Page 98 of Don't Date A DILF

“Hello?” she said tentatively. “Clark?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m sorry I haven’t answered sooner. I’ve been busy…”

“Yeah, of course,” she said with false brightness to her voice. “You’re teaching in your hometown now, right?”

My stomach knotted. “Yeah. And you?”

“Oh, I’m back in my hometown too. I’m doing admin for a real estate office run by my brother. I’m thinking about getting my license to sell.”

“What about teaching?”

She gave a brittle laugh. “Well, I screwed that up good. Causing a scandal doesn’t exactly make you attractive to school districts. Not even in your hometown, apparently.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It was my decision. You were right about everything you said. If I hadn’t dated a dad, I’d have never been in the position to do such stupid things. You were smart to make that rule for yourself. What did you call it? Don’t Date a DILF.” She laughed. “I thought you were being unfair at the time, but you were so right.”

“No,” I said, feeling like the worst kind of hypocrite. “I was wrong. It wasn’t dating a parent that was the problem, Lexi. It was that it was against policy, and you snuck around, and it turned into a sordid kind of secret.”

Also, the hiding the cheating, of course, but I didn’t want to throw that in her face. She knew what she did.

“You weren’t wrong though,” she said, sounding confused.

“No, I was,” I said earnestly. “I’m dating a dad here, and—”

“You’re what?” she practically screeched.

“No, it’s okay. Everyone knows about it. My principal, the town. It’s not a secret.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that you’re biased now, Clark. What makes you think that when a problem comes up, you won’t make the wrong choice like I did? Sneaking around wasn’t ideal, but it isn’t what got me fired, Clark. It was the choices I made because of my relationship.”

“I wouldn’t make those choices.”

“Are you sure?” she challenged. “Because I would have said the same thing before it happened. No one sets out to do the wrong thing. Someti—” Her voice broke, then trembled as she continued, making it obvious she was crying. “Sometimes we just make terrible mistakes. I don’t want that for you.”

My eyes filled, and I had to blink back tears. “I’m sorry I testified against you to the board.”

“Oh, you didn’t have a choice. Bad enough I ruined my career. I’m glad I didn’t ruin yours.”

“That’s not what you said then.”

“I’m sorry. I was a wreck, and I don’t even know what I said to you, but you did the right thing, Clark. You got dragged into that mess because of me. Lying for me would have been a step too far for anyone.”

“I’m still sorry it happened,” I said quietly. “I wish I could have done something to prevent it.”

She sniffed. “You did what you could. You told me I was putting myself in a precarious position. You told me to be careful. And that’s why I’m telling you the same thing, Clark. Don’t do it. Follow your own rule. You made it for a reason. Don’t Date a DILF. I don’t want you to make my mistakes.”

After we hung up, I showered and dressed for trivia on autopilot, my mind playing Alexa’s words on repeat. We’d wrapped up the call with a bit of catch-up about our lives and promises to stay in touch better, and I felt relieved that she was okay, even if her heart had taken a beating. She’d left Michael, which was good because he’d influenced her to do things that just didn’t fit with the person I knew.

But I couldn’t shake the thought she’d planted in my head. Would I do the same if Hunter asked it of me? I couldn’t imagine he ever would. But then, people were unpredictable when it came to their children. Even if he didn’t, could I really be objective when it came to Toby, after all the family dinners, tutoring sessions, and board games?

I arrived at trivia feeling distracted and unsettled. Hunter met me there, tugging me close and draping his arm over my shoulder. “Feels like years since I’ve seen you,” he murmured.

“It’s been three hours,” I said lightly. “Pretty sure you survived.”

“Barely,” he grumbled.

I smiled despite the pit that had opened in my stomach since my talk with Alexa. Hunter was a good man. I wasn’t violating any rules by dating him, and he would never ask me to. It wasn’t the same situation at all.

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