Page 3 of She's the Star

“Mr. Byrne. Thank you for joining us,” Patty, the secretary of the board, says. I smile weakly. It isn’t like I had a choice. I was summoned. “Here at Little Acres Academy, the character of our teachers and administrators is of the utmost importance. You might remember that when you were originally hired, and again when we appointed you headmaster, you signed a morality agreement.”

She reaches across the table and places a copy in front of me. There’s no reason for me to pick it up. I know what it says, and I also know I’m not in violation of it. The truth is, even if I had known about Carla being married to Stuart, I’m an unattached man; I can sleep with whomever I want—as long as it’s consensual and private.

It isn’t private anymore.

I barely resist squeezing my eyes closed. It won’t help, anyway. There’s no escaping the fact that I’ve seen Stuart’s wife’s lips wrapped around my dick.

I’ve never been more thankful that my olive skin tone doesn’t broadcast my embarrassment. I wish I’d attended Stuart’s wedding rather than visiting my brother during spring break. If I had, I would’ve recognized Carla as his wife. Her lilting accent would have held no appeal. And I definitely wouldn’t have brought her back to my place.

All evidence to the contrary, my desire to get laid does not supersede my common sense. I find no satisfaction in sleeping with someone I shouldn’t. And I don’t get off on the forbidden. Years of watching my father sleep with every woman who catches his fancy has made me sensible.

Not sensible enough, apparently.

“I haven’t violated the agreement,” I respond as evenly as I can.

“You fucked my wife.” Stuart’s voice is cold and controlled.

I don’t flinch, but I want to. Goodbye dignity.

Stuart has been a thorn in my side since last year when he became director. He fights me on everything, from salaries to training to discipline. He has no respect for educators—or anyone he deems inferior—and it’s obvious he doesn’t care whether I violated the policy or not.

For a brief second, I consider leveraging my father’s name. If they knew who he was, the other members of the board might be willing to support me.

I tug at my collar and keep my mouth shut. It might be foolish, but I earned this job on my own merits, and even now, as I’m about to lose it, I don’t want to rely on my famous father to save me.

When I don’t respond, Stuart asks, “Why did you choose Carla? Did you think you could use her as leverage to increase teacher salaries?”

I almost laugh. Is he kidding? What kind of man sleeps with a woman for leverage? The urge to defend myself spikes. “I didn’t know she was your wife.”

“Bullshit,” he spats. “She drops Kendal and Barnaby at school every Thursday.”

“I’m not generally present at the carpool line,” I respond, clinging to my composure. I do know most of the parents by sight, but we haven’t started our end of the year events yet, so it isn’t that shocking that I haven’t met his wife of less than a month.

He shakes his head and scoffs. “I won’t let you get away with this. Little Acres will not allow a sexual deviant to be our headmaster.”

Patty gasps. “Stuart.”

I try not to react. At least not outwardly.

She leans over and whispers in his ear. She’s a high-powered defense attorney, so it isn’t hard to guess what she’s saying. They may want to fire me, but they don’t want to get sued.

She turns her attention back to me with a tight smile. “What Stuart meant to say is that the board is concerned it may not be in the best interest of the students for you to remain headmaster. Kendal and Barnaby might be permanently scarred if they’re forced to regularly encounter the man who slept with their new stepmother.”

I wait to see if she has anything else to say, but she remains silent. The urge to stand up and walk right out of the room is almost impossible to resist. Why is this happening to me?

“It doesn’t seem appropriate to share the details of my sex life with preschoolers,” I finally reply.

Patty purses her lips. Some of the board members shift uncomfortably. It’s a hard point to argue, but Stuart makes a valiant effort. “They wanted to know why Carla left.”

“And you told them?” What in the hell is wrong with him?

“I don’t believe in lying to my children,” he says stiffly.

“It hardly matters why they know,” Patty interrupts. “The fact remains that they do know. And we know. Carla was not subtle in her…praise of you.”

I feel heat creeping up my neck. I hate having my personal life judged and dissected. I feel violated, both by Carla and the people in this room. Even though my sex life consists mostly of one-night stands, I don’t kiss and tell.

Unfortunately, it seems like Carla does.

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