“And this is the swimming pool . . . as you can see,” I said, watching Ethan’s eyes light up when he noticed the pool and the bleachers.
It was the next day after our dinner and Ethan had agreed to join the parents’ meeting in the school, because somehow in the span of a few hours, he could be the school’s interim swim coach. He had picked me up after lunch. Jake still hadn’t called. I had sent him a voicemail in the morning, but he hadn’t replied.
Ethan walked around the empty swim hall, his hands in his pockets. “It reminds me of our school,” he whispered to himself, a small smile playing on his lips.
“Yes, it does,” I said and walked toward the side to show him the locker room and the small office, keeping far away from the pool, because if I tripped in these heels, I was sure I was going to ruin my beige dress which I had chosen just for the parents’ meeting.
“These are the male and female locker rooms. Mr. Davis said you can take over this office for the time being.”
The office was small, but it had a desk, shelf, and in the storage room behind it, all the necessities for swimming.
“It’s small, but you don’t have to use this if you don’t want to. You can come over to mine whenever you want,” I said, turning around.
A small gasp escaped my lips when I saw how close Ethan was standing. I swallowed the lump in my throat when I noticed his familiar cologne. The mild musky scent with cinnamon and something woodsy. When I trailed my eyes over his black shirt, which was stretched across his broad shoulders, I found his dark eyes pinned on me. It took my breath away. I forced my legs to stand and not tremble when he stared at me likethat.
He took a step closer to me, my chest brushing with his shirt, and stepped around me to look around the tiny room. I released the breath I was holding and fixed my dress, noticing how big Ethan looked in the office.
I tucked my hair behind my ear when he surveyed the desk and smiled at me, “It’s perfect. Thank you, Kiara.”
I returned his smile, my heart beating faster than before. “You don’t have to thank me for it, Ethan.” I glanced at my wristwatch. “It’s time for the parent-teacher meeting. Are you ready?”
“As ready as I can ever be.”
* * *
All the kids were seated beside their parents while Ethan and I stood beside each other behind the table of the classroom. Every teacher had to explain the syllabus regarding their subject. I had just finished explaining my syllabus for this semester and also told the parents how they could help their kids with their academics without pressuring them into studying more.
“Any questions?” I asked, trying to ignore the way Ethan was looking at me from his side. Throughout the whole thing, I had felt his heavy gaze on me, warming my skin, but I had tried my best to stay professional and not let him affect me.
But I was failing badly. If I could, I would tie my hair in a bun and fan myself with something, because I was turning into mush.
Why is he affecting me so much?
One mother raised her hand and wriggled her eyebrows at Ethan with a dirty smile. “Who is that fine man?”
Ethan offered a smile. “Hello, I am Ethan Kane and I will volunteer here as a swim coach for a couple of months.”
One of the women said, “Oh, is it only for our kids or can we join too? I need some lessons in correcting my positions.”
I bit my lip and looked at Anya who wriggled her eyebrows at me. Even though my cheeks were flushed, I couldn’t deny that Ethan was handsome and reeked of raw masculinity that could make any woman into a puddle if he just looked at her. The mothers of the kids had always been playful flirts with all the male teachers, so Ethan was not an exception. I knew this would happen. Even Anya had warned me to protect Ethan.
Now’s the time to play my role.
I announced, “Oh, look, it’s time for the one-on-one meetings, why don’t you guys come to my office?”
The kids and the adults immediately started talking among themselves while I took my files and looked at Ethan who was surveying me.
“Come with me.”
He smirked, “I thought you wanted me to stay here and look after—”
With a firm voice, I said, “I need your assistance.”
He raised his eyebrow. “Assistance, you say?”
Rolling my eyes at him, I walked to my teacher’s office, which was similar to the coach’s office but still had a bigger space. It was beside my classroom, and if I wasn’t teaching, I was in my office most of the time.
One parent after another, I talked to them about their kids and made sure both the parent and the student left the office with a smile on their lips. Ethan sat beside me and answered parents’ questions about how they could help their kids reach Olympic trials. I watched him explain all of it and was proud of him when he heartily talked to them.