so sorry, Dakota. I’m going to call Henry’s dad tonight and give him a talking-to. He had no right to speak to you like that. You did nothing wrong.”

Relief floods me, even though deep down I know I didn’t do anything wrong.

“Thank you,” I tell him.

“I’m going to ban him from school grounds as well,” Mr. Gonzalez says. “He’s not allowed here anymore if he’s going to mistreat the teachers at this school.”

“I appreciate you having my back.”

“Of course, Dakota. You’re an incredible teacher. Everyone loves you. The staff, the kids, the parents.”

I try to smile, but my face is tight from crying. Mr. Gonzalez heads to his office. Abby gives me another hug.

“Why don’t you head home?” she says. “I’ll cover you for the rest of school pick-up duty.”

I start to tell her I’m okay, but she insists.

“I’ve got this,” she says with a soft smile. “You go home and get some rest.”

I tell her thanks, grab my things from my classroom, and drive home.

Chapter 31

Sam

When I hear the front door unlock, I grab a bottle of wine from the fridge.

“Hey. In the mood for some wine?” I call out.

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