Page 30 of Broken Blood Ties

“Do you always have to have the last word?”

“Aye. Only when I’m talking to ya.”

I stare at him, dumfounded.

“Mr. O’Donnell,” the parent volunteer’s shrill voice in the seat across from us pipes in, and I turn to check on my students while the mom on the outside of the aisle flirts with Kieran.

Good. She can deal with him.

As the school buses pull up to the aquarium, the bus becomes increasingly louder with the chatter of eager kids. Kieran’s eyes widen at the intensity, and I almost laugh at his face.

Standing, Mr. Terry and I direct the kids to exit out in single file while they contort their bodies and crane their necks to see the giant building. When the doors creak open, they practically stampede over Kieran, and I can’t help but laugh.

Back in their lines, my class moves under the aquarium’s banners flying high, and the students marvel at the fish tanks visible through the glass walls.

Laughter and rustling feet sound along the pavement while the kids clutch the hands of their friends to pull each other along.

Mr. Terry barks out orders to stay in line and stick with assigned buddies, as well as cautionary reprimands regarding the ice in front of the entrance. As soon as those words are out of his mouth, the kindergarten parent helper, Ms. Brooks, seeks Kieran’s help and loops her arm through his to walk inside. It’s like the diameter of a personal pan pizza. She could’ve walked around.

I glide right over it.

After holding the door open for my class to walk through, I glance to see Ms. Brooks still making physical contact with Kieran. A hand on his arm, a smack to his chest as she giggles at something he says. All of whichmustbe fake because the man is not funny at all.

When he catches me looking, there’s a pleading in his eyes. I shake my head and suck in a deep breath. “Mr. O’Donnell,” I call.

He breaks away from Ms. Brooks, gesturing to me with a thumb over his shoulder, then he turns to tuck his hands in his coat and strides toward me.

“Thank ye,” he mutters under his breath.

“For what?” I squint like I’m confused. “I need you to wait with the kids while I get us checked in.” I give him a tight-lipped smile before following Shelly and Mr. Terry to the group check-in.

I turn in the forms and meet our group tour guide, but while the staff is explaining our itinerary for the day, my attention is drawn back to my students.

There Kieran kneels down before Aoife as he ties her shoe. Her tiny hand rests on his shoulder for support as his deft hands create loops and ties. She smiles down at him, a look of admiration stretched over her dainty features, and when he’s pulled the final bow, he tickles her before offering her nose a delicateboopwith his finger.

Before he can stand, Tommy moves his untied sneaker into the picture, and I let out a quiet chuckle as Kieran moves to tie it as well.

Okay. Maybehe’s a little bit funny.

Chapter10

Kieran

I’m reconsidering my decision to “volunteer” for this field trip.

It was too easy the other night at the bar. Fuming about Miss Smith’s comments, Lizzy convinced me, in all her apparent wisdom, that I should prove Summer wrong. Then Tommy’s mother walked into the bar.

I wasn’t aware of who Tommy’s mother was. More like a nurse and some of her coworkers propped themselves at the bar. She was prattling on about how she’s taken Friday off for the field trip she’d volunteered for. I heard the name Miss Smith, and after noticing the Ardenbrook keychain on her keys which were set on the bar—well, it was the perfect opportunity.

I made sure her drinks were on the house and instead of the one or two she came in to have … I’m pretty sure she and her friends drank the entire bottle. So no, she wasn’treallysick. But I made a calculated guess she wasn’t coming today.

I made a point to be in Green’s office early this morning anticipating her phone call to him. And what do you know …

Summer swishes back over to where she’s saddled me with nineteen kids who aren’t mine. Her dress is a ribbed material I’m not used to feeling. Many of the girls around me sport leather, silk, and shimmering shite. When she tumbled into me after the bus hit a gigantic pothole, the soft ridges clinging to her body had me feeling an odd sensation of … comfort. Which isn’t a word I’d associate with feeling around women.

Oddly, the urge to reach out and dip my fingertips over the dress gets worse the closer she gets, and when she’s finally standing before me, beneath an inflatable whale, I peer down at her, studying.

“What?”