Page 61 of Aaron's Patience

“Oh God!” I yelped when in less than two steps, Aaron was in Wallace’s face, hand wrapped around his throat. This scene was eerily familiar.

“Two things,” Aaron stated through gritted teeth. “Don’teverin your pitiful life refer to my children or my nephew in such terms. And two, if we weren’t in this office right now I’d show youexactlyhow much of a mongrel their father is.”

“Aaron, please,” I whispered, going up to tug at his arm. “Our children are right outside.”

Slowly Aaron loosened his grip and stepped back from Wallace. I took his hand in mine, pulling him closer to me, and farther away from Wallace.

“And what exactly did his child say that caused Kyle to respond so negatively?” Aaron turned to Mrs. Jamison to ask.

Her eyes shifted from Aaron to myself and then over to Wallace, who was now standing in the far corner of the room.

“To my understanding, there were some derisive comments made about Kyle’s reading ability.”

Aaron’s hand tightened around mine. I bit the inside of my cheek as my heart plummeted.

“Was this the first incident?”

“No, I don’t think so, Mrs. Townsend.”

“You don’t think so?” Aaron repeated condescendingly.

She swallowed and shook her head. “According to Diego and Kyle, this has been an ongoing issue since the first week of school.”

“Un-fucking-believable,” Aaron blurted. “The school year is a month old. So, this has been going on for weeks then?”

“Mr. Townsend, I understand—”

“You understand what? That you allowed my son to be bullied. Didn’t tell either one of his parents and only waited until a physical altercation occurred, which by the way, you framed as our children jumping another boy. When the truth was my son was defending himself against a child who is three years older than himself?” Aaron’s voice rose with each question he asked. He stepped forward, planting his fists onto the principal’s desk. “Let me explain something to you, Mrs. Jamison. I went to this school. My wife went to this school. We put our children here because Excelor has the reputation of being one of the highest ranking academies in the state. But I promise you if anything like this ever happens again, I will shut this all down!”

He stepped back, pulled me by the hand to the door, holding it open for both Michelle and I, giving Wallace—who’d remained silent—one last glare before slamming it shut.

“Are we in trouble, Mommy?” Kyle asked, using the most pitiful face he could. My entire heart caught in my throat. I always feared a day like this was inevitable.

“Hey, what happened?”

I turned to see Carter, dressed in his firefighter overalls, running toward us as we stepped into the hallway.

“We were on a call. Diego, are you okay?” He bent low, checking over the little boy who was obviously so much more than just his stepson. Technically, Diego was Carter’s son, since he’d adopted him.

“He’s fine.” Michelle went on to explain everything to Carter. He became just as pissed as his brother.

“These two.” Michelle grinned looking at me and gesturing toward our husbands.

I rolled my eyes. “Right? Who the hell wants to deal with not one but two angry Townsends?”

“Not me,” she laughed.

“Mama, can we get ice cream with my cousin?”

“Yes, Mommy, please!” Kyle and Kennedy shouted, backing up Diego’s request.

“No!” Michelle and I both answered.

“Why not?” Carter asked, looking confused.

“They just got into a fight,” I explained.

“And?”