She sat back against the vinyl seat, staring at him. “Nothing,” she finally replied, dropping the crust of her last slice of pizza onto her plate.
“That’s not a ‘nothing’ face,” he argued, handing her a napkin and taking one for himself. They cleaned up the plates, stacking everything and the red-headed teen came over quickly.
“All done?” he asked, even though there was nothing left of the pizza. “I’ll just get you your check,” and he took the empty plates and pizza pan, heading back into the kitchen.
Emily looked around, seeming to be a bit self-conscious now. “You really seem to know your history.”
He shrugged, taking a couple of twenty-dollar bills out of his wallet and tossing them onto the table. “I like to read,” he came right back.
She smiled and her look was a bit shy now. “I thought you were a football fan.”
He grinned, laughing softly. “I didn’t know that the two interests were mutually exclusive.”
Her grin widened. “I really wish that you’d tell that to some of my students.”
Walking out of the Italian restaurant, Kurt looked around, trying to come up with some reason to extend their time together. He liked her, which was a fascinating occurrence. He liked women, but he wasn’t always attracted to the women he found interesting. In his world, there were women to talk to, and women he had sex with. Usually, those women weren’t one and the same. But with Emily, he’d genuinely enjoyed having dinner with her tonight.
“Can I take you out for dinner tomorrow? I’d like to get to know you a bit more.”
She stared up at him under the lights of the parking lot. The sun had set over an hour ago and he hadn’t realized the passing of time.
“Maybe that wouldn’t be a good idea,” she said and pulled her keys out of her purse.
“Why not?”
She bit her lip and his body tightened. Already so turned on just from conversing with her, this latest stimulation wasn’t welcome.
He watched as she looked around, her eyes skimming along the parking lot, as if looking for someone in particular. When her eyes looked up at him, his gut clenched at the pain in her pretty, brown eyes.
“I’m damaged,” she whispered up at him, then looked around, seeing if any of the other patrons were close enough to have overheard her comment. She shifted on her feet and he waited, needing more. “I’m damaged and I don’t…I don’t date, Kurt.”
He wasn’t accepting that. “You’ve been hurt, Emily. You’re not destroyed.”
She blinked, still doing that nibbling thing with her teeth. She had beautiful lips, he thought, watching her.
“I don’t need a man in my life. It’s taken me a long time to get here, but I’m perfectly content. I have peace.”
“Is that all you want from life?” he asked, moving closer slightly. Not as close as he’d like, unfortunately. If he had his preference, there wouldn’t be any space between them. Hell, there wouldn’t be any clothes between them!
She shrugged and he kept his eyes from looking down at the dark shadow of her blouse.
“It’s just…really nice to be content, Kurt. I suspect that you might…alter my peaceful life.” With that hanging out there, she hurried off to her car and drove away.
Kurt watched her leave. Normally, he would be really irritated if someone left like that. But with Emily, he felt as if he’d just won a major victory. She’d admitted that he broke through the carefully constructed wall she’d hidden behind. Hell, that was pretty major! Yeah, he could work with that!
Chapter 5
“Okay class!” Emily called out, bringing all of the chattering teenagers to silence as she moved to the center of her classroom. Another sleepless night, she sighed as she stared out at the sea of curious, cautious gazes. “We’ve just finished the colonial period of US History. Tell me what you think is the most significant thing to have happened during this time period? And there are no right or wrong answers, but I want you to explain your opinion.”
She looked around and waited, her eyes moving over the room. Silence. She almost laughed when she noticed several of the students practically vibrating with the need to raise their hand and answer the question. But the school year was still too new and no one had established themselves as the class leader yet. It would happen, but it might take another few weeks.
“Anyone?” she prompted.
Slowly, four hands went up into the air. As expected, the four hands were from the students who had scored the highest on the last test. “Jessy! Tell me your opinion.”
She went through all four of the students and, within ten minutes, there was a lively debate with the entire class going on about which event between the two hundred and fifty year colonial period was the most significant. The debate was fueled by the small candies that she pulled out of her desk. Anytime a student gave an answer or responded to another person’s opinion, she tossed a candy to them. It was a cheap way to gain enthusiasm and participation in the classroom and the kids loved it.
The bell rang, signaling the end of the class and the students groaned as they gathered up their books and papers. “Read chapter three for homework tonight!” she called out to her students as they shuffled towards the door. It’s America in Revolt and there might be a pop quiz tomorrow!”
She laughed softly when she heard more groans. She had about two minutes before the next group of student started filtering into class and Emily walked over to her desk, pulling out notes on the next subject. Her first period class was on American government but the next class was world history and it was an honors class. All that really meant was that she went into more detail and the kids were required to take the Advanced Placement test in May which might earn them college credit.
“You’re good,” a deep voice called out.
Emily swung around, spotting Kurt in the doorway. “Oh!” she backed up, then realized she was in retreat and stopped herself. “What are you doing here?”
He smiled and pushed away from the door. “I left you several messages, Emily. You didn’t call me back.”
She looked down, irritated that she hadn’t been able to pull her mind back in gear in the few days since she’d had dinner with him. What was it about this man that just…got under her defenses? Men didn’t do this to her! They didn’t fluster her! They didn’t make her yearn for…more. She only wanted friendships with men. So why did she keep waking up from steamy, heated dreams about this man?! It was…unnerving! And the reason why she hadn’t returned his calls.
Apparently, her silly reaction to this man was also the reason he was here in her classroom now.
Stiffening her resolve, she lifted her head and looked him directly in the eye. “I’m sorry. I was going to call you back, but…” she shrugged and looked out the window of her classroom. “Well, I’ve been very busy. The first couple of weeks of school are always a bit…chaotic.”
“And you hate chaos, don’t you?” he asked her softly.
Darn it! He knew her too well! How could he know that about her? They’d spent…maybe a few hours in each other’s company and during that time, they’d been debating…history and philosophy! Nothing personal.
She shrugged, feigning indifference when, in reality, chaos made her nuts. “Why would you assume that I hate chaos? It’s part of my job.”
He chuckled and stepped back as she moved around him. “Because you think Aristotle is the most significant philosopher in western thinking,” he replied back smoothly.
She stopped in the process of pulling a stack of papers out of her cabinet. Looking over her shoulder at him, she asked, “Why does that make you assume that I hate chaos?”
“Because Aristotle was all about logic and process.”
She huffed a bit, holding the papers like a shield in front of her. “And now you think that I’m opposed to chaos because of my preference in philosophers?”
“No,” he moved closer to her. “I think it because you try to control all aspects of your
life. You need control. That’s what leads me to believe that you don’t like chaos.”
He was right, darn it! Charlotte had tried to get her to release some of her control issues, but…well, after what had happened to her in high school, Emily didn’t want to release any of her control. That’s what gave her security and routine. She thrived when there was a routine, something she could anticipate and work with.
“Chaos is the enemy of progress,” she quoted.
“Churchill?”
Emily nodded and two of the students for her next class swept into her room, stopped, then stared with open-mouthed fascination when they spotted Kurt. After a brief and teenager-like pause, the two ladies moved to their seats, giggling with excitement.
He nodded politely to the two girls and moved closer to Emily. Lowering his head, he said into her ear, “Chaos in the world breeds uneasiness,” he quoted, then turned to look directly into her eyes, “but it also allows the opportunity for creativity and growth.”
Emily blinked, trying to place the quote. “Who said that?” she asked…whispered actually. His lips were too close to her ear and it made her flustered.
“Tom Barrett said that.” He looked up when several more students walked into the room. “I need to talk to you. When is your lunch time?”
She glanced at her watch. “I have lunch next period. It’s in forty-five minutes.”
He nodded and looked at the analog clock on the wall. “I’ll be back.”
A moment later, he was out the door, leaving a bunch of teenage girls giggling as they stared after him with longing.
“I know how you feel, ladies,” she muttered. Thankfully, none of the students knew her well enough to understand what she meant. There were only two minutes left before the bell sounded, which meant that students were rushing into the classroom now, grabbing their seats and pulling out their notes from the previous class.
Emily gritted here teeth, frustrated that she couldn’t dismiss the man as easily. But before she could get her mind…and her body…in gear, the bell rang. Twenty-five students turned and stared up at her, all of them eager to start the day’s lesson. Gotta love an honors class, she thought and pulled her attention away from the man who had left her curious and…breathless.
“Okay, yesterday, we had a conversation about the Halfway Covenant in New England. Last night, you were supposed to read about the witch trials. Who can tell me…” and she started in on the impact of economics and politics on the disbursement of justice in small communities.
For the next forty-five minutes, Emily tried very hard to focus. The Salem witch trials were a fascinating subject and she showed the students a graph that argued the punishments and accusations were more politically motivated. One analysis argued that the witch trials were the first instance of American gerrymandering.
Unfortunately, because she was watching the clock during that entire period, she didn’t give the subject the attention it deserved. The bell rang and Emily mentally groaned. “I’ll load this graph up onto our class account,” she said, referring to the internet site that gave students special access and allowed her to post homework assignments. That way, no student could ever say that they didn’t know when something was due.
The students meandered or rushed out, depending on whether they had lunch next period, or if they were heading to their next class. The students ate in shifts, but thankfully, Emily had this whole period to herself. It was her lunch, planning, and grading period, but she never finished all three of those tasks in just one period, which was why she almost always stayed after school to finish or brought her work home with her to work on at night.
Unfortunately, she didn’t think she’d get anything done during her planning period today. Not with Kurt stopping by to “talk” to her. She had no idea what he needed to discuss with her, but she was fairly sure that she didn’t want to hear it. Emily needed him out of her life! She needed her routines and her sleep back! And she definitely needed to stop thinking about him in a sexual way!
Before she could call the front office and tell them not to let him through, he was walking through her classroom door, a big bag and two drinks in his hand. He closed the door and looked over his shoulder at her. “Relax, this isn’t going to be bad,” he promised.
She stood stiffly beside her desk. “Depends on what you consider bad,” she retorted.
Another chuckle and he set the bag down on the desk. “Good point.” He reached into the bag and pulled out two sandwiches. “Ham and cheese or meatball sub?”
Emily loved both, but she didn’t want to admit that to him. The less he knew about her, the better. “Whichever you don’t want.”
He handed her the ham and cheese. “I got you a diet soda. I wasn’t sure what you prefer to drink so I made a sexist assumption.”
She laughed because he seemed completely unrepentant of his sexist ways. “Thank you,” she replied, taking the diet soda and waving it towards the back of her classroom where a table was set up with a couple of chairs. “We can eat back there,” she told him. “There’s a bit more space and the kids can’t spy on us as easily.”
“You’ve got this all worked out?” he asked as he followed her towards the back of the classroom.
“Believe me, every teacher has this figured out. Not just for moments of privacy, but also because of the potential for mass shootings.” She sighed and sat down. “It’s a horrible realty that we all face now.” She shifted in her chair and looked at him. “What do you need to talk with me about?”
“Let’s eat first,” he said and nodded towards her sandwich. “I didn’t put any olives on it this time.”
She grinned and took a bite. “Thank you for bringing me a sandwich. I have some soup in the teacher’s room, but this is much better and I’m starving!”
While they ate, he told her about the latest break-in that had happened the night before, about the patterns that they were starting to see and that they had several new suspects.
“That’s great,” she commented, but something was bothering her, something he hadn’t told her yet and she couldn’t put her finger on exactly what that was.
When he finished off his sandwich, he wiped his hands and leaned back in the uncomfortable plastic chair. That’s when she knew something more was going on.
“Okay, spill it,” she ordered, wrapping up the second half of her sandwich. It was too big for her to eat in one sitting, and she suspected she wasn’t going to like whatever he was about to tell her.
Kurt leaned forward, resigned as he looked into her eyes. “Keith and I think that your break-in wasn’t part of the pattern. We suspect that yours was done by someone else.” He paused and she waited, knowing from the look in his eyes that there was something more.
“And?” she prompted.
He sighed and leaned forward. “And, we think that it might be personal. The damage in your apartment, it seemed more personal. As if someone was angry with you.”
Emily swallowed painfully as she stared up at him. “Personal,” she whispered the word.
“Yes. And we suspect that there have been additional…incidents over the past few days.”
Her eyes widened. “What other incidents?” she asked, afraid to hear his answer, but afraid to not hear as well. Knowledge was power, she reminded herself.
“You drive a silver Camry, correct?” he asked, even though he knew the answer.
Yes,” she confirmed.
“A silver Camry was vandalized three days ago.”
“No!”
He nodded. “Yeah, and the door to your apartment has fresh marks on it today.”
Emily’s hand moved to cover her heart and she leaned forward, trying to absorb this news. “That’s not good. Someone tried to break in again? But…I don’t have anything to steal? They discovered that…” she paused, the information sinking in, “the first time,” she finished weakly.
“Exactly,” he replied. He leaned forward and took her hands in his. “Emily, i
s there someone you could stay with? Somewhere you can stay that this person doesn’t know about?”
She thought frantically, trying to figure out some place to live until the police had caught this person. “My parents live in Kentucky. They’re about six hours away.”
“A friend?”
She shook her head. “I have a lot of friends, but no one that I’m close enough to that I’d be willing to impose on.”
He pressed his lips together. “Fine,” he replied. “Then you’ll stay with me.”
Emily looked up at him and, for a brief moment, she didn’t understand what he meant. Then his words hit her and…she burst out laughing. Leaning back in her chair, she covered her mouth with her hand as the amusement released the built up tension in her shoulders. “Oh, thank you!” she gasped when the laughter finally slowed down. “I needed that.” She stood and gathered up their garbage, glancing at the clock on the wall. “My free period is about to end. I need to…”
“There’s more,” he interrupted and stood up with her. “I want to be in your classroom, observing the students.”
She pulled back, shocked by his comment. “In here?” Emily looked around at her classroom, startled and not sure what he meant. “But…why?”
“Because the incidents seem…a bit juvenile,” he explained. “We think that the perpetrator is a student.”
She shook her head, denying his comments. “No! No way! These kids are…they don’t do things like that!”
“It’s the beginning of the school year, Emily. You don’t know the students well enough to make that statement.”
True, but…darn it! “The principal won’t allow it. It’s an invasion of the students’ privacy.”
“My lieutenant has already approved it with your principal and the county school board. It’s done.”
She stared at him for a long moment, waiting for that sense of powerlessness to surface. But instead, she felt…safe. When he’d first told her about the differences in pattern, a pain had begun in her chest and stomach. But with his assurance that he would be with her during the day, Emily felt that panic, that nausea, slip away. The fear had been banished with the knowledge that a big, bad detective was going to be nearby.
Endearing Seduction (The Diamond Club Book 12) Page 4
