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I swallow.
Krew and his group of friends run past us at a fork in the trail. “There they are!” They squeal in delight before running off again.
I’ve never been so grateful for an interruption in my life.
Tyler chases after them, picking up Zander. He raises him to the side of the corn stalks, acting like he’s going to drop him down on top of them. Zander giggles, and the other boys pull on Tyler’s arm until he lowers him back down onto the path.
“The boys like you,” I say as we continue to walk after them.
“Well, I coach those three.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen them wearing their Stealers jerseys to class.”
“You should come to a game sometime.” A playful smile tugs at his lips. “I’ll let you sit in the dugout with me.”
“I’m not going out with you.”
“I didn’t ask you out. I asked you to come support your students at a community baseball game.”
As long as Tyler is the coach of the team, I won’t be attending.
“You don’t have to answer right now. Just think about it.”
I don’t need to think about it.
We walk a few more paces before he strikes up conversation again. “So how long have you been teaching?”
Finally, a topic of conversation that doesn’t make me feel like an electric shock is shooting through me.
“This is my fourth year.”
“But your first year at American Education Academy?”
“Yes, but I’ve been dying to get a job at this school. It’s one of the best in the county, but there was never an opening. I’m actually surprised I even got the job when a spot did become available. This year is a trial year. If at the end of the school year the board likes what I’ve done, they’ll offer me a five-year contract.”
“Krew absolutely loves you. I don’t know what you’re doing in class each day, but it's definitely something special.”
The weight of his stare and his kind words make it impossible to keep my breathing steady. This was supposed to be the easy part of our conversation. I glance away. “I bribe them with candy and video games.”
“No you don’t. Any fool can see that you care about these kids.”
“Thank you. That’s a really nice compliment.”
His eyes don’t leave my face. I feel a blush coming on like I’m thirteen years old again, so I find refuge by looking at the ground in front of me.
“I heard your company is going to be putting in the new playground at the school.”
“Yeah, I won the bid. It’s a big project that has to be done in a short amount of time, but I’m glad I got the job. It will be nice to be at the school every day with Krew.”
Every day? Tyler Dixon will be at the school every day? Why hadn’t I realized that?
“It looks like you’re going to make it safely out of the maze after all.” He points to the opening ahead of us. “But in all fairness, I'm the Lord ofDarkness. I don’t make my moves in broad daylight.”
Really? Because I feel like he’s been making moves on me this entire time.
Tyler throws a wicked smile in my direction and then jogs toward the group of boys at the end of the path.
Sheesh. Can we add jogging to the list of things I find attractive that I never knew about?
