She really didn’t have any extra money to loan to him and never get paid back. But if it would get him gone and off her couch so that she and Ron could occupy it again, then she’d stop by the bank before going home.
It was almost quitting time. Just another ninety minutes to go before she could walk out the doors, scoop Molly from the after-school program, and try to find Ron in the flesh. Maybe she could sneak out a few minutes early? Her work was done. All she was waiting on was to hear who the school system had chosen to lead their test prep program.
Kylee knew that she’d done her best work with the pitch packet for Thrive. Someone in the office had gotten their hands on Here 2 Learn’s pitch packet. It was a sham, filled with vague questions, errors in the answers, and outdated material. If Kylee were just a parent and not a competitor, she’d be the first in line at the Board of Education if that company was picked to prepare her daughter for a major test.
She had every confidence that Ron would see that. There was no need for any angle. It was all very straightforward. Thrive was the clear choice for success for the kids. And when Thrive was chosen, Kylee would be moving on up in the office.
She’d have a place at the post-secondary prep table. She’d have a new boyfriend who was respected and who respected her. And she’d be able to give Molly the financial and family-life stability that she’d had when she grew up. It was all falling into place.
“I hear that Barton Elementary is leaning towards our company,” said Anthony. His man bun was sloppily drooping down to his neck today. For once, his eyes were on her and not on his device. “Good work, Bauer.”
“Thank you,” she said, taking in his praise. “I worked really hard on the pitch and the assessment questions.”
Anthony leaned forward, his brows pressed together as though whispering about a conspiracy. “From what I hear that elementary school principal was quite impressed by you if you know what I mean.”
Kylee crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back so that she was not included in this contrived plot. “Principal Kidd was impressed by my work.”
“Sure. That’s why he came over to your house twice in the last week. Way to use what was in your test bank.” Anthony chuckled at his lame joke.
Before Kylee could set him straight, his head was back down, eyes glued to his device. She wished it was professional to throw pencils at work. But it wasn’t. So instead, she stuck her tongue out at Anthony’s retreating back and drooping bun.
When she turned back to her desk, she noted in her peripheral vision that there was someone standing beside her desk. The man was tall with a head of gray hair.
Great. Her boss had heard the whole exchange. But when she turned fully to address the man who could make or break her, she was met with a wall of Ron.
Her first instinct was to stand and throw her arms around him. But she stayed in her seat. Something in the set of his jaw told her she wouldn't find that warm, soft place she’d cuddled into last night.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey.”
No warmth in his voice either. His bright eyes were clouded over. His arms crossed over his chest, causing his suit jacket to tug tight over his muscles.
“Is it true?” he asked.
Oh no. He knew about Jason. She wasn’t sure how, but she was sure of it.
“Let me explain,” Kylee began.
Ron closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. She remembered him doing that when he was met with a particularly tough problem that he couldn’t work out. She stood then and took a step toward him. But he stepped back.
“You were just using me to get the account?”
Kylee’s advance halted. “Wait? What?”
“Am I so blind?” He squinted at her. “Have you changed so much?”
Kylee looked from Ron to her co-workers looking down at papers or at computer screens pretending they weren’t paying attention to the scene playing out.
“You think I was using you to get points at work?” Kylee said. “You can’t believe I’d do something like that?”
The tightness in his jaw loosened for just a second. But almost in the same instance, it stiffened again. “I wouldn’t have believed you’d run off with Jason Romano a decade ago. Or that he’d spend the night with you after I left you.”
“No,” Kylee held up her hands. “That is not what happened. He showed up out of nowhere, without calling.”
“And you let him in, late at night?”
“He wasn’t there for me. He claimed he wanted to see his daughter.”
“But that’s not true?”
“I’ve been trying to call you all day. Ron, can we just go somewhere and talk?”
Kylee reached out to him. But Ron pulled away from her. The look of hurt and betrayal on his face brought back a memory. It was of the day she’d decided to run away with Jason.
Ron had talked until he was blue in the face. He’d debated her logic, attacked her reasoning, he’d even drawn a chart. But Kylee wouldn’t be dissuaded. When she’d walked away, this was exactly how he’d looked at her.
His eyes had been slits, as though it hurt to look at her. His mouth had been turned down in a frown of utter disbelief. And his shoulders had hunched in defeat.
Kylee hadn’t thought about that moment again for nearly a year after she’d left. It had taken that long to realize that her best friend had been right. But she’d been too determined to make her relationship work. She’d tossed everything she had at the problem that was her marriage. But no single answer stuck until she’d decided to leave.
Ron had been right that day. He was wrong now. And now she had to make him see.
“Principal Kidd, we’re so delighted to have you in our offices.”
Syd Rowen approached the two of them with his hand out. Ron turned from Kylee and took the proffered hand.
“I hear you were impressed with Kylee’s pitch.”
“She made a very convincing argument.” Ron didn’t look at her as he spoke about her.
“She’s a rising star here at Thrive. With the work she’s done on the elementary school pitch, we’re considering her for advancement.”
“Well, it looks like we all have a decision to make,” said Ron. “If you’ll excuse me.”
And with that, he turned and walked out, closing the Thrive office door behind him.
Chapter Eighteen
“Principal Kidd, look.”
Ricky, Jr. ran over from his classroom door to greet Ron in the hall. His hands yanked at the bright red tie around his neck. The kid could’ve been a mirror image of Ron as a young boy running through these halls with his white collared shirt, dark slacks, and ever-present tie.
“I tied my tie myself,” the kid beamed up at Ron. “Well, my dad helped.”
Ron gave the kid’s tie an unnecessary straightening. It surprised him that Ricky, Sr. had stopped through town. The man traveled so much Ron only ever heard of him being around for the holidays. He’d always know that the elder Ricky had made a stopover or made time to call his son when Ricky, Jr. was beaming bright smiles for the next few days.
“It must be nice to see your dad,” said Ron.
“He’s only here for a few days. Then he’s back on the road. But we did play ball. Even though I’m not good at any sports. I taught him Magic the Gathering, but he wasn’t very good. But he said we can play online tomorrow night when he gets to his hotel.”
The kid ran off back to his class, beaming all the way. Ron had always had his father around every day of his life. Even after his parents divorced, his dad hadn’t moved too far, just a couple of streets over.
When his mother remarried, Ron had the luxury of two dads who were both amazing. Poor Ricky, Jr. only got a half a dad. If only dads knew how important it was just to call their kids, to be a part of their lives any way possible.
Ron straightened preparing to head back to his office. He had the strongest urge to call his dad just then. When he turned, he sa
w Molly Romano watching him.
“Hey, Molly.”
She didn’t respond at first. She chewed her lip as she regarded him. Ron had watched her mother do that when they were younger. It had been Kylee’s decision-making face. That was the face she made when she was chewing over whether an answer was correct, and she should mark it down.
“I don’t agree,” Molly finally said. “Sometimes dads don’t make it better. Are you and my mom gonna break up now that my dad’s around?”
When Molly had first shown up at Barton, she had been obviously trying to figure out how she would fit in. As a kid who hadn’t had much permanence in her life, she’d figure she’d take on the role she was most used to; the role of the outcast.
In just a week, she’d found her place at Barton. Ron had seen her at lunch the other day sitting with a group of kids from her class, laughing and giggling like a little girl should. He hadn’t heard a negative word out of Mrs. Steen about her. He’d peeked at Molly’s latest grades and was thrilled to see that she’d receive the highest marks.
Having found her place, having figured out where she fit, had had a dramatic effect on her life. And now something, or rather someone, from her past had come back to shake it up.
Ron walked over to the lockers Molly leaned against. He put his back to them and then tilted his head up and let out a sigh.
“She’s been sad again since he came around,” Molly continued. “She laughed and smiled and was happy when it was just the two of you. Me too.”
That warmed Ron’s heart to hear, that he made Kylee smile and laugh and happy. He felt all those emotions when he was around her. He’d never felt so devastated at the moment he learned her ex was back in her life and he’d stayed over.
No. He had felt this devastation before. He’d felt it when she’d run off with Jason ten years ago, leaving him and everything they’d meant to each other in the dust of Jason’s motorcycle exhaust.
“He never stays long,” said Molly. “He’ll probably leave after she gives him money.”
Ron looked down at the little girl. Her little shoulders were weighted down as though the world sat there. “Come here, Molly.”
There were rules about physical affection between kids and staff in an elementary school. But Ron didn’t bother to heed the rules at this moment. He bent down and pulled the little girl in for a tight squeeze; a squeeze he hoped would ring all the worries from her adolescent body and knock that heavy weight from her back.
“Listen, Molly,” he said, pulling away to look her in the eyes, “Promise me something. Promise you’ll let the adults deal with this.”
“That’s what my mom always says when my dad does something wrong. Which was a lot of the time.”
“She’s a smart lady, your mom. The smartest lady I know.”
Molly searched Ron’s gaze. After a moment, she nodded in agreement. He watched the little girl head into her class. She looked a bit lighter in her steps as she did so.
Back in his office, Ron looked down at the two pitch proposals on his desk. One company made repeated mistakes but managed to maintain a stellar reputation based on past connections. Another company was filled with innovators led by a person who’d made one mistake in their past.
Ron couldn’t afford any more mistakes in the future of his school, his career, and these children. He knew what he had to do.
Chapter Nineteen
Kylee was not having the best morning. Her eyes were crusted with dried tears. No makeup could fix the redness under her eyelids. Her skirt had threads dangling from a loose hem. She spilled mascara down the front of her shirt. Her phone was dead after checking it all night long. When she’d plugged it in this morning and gotten a cell of energy, she saw she still had no new messages.
“You okay, Mommy?”
“Oh, yeah, baby.” But Kylee sounded exhausted even to her own ears. “I’ll get out of your way so you can get ready for school.”
As Kylee made to step out of the bathroom door, she found herself stepping into her daughter’s embrace. Molly wrapped her arms around her mother’s waist and gave her a tight squeeze. It was tight enough to pull a few more tears from her dry eyes.
“I know that’s not true,” Molly said as she looked up at her mom. “I know you’re not okay right now. But you’re a smart lady. Mr. Kidd said you’re the smartest lady he knows.”
“He did? When did he say that?” Kylee sniffed. “He was talking about me? What else did he say?”
“He also said for me to stay out of it and let the adults handle it.”
Of course, Ron would say that to a kid. For the last week, he’d been the best parent Molly had ever had. She knew Ron would never turn his back on her daughter. Kylee just hoped Ron would allow her back into his life as well.
“I just want to say that I love Daddy…but Daddy doesn’t make either of us happy. Mr. Kidd does.”
It was a struggle to not mess up her mascara with tears. Kylee pulled her daughter to her again. Even firmer this time. It took a long while before Kylee released Molly to take her place in the bathroom.
Coming down the stairs was like stepping into a war zone. Clothes were strewn around. Half eaten take-out food was spilling out of containers and onto the coffee table. Jason was asleep in front of the television, which was turned on at full blast, and he was in his boxers.
This was why she’d gotten divorced. The youngest person in the house was the most grown of the three. Kylee was putting a stop to this now. There was money burning a hole in her purse. But she didn’t pull it out.
“Jason, get up.” Kylee kicked at the base of the couch. She was very proud that she didn’t kick his bare foot that was dangling off the cushions.
“It’s seven in the morning.” He groaned and turned over.
“Exactly. It’s time for you to get up and get out of here. You are not my responsibility anymore. Do you hear me?” She gave another firm kick to the base of the couch, just narrowly missing his toes.
Jason looked up at her frowning. “Fine, I’ll go. Just loan me some cash.”
“Nope. Not gonna happen. The money I make is for me and Molly.”
He sat up now, complete indignation in his face as though she’d just taken his favorite toy away. “What am I supposed to do?”
“You need to get yourself together. Or not. Your success or failure is on you. Not me.”
“Fine. I’ll be out of here tonight.”
“No. Now.”
Sixty minutes later, Kylee got off the exit that would take her to work. Now that Jason’s motorcycle tail lights were headed south, she could set everything on track again.
She was running late to work. But it was going to be her last day on the job. So, it didn’t really matter.
She couldn’t stay after the scene yesterday. As she walked into the office, she noticed people staring at her from beneath their lashes. A few gaped openly. She heard the whispers that included her name. And, of course, some spoke at full volume.
Kylee marched right up to Syd Rowen’s office. But before knocking on his door, she turned and faced the crowd. She was not surprised to find they all were staring openly behind her back.
“For what it’s worth,” she began, “I didn’t date Ron Kidd to get ahead. I didn’t want to date anyone at all. But when a man like him, who is so incredible, comes into your life - back into your life, and he checks all your boxes and fills in every one of you blanks, you’d be stupid not to grab hold with both hands and pencil him into your life forever. And if I am lucky enough for him to give me a retake, that’s what I’m going to do.”
With her speech done, Kylee turned back to her boss’ office to find the door open and Mr. Rowen staring down at her. Kylee handed him the letter she’d prepared last night.
“What’s this?” Mr. Rowen asked.
“My letter of resignation. We lost the Barton account because of me. I take full responsibility for my actions.”
“As you should. We won the account and
I was told it was a direct result of your work.”
“Mine? Me?”
“Seems the lessons you presented, the questions you crafted, and the process you created was the best. It looks like you were able to find the angle the teachers were looking for.”
“The angle?” Kylee asked.
Mr. Rowen nodded, pride in his eyes. “We’ve been asked to give a presentation to the whole school this afternoon. Get ready. We’re going to be late. When we get back, we’ll talk about your future here.”
Mr. Rowen took the letter from her and tore it into bits. Behind her, a slow, gulf clap broke out. It got louder and louder. But there was only one thing that rang through her ears.
Ron. Ron had chosen her. Did this mean there was a chance for them?
Chapter Twenty
Ron pulled a whiteboard onto the stage in preparation for the school assembly. On one side of the board there hung a tacked-on banner that read “Welcome Thrive Learning Systems.”
“I have to admit, this plan, these materials, look good,” said Mrs. Steen as she looked over the more extensive packet that Thrive Learning Systems had delivered this morning. “I think your little girlfriend is just what we need to succeed on the standardized tests.”
Ron didn’t open his mouth to correct her. He hoped it wasn’t too late to stamp that label on Kylee. He’d opted to make her test prep system an integral part of the school. It was a no-brainer. Her methods were the best option. For his heart, she was the only option. He just needed to let her know that.
He’d have his chance today. Thrive should be here any moment to give a presentation to the assembled school. Ron knew he couldn’t talk to Kylee before the presentation. He had a plan that wouldn’t require him to wait much longer after she was done.
It was nearly show time. Everything was in place on stage. The students were filing into the auditorium and taking their seats. All that was needed was the woman of the hour.
Mommy Loves the Principal Page 8
