Claiming the Teacher: (Class is in Session Book 2)

by Remi Grey

  Claiming the Teacher

  REMI GREY

  Copyright © 2019 Remi Grey – All Rights Reserved

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Cover Created By Embrace the Pace Designs

  The following story contains mature themes, strong language, and sexual situations. It is intended for mature readers.

  Contents

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  EPILOGUE

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  About the Book

  An Alpha Male Second Chance Romance

  Corey:

  Every day was a learning experience now that it was just me and Caiden.

  It was learning routines, getting him up on time, and helping him with his homework.

  It was being enough for him now that Kaylee had left us.

  When I first met Danielle, the last thing I thought about was jumping into another relationship especially when I had Caiden to think about, but some things just sneak up on you.

  I would have to learn how to trust another woman enough to let her into both my and my son’s lives.

  Danielle:

  I swore to myself that this year would be different.

  Without distractions from men, I could make this school year the best one for both me and my students.

  It was a new city with new people--something that I had been begging for.

  I didn’t plan on letting anyone get in the way of the fresh start I wanted to create for myself until I met Corey.

  Claiming the Teacher is a short and sweet love story about two people who have to learn how to overcome their past in order to secure a better future. It isn’t as easy as either of them think, but their love for each other forces them to make sacrifices. This is the second story in the Class is in Session series. No Cliffhangers!

  Chapter 1

  Corey

  I never in a million years thought that I’d be sitting across from the person I vowed to love forever with a stack of divorce papers between us. It worked as a barrier almost, as well as the distance we created for ourselves every day for the past eight months. Now, my wife Kaylee was unrecognizable as she looked up at me with her piercing gray eyes with her blonde hair tossed up into a messy bun. She pulled the papers toward her, pausing briefly as though thinking about her actions for the first time. Then, the pen hit the paper.

  As it slid across the lines where the lawyer had denoted for us to sign, it echoed in my mind. It was like a whisper except more sinister, like a hiss. It seemed to go on forever as she flipped through the papers and left her signature. She hesitated at one of the papers, biting her lips and drumming her fingers on the table. Then, she signed her name and sighed. She pushed herself off from the table and stood up after handing the papers to the lawyer.

  She turned back and looked at me from the door as I focused my attention on the wooden surface under my hands. I rubbed my finger by instinct, a nervous tick I picked up after being married to her for six years. This time there was no wedding band for me to swirl around.

  “I’m so sorry, Corey,” she said. She lingered for a beat, surely waiting for me to look up or reply in some way, but I could only wait until I heard the final click of the door to raise my head.

  “I will get these filed and then you will officially be divorced,” the lawyer said.

  Her voice was a hum in the back of my mind. I thought back to the conditions of our divorce that had been laid out on the papers. I thought back to the home she left me and the car that she took, a gift from me to her two years ago. Then, I remembered the clause about our eight-year-old son. Caiden. How the most invaluable thing we created, the best thing we ever did as a couple, fell to just a few words on paper was baffling to me. And even more crazy was the fact that she had signed away her rights to custody of our son.

  As much as I despised her as a mother now, I couldn’t seem to become at ease with the fact that I didn’t know when Caiden would see his mother again. I pondered over what I would tell him. His big brown eyes were inherited from me, but his smile was all her. She took everything from us. Everything that mattered anyway. And worst of all, she took a mother away from Caiden and with that the smile she’d given him to begin with.

  ***

  The alarm rang sharply in my ear. I groaned as I turned over and grabbed a pillow from the side of me, wrapping it around my head to lull the racket. I was getting accustomed to the muffled ringing until a realization propped me up. The thought of it being a full month since the divorce was final suddenly hit my mind. I shut off my alarm and threw myself down the hallway and into Caiden's bedroom which was marked by a big blue ‘C’.

  “Caiden, rise and shine, buddy,” I said as I shook him lightly. He started to groan, reaching for a pillow and moving it over his head. I pulled open the curtains to let the light shine through which made him toss and turn even more.

  “I don’t want to go to school,” he moaned.

  “Well, I don’t want to go to work, but I’ve still gotta do that. How would you like it if we stayed home all day and did nothing?” I asked him as I moved toward his bed again.

  “I’d like that,” he replied from under the covers.

  “And how would you like it if I made no money doing nothing and I couldn’t give you an allowance?” I asked him again.

  “I wouldn’t like that,” he mumbled.

  “Okay then, get up and hit the shower before I bring it over here,” I exclaimed as I headed out the door. After seeing him sitting up on his bed, I rushed down the stairs to get a head start on breakfast. The oven clock marked eight AM. With class beginning at eight thirty, I was later than I thought.

  “Caiden, I better hear that shower!” I shouted as I stuck my head into the fridge. To myself, I muttered, “Okay, eggs it is.” I pulled out the carton only to see that it was empty. “Damn it.” I pulled open the pantry and saw some oatmeal. “Caiden!” I reminded him as I tossed some water on the stove to boil.

  “I’m going! I’m going!” His voice came out clear. I took a relieved breath, knowing that he was out of his room. The door to the bathroom shut and the shower was turned on. As the water boiled, I whipped up a peanut butter sandwich and threw in some snacks and a water bottle for his lunch for later.

  Caiden was down the stairs ten minutes later with his hair drenched. “Erm, is that how you’re going to wear your hair today?” I asked him as I set his bowl of oatmeal on the table.

  “Yeah,” he said simply.

  I nodded wearily, thinking about the comb and gel I needed to jog upstairs for. Right as I was about to head for it, he called for me. “Dad, I hate oatmeal,” he complained.

  “I thought you loved it,” I explained.

  “I don’t,” he insisted, poking at it with his spoon.

&
nbsp; I sighed as I glanced back at the time. 8:17 AM. With a five-minute drive to the school but three minutes just to get Caiden out the house and in the car, I had only five minutes to get his hair done and breakfast eaten.

  “I’ll make you some cereal then.”

  “We don’t have any,” Caiden added with an eyebrow raised. I turned to the top of the fridge to find disappointment. “Then I’ll buy you some. Get your backpack on so we can head out.” I zoomed up the stairs and returned with a comb and some gel.

  “Not too much,” he said without having to look at it.

  “I’m not.”

  “No, dad, what are you doing?” he said when I started combing. He picked up the iPad and turned on the camera app, so he could see. “No, mom doesn’t do it like this.” I paused briefly at his words then turned to him and said, “I promise it’ll look good, okay? We just have to do it my way this morning. Don’t wanna be late.”

  “Yeah, we can’t be late,” he agreed, letting me mold his hair how I pleased. “I have a field trip.” I finished off his hair and led him to the door. “Did you sign my permission slip?”

  “What permission slip Caiden? What field trip?”

  “The trip to the museum. It’s today, dad. I can’t be the only one not going. Ms. Parker said it has to be turned in by the morning. I always leave it on the counter, so that you can sign it when I’m getting ready.” I furrowed my eyebrows, prompting him to run off to the bar in the kitchen and snatch the paper off of it. “See?”

  I thought back to when Kaylee would be making breakfast for Caiden. I remembered whenever Caiden was asleep or before she’d get started making breakfast, she’d go through the papers on the table and sign them before placing them in his backpack along with the lunch she packed for him. She’d have just enough time to run through his hair with a comb and listen to whatever story he had for her. Then, she’d take his hand and she’d drive him to school. Why was it I never knew he hated oatmeal? Why was it I overlooked the papers on the bar? Then a sour thought surfaced in my mind. Why was it so easy for her to just give up on us? To give up on him?

  “I’ve got you buddy,” I said reaching for the pen he was holding up and signing the paper really quick. “Here. Now, let’s go.”

  We arrived at the school at 8:40. I had wanted to give Caiden money for breakfast at school, but he insisted he wouldn’t have enough time to eat before he had to board the field trip buses, so we quickly stopped at a fast food restaurant.

  “Dad, look, that’s my class!”

  As I parked, I noticed a bus in front of the school and a large group of students. I got out of the car and led Caiden out to them. When I got closer, I noticed that along with two other parents, the teacher was in the middle of the group directing all the kids.

  “Ms. Parker!” Caiden called out to her. He flung around his permission slip which got her attention. A smile pulled at her lips as she walked up to us. Her dark eyes brightened as she looked from Caiden to me.

  “Hi, Caiden,” she said as she accepted his permission slip. “You must be his father.” She held out her hand to me. “My name is Danielle.” The way her gaze held mine as she took me in made it seem like her eyes were smiling.

  I took my time as I took her hand and shook it. “Corey, nice to meet you.”

  “I was expecting Kaylee, but I am so glad to have you as a chaperone today.”

  I was taken aback at the sound of her name. It was still odd to hear it so casually, strange to hear it used as though she were still an active part of our lives.

  “Dad, are you coming with us?” Caiden questioned excitedly.

  “I have to get to work in less than an hour…” I trailed. I quieted down when I saw the look in Caiden’s eyes. I bit my tongue and sighed. The idea that instead of Kaylee, he’d have no one with him pained me, so I nodded my head before I could even process a valid excuse, I’d give my job. “You know what? I think I am coming with you all.” I shot a smile at Caiden who lit up at the news before turning to Danielle who smiled back, seemingly as happy as Caiden was.

  “You can sit up front with me,” she said.

  Chapter 2

  Danielle

  The wheels of my car gripped the road as it unwinded before me. In the early hours of the morning without anyone to occupy the long strips of road, I was free to cruise and let my mind unwind. For the first time in a long time, there was no one to criticize every little thing I did, no one to judge me. The feeling of fear and excitement spilled into each other like one huge cocktail and I was intoxicated.

  I tightened my hold on the steering wheel and let my mind fall into a deep sense of peace. Even with the memories of my past flooding into my mind, there was still that level of satisfaction. It was the only way I could feel now that I had made it out.

  I pulled my car off the road and parked it on the side. With the dirt rising and creating clouds around me, the sight I was so desperate to see wasn’t revealed until a few beats later. I exited the car, propped myself on the hood and took in the skyline. With the trees around me and the sun greeting me like I was the first it was to see, it felt like I had found my own oasis. I took in a deep breath and exhaled, repeating it once more and feeling a natural high overwhelm me. It felt good to be free.

  The weight in my windbreaker called out to me. Shoving my hand into the pockets, I pulled out a pearl necklace. It slunk in my palms, smooth and patient, until it became like a burden in my hand, stinging the very flesh it was resting on. I raised it above my eyes and launched it in front of me, hearing as it grumbled down the side of the cliff and landed on the rocks below. I reached into my pocket again. A photo. Unfolding it revealed a younger me with a smile perched so innocently on my face. My two older sisters were on either side of me with a pleasant smile. I laughed at the lies I held in my hands and crumpled up the photo, tossing it behind the necklace.

  The last thing in my pocket felt the heaviest. I pulled it out and stared at it for a long while. The way the diamond reflected the morning rays was mesmerizing and I almost wanted to keep it just so I could play with it a little longer, but I was done with the games. After all, I always came out to be the loser. I squeezed the ring in my hand, raising it above me, and then launching it high into the air. It revolved as it looped over and over. At the peak of its ascent, the light from the sun made it seem like it was winking at me. After years of rolling the same dice to no avail, I finally was coming out the winner.

  ***

  A few hours later, I found myself on the bus heading to the museum. I turned away from the road and to my right where Corey sat. I was expecting Kaylee, I thought, remembering what I had told him when he first approached me. I cursed myself in my head for being so foolish before my eyes fell from him to his hands. He was rubbing his finger as though there was a pain in it. During the brief moment he pulled away, I saw a marking on his skin where a ring used to be. I averted my eyes immediately when he looked up at me.

  “What kind of museum is this?” he asked.

  “Natural Sciences,” I said. “The kids have been learning about dinosaurs, so I figured that this would be a great learning experience.” He nodded. When he said nothing, I bit my lip anxiously and prepared to turn back to the window.

  “Caiden seemed super excited for it.”

  “Oh, yeah?” I said, grateful for him prolonging the conversation.

  He nodded and chuckled. “Yup, almost made us late because I forgot to sign the papers. He has a whole system down, and it seems that I’m just now learning it.” The way his eyes fell slightly revealed a story that his lips weren’t ready to tell. When his eyes met mine again, the light from the window hit them in a way that resembled the diamond ring from this morning. Mesmerizing. And I wanted to stare into them all day. “But we figured it out. Thankfully.” He gave me a crooked smile as he turned to look at his son who was active in a conversation with one of his classmates.

  A smile rested on my lips as I watched him watch Caiden, the warmth in m
y body overwhelming me like a million suns. When I realized what I was doing, I took a sharp breath and pulled away from him. I knew the game too well. If I couldn’t promise myself to never let myself be hurt by another man, I could at least promise myself to never date a student’s parent. Because that was easy. I just had to get through this field trip and that would be it.

  Caiden waved at me from afar. I didn’t realize that we had caught each other’s eye. I beamed at him and waved back. “Having fun, guys? We’re going to be there in about five minutes.” Caiden and his friends erupted with joy just as Corey turned to me.

  “He really loves you,” he confessed with a grin.

  I laughed at his comment and cursed myself in my head again for letting my eyes travel to his lips again. No matter what rule I had put into my head, my heart was a stronger force as I immediately thought, and I love you after his comment. With the intensifying beating in my chest and the lightness in my head whenever I looked at him, I knew that stopping myself from falling in love was going to be anything but easy.