Page 44 of His Surrender
Beautiful Bastard:Are you buttering me up, Mr. Barnett?
I cracked a smile and walked to my bedroom to pick out clothes for the day. Once dressed, I texted him back.
Me:Maybe. Is it working?
Beautiful Bastard:Not at all.
But then he sent a second message with a winking emoticon.
I filled a travel mug with coffee and headed out the door. Humidity slammed into me once I was outside, and by the time I reached my car, a layer of stickiness covered my skin. Thunder rumbled in the distance. Great. It was going to storm. I just hoped I was able to make it to the school and go inside before the rain came down.
Luck wasn’t on my side. The moment I pulled into the teacher parking lot, it began to piss pour, the rain hitting my windshield so hard and heavy that the wipers couldn’t keep up. I sat in my car for a few minutes, hoping it would die down, but it didn’t and I needed to get inside since I was one of the teachers on duty that morning.
“This is bullshit,” I muttered, turning off my car and putting a hand on the door handle. I had no umbrella either.
I made a mad dash toward the building, cursing under my breath as the cold rain hit me. I was a wet, dripping mess by the time I reached the door. When the weather was bad, the students waited inside by the cafeteria before school started, and as I walked toward them, a few giggled.
“Good morning, Mr. Barnett!” Dillon greeted me. “Nothing like getting caught in the rain, huh?” Then he burst into a part of “Singin’ in the Rain,” doing a weird dance to go with it.
“Keep that up and I’ll make you clean the band room.”
He and his buddies laughed.
“Got to love them, right?” Laura said once I’d reached her. She was the other teacher on duty. As the choir teacher, she and I often got grouped together. I didn’t mind. She was friendly and always had a smile, no matter how bad things seemed. She’d battled breast cancer two years before and kicked its ass.
“I guess.”
“You should really consider keeping an umbrella in your car.”
“At least I saved my coffee,” I said, holding up the mug with the closed lid before popping it open and taking a drink.
I nearly spit that drink when I looked up and saw Jay standing in front of me.
“Not the greeting I was expecting,” he said cool as ever, looking way too gorgeous for his own good. His hair was a little damp from the rain, but not too bad. His gray suit hugged his broad shoulders and clung to his toned body in all the right ways.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, after wiping my mouth.
“Dropped Foss off and thought I’d come in and say hi,” he answered. Humor shone in his eyes. Then, he turned to Laura, as if not to seem rude by ignoring her. “I’m Jay Foley, an acquaintance of Mr. Barnett.”
“An acquaintance, huh?” Laura smiled as she shook his hand. She seemed a bit flushed too, not that I could blame her. Jay had that effect on people. “I’m Laura Chavez, the choir teacher.”
“Lovely to meet you,” he said to her before moving those stunning eyes back to me. “I see your morning is off to an interesting start.”
“Even more interesting now.” There I was, surrounded by colleagues and students, and all I wanted to do was grab him by the tie and kiss him. “Shouldn’t you be on your way to a meeting or something? With you being a big-shot attorney and all.”
Jay’s eyes crinkled with a smile, though none showed on his lips. “Big-shot attorney? You flatter me, Mr. Barnett.”
“I take it you flatter easily, Mr. Foley.”
“Depends on who I’m speaking to.”
God. This feeling was intoxicating. I enjoyed the playful banter between us—enjoyed the low-key flirting and knowing glances. The nearly imperceptible smiles.
Foster approached with two friends trailing behind him. They all wore gamer T-shirts.
“Good luck today, kid,” Jay said, clapping Foster on the back. “Remember to take a deep breath before you start and clear your mind of everythin’ except for the notes you need to play. You can do this.”
“Thanks for all your help over the weekend, Uncle Jay.” Foster hugged him. “I think I’m more confident now.”
