Page 5 of XOXO, Valentina

Heat filled my cheeks, and I swept the book into my desk drawer. “Maybe you should buy her one.”

He laughed, and the rich sound filled me like a beam of light. His gaze dropped from my face to the flush on my neck. “Maybe I will.”

Could his accent be any sexier? And the lips forming the words were even better. Full and firm, they’d been made for kissing.

The intercom buzzed again. “Mrs. Salinger.”

I straightened in my chair as if I’d been zapped and pressed the button on the intercom. “Yes?”

“Ms. Taylor is here. She wants to speak to you about Kaylee.”

“Please tell her to make an appointment. I’m in the middle of something.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I sat back in my seat and gave Mr. Morales a stern look, signaling it was back to business. No more leaning closer and imagining dragging Mr. Morales across my desk so I could devour his pillow-soft lips. My priorities were back in order. “As I was saying—”

The buzz sounded again. “Hi, Mrs. Salinger,” said a female voice over the intercom. “This is Chelsea Taylor. Can you spare a moment of your time?”

Mr. Morales moved as if to stand. “Should we continue this later?”

“No.” I rose and pushed back my chair. “I’ll be right back.”

Once in the main office, I approached Ms. Taylor with a tight smile. She cocked her head at me and straightened her shoulders. Ms. Taylor was an anomaly among elementary-school mothers. She never looked ruffled, her clothes were on trend, and her hair was perfectly styled in beauty waves. I suspected the impressive smoothness of her face had something to do with injectables, but whatever she’d done had been well worth the money. Even though I knew she was older than me, she didn’t look a day over thirty. If I ran into Ms. Taylor outside the office, I might be intimidated, but at school, I was empowered by my authority.

“Bullying is not tolerated at PES,” I said, giving her the no-nonsense look I used on the children. “No matter who is doing the bullying.”

When Ms. Taylor continued to question me, I told her I would be glad to have a conference with her and Kaylee’s teacher, but she would need to make an appointment with Mr. Collins. Apologizing for my abruptness, I told her I needed to get back to my prior engagement and went back to my office without giving her a chance to respond.

I closed my door and paused for a moment, getting my priorities straight. Mr. Morales’s back was to me, and to my chagrin, even the back of his head was handsome. My fingers itched to tangle themselves in the thick, dark waves of his hair.

He turned toward me in his chair and pinned me with his caramel-colored eyes. “I think I know why you asked to see me,” he said.

Relief mingled with regret. The unavoidable moment had arrived. I squared my shoulders and crossed the room to stand behind my desk. “Good,” I said.

“I know we aren’t allowed to have homemade goods for school activities. But the food will make the Fun Festival come to life.” He leaned forward in his chair and braced his hands on his knees.

A headache built behind my eyes. Because… firing him. When I finally got around to doing it, I would have to tell him why. I’d have to admit I’d seen him receiving sexual favors from a buxom blonde after hours in his classroom.

I’d have to say the words, and when I did, I was going to blush. And he was going to know I’d watched through the tiny glass partition of his door much longer than I should have.

The Iron Lady was only so strong. She didn’t stand a chance against the image of Mr. Morales’s strong thighs, his tight abs, his—

“Nina Valbuena is so excited to share her mother’s tamales,” he said. “And Summer Carleton is making a recipe from her favorite book. You could bring a dish of your own. Can’t we bend the rules a little?”

What? Were we still talking about the Fun Festival? My mind had drifted to the scene I’d witnessed, the accidental hummer incident.

“I’m afraid not all rules were made to be bent, Mr. Morales,” I said sternly.

“I understand.” He clasped his hands in his lap. “It would just mean so much to the kids.”

His mention of the students made me doubt my convictions. Mr. Morales was one of the most beloved teachers at our school. The kids would be devastated to lose him, and it was almost the end of the year. Maybe I could put him on probation?

Technically, I was the only one who knew about his inappropriate behavior. Well, I had told my book club friends, but they wouldn’t say anything. And if I said nothing, no one would else would know.

It had been at night when no one was at school but me and the custodian.Could I let him get away with it?

It went against all my principles to let him break the rules and avoid punishment. Didn’t he know his behavior wasn’t to be tolerated? Even if no kids were around, sex on campus was a huge no-no. Maybe he’d thought he was safe since it was after hours. Maybe it wasn’t his fault.

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