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I point at the door, returning his glare. “Leave then.”

“Not without you.”

“Let me just teach this class, okay?” I say around a sigh.

He shakes his head, slipping his hands into his pockets, and surprisingly stalks across the room. I use my hand to cover my laugh at the sight of him squeezing into the cramped desk.

He pulls out his phone as four women enter the room.

“Who’s he?” Sissy asks when she notices Julian.

“He’s job shadowing me,” I explain.

There goes another lie.

She nods, her pink slippers sliding across the floor, and plops down in the front row. The other three women pay Julian a quick glance and then sit down, ready to learn.

I teach a variety of classes—a GED prep course, a finance course, as well as reading and math for the children.

It’s a great way to put my MBA to use.

Julian lowers his phone when I start class.

Today’s lesson is on finance.

I’ve never seen Julian so focused on me as when I’m teaching. He leans back in the chair and doesn’t check his phone once.

For the next hour, he doesn’t look away as the women take notes.

I have his full attention.

Maybe this will help him understand why I can’t just quit volunteering here.

I’m needed, and he’ll need to accept that.

Or it’ll cause nothing but chaos between us.

19

I’ve never been so entertainedin a classroom.

Genesis is fucking smart.

Watching her in action is goddamn sexy.

When class ends, my phone rings. Everyone’s attention turns to me.

I hurriedly silence the call, like I’m about to get in trouble and Teacher Genesis will confiscate my phone. It takes me two attempts to squeeze out from the desk, and I’m sure it looks ridiculous.

“I need to take this,” I whisper to Genesis while leaving the classroom and walking around the corner into a vending machine area.

I lean against the wall and call Paolo back.

“Boss, where are you?” he asks through the speaker.

While I’m not the boss of the Lombardi family, I have men who work exclusively for me. Paolo is one of them.

Paolo works at the casino as well, and it’s weird for me not to be there first thing in the morning.