Page 11 of Promises We Meant to Keep (Love in Massachusetts #1)

eleven

The knock was polite and quick. Kamryn hadn’t expected Elia to actually show up, despite the fact that she said she was coming. Her apartment was barren because she refused to unpack too much if she was only going to be there for a few months. Most of her stuff was in storage.

Elia stood on the other side of the door, her shoulders squared, a light jacket on, her hair down by her shoulders, and her makeup light today. Kamryn’s stomach tightened. This wasn’t professional Elia, the woman who dressed to impress at school every day. This was laid-back Elia, the woman behind the teacher-mask, the woman who actually might take a day off.

Kamryn should probably learn that lesson sometime soon.

Greer had accused her of working herself to death more than once in the last week.

“Hey,” Kamryn said, since Elia didn’t seem to be saying anything at all.

Elia nodded slightly. “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice.”

They still stood at the door awkwardly, staring at each other. Kamryn should definitely let Elia in. She should get her some water or something, invite her to sit down. This was a business meeting for fuck’s sake. She should act like a boss and not be weak in the knees.

Kamryn cleared her throat. “Uh…come on in.”

She opened the door wider and stepped to the side. Elia’s energy changed the entire room. Something about her presence made the space seem that much smaller and impossible for her to work with or be in the near vicinity of. Kamryn glanced at the coffee table and couch, where she’d been working her tail off all morning. It was littered with papers, her computer, a couple of pens.

She was ridiculous. Elia’s house had been spotless, and her apartment was a disaster. Elia was probably disgusted by it all.

“Would you like something to drink?” God, now she sounded like an idiot on top of the visual impression. “Water or…” Kamryn had to think about what else she might have in the fridge. “I think I have some soda.”

She walked directly to the fridge and opened it up. “Yeah, or beer.”

Elia’s lips quirked at that, a smile playing at them. It was so nice to see. “I think we should forgo the alcohol so early in the day. Don’t you think?”

“It’s not like we have a very good track record with it.” Kamryn grabbed two cans of soda and handed one over to Elia, their fingers brushing in the process. “This is probably the wiser choice.”

“For now at least.” Elia popped the top of hers and turned toward the couch. Kamryn expected a judgmental reaction, but she never saw one. “I know you’re working because you’re on duty today, but you really should take a day for yourself.”

“At some point, I will.” Kamryn bit the inside of her cheek and walked toward the couch, hoping that Elia would follow her. She slid onto it and stretched out a little. She hadn’t realized how many kinks she had bugging her in her back until she stopped to focus on something other than work.

“Breaks are good. They improve work productivity and quality.” Elia sat down, pulling at the buttons on her jacket and then sliding it off her shoulders. The jeans and T-shirt she wore were a stark contrast to her normal outfit choice.

Kamryn couldn’t ever remember seeing Elia look so relaxed, never in something other than slacks or flats. But the sneakers that were definitely well-worn and probably needed replacing were such a welcome and humanizing sight.

“Kam,” Elia said, a chuckle in her tone.

“What?” Kamryn snapped her gaze back up to Elia’s face.

Elia shook her head, that laugh still lingering in the air between them, teasing them with something damn near friendship. But that couldn’t be right, could it? Kamryn was reading way too much into this. Elia was here for…something work-related. That much she knew.

“You’re staring at my shoes.”

“Oh. Sorry.” Kamryn lifted the cold drink to her lips and took a long sip from it. The cold was exactly what she needed to cool her cheeks off. The only downside was now it was very obvious just how hot her body had become in the last few minutes. “What did you need to talk about that couldn’t wait until Monday?”

Elia’s smile slipped from her lips, and Kamryn instantly regretted the conversation change. She needed that smile back in her life. It was so genuine and perfect, something that lit up the entire room and affected everything within it.

“I came to apologize.” Elia’s voice was firm as she spoke, a sadness entering into the words although Kamryn couldn’t quite figure out why.

“Apologize?” Kamryn frowned. “For what?”

“My abruptness in your office last night.” Elia’s face pinched. “I was rude.”

Kamryn’s lips parted in surprise before she closed them tightly. Elia had been sharp and could probably be considered rude, but it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary from what Kamryn had seen recently or remembered from the past. Elia was always a direct person, and Kamryn appreciated that. She hated the two-sidedness of people…people like Heather and Susy for instance. Her stomach churned at the reminder of that conversation.

“I want you to know how important it is to the kids for you to be present at the Speech practices. They value you and the fact that you’re the Head of School currently and putting the time and effort into them.”

Kamryn tuned back into what Elia was saying finally, the words lingering in her brain, but it was taking her way longer than it should for them to register and make sense. She hadn’t expected an apology at all. “I know that.”

“So they were disappointed when you weren’t there.”

Shaking her head, Kamryn narrowed her eyes in Elia’s direction. “ They were disappointed, or you were?”

Elia paled slightly, and her cheeks tightened. She moved stiffly as she put her drink onto the coffee table and straightened her back again. “The students.”

“Ah. Like I told you, the meeting I had prior ran over its allotted time. Well over it, actually.” Kamryn wanted to roll her eyes at that, but she resisted the temptation. She wanted to tell Elia all about the meeting, let her in on the drama that she was facing, but she couldn’t. Not with the contents of what the ethics team—if it could even be called that—was discussing. Witch hunt still sounded like a better term for it.

“I know, but next time, if you can text me or call me to let me know, then I can mitigate some of the disappointment with the students.”

“All right, I’ll work to improve on that.” Kamryn canted her head to the side and observed Elia. She had gone from an apology straight to some sort of solution in the span of two seconds, and they had very nearly missed the apology in there. That was huge for Elia. Kamryn was sure of that. And she wanted to go back to it, to acknowledge what Elia was doing.

“I accept your apology, by the way. Though I wasn’t bothered by your attitude the other day.”

“You weren’t?” Elia seemed surprised by that.

“No.” Kamryn smiled, her cheeks rushing with a gentle heat this time. “I know you have a short temper, and while you were sharp with me, you didn’t cross any boundaries.”

“Temper… right.” Elia frowned into her drink and sighed. “My temper has lost me more than a friend or two in the past.”

“Well, you won’t lose me over it.” Kamryn grinned broadly, glad to finally feel like they were back on even footing.

“I wasn’t being self-deprecating when I said I wasn’t the most ethical person around. I’m not the kindest faculty member here, and I certainly have a penchant for stepping in my own shit on more than one occasion.” Elia twisted the can between her fingers.

“Is this supposed to scare me?” Kamryn asked, keeping her tone light. “Because it’s not. I remember who you are, and while you weren’t my favorite teacher at Windermere when I was a student, you certainly should have been. You weren’t my favorite because your expectations of us were intense.”

Elia smiled at that. “You’re here to learn.”

“And learn I did.” Kamryn wanted to ease the tension that was in Elia’s face, make it disappear entirely. “Didn’t mean I wasn’t forced into learning sometimes.”

“You were always a hard worker.” Elia sighed slightly and set her can down. “I just came here to apologize.”

“Are you leaving then?” Kamryn wasn’t ready to let her go, not yet. And she’d much rather have Elia stay and talk, to give herself that actual break from work that she really needed. And it wasn’t until Elia had shown up that she realized just how desperately she did need it.

“What else is there to discuss?”

“We can discuss Andra’s wedding if you want.” Or other things… Though Kamryn wasn’t sure what other things entailed. Friendly conversations about hobbies and family and friends would be a nice start. She wanted to get to know Elia outside of the school and away from the student-teacher and boss-employee dynamic they seemed to find themselves locked into.

“All right. You said the bridal shower was first.” Elia seemed to settle back into the couch, and that settled Kamryn’s racing heart.

“It is. Don’t worry about a gift, I’ve got that covered. And since you’re my girlfriend it can be a joint gift.” Kamryn laughed at her own little joke, and she was glad to see that Elia relaxed slightly. “I’m not planning this one, but I think it’s supposed to be fairly standard. Food, open gifts, eat cake, maybe a game or two.”

Elia nodded slowly. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a bridal shower. I think it was for my niece three or four years ago.”

“You have a niece?” Kamryn was tickled by that. She could see Elia playing the doting aunt, the one who would halfway spoil her nieces and nephews any chance she got.

“By marriage. My brother married a woman who had two kids from a previous relationship. They were ten and eight when I met them.” Elia played with the tab on the top of the soda can. Was she nervous discussing such personal things? “I suppose this information is helpful for our little ruse.”

“Ruse?” Kamryn’s eyes widened. “Is that what we’re calling this?”

“What else would you call it?”

“I don’t know.” Kamryn chuckled again. “Why would it be helpful?”

“To make the lie seem more true.”

“I told you, Elia, I don’t need to lie to my friends.”

“You’re lying to Lauren. And Rosie.” Elia stared at her directly. “And I don’t blame you for wanting to do it, either. Rosie is…” Elia paused, searching for the right word, “obnoxious.”

Kamryn snorted. “That’s the understatement of the century.”

“That’s yet to be proven. I imagine I know more about you than you about me.”

“Why would you say that?” Kamryn asked.

“Because I was your teacher. I know who your parents are, and I know about your brother and sister, and I know about some of your hobbies and interests growing up.”

“Oh really? Like what?” Kamryn finished off her drink quickly and leaned in, trying to test Elia. She wanted to know. “What are my hobbies?”

“You’re a book lover.”

Kamryn paused at that. She couldn’t remember the last time she picked up a book that didn’t have something to do with education or leadership. But Elia wasn’t wrong. She used to have her nose buried in a book for hours every night. It was to the point that her roommate would yell at her to turn the lights off, but sometime during college that had all ended. “I used to be, yeah.”

“Used to?” Elia seemed surprised by that.

“I haven’t read a fiction book for fun in a very long time.” Kamryn swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. “Do you read?”

“Classical literature and poetry.”

“Poetry?” Kamryn grinned at that. “You’ll have to share some with me. Do you write it, too?”

“No.” Elia’s voice sounded breathy. Had she attempted to write it at some point and then given up?

“Why don’t I believe you?” Kamryn teased.

“Not one single idea.” Elia gave her a full smile then. She was stunning, her lips curling upward, the crow’s-feet at the corners of her eyes, the fullness of her cheeks when she was truly happy. This was the Elia that Kamryn wanted to see every day, the one who was easy and relaxed, kind to herself.

“Well, I’m going to pry that answer out of you one day or another. Oh, I think I forgot to mention that there’s a brunch the day after the wedding. It’s for close friends and family, so we’ll be expected to be there.”

“We?” Elia pointed with two fingers and her thumb between them, moving her wrist back and forth. “They expect you, Kam. Not me.”

“But you’re my girlfriend. So now you’re included in that.”

Elia’s cheeks reddened slightly. “Careful now or I might start believing that word. I did want to bring one thing up before we start this.”

“Start what?” Kamryn continued the tease, pushing into it.

Elia, rightfully, ignored her comment. “I want to keep our fake-dating and work as separate as possible. So I wanted to ask how connected Lauren is to the school.”

“Oh.” The mood sobered instantly, and Kamryn missed the gentle flirting they were both joining in on. “I agree about keeping this separate. There’s no reason for anyone here to know that we’re attending events together as friends. That’s not unusual. But as far as Lauren… she’s not that connected to the school. I stayed far more connected than she did.”

“She mentioned something about the reunion.”

“That was odd, because she’s never mentioned wanting to come before then.” Kamryn scratched the back of her head. “She came to our ten-year one but only because I made her come. And trust me, it wasn’t a pleasant night for either of us because of that.”

“All right.” Elia didn’t seem fully satisfied with that response, but she didn’t seem to want to push for a deeper answer, either.

“No one else from the school will be there. None of the rest our circle went to Windermere.”

“That makes me feel slightly better.” Elia seemed to perk up at that, and Kamryn was glad to see it. She wanted Elia to stay in this place, a place where she was happy and joyful, and probably more relaxed than Kamryn had ever seen her.

“Good. I’m looking forward to this…adventure.”

“Ruse,” Elia corrected. “I thought we were calling it a ruse.”

“That’s what you’re calling it, my friend. I think I’ll call it illicit.” Kamryn giggled, not sure what was getting into her. She hadn’t felt this relaxed in a long time. Nor had she enjoyed herself in even longer.

“Now that might push the envelope too much.”

“No, no, I don’t think it does.” Kamryn leaned forward, making eye contact with Elia. “The definition of illicit is something forbidden. And I do think that fake-dating my former teacher while I’m her boss probably falls well within that definition.”

Elia mimicked Kamryn’s pose, her voice lowering to barely above a whisper, “I told you that I wasn’t a good choice for the ethics team for a reason.”

Kamryn’s heart thumped hard, and her gaze dropped immediately to Elia’s lips. She’d done that before and regretted it. But she wasn’t sure she would regret it if she kissed Elia again. The air intensified with tension, and Kamryn could barely keep one foot in the verbal game that she’d most definitely started.

Elia hummed, her lips pressing into a thin line. “I’ll see you at practice on Tuesday. Don’t forget about our mock meet next weekend.” Without another word, Elia stood up and brushed her hands down her thighs. “Thank you for allowing me to apologize.”

Kamryn put her hand out to the side and nodded. “You allowed me to apologize and grovel. It’s only fair that I should return the favor.”

Elia laughed lightly, a full-mouthed grin with teeth reflecting her happiness with the moment. “See you soon, Kam.”