by Mia Carson
Mel: And where would you be taking me?
Will: It’s a surprise.
Mel: I do like surprises! But right now, I’m falling asleep as we text.
Will: Same here. I’ll text you in the morning, if that’s ok?
Mel: Perfect! Good night, Will.
Will: Good night, beautiful. Sleep tight.
I fell asleep with a smile on my face.
***
The next morning, I dragged myself out of bed with enough time to shower, get dressed, make a cup of to-go coffee, and climb into my car. The twenty-minute drive to school was not enough for my hair to dry, so after parking near the football field, I pulled it up in a messy bun and secured it with a ponytail holder. I glanced in the mirror on the sun visor. Tendrils of hair had not been captured by the ponytail holder, and I looked like I might fall asleep in the middle of a dance move.
I climbed out of my car just as my phone dinged. Thinking one of my girls was trying to get out of practice, I sighed and glanced down. My stomach jumped. Will.
Will: Good morning, beautiful.
Mel: Good morning, handsome
Will: Sleep well?
Mel: I did, but I’m up way too early. Why are you up?
Will: Have to drive my daughter to practice.
He had a daughter. Okay, I thought, wondering why he hadn’t mentioned her the night before. I wondered how old she was and what sport she played.
Will: I made reservations for 8. How about I pick you up at 7 so we have time for drinks at the bar before dinner?
Mel: Sounds great! I’m walking into work right now. I’ll text you later. I have no idea what to wear!
Will: Whatever you wear, you’ll look gorgeous.
Mel: I’ll need a little hint. Talk to you later.
I hurried to the football field. Today we were practicing with the band as the color guard. Our first marching competition was two Saturdays away. Our flag work looked good, but it didn’t look perfect. The band was getting organized, and the dancers who were already here were stretching. I smiled, proud of my girls. They loved dancing as much as I did and worked hard to be perfect. I worked hard with them. I didn’t ask them to do anything I couldn’t do.
“Good morning!” Callie called, the only female band director. The other two were men, so Callie and I hung out during practices, competitions, and games. “You look a little worse for the wear this morning.”
“Ha, ha. I stayed out late with Nikki for her birthday.”
“And had a good time, I’d assume.” Callie winked at me.
“Didn’t get drunk, but Nikki sure did. She’s still at my house, sleeping,” I told her with a laugh. “I tried to get her up to take her to her car, but she waved me off and mumbled about waiting for me to get back.”
“That’s a good birthday, then!” Callie watched my girls for a minute. “Your girls look good. Are all of them here?”
I did a quick head count. “Missing two. Cara and Monica.”
Callie looked behind me and grinned. “Is that Cara’s dad with her?”
I turned my head and gasped. Will. I grabbed Callie’s arm and hissed, “Oh, my God! That’s the guy I met last night!”
“You met a guy last night?”
“Yes, but I didn’t realize he was a parent! What do I do?”
Callie couldn’t answer. Will and Cara had reached our side. He wore a huge grin on his face. “Good morning, beautiful.”
I felt the blood rush to my face in a blush. Cara giggled, and I glanced at her. She smirked at me and ran to join her teammates. She’d been there less than ten seconds when all of their heads swiveled to watch Will and me.
“Hi, Will. Have you met Callie?” I asked, gesturing to her to give myself time to think. How had I not known he was a parent? Vaguely, I remembered the parents’ meeting at the beginning of summer practice, but not any particular parent. I’d met a lot of people that night.
Will smiled at Callie. “Nice to meet you, though we’ve met before. Just like Mel and I have met before.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “I assume you remembered me last night.”
“I did,” he said with a wink.
Callie laughed. “Please excuse me.” She smiled at me before walking away. I glanced at the girls again, and they were pretending to stretch while actually watching the two of us. Cara was grinning like the Cheshire cat.
“Why didn’t you tell me who you were?” I asked, my mouth a thin line. I was a little irritated with him, as well as with myself.
Will shrugged, his smile not losing any of its humor. “I can’t believe you didn’t remember me.”
I stared at him for a moment and flared my nostrils at him. “I meet a million parents every year. I can’t remember everyone. And Cara is a freshman, so this is her first year with me.”
“You’re right. I just thought I was much more memorable.” He continued to tease.
I couldn’t help it. I giggled. “Will, you are too much.” I looked at the girls again. A few of the band members had joined them and were watching. I frowned. “Hey, um, listen…”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Will murmured.
“Well, I have to be honest. I’m not sure it’s a good idea for me to date the parent of one of my students. You know, conflict of interests and all that, or I could be accused of playing favorites because I’m dating her dad, blah, blah.” I gestured with my hands spread wide.
“Ah,” he nodded, his eyes narrowing. “I don’t think you’re the type to play favorites, though even if we weren’t dating, you’d love Cara.”
“I do love Cara! She’s very talented and sweet. And if we date and it doesn’t work out, it could cause an issue between the two of us,” I insisted, pointing at me, then at her. I really wanted to go out with him, and though my reasons were strong, I didn’t sound sincere. And he could hear the insincerity. His smile clearly indicated he knew he’d win, which irritated me a little. Damn his confidence.
“Why don’t we ask Cara what she thinks?” He turned and called to her before I could stop him. She jumped up and ran over.
“What’s up, Dad?” She smiled at me because she already knew about the date tonight. I lifted an eyebrow at her, my pretend angry face, and she snickered.
“Cara, would it be all right with you if Ms. Ulrich and I went on a date?” Will asked his daughter, his hand comfortably on her shoulder. Obviously, the two were close.
“I think it’s a great idea!” she answered. When she looked at me, she was beaming. “Ms. Ulrich, I promise it won’t get weird. Even if you don’t go out again, I won’t be mad. But I know you will, so whatever.”
I tilted my head and took a deep breath. “Oh, good Lord. Go stretch,” I ordered her, waving a hand. She scampered off, laughing, and plopped down with her friends. Five heads looked in our direction. I gestured to them pointedly, and they jerked around, still laughing. “It’s already starting! The goofiness.”
Will chuckled as he glanced at the girls and gave them an exaggerated wink. “You’d have to deal with their teenage goofiness no matter who you were dating. Why not date someone awesome?”
“You are such a charmer, but your ego almost covers it up.”
“You love it,” he said.
“Yeah, I do.” I sighed, rolled my eyes, and huffed, “Okay, I’ll go out with you tonight, but it better not be weird!” I pointed my finger at him.
“Yes, ma’am!” He saluted me mockingly, and I slapped his arm playfully and heard giggling from my dancers.
“What should I wear?”
“I’ll be in nice jeans, boots, and a button up. Dress to match,” Will told me.
“That doesn’t help me. Tell me where we’re going.”
“Nope. It’s a surprise.”
“You know what, I have something perfect in mind,” I teased.
“I knew you would. I’m very excited about tonight,” he said. He leaned in and kissed my cheek, and a chorus of wooooos sounded from about thirty ki
ds.
“Thanks for that,” I mumbled, pinching his side gently.
“You’re welcome.” He winked, waved at Cara, and walked away.
I watched him momentarily, and one of my girls yelled, “All right, Ms. Ulrich! Woohoo!”
“Shut your mouth!” I yelled good-naturedly. “Stretch those muscles, or we’ll run two miles after practice.” They all laughed, knowing full well I didn’t mean it.
During practice, my mind wandered. It didn’t take much concentration. The girls knew the moves. We were at the point in the routine that we were just cleaning the moves and steps to make sure they were perfect. I had a good team who helped each other when they needed it, so my mind followed a path I didn’t like.
What if there was some kind of clause in my teacher’s contract about dating a parent? No one actually read those things, they just signed at the bottom and handed it back. The idea of bringing up the date to my boss was appalling, so I decided the best course of action was to enjoy myself tonight and if we became serious, I’d tell her then.
“Wow, Ms. Ulrich, he’s a hottie!” one of my girls barked with a laugh, interrupting my thoughts.
“You say that as if you’ve never met the man,” Cara commented. “You spent the night with me just last weekend!”
“Oh my gosh, Ms. Ulrich, you could be Cara’s stepmom!” another one yelled.
Cara turned bright red and rolled her eyes in typical teenage fashion, looking at me like she thought they were such children. I smiled sympathetically at her when she said, “Guys, stop.”
“Okay, ladies, that’s enough. One date does not a wedding make.”
“That’s true, but it’s one step closer.” The girls dissolved into laughter.
“Rest time’s over! Get your flags and get on the field!” I yelled in my best coach voice. One thing was accomplished—the comments ended, but the giggles continued.
***
After practice, I had to run into my office to grab the laptop I used to edit music. Our next pep rally theme was “Circus,” which I hated, but I had what I thought was a wonderful idea for a themed dance that included a mash-up of several songs. The school had given me a Mac to do music editing, although I could have done it on my PC. Either way, I mused.
My date with Will had sat on my mind throughout practice, though I had done my best to keep his presence out of there. Now that I was no longer busy, he was at the forefront of my brain, despite my need to work on the music. It had to be ready before Monday so the girls could take what I had created, add to it, and have it learned and perfected by Friday. I smiled. My team was so amazing.
On my way out of the school, I called my best friend, Madison. We’d been friends since college, although we lived totally different lives. As a lawyer, she’d finished school three years after me, but we’d remained friends. Luckily, she had decided to practice in Ft. Worth in a downtown high-rise, so we were close enough to hang out regularly.
“Madison, I need your help,” I told her as soon as she answered.
“What did you do?” she asked. “I thought you were just having fun with Nikki last night.”
“You think I’m in jail?” I asked, shocked.
“I assumed you killed Nikki’s sister, or at the very least, assaulted her,” Madison said with a laugh.
“Whatever,” I laughed with her. I briefly told her about our night, Jenny’s behavior, the trip to the karaoke bar, and the oh-so-handsome man I’d met who turned out to be a student’s father. “And he came to the field today! I have on no makeup, I’m in yoga pants and an oversized t-shirt, and my hair is in a messy bun. I swear, I look homeless.”
“You never look homeless. Hungover, I’m sure,” she replied.
“I didn’t drink much. Nikki is still passed out at my house,” I told her.
“So, what do you need help with?”
“He won’t tell me where we’re going tonight. I know he had to make reservations, so I’m pretty sure we’re going downtown. He’s wearing jeans, a button up, and boots, and told me to dress to match, but I don’t think jeans are right for me.”
“Agreed. You’re going to downtown Ft. Worth?” she asked.
“Yes, I’m pretty sure. He didn’t actually say! That’s why I need your help. I have teacher clothes, not go-out-on-the-town clothes,” I whined.
“Okay, okay, I already know exactly what you should wear. We bought it in June for that benefit at the Stockyards, remember?”
I thought about the event we’d gone to, a benefit to raise money for children with cystic fibrosis. The non-profit was called Lighter than Air, and each year, they held a silent auction and had live music at a bar that gave all the profits from alcohol that day to the cause. We’d dressed up and danced all night, drinking for the benefit of the children.
“The black dress?” I asked.
“Yes. It’s perfect. It’s a touch of class with a little bit of slut mixed in. You’ll look perfect no matter where you go,” Madison said.
“Boots or heels?” I asked.
“Definitely your cowgirl boots. I bet he’s taking you to Del Frisco’s or Bob’s Steakhouse,” Madison said with certainty.
“What type of restaurants are those?” I asked.
I could practically hear her eyes rolling. “Mel, please, we have to get you out more. Both are incredibly nice restaurants. Pricey, too. Who did you say this guy is?”
“Will Sheron,” I told her.
“Holy shit, Mel! Don’t you know who that is?”
“Uh, Cara’s dad?” I asked facetiously. If Madison knew his name, he had to be someone famous.
“You wear me out, I swear.” Madison cleared her throat. “Did you do any research online?”
“He doesn’t have a Facebook,” I defended.
“Google the man, Mel! And while you’re at it, Google the restaurants,” Madison ordered. “You need to be prepared for what you’re in for.”
“I’m driving! Is he a rehabilitated serial killer? Or worse, is he a ballerina?” I joked. Madison was given to theatrics. “Just tell me. I won’t be home for ten more minutes.”
“Melanie Ulrich, you disappoint me.”
“Yes, yes, blah, blah, stop being a bitch and just tell me.”
Madison giggled; she loved drawing out her fun. “Will Sheron owns the largest ranch in this area. He supplies the beef for most of Ft. Worth. The last article I read about him claimed he was worth at least a billion.”
My mouth hung open, and I nearly missed the turn I took every day to get home. “Crap,” I hissed as I corrected and turned. “He’s a billionaire!”
“How do you not know that? Didn’t you say his daughter is in your class?”
“She’s on my team, actually, but she is so far from what you would imagine a billionaire’s daughter to be. She wears clothes from Old Navy, for Christ’s sake!”
“So they aren’t pretentious. That makes him even better,” Madison murmured. “I’m looking at an article. Damn, Mel, he’s hot.”
“Yeah, I know,” I mumbled. “Listen, I’m home and have to take Nikki to her car. If I’m having a hissy fit closer to the date, I’ll call you back.”
“Need me to come over?” she asked, sympathetic. I didn’t date much.
“Nah, I’ll be fine. But I’m not looking up those restaurants. I don’t need that stress in my life. Maybe we’ll just go to Razzoo’s.”
“Doubtful, but whatever. Call me first thing in the morning. I want every detail. Especially if you fuck him,” Madison snickered.
“I don’t fuck on the first date, Madison,” I growled.
“You should. You’d be a lot more fun,” she answered and hung up before I could argue. I grumbled under my breath and dialed Nikki’s number so she’d be up when I got home.
***
At 6:45, I was one hundred percent ready and so antsy that I worried I’d bounce my foot right off. I paced some, settled on my couch, and paced again. My nerves were on fire, and the realization that I
didn’t date enough explained them. I hadn’t been on a real date since Richard had asked me out, and that had ended poorly.
Will was nothing like Richard, although I hadn’t asked around about him at all. I’d been teaching at Brayman for several years. I knew many people who had lived in Brayman for most of their lives and who would have known him. I could have, but that didn’t seem fair. I didn’t ask former teachers about my new students, either. I liked to develop my own opinions as I got to know them.
