Page 33 of Hot Four Teacher (The Lawson’s #4)

Chapter thirty-two

Talking First

Dane

“ H ey, Michelle,” I greet, surprised but happy as fuck to see her.

She doesn’t quite have the same excited look on her face that I’m sure I do. It suddenly occurs to me that having my sister open the door while I’m holding my niece probably paints a very inaccurate picture.

Jenny looks to me and back again. “Oh my gosh! Is this the Michelle?”

Michelle now looks even more confused.

Jenny grabs her arm and leads her inside. “Come on in! My brother was just talking about you!”

“Brother?” Michelle asks.

I sigh. “Michelle, I’d like you to meet my sister, Jenny. And this is her daughter, Ashley.”

Relief visibly washes over her features. “Oh, hi.”

“I can’t wait to get to know you better!” Jenny cries. “Tell me everything!”

“Jenny, weren’t you just leaving?” I question.

“Well, not now. You’re so secretive. This may be the only opportunity to get to know your girlfriend.”

Don’t use the G word, Jenny. Michelle might run for the hills.

“While that would be great, Jenny,” I pause to showcase my sarcasm. “You have to get Ashley to her doctor’s appointment. Remember?”

Her lips pull into a tight line. “Oh, yeah. Damn. Why do you always have to be so responsible?”

“One of us has to be.”

She takes Ashley out of my arms. “Fine.” She turns to Michelle. “My brother is really crazy about you, so I really hope we get to know each other better soon.”

Although she still looks nervous, Michelle smiles and nods.

After grabbing her purse and giving me a quick hug, Jenny is out the door.

“Sorry about my sister,” I tell Michelle. “She doesn’t get out much.”

“No worries. If you ever meet my sister, Ronnie, you’ll see yours is quite tame.”

We stand in an awkward silence for a moment because I’m not sure what to expect. I had no idea if I would see her outside of school functions again. It’s been radio silence for a few days.

Did she come here for a fuck again?

If she did, am I okay with just that?

Probably not. I’d want more, but I’m a guy, so I don’t think I’d turn it down either.

Especially not with Michelle.

Before I can say anything, she speaks instead. “You’re probably wondering why I’m here.”

“A little,” I reply. “But I’m happy as fuck to see you.”

“Can we talk?”

I nod and lead her into the living room. She sits on the couch, but when I sit next to her, she moves to a chair instead.

“I think we need a few feet between us since I can’t keep my hands to myself. And I really want to talk first.”

I lean back and get comfortable. “Okay, beautiful. I’m all ears.”

Her mouth wiggles back and forth as she tries to choose her words.

“Dane, I told you that I haven’t dated in a decade, and that’s true.

But really, I haven’t had any relationships since Eve was born.

I don’t have close friends. Sure, I have work friends, but we don’t hang out outside of the office.

I have my family and my daughter. That’s it.

And that’s always been okay with me. Keeping everyone at arm’s length is easier for me than letting them into my world.

When someone has come around, and they inevitably leave, I’m fine.

It’s not a big deal. Truth be told, I’m always a little relieved when they leave. ”

She pauses a moment. “But then, I met you. And despite me knowing us dating is…complicated, when I’m not around you, I actually miss you.

My head says we should stay away from each other, but my heart seems to disagree.

Plus, I talked to my dad, and he told me this whole story about him and my mom and how their relationship was also frowned upon. ”

She’s starting to lose me, so I try to reel her back in. “Michelle, sweetheart, are you saying you’re ready to give this a shot?”

Her teeth slowly sink into her bottom lip. “Maybe.”

“But?” I ask because I have a feeling one is coming.

“But I think we need to lay down some rules and come up with a plan.”

“Alright. I’m listening.” I’m finding it hard to hide my excitement. The fact that she’s here right now makes me so happy.

“I’m not ready to tell Eve yet. Whether that is right or wrong, I have no idea, but I’m just not prepared to cross that bridge. She doesn’t need to know until this is way more serious.”

The fact that she said until and not if leaves me hopeful.

“Okay, I can live with that,” I tell her. “What else?”

“Well, to keep things from Eve, we need to make sure no one else sees us together either. That means no public appearances together in town. And if we happen to be at some function together, we will be civil and cordial, but nothing more. We can’t make it obvious that there is anything going on between the two of us. ”

I smile. “Do you know how hard it’s going to be not to gawk at you and how sexy you are?”

She rolls her eyes but can’t help but smirk. “You better reel that shit in if we are going to do this thing.”

“I think I can do that,” I tell her. “We can do this however you want as long as it means I get to spend more time with you.”

“I still have no idea what I’m doing, and I have no idea if this is going to work, but I’m willing to give it a shot if you are.”

“You know I am.”

“Why do you seem so much calmer than me about this whole thing?” She asks.

“Because I think some things are worth fighting for–no matter what the risks may be.”

She gives me a small smile.

I ask, “Can we please get closer now? I think you’re way too far away.”

With an adorable look on her face, she stands up and walks toward me. Slowly, she slips onto my lap and wraps her arms around my neck. I hold her close, inhaling her scent and thanking the lord that I get to do it again.

“What made you decide to come here today?” I ask. “Not that I’m complaining.”

“Well, Eve left to go to her dad’s for a few days, and usually, on Fall Break, we spend the whole week together because I take off work. I figured I could go home to an empty house and do nothing but think about you, or I could come to where I really want to be.”

“Fuck, I missed you.” I hug her even tighter.

“I missed you too.”

Something suddenly occurs to me. “Wait a minute. Did you say Eve is with her dad for a while?”

She gives me a wicked little grin. “Yep.”

“Does that mean I get you all to myself for the next few days?”

“If that’s okay with you.”

“Oh, I think that would make me the happiest man on Earth.”

“Good.” She gives me a kiss on the cheek. “Now that you have me, what are you going to do with me?”