Page 71 of Single Teddy
“And the kids are really taking to the lessons. I know they’ll be back up to speed in no time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he said and stared down at the glass. “You gonna fill that or what?”
“I…oh…yeah.” I went back to scrambling.
I couldn’t reach for the tap. He’d see the phones if I did. But that didn’t exactly leave me with lots of choices.
Then again.
“I bet you’re proud of them,” I said. “The fact that they’re so well-behaved is a testament to how well you’re raising them.”
He shrugged, but the smile that appeared on his face was very telling.
Of course. Give a narcissist a compliment, and he thinks he’s a god.
“Well, don’t tell me. Tell it to your principal.”
I nodded.
“I’ll make sure to do so,” I told him.
“I’d like to see him try to take those kids from me. then. My kids are fucking smart.”
I smiled and let him drink his own Kool-Aid, which would hopefully distract him long enough to figure out how to get out of this mess.
“They’ve always been clever. But what do you expect when their father is a genius? My genes are strong.”
“I can tell,” I said.
Barnes turned around and narrowed his eyes.
“Are you hitting on me? I’m not a fag,” he said.
How charming.
“No. I was just agreeing with you,” I told him, somehow managing not to retch.
“I don’t have a problem with fags. They can do whatever they want. I’m just not one,” he said, and I did my best to grit my teeth and smile in understanding.
“Of course,” I mumbled.
“Why are you just standing there? I thought you were thirsty,” he said and grabbed his balls. “For these nuts.” And then he cackled like the monster he was.
I didn’t respond to that. I didn’t know how to.
He stopped laughing and narrowed his eyes even more.
“Are you hiding something? You haven’t moved all this time,” he said, and I opened my mouth to answer, but that was when a loud thud and creak came from the hallway, and Barnes ran out of the room.
Good thing because I had no idea how I would have answered his question.
I spun around. The phone was at one hundred percent, so I shoved it into my pocket. I started to follow Mr. Barnes, but Istopped in my tracks, and just for extra safety, I grabbed the device from the counter and put it on the kitchen table where he had been sleeping.
Hopefully, in his drunken stupor, he’d think he misplaced it, but at least when he returned to the room, he wouldn’t find it in the same spot I’d been leaning on.
When I joined him in the hallway, he was standing at the bottom of the staircase and Valentin was frozen at the top.
“Get down right now!” Mr. Barnes said.
