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

  Chapter 3

  Corey

  While the children were settling in for lunch, the parents were given a bit more free rein. Around us, blue light flowed in from the water tanks enclosing the area. Behind the glass were jellyfish that floated around, hugging the water as they rode up and down. I found myself becoming entranced with the way they managed to seem so at peace in the water, how they found power in themselves even when the pressure around them was so great.

  My eyes shifted to Danielle who was eating a salad. It seemed she too was admiring the jellyfish in the displays around us. There was a tug drawing me to her, but I refrained from doing anything about it for a long while with my recent divorce looming over me like a gray cloud hiding the sun. I looked back at Caiden to see him actively engaged in a conversation with his friends and when I saw that all the kids were safe and accounted for, I made my way to Danielle before I could change my mind about it.

  “Mind if I sit?” I asked.

  She turned around to face me, her midnight locks bouncing and reflecting the blue light in a way that made it shimmer. The smile she replied with made my mind wander. Damn, she is beautiful, I thought. She slid over to make room for me.

  For a beat, the chatter of the children acted as our background music, neither of us saying anything but neither of us wanting to. I turned to her to see her captivated by the sight before her eyes, but I was captivated by her.

  “Danielle,” I started.

  “Hm,” she said, shifting her attention to me.

  The words disappeared from thought when she was looking at me. It was much too soon for me to be falling for someone, but the feeling in my chest and the revolving thoughts of her in my head as soon as I saw her could be described as none other than the one thing I had been afraid of: love.

  “What are you thinking about?” she asked softly.

  I could only take her question as a tease. Did she have an idea as to what I was thinking about? Did she know that for a second, I was thinking about what it would be like to kiss her?

  “The jellyfish,” I said, sharply turning to them.

  “Really?” she asked. She sounded slightly disappointed. When she noticed her tone, she perked up. “They really are beautiful,” she added genuinely before falling into silence again.

  “They are,” I continued. “And…I was thinking about you.” I couldn’t hold it in anymore despite the divorce with Kaylee and despite the signing of the papers replaying in my head. I was scared to venture out into something new, but there was something about Danielle that made it seem worth the exploration.

  Her eyes widened, her cheeks flushing a deep rouge along with it.

  Another thing you do when you’re falling for someone--you don’t think.

  But despite this, I didn’t feel regret afterward, just relieved. We were leaning into each other, slowly but surely. We were in the shadows and shielded from the children enough for me to feel comfortable doing so. Our lips slowly connected, drawing electricity that raced through me like a current.

  “Dad!”

  We pulled away quickly. I turned and saw Caiden running up to me with a smile. “Dad, do we have any more of these at the house? Bryan wanted to trade, but I didn’t want to. Maybe you could put in two tomorrow.”

  I smiled at him, thankful that I had gotten something right that morning, but feeling the dormant sparks from our kiss playing on my lips. “Of course,” I replied.

  He nodded and prepared to take off before remembering something. “Oh, and dad?”

  “Yeah?”

  “We need to buy more cereal,” he added as a matter-of-factly.

  I chuckled and responded. “We definitely do. Later tonight, buddy.”

  With that, he ran off and left Danielle and I alone. The tension was pulling at our bodies but the responsibility of 20 eight-year-olds was pulling even more. “I think that wraps up lunch,” she suggested, standing up. I followed suit and helped her gather the kids for our next activity. For the rest of the field trip, we snuck glances at each other. Even without having to say a word, I could see the longing in her eyes and I’m sure she could see it in mine. And for the first time, I wasn’t afraid of the idea of loving someone again.

  Chapter 4

  Danielle

  I woke up with a start. My eyes met with the rising morning sun and begged for me to shut then for a little longer, but my heart had more control over my body than my mind. I guess that was why I was so open to the idea of Corey. I wasn’t seeing him as my student’s father anymore. Maybe that was foolish, but it was just something that women did. We reasoned.

  After my shower, I whipped up some breakfast quickly and sat down at my table on the patio while flipping through my phone. The cool air felt good on my skin and even better in my lungs. I took a deep breath before taking a long sip of my morning coffee. Today was going to be a good day. After the field trip, he agreed to volunteer for an activity that we were doing for Valentine’s Day that was approaching.

  I smiled at the thought of him, remembering the kiss that we shared on the field trip. He wasn’t like anyone I’d ever known. He was kind and patient. One of the few people besides my students who were giving me true happiness at this point. My phone buzzed. I would’ve ignored it but despite the number being unfamiliar, I recognized the area code. I watched it ring and ring until I finally picked it up on the last one.

  “Hello?” I started.

  “Dani? Is that you?” I recognized the voice as my eldest sister, Lisa.

  “How did you get my number?” I asked her.

  “I had a little...help.” I sighed and rolled my eyes, knowing exactly who the “help” was. “Daddy really wants you back home.”

  “I’m not coming home, Lisa.”

  “Why? Are you still upset because of everything that happened with Michael?” I tensed up at the mention of his name. I heard rustling in the back of the line.

  “Danielle,” I heard. It was a deep voice but sheared through me like a knife. “Please talk to me. I am so sorry for everything that I--” I hung up and dropped my phone into my lap. Suddenly, the air around me felt suffocating. Even without walls, I felt like it was closing in on me. My coffee tasted bitter; the chirping of the birds screeched. My good day felt trapped at the back of my mind with the idea of Michael and my family back home making me sick.

  That was until I saw him. Later that morning, Corey walked in with Caiden by his side. I barely got a chance to say hi to Caiden because he ran off past me to his friends. The red and pink decorations that were hanging around the classroom for today’s special celebration enlightened my mood even more.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Hey,” Corey responded.

  We both stared into each other’s eyes, drawn to each other like a moth to a light until I felt a tug on my dress. “Ms. Parker, where do I put these cookies?” One of my students asked.

  “You can put them over there, sweetheart,” I said. I gave a quick glance at Corey before addressing the class. “Okay guys, we are going to be starting real soon. Today, we have Caiden’s dad, Mr. Davidson, helping us.” Caiden looked up and smiled. “So, you can ask either him or me if you have any questions.

  “First thing is we will pass out your paper bags and stickers for you to decorate them however you please and then you guys will be able to pass out your Valentines to your classmates.” The entire class erupted in cheers, bringing a smile to my face.

  I moved to my desk and handed Corey a stack of paper bags. “If you could pass these out please, Mr. Davidson.”

  “No problem, Ms. Parker.” He winked.

  My lips pulled into a slight smirk as I turned away from him and gathered the stickers and markers for the kids. Once they were set up, I moved back to the table where Corey met me. “I have one more,” he said passing me a paper bag.

  I raised my eyebrow at him. “Are you serious?” I asked with a soft laugh.

  “I am,” he said, sitting down across from me. “You�
�ve got stickers here and…” He picked up a handful of tools. “Markers.” He passed it to me. I stared at him with a pleasantly baffled expression. He was very serious.

  “Okay, then. You have to make one, too,” I said.

  “There was only one left,” he said arching an eyebrow. He was very adamant on having me make one.

  “Fine. I’ll do it...for the both of us.” He laughed at my comment. I took a marker and wrote Ms. Parker and Mr. Davidson. At the sight of my thick cursive, a thought popped into my mind. What if we were just Mister and Missus Davidson?

  My eyes shifted to the missing wedding band on his finger and I remembered when Kaylee was the one in the classroom on behalf of Caiden. She wasn’t too involved, but she would be the one to come to parent teacher conferences.

  The one time I saw Kaylee and Corey together was during a showcase we had for the children early in the school year. It was chilling how they walked beside each other as though they were strangers. Caiden, the one person keeping the two together, had no idea how far gone they really were. But even so, it made me hate the idea of a future with Corey. Not because I didn’t want one with him, but because I had seen his fall apart with another person before my very eyes.

  When he realized I was looking at his hand, he shifted them. “If you want to know, you can just ask.”

  His voice came out calm. In shock, I hesitated at first and then opened my mouth to speak.

  “Ms. Parker, I’m done!” I heard from one of my students.

  “Me too,” a few others chimed.

  “Uh,” I said, my attention divided between the children and Corey. His eyes seemed to say go on, it’s okay. Standing up to address the children, I was still thinking about his comment but was forced to dive in with the kids. “Okay, place your bags on your desk and grab your candy. I’m going to play some music for you guys while you give your friends treats.”

  They cheered and took out their bags of candy from whatever crevice they had held it in--their cubbies, their desks, and even their pockets. I let them have at it while I stood on the other end of the classroom where the radio was, watching Corey looking over the kids. I was in too deep in my mind and I wanted to know more about him. Even forgetting the rules I made up in my head about not getting involved with a student’s parent. Now, I just had to figure out how to ask him about Kaylee.

  Chapter 5

  Corey

  The kids were having fun going around placing their Valentine goodies in each of their classmates’ bags. From afar, I saw Danielle moving from the radio to another part of the room where she was supervising the children. I didn’t care if she needed some time to think about us or Kaylee. It was her right. While she was occupied, I took a pen and a post it from the table, jotting down a message before sliding it into her bag with some candy that came from Caiden’s pack.

  After the kids were done, I helped her get them situated with a movie that kept them busy while we settled back at the table. She had a cupcake in her hand from the table of treats the children had brought for the celebration.

  “Do you want one?” she asked, raising the cupcake.

  “I’m good. I’ve been munching on Jolly Ranchers. I don’t think I should have any more sweets,” I said with a laugh. She returned it and lifted the paper bag. You could see the surprise immediately fill her face.

  “I thought this was empty,” she said with wide eyes. “I could’ve thrown it across the room with how I picked this up.” I gave her a laugh although I could feel the anxiety building in me. It was a good anxious. I focused my attention on her as she dug into the bag and pulled out some candy. “Were the kids around the table?” she asked me, glancing back at the rambunctious group and then back at me. I didn’t get a chance to reply as she found the note, pulling it out and holding it close to her like a treasured gift. Her eyes scanned it quick then rose to mine. A smile followed after.

  “Are you…” She paused for a beat then lowered her voice. “Asking me out?”

  It was cute how secretive she got. “Yes, I am,” I confirmed.

  “On Valentine’s Day?” she asked with a curious look.

  I nodded with a smile.

  “Well, on one condition,” she started. I raised an eyebrow at her. “Don’t ask me to be your girlfriend or anything. I would hate to have an anniversary on the same night as Valentine’s.

  It would be too cliché.” Her playful tone with her bright eyes got me excited for the night I had yet to plan.

  “Then, I won’t.”

  “Hey, I know a place,” she said.

  “Oh, yeah?”

  She nodded, “A nice private outdoor place. We could have a picnic!”

  I smiled at her energy. “Alright then. It’s a date.”

  “It’s a date,” she confirmed.

  ***

  Although Danielle had picked the place, I was still left to decide what to bring. While at the grocery store for more cereal and eggs for the house, I scanned the aisles for things that would be good for a picnic. I grabbed croissants, mini sandwiches, small chicken drumsticks, cheesecake, wine…

  “What’s all that for, dad?” Caiden asked me as he made his way to the cart with a box of cereal that he liked.

  “It’s for…” I hated the idea of lying to him, especially after I had lied to him during the divorce about why his mom was leaving and why we couldn’t be together.

  It’s not that we don’t love each other anymore, but because we aren’t in love with each other. I had to withhold the real reason until whenever he was old enough to understand. Mommy’s taking time for herself for a while, but she still loves you seemed barely sufficient at the time. “A picnic.”

  “A picnic?” he said, making a face. “You mean, for us?”

  “Um…” I paused again. “Mhm.” I knew I didn’t sound convincing.

  “Well, do we even have a basket? And where are we having it? Can we go to the park?” His questions zoomed out as I grabbed more food for the new picnic I had just set up with him.

  “We’ll have to get a basket and yes, we can go to the park, Caiden.”

  He smiled big. I saw Kaylee more in him every day and I just wanted to keep that smile on his face forever.

  Chapter 6

  Danielle

  On the evening of Valentine’s Day, Corey picked me up and I led him to the location I had in mind. “Take a right here,” I said. “Then a left here.” He did as I said, but still managed to eye me with a confused expression.

  “You’re not trying to lure me into the forest, are you?” He asked with a look, a smirk playing on his lips.

  “Ha ha,” I said. “No. But I think you’ll really like it.”

  He gave me a smile while I sat back into the seat of his car and thought about my little private island, one of the few places that I felt safe. The closer we got, the more excited I felt. I pulled open the door once he pulled his car onto the rocky pathway and raised my hand up to the open air. I took in the distant skyline and the nature around me. The crisp air felt good as I took it into my lungs.

  “Welcome to paradise,” I said after exhaling and turning around to see him taking in the scenery. He cocked his head up to the sky, admiring the stars that embroidered the navy landscape.

  “This is…” He started, moving his eyes to the city and sighed in amazement. “This is…” I beamed at him while he struggled to find the right words.

  “Paradise,” I said again. “Or at least a little taste.” I shot him a look to see him gazing at me. I moved to the open area a few feet before us and set down the blanket I brought from home. Corey followed afterward with the basket of food. “Let’s see what we got here,” I said once he was settled next to me.

  “Alright, well, first we have…” He opened the basket and pulled open a bottle of wine.

  “Yesss,” I said accepting it from his hand. “And this is a really good bottle, too.”

  “I’m glad you appreciate it,” he added with a laugh as he pulled out the o
ther items from his basket. The display of items he had arranged before us felt nothing short of beautiful. How much he had tried for this date was drawing me even closer to him and it didn’t help that I was now on my second glass of wine.

  “You know, I’m really glad that you came to the field trip with us that day,” I confessed.

  He turned to me and smiled. “Really? I’m glad that I was late.”