by Gayle Riley
They’d come a long way since she’d had to leave the past beyond. Will had been true to his word and the moment they’d found a town of their liking where they could find a fresh start, he became a ranch hand, working harder than anyone else to get as much money as he could. Nearly two years ago they’d heard of an elderly couple who was looking to sell their farm so they live closer to their grandchildren. It was a perfect situation. There was already a house, barns and so much land that they’d have no problem having cattle. The former owners were even gracious enough to let Will and Lucy keep the livestock they had. Now it was a thriving ranch of their own that several ranch hands that worked under Will. He was living his dream and Lucy was happy for him.
Lucy had always thought her dream was to teach, but after everything she’d been through with Will, her dream had merely been to survive and to love without resolve. As soon as they were settled in their new town, even before they bought the ranch, they were married. It was a quiet nearly secretive ceremony with a few of Will’s new buddies as witnesses, but Lucy wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
“We may not have met under conventional circumstances,” Lucy explained to the pastor. “Maybe our love story isn’t the one people want to read about in books, but I am glad it happened. I believe it happened for a reason.”
Lucy thought about fate and divine intervention often as she did her chores around the farm. In a strange way, She had Richard Polk to thank for all of this. If he hadn’t tried to kill Will the first time, she would still be living in the boarding house, having the same monotonous routine before she finally went to bed each night.
She fed the chickens, horses and other animals before she collected eggs and began to head back inside the house. It was then that Lucy noticed a speck on the horizon and her heart felt like it was in her throat. Will and the new cattle he just purchased hundreds of miles away were almost home.
Lucy’s cheeks hurt as she dashed inside, her smile was so large it probably looked ridiculous. The tea kettle was whistling as she shut the door and she placed it on an unused spot as she called. “Margaret, are you awake?”
When she heard no reply, she went into the room and tried to rouse the young child that was sleeping in a trundle bed next to the bed that Will and her shared. Too small to climb the stairs up to the loft where she would eventually sleep, Lucy had been happy for her company while Will had been away.
Margaret was almost four and she was a toddling copy of her father. She was passionate and lively and Lucy couldn’t wait to watch her grow. Her sandy brown locks fell across her face as Lucy brushed them away from her face. “My love, your father is home.”
Her eyes flicked open at the words. “Daddy!? Where, where?”
Lucy laughed as she attempted to dress the child. “I saw him at the very. He might be close enough that you can wave and he can see you.” Before she had a chance to say another word or finish fastening the buttons of her dress the girl was dashing from the room, the door to the outside banging loudly against the wall as she threw it open.
Lucy smiled as she walked over to the cradle where their son, John, was wiggling around looking at the ceiling. He was only eight months old and Lucy wasn’t sure who he was more like yet. He had her eyes but the rest was still a mystery that she couldn’t wait to discover. “Well, I suppose you would like to see you father too, wouldn’t you?” She wrapped him in a blanket before she made her way outside.
Will was locking the new cattle in their paddock by the time she made it outside and Margaret stood as close as it was safe while she watched her father do his work. The ranch hands helped collect the horses and bring them back in the barn and the moment the gate was shut and locked, Margaret ran across the space that separated her from Will.
“Daddy!” she screamed delighted.
“How is my girl?” Will asked. “Did you take good care of your mother?” He picked her up and the child nuzzled into him as he made his way over to Lucy. He placed a kiss on John’s head before he kissed his wife on the lips. “It’s good to see you.”
“Likewise,” Lucy answered before she ushered him inside. “Let me tell you everything that has happened since you’ve been away.
So much had changed in five years. She was a wife, a mother and a ranch owner. If Lucy had known what was coming for her five years ago, she would have never believed that she would be anything other than a teacher who lived in a boarding house. When she was a child, it had seemed strange that Will never felt like her brother, but now she understood. It was so she’d have this moment. It was so her life would be complete.
THE END
Bonus 7 of 30
Her Study Session
Description
Casey is a bratty bad girl who wants nothing more than to sass off her history teacher and not listen to him. She thinks it’s a good idea, that is until her enrollment at the college is threatened because she’s failed the class three times. Now, Casey needs to pass this class this time around, or else not only will she be kicked out of the prestigious school, her parents will cut off all of the help she’s been getting.
She reluctantly asks for help, and initially, she thinks it’s going to be like pulling hair. However, as she grows closer to both Robert and his aide Caleb, things begin to change. Casey learns that the feelings she has for them aren’t that of a mere teacher/student relationship, but something more. Will Casey pass her class and come to terms with her feelings? Or will this taboo relationship be too much for her to handle?
Chapter 1
I sat in class, grimacing at the fact that today we would not only have our normal teacher, but we’d also have a new teacher working with us. Apparently he’s some sort of teacher’s aide, or some dude who would be here mentoring under our teacher in order to learn the ropes. I swear, the last thing I wanted was a clone of my current professor, that’s for sure.
“Well class, here is Caleb. He’s new, and he’ll be helping me with our lessons. He’s gaining experience so that hopefully he can become a great professor in the future,” my professor Robert Willington said. I groaned, already annoyed by this man.
Simply put, Robert and I don’t get along. I mean, considering the differences that we had, it’s obvious that we probably hate each other’s guts. Simply put, Robert always has a goddamn stick up his ass, telling me to cross my legs, quit back talking, watch my language, the whole nine yards. Sure, I went to one of the best schools in the country, where the teachers were world-renowned simply because of their findings, and they’re not just some poor bastards who wished they had a decent job. No, these people were legit, and Robert was one of the wealthiest men out there.
I looked at Caleb. He looked refined as well. He was probably some trust fund baby who would probably go begging to mommy and daddy for a job. Probably some pathetic fuck, that’s what I’m calling.
“Casey, don’t roll your eyes,” Robert said.
I stiffened. God, why was he like this? “I wasn’t, but now I will,” I said.
The students in class watched the exchange between us. I’m pretty sure some of these people thought that it was some sort of game or something, which wasn’t the case. Both of us really disliked the other, so most of the time we did this because of the disdain we had. However, I could tell that Robert wasn’t going to deal with my shit today, and soon, he sighed.
“If you’re going to act like this Casey, I’ll tell you to leave,” he said.
“I’m not leaving. I’m not doing anything wrong and you know it. Maybe you should stop jumping to conclusions,” I replied with a snarky attitude.
The teacher ignored me, going back to his lessons. That’ll show him. Of course, this was so boring I nearly fell asleep. I saw the new teacher, and while he tried to emulate Robert, he seemed to fail. This guy was too much, that’s for sure.
“All right everyone, I need your assignments,” he told them.
Fuck. I guess I forgot that. He walked around, collecting the papers, and when he
got to me, he stared at me once more.
“Let me guess, you forgot to do it,” he said with a glance.
“Yeah. Sorry about that,” I said, feigning sadness.
“I shouldn’t be surprised with you. I mean, this is your third time taking the college course. I mean, maybe you’re doing it at this point just to spite me, but this is getting out of hand. You’re only going to fail if you don’t knock this off,” he admonished.
Whatever. I didn’t care anymore. I rolled my eyes, looking at him with an annoyed glance.
“Whatever,” I said.
“I guess you’ll take another zero for that. I’m glad you’re a fine example to the class on how not to act as a college student,” he told me with a scoff.
The teacher soon left, and the aid looked at me, shaking his head. Whatever. I didn’t even care. I was really only in this class because it was one of the bullshit requirement classes I needed for my degree. The rest of class went by like a blur, and when I left, I heard some of the kids talking about me. Most of them were surprised I kept up the act that I did, the act that I didn’t take shit from teachers. It’s true though. I personally don’t take kindly to this guy’s bullshit, and he’s honestly too strict. I mean, it’s not like I’m paying for college anyways. Mom and Dad are.
When I left, I looked behind, seeing the teacher there looking at me.
“Come on Casey, knock this off. You’re going to regret it,” he told me.
“Like hell I am,” I told him. Before he could respond, I was soon gone. That’ll show him.
Of course, I headed on to my next class. It was strange, the history class I had with Robert and the new guy was the only class I tended to fail a lot. I mean, it’s not like I was a bad kid. I just didn’t care about his class. I hated his attitude, and most of the time, it infuriated me to the point where I didn’t even care about him. However, I soon began to wonder if I was really acting out for a valid reason? I know that some people saw me as a badass bad girl because of it, but I was 21, so even when I did act like that, I began to feel like there was something wrong.
Maybe it was just my own shitty regret. I went to my next two classes, brushing off that feeling that I had. I mean, who knows I’m probably overthinking everything. It’s probably just my imagination rather than actually something serious.
However, little did I know that this behavior was going to bite me in the ass, make me change myself and create a whole new can of worms for myself in the future.
Chapter 2
I continued to go through college not giving a shit about that stupid history class. It’s not like he could fail me three times, right?
That’s where I was wrong.
I got to my dorm to check my mail, which was when I realized it. I saw that there was a note in there for me. It was from the school.
“Who the hell wants my attention,” I said. I opened it, and in fine lettering I read it to myself.
Shit. It was from the school. They know I’ve failed that stupid history class twice, and I’m on my way to failing it again. It was admonishing, saying that if I did fail it again, I’d be expelled from here. I felt my fists clench. I was decent in all the other subjects, I just couldn’t stand my stupid teacher.
“What the fuck?” I said to myself. I then tossed it, feeling angry about it all. There was no way, no way in hell I was going to lose all of the progress that I did make. I just wanted a teacher who didn’t act like a cocky piece of shit towards me. Was that too much to ask?
However, things only got worse from here. About five days later, I got a call from my mother. Normally, it wasn’t a bad thing to get a call from her. All too often, she did it to check on me. However, when I didn’t answer, she sent me a text message, saying that we had to talk.
I had a bad feeling about this, but I knew that I needed to face the truth. I dialed her, and after a ring or two, I heard her speak.
“Hello Casey,” she started.
“Hi Mother. What’s wrong?” she asked her.
“I’ve heard from your teacher that you’re well on your way to failing that class again, and that if you fail it a third time, the school will take away your funding. You know that I’ve raised you to be better than that,” she said.
“But he’s a douche,” I told my mom.
“Watch your tongue, Casey. Listen, if you fail this class, you’re going to lose everything. I won’t support you, and neither will Dad. He’s already stressed about this, and you acting like a piece of shit about this is only going to bite you in the ass further. I demand that you start to care about this and get some tutoring. Or else, you can say goodbye to all of the help you’ve been getting,” my mother said.
I tried to get a word in, especially since my mom was totally being unfair, but then, she spoke once more.
“And don’t think that you can just sass me back Casey. I’m done with your shit, with the little antics that you’ve pulled thus far. Either you get the help that you need and pass the class, or we’re going to make you work. You’ve been far too spoiled, and we’ve been far too lenient in this situation for so long,” she told me with a serious tone of voice.
I was angry. I couldn’t believe that even my own mother didn’t give a flying fuck about me. However, I couldn’t fight it. She said her peace, so essentially, I had to listen.
“Fine. I’ll fucking try,” I said.
“Don’t try. Actually do it,” she told me.
It was then when the phone clicked off, causing me to tense up with annoyance. I began to feel agitated by everything. How could she do this to me? What the hell was I going to do? I began to grow even more pissed by the second, but I knew that I was going to lose it all if I didn’t make a decision fast.
“Fine. You all fucking win,” I said. It wasn’t like I’d be happy about this. In all honesty, I was pretty fucking pissed. But I wasn’t going to let this get the best of me. instead, I’ll take care of it on my own.
The next day, I went to class, this time actually being quiet. I hated that I had to swallow my pride. Robert and Caleb were both surprised at me, but at the same time, it was so obvious they knew it hurt. I hated it, I truly did. After class was over, I sat there waiting for everyone to leave before I took a deep breath, preparing for the humiliation of what I was about to say.
I meandered over to his desk, and when he looked up, he smiled at me.
“I take it you got the notice,” he said.
“Yeah I did. And I hate it. But I’m not going to let you guys get the best of me. I’m doing this for myself because I don’t want to lose what I already have. I need help. I want to pass this class,” I said.
“The first thing you should do is do your homework,” he said sardonically.
This bastard! I hated him, but I simply nodded.
“I will sir. But I also need some tutoring. Is it okay if I get help from you?” I asked him.
He paused, looking at me and trying to see if I was joking.
“Are you sure?” he asked me.
“Yeah. I’m sure,” I told him with my head to the side. I felt shameful, but at the same time, I knew I needed all of the help I could get.
He pursed his lips, and I hoped he wasn’t going to embarrass me. He then nodded, understanding my needs.
“Very well. But don’t think I’m going to go easy on you. You’re going to have to come to the tutoring sessions. Both Caleb and I will help you,” he said.
I nodded, taking all of this in. God, I hated it. I hated that he got some sort of fucked up satisfaction from it, but at the same time, I wasn’t doing this for him, but for myself.
“Very well. You’ll see me there,” I said.
“I hope so. I want you to do well Casey. Maybe knocking off that attitude will help,” he said.
I doubted it, and I didn’t need this fucker to tell me that. I simply scoffed, turning around and walking away.
“So tomorrow?” I asked.
“Yes. Does four work?” he asked.
>
Great, I’d have to do it after all my classes. I didn’t want to, but I guess I will. I mean, having a beer would be ten times better, but I guess I’ll take what I can get.
“Sure,” I replied.
He nodded, smiling at me with a smirk. “Good. Then I’ll see you then,” he said.
I grimaced, already regretting everything about this. But, it had to be done, and I mean, maybe Robert and I can work out our differences. Or maybe I’m just overthinking shit again and hoping too much.
Chapter 3
I didn’t want to do this, but I kept my promises. The next day, I went to his class once more, giving him a small smile. There was something about him that made the whole experience slightly more tolerable this time around. Maybe because he did care enough to help me, even though I wanted to gag at the concept.
After my classes, I went over to his office once more. I knocked at the door, and after a moment or so, Caleb answered.
“There you are. I was wondering if you’d even show up,” he joked.
“Of course I would. I mean, I made the appointment. No sense in canceling,” I said. I wanted to cancel, but I knew that the wrath of my parents and the idea of struggling was just as unpalatable.
“Come on in. Let’s get this show on the road,” he said.
I walked inside, seeing the spot in the middle of where their books were. I perched myself there, and when I looked at Robert, instead of having a serious face all the time, he looked almost happy.
“Glad you made it,” he said.
“Yeah,” I simply replied.
“Anyway, you want to get started?” he asked.
“I mean, it’s not like there is anything else I could do,” I muttered in response.
He looked at me, seeing the disdain in my eyes, before we started to work on everything. The first part of the lesson was really just going over the stuff from today.
