Page 44 of Welcome to Forever
And that thought scared the hell out of him.
“Then it’s a date.” She tucked a loose strand of her blond hair behind her ear.
He nodded. A date. Dating was not what he’d come here to talk about, but whatever that was had long been forgotten, buried under a thick blanket of smoldering desire.
“Was there something else you wanted to discuss?” she asked.
“Nope. Just us.” The last word caught him by surprise.Us.He needed to get out of this office fast before he said, or did, something else he’d probably regret later.
—
“I am not putting my hands in the dirt,” Kimberly Flowers protested that afternoon. “When my father finds out—”
Kat held up a hand to quiet the girl. When Kim’s father finally got around to checking in with the assistant she’d talked to earlier, he’d be outraged. She was well aware of that. “You don’t have to touch the dirt today. You can sit at the picnic table and watch Ben do his work, and think about why you’re here.”
Kimberly cast a glance at Ben, who was sitting at one of the picnic tables. “Why does he get to work at the table? Because he’s in a wheelchair?”
“That’s right,” Kat said, taking her time as she responded, choosing her words wisely. “And if you say one negative thing to him, you’ll add another week to your punishment.”
Kimberly shrugged and, without another word, started walking toward Ben. She sat down at the very end of the bench. Ben looked at her, said something that Kat couldn’t make out, and continued working.
For a moment, Kat watched the after-school group, up to nine kids today. Their rows of dirt bloomed from the ground across the back lot of the school and green sprouts were beginning to peek through, lifting toward the sun. While most of these kids had put up a fight at first, they all sat on the earth now, watering their seedlings, patting the dirt, and some, thanks to Ben, were even talking excitedly to something that would never speak back. The kids were pouring their very souls into this project. Being here wasn’t a punishment, it was an opportunity, and she was proud of that.
The faint sound of a mower started in the background.Micah.Kat shielded her eyes from the sun and searched for him. Then her heart sank to her knees as she spotted a man dressed in an expensive suit heading across the lawn in her direction.
She swallowed as his frown creased deeper into his otherwise smooth skin. His gaze flicked toward Kimberly at the table and back to her. Something told her this was Mayor Flowers’s lackey, and he had a message from his boss.
“Miss Chandler?” the man asked when he was standing in front of her.
She nodded. “Principal Chandler. And you are?”
“Jack Markus, Mayor Flowers’s assistant.” He glanced at Kimberly again. “I have to say, the mayor was disappointed when he heard about what happened at the school today.”
So disappointed that he’d sent his assistant to do the talking for him, Kat thought, forcing a smile. “As was I. Anytime a student disrespects a teacher, it’s a very serious matter.”
Mr. Markus nodded with a practiced smile. “I understand. Certainly you can appreciate that the mayor doesn’t want his daughter staying after school with students who have more severe behavior issues, though.”
“Actually, Kim’s actions today were right on par with the behaviors that the other children here have exhibited.”
Irritation traced itself around Mr. Markus’s dark features: his eyes, his chin, and his compressed lips. “But Kimberly has extracurricular activities that demand her attendance. Why don’t you send home some punitive assignment, and I’ll see to it that it gets done.”
Kat crossed her arms. “If the mayor wants his daughter to attend a public school and be treated like every other child here, then she’ll also have to abide by the same rules and punishments. It is one hour after school. Yes, she’s missing soccer practice, but I spoke to Coach Donaldson and she’s in favor of Kimberly being here.”
“But Mayor Flowers is not,” Mr. Markus said pointedly, his smile unbudging.
Kat swallowed back her nerves and raised her voice, hoping she exuded confidence instead of the anxiety currently swirling through her. She was well aware of this family’s position in the community, but she had a position to uphold at this school. “Kimberly cannot participate in school sports or any extracurricular activity until she serves her time here. If you want to take her home, you’re free to do so, but until she’s served her two weeks, she’s banned from soccer and anything else that takes place on this campus.”
Mr. Markus’s gaze crossed the lot toward Kimberly once more, his smile finally fading to something that looked a lot like…disdain?
“You’re making them talk to plants?” he asked.
Kat nearly flinched at the disbelief in his voice. Yeah, she was walking a narrow line, straight toward unemployment. “It’s more than that. These kids are learning about responsibility. They’re working together as a team, which is a skill they’re going to need in the future.” She met Mr. Markus’s wary gaze. “I don’t expect you to understand.”
After a long pause, he nodded. “I do understand. I’ve always thought Kimberly could use…some direction. Being the only child of two very important people has got to be hard on a kid.” He smiled at Kat, his first sign of being a real person. “I’m not saying the mayor won’t protest, but I’ll talk to him.”
Kat sucked in a breath. “Thank you. That’s nice of you.”
“She’s got to learn, right? Isn’t that the purpose of school? More than just reading and math.”
