“I was between cases,” his father answered. He reached out a hand and shook it with the principal. “For something involving girl trouble, I wasn’t going to risk Judge Baler’s temper causing a delay to come here.”
Tess felt nailed to the spot as Kade’s father laid his wintery stare at her. Yeah, maybe Kade had gotten that coldness from him, too. Tess hoped the summer side that Kade must have gotten from his mother meant she was a sweetheart. The father had the warmth of an iceberg and seemed just as forceful if you were to run up against him.
“Dad, this isn’t what it looks like,” Kade said.
What had happened to the articulate and strategic talker Kade had been with the principal? Kade was already on the defensive and sounding guilty.
“The kids were explaining to me that they confronted a test cheater,” the principal said, gesturing for them all to take a seat. There were only two chairs in front of the desk, so Tess awkwardly looked at her chair and back to Kade’s father.
“Sit down,” the older man gruffly told her, pulling her chair back a tiny bit, as if he was seating her at a fancy dining room table. Kade retook his seat as well. It let his father hover just behind them both, towering above all of them and looking down.
“Tess actually caught Rob in the act. I just backed her outrage up,” Kade said. “Some pencils and Rob’s test paper were the only victims.”
“Rob will be reprimanded, of course,” the principal said, picking up his stress ball again. He started working it hard. “Kade and Tess shouldn’t have interrupted the class or taken it upon themselves to confront Rob, instead of informing their teacher quietly of their suspicions, so they have both agreed to early morning detention tomorrow.”
The bus didn’t leave early enough so that meant she was going to have a long, cold walk tomorrow. It was still better than the alternative, revealing she was violating school uniform rules and getting involved in the kind of trouble Kade’s father had probably been envisioning. She didn’t want to confess to his stern demeanour and try to beg forgiveness.
Forgive me father for your son makes me want to sin.
Geez, she was going to hell for bastardizing that plagiarized line, even if it was only in her head. Lack of coffee was going to start earning her rosaries around here.
Those wintery eyes judged Tess despite hearing the evidence she was innocent. She wasn’t completely innocent, and Kade’s dad was hardly fooled.
“I hope Kade won’t be seen here again,” his father said, keeping his eyes on Tess. Yeah, she got that he meant ‘with her’ to be tacked on there, and it would be her responsibility to ensure it didn’t happen. Totally unfair. Kade was a big boy and she wasn’t Lilith to tempt him to sin. “It’s time to focus on your studies, son. I’m sure there are other students with spare time that could tutor Miss Tess if she’s having difficulty with the math or physical science concepts. There are easier classes for those not up for the challenge, anyway, Henderson?”
Tess took offence. It wasn’t hard. Kade’s father was taking a pot-shot at her and it was messing with her last chance to get her high school prerequisites for university. She didn’t need tutoring and nobody was making her drop out of chemistry so the boys could stop being distracted by her back end.
The boys would have to grow up or wear blinders.
“I’m sure Rob would appreciate guidance on the appropriate class level for him,” Tess said. Kade’s father snapped his eyes back to hers. “As for Kade, he was a little slow on the unit test but he told me he’s having some difficulty with the periodic table. There are flash cards for that you can purchase at Walmart.”
Kade choked back another laugh. She couldn’t tell if it was a nervous one, surprise, or actual amusement. Tess hoped she hadn’t lost the one friend it seemed like she had been making with her snarky reply, but she was a girl all alone in here, and she had to stand up for herself, even at Kade’s expense.
“They’re the top two students in the school, James,” the principal said before Kade’s father could deliver the scathing reply she saw building on his tightening lips. She got a quick scowl instead before he turned back to the principal.
“Kade is the top student in the school, followed closely by Keir and the Wilkinson heir. They’re the top three in our school,” Kade’s father said.
“War has a higher average than Bastion, dad.”
“In arts. We’re talking real courses, not water painting,” his father rebutted.
“War beat me in calculus, so he’s not just a pretty flower,” Kade said. The two of them sounded like they were warming up to a known disagreement. Perhaps Tess wasn’t the first friend his father had tried to take away.
“Regardless of whether Warrick Stewart is included in the top three, if Kade doesn’t pull his socks up this semester to make up for his fall in rankings, he’ll not make it at all this year,” the principal said, unwisely wading into the middle of their disagreement. “Especially since Miss Tess Sinclair came highly recommended by one of the top private schools as their premiere scholarship student. They were very sorry to lose her because of the recent move.”
Was nothing secret here? Tess was embarrassed and a little proud, though it probably wouldn’t take much for Kade’s father to figure out she was only able to attend such a prestigious school because of her marks. Tuition money was way out of her reach.
“That’s perfect,” Kade said. He stood up, then turned to her and dropped to one knee, holding out his hands, palms up, towards her.
Holy crap, was he proposing? Her flustered bat of his hands didn’t deter him but it earned a wry smile from his lips.
“Kade, get up off the floor,” his father said, sounding flustered himself.
“I have to ask Tess something,” Kade said, then he looked at her. He was tall enough that they were at eye level even though he was on his knees. She tried to be brave and keep her eyes on his dark gaze. This time, she wasn’t going to lose the staredown. In fact, she was so focused on not blinking that she almost missed his next words.
“Excuse me?” she said, blinking.
Damn it.
“I asked if you would agree to tutor me in the periodic table and whatnot since you really did seem to be ahead of me in chemistry this morning and I need to improve my average this semester. We’re already lab partners, after all, and shared labs count for twenty percent of the final mark.”
Kade’s father sputtered, then came to a start. “No. Absolutely not, Kade. You are not using this situation to finagle a date from some girl you met.”
“It isn’t dating, dad. Girls are as smart as boys. She’s probably going to be in demand once word gets out about her brilliance, so it makes sense to snap her up now before anyone else gets the idea to ask for her tutoring.”
What was Kade up to? He certainly knew the right way to sweet talk her, praising her brain over looks, but why was he doing it in front of his dad? Did he really want her tutoring?
“Tess, the more advanced students here have been known to donate their time to help other students that are struggling by tutoring in the Commons after school program, and some of them are compensated extra by parents for private lessons,” the principal said.
So it wasn’t entirely weird that Kade was asking. “Uh, I don’t mind helping Kade with chemistry. We’re partners, like he said,” Tess finally answered, hoping Kade would get off his knees now. She owed him one and doing homework together seemed fair enough compensation, if that was what Kade wanted.
Oh, that beautiful, dimpled smile. He won and was genuinely pleased.
“This still seems like the setup for a date. One boy, one girl, spending time together outside of school and studying chemistry of all things. You can't fool me into believing you chose this girl because of the spark of her mind instead of other kinds of sparks.”
Well, Kade’s father was a straight shooter. It probably served him well in court. Kade was a bit subtler getting his way, playing the long game by setting up the pieces t
o fall, then acting as if he hadn't directed where they would land.
“What if Tess tutors all of us? She can’t be dating four guys at once. That would be ludicrous. Keir and Bastion are in their last year and neck-to-neck for valedictorian. Having the same tutor would stop either of them complaining they were given an edge over the other, and I know physics has been kicking both of their butts. War is good at math but he took biology as an elective and as you mentioned, his strength really is in numbers, not large blocks of information without anything to logically work out. How are your physics and biology?”
Tess didn’t like to brag but the situation required her to confidently state her achievements. “I've taken both and I had a 99% average as well as acceptance at U of T in Bio Sci, which I only turned down because I couldn't finish my high school prerequisites due to the move here.”
“Tess’s previous school had a bit of an old-fashioned non-semestered system with eight courses taken on a Day 1/Day 2 schedule all school year. Students rarely leave school before they finish the year, so it isn't really a problem for them. Unfortunately, the timing has left Tess with no choice but to retake the courses she was in the middle of completing for this semester, and she will likely need to take at least one more semester next year to make up for the full eight courses she dropped midway because of this move,” the principal explained.
“She tutors all four boys?” Kade’s father said, sounding a bit less inclined to refuse his son’s request. “No favouritism, no dating one.”
“Absolutely, dad. This is strictly for learning. You’ll have to agree to pay Tess the going rate for the pre-university prep level teaching she'll be giving us. This isn't some average tutor. We’re lucky to be able to hire her and the timing is perfect,” Kade said. “I’m sure she'll be worth every dollar.”
“Of course, we're going to pay her,” Kade’s father said, irritated. It probably seemed vulgar to bring up money to someone as wealthy as the Saxtons obviously were, as if implying they couldn't afford her services, but honestly, Tess hadn't really thought about the money. This could be really good for her.
The principal sighed, sounding relieved. “All settled, then? I'm sure the other boys’ parents will agree to share a tutor of her calibre. Sandy can show Tess the standard contract we use for parents and students that want to set up private lessons.”
“First hint of any funny business and the contract will be void, Miss Sinclair,” Kade’s father said.
Funny business? Kade’s father was showing his grey. “Call me Tess,” she replied, shifting her chair back so she could stand. Kade finally stood up as well, although he kept close by her. She turned around and offered Kade’s father her hand to shake.
He squeezed very firmly.
The school bell rang, signalling the change in classes.
“Get a move on to your classes, kids. I expect you both to be seen in detention tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. sharp,” the principal said.
“Yes sir,” Tess replied.
“Worth it,” whispered Kade in her ear as they exited the office.
Chapter 5
TESS GOT DETENTION on the first day of school and she was smiling.
Kade had been the reason for the latter, willing to stand up for her with the principal and even against his intimidating father. He made her take a side trip to the library, where they quickly picked up the rest of her textbooks. He frowned at her as she loaded them up, barely fitting them into her backpack.
“What's your locker number?” Kade asked.
“201 blue,” she answered, thinking of going there quick before the next class to drop off the chemistry books. She was done with that class for this morning at least.
“Meet you at your locker at lunch? I'll introduce you to the rest of your students,” Kade said.
She felt her mouth dry up at the thought of meeting three more guys she didn't know. Plus, Kade had kind of locked them all into this tutoring gig without asking any of them first. It could be really awkward.
Normally, she kept to herself at school. She had to work part-time to pay for a room and food, which weren't included with her tuition and school supplies provided by the scholarship. Unlike the regular students, she didn't meet friends after school to go and have fun, casually wasting time, and the one serious boyfriend she had, broke up with her a couple of weeks before she moved.
Actually, she had broken up with him after catching his lips in the act of trying out other girls.
There probably wasn't any easy way out of this before she met with the other guys first. Hopefully, Kade could explain the situation and then they could all decide individually if they really wanted her tutoring services.
“Thanks, for what you said in the principal’s office,” Tess said. There were some things she should say to Kade first before she agreed to meet the other guys. “I'm flattered that you want me to tutor you and your friends, but don't mistake me for a charity case. There's other work I can do if you guys don't really need a tutor, and I'd rather not screw around.”
Kade had been listening quietly to her, walking the same way she was going towards her locker. He put a hand on her shoulder, pulling her into a nook between a row of lockers and the door of a closed classroom.
“Are you mad at me?” he asked, giving her a more serious look.
“I wasn’t expecting to be offered a job. Unless you were checking test bubbles to get out of class early, I doubt you're struggling in chemistry by the speed you completed your test. I lied a bit to the principal earlier. Even though I’ve taken that unit and I did self-study already, I found the test challenging enough to keep my attention, and that is a rarity. My speed is only because I really do know my stuff. We took tests every week at my old school, partly to improve our test-taking skills.”
Kade watched as she nibbled her bottom lip, nervously.
“You think I'm lying about the tutoring? Would it be so bad to work on chemistry together? Even if both of us are at the top of the class, it makes more sense to study with a partner at the same level, and I have no doubt you are as smart as the principal said. There's something that happened to me last semester, and I honestly feel I would benefit from you spending time with me. We will work ahead of the class on units, if you prefer, to keep it challenging for both of us.”
There was a vulnerability that entered his voice when he talked about something happening to him last semester. It was a situation that she could understand. Everything going forward so well, and all of a sudden, something crashes into you that you didn't see coming and throws you off course.
“I would like to work with you, too. The other guys all have to be honest and decide on their own. I'm not forcing anybody to accept tutoring just to prove to your dad that we're not dating.”
Kade laughed. “Pumpkin, it's your first day here so I can excuse you not knowing how things work with me and my friends. Trust me, it's an all-or-nothing thing for us. We really have sworn off girls, at least any long-term commitments, but I'm sure they'll make an exception for you. I can't wait to introduce you to my brother.”
Her curiosity was burning about his statement regarding ‘no girls,’ but Kade would have told her more if he was ready. It wasn’t going to be today. “Aren't you twins?” she asked instead, remembering that the older couple at the hospital had referred to Kade and his brother as twin angels.
“Yeah, we’re twins,” Kade said.
“Cool, my younger brother and sister are twins, too. They're in grade 9 and they go to this school as well.”
“Why didn’t your sister help you out with your kilt?” Kade asked, stepping back to peer at her bare knees and the inches of bare skin above them.
“I’m the adult, remember?” Tess said. “Besides, she did tell me to wear shorts underneath since this kilt is too old to have the built-in ones like the newer ones.”
“Yeah, nice shorts choice. May I suggest you tie a sweater around your waist so your kilt doesn’t ride up high enough to show the pink k
ittens to anyone else before lunch?”
“I don’t have an extra sweater.”
“I do, in my locker, which happens to be right here,” Kade said, pivoting to the end locker he had leaned her against. A few quick flicks of the padlock had it popping open. “It’s a gym hoodie, but I washed it since the last time I wore it, so it’s not stinky and sweaty.”
Tess accepted the sweater. It felt soft and warm. What she wouldn’t do to be able to wear this home under her inadequate jacket. “Thanks. I’ll give it back to you at lunch.”
“201 blue, right? That’s still pretty far if you want to get to your locker and then to your next class before the bell. How about you leave whatever you don’t want to carry in my locker and I’ll bring it to you at lunch?”
She was tying the sweater around her waist, having dropped her backpack to the ground to keep it out of the way. “Sure. It’s just the chemistry books.”
He put her books on the top shelf. That was rather high for her, but he was the one that would be getting it later.
Without even realizing it, she accepted a hand up.
RELIGION CLASS WAS like a mix of other classes. It had some sociology, ethics and history, with the debate that all those classes enjoyed. Tess would have liked taking it even if religion wasn’t mandatory at a Catholic school.
Best of all, nobody realized she was a noob to the religion.
The only thing that hampered her enjoyment was walking into the class before it started and getting a silent ovation. Every voice, right to the last whisper, halted as she entered. All eyes were on her. A pin dropping would have shattered the quiet for the longest seconds of her life.
“You must be Tess Sinclair,” came an old-lady voice from the side of the room. Tess turned and laid eyes on a nun, wearing a full habit and smiling over at her like Tess was the cardinal come to bless them all with his visit.
“She’s with Cain.”
Impetuous (Victory Lap Book 1) Page 7
