Page 8 of Single Teddy (Mayberry Protectors #6)

SEVEN

TEDDY

“ S o? What am I missing?” I asked a couple of hours later.

We were parked a few doors down from the house the guys had been staking out for months, with a box of chapssaltteok to share and our very own bubble teas, courtesy of Hwan, who refused to let us go without sustenance.

I was still quite new to all these flavors and frills, but despite all that, I couldn’t stop sipping the taro and coffee boba drink Hwan had named after his boyfriend.

The Mother Parker. Not that I knew much about bubble tea, but I hadn’t realized there were coffee-flavored ones too.

The flavor was sweet and nutty but also quite strong, since it contained both black tea and coffee. No wonder my leg wouldn’t stay still.

“What do you mean?” Azrael turned to me and narrowed his eyes in confusion.

I shrugged and pointed at the house.

“This. Goodman. This whole mission. Why is everyone so keen on helping him with this crusade?”

Azrael grimaced.

“I wouldn’t exactly call it a crusade.”

“He’s taken the law into his hands.”

“Yeah, because local law enforcement can’t do shit about it.”

“And you’re okay putting yourself and your son at risk trying to make enemies of a criminal gang?” I felt wrong even saying it, because I knew he wasn’t, but I needed to understand. I needed some reassurance.

“Of course not. It’s hard to explain. Any logical person would leave this island and never look back. I was supposed to. But…I couldn’t abandon Duke. Not after everything he went through and what he got himself involved in.”

I nodded, thinking back to the young blond man who had been through hell this year.

And to top it all off, he’d gotten mixed into this crap somehow, and his animal sanctuary had ended up being used to launder money and traffic drugs.

Which was how they’d uncovered this alleged stash house we were parked in front of.

Slade, the tech wiz of the group who had retired due to an injury, had traced a drop to this quiet house in Aster Lane.

“Even so, I tried to do what was best for my little Noah, but my family helped me see that Duke needed me just as much and that I didn’t need to put one over the other. That’s why they moved here with me. To help with Noah and Duke.”

“Okay. I get it. You fell in love?—”

“Head over heels, man. It’s… I still can’t wrap my head around it, but when you meet the right person, you know,” he said.

I simply nodded as if I understood. I didn’t.

Or at least, I didn’t know what it was like for feelings to be reciprocated.

I’d tried my hand at dating and hooking up before, but I’d been…

all wrong. Something my girlfriends loved to remind me of, particularly when breaking up with me.

So it was hard to understand how anyone could uproot their life for someone they’d just met. It simply didn’t compute.

“The good thing is that Slade has planted a virus on some very important contacts’ phones so he can keep track of movements and any potential attacks, although he’s trying to dig deeper.”

“He has? How?” I turned to my old teammate, puzzled.

He blew raspberries. “Beats me, man. I’ve got no clue. The man is a master hacker or something. I don’t understand half the things he says or does.”

I took a deep breath and leaned back in my seat.

“So you’re saying we’re not in any danger.”

Azrael pressed his lips and looked out through the windshield.

“It’s hard to say, but the way I see it, if anyone wanted to hurt us, they would have.

We’ve brought down a few cells and made an enemy of Salieri, but he hasn’t retaliated.

Not in a big way. Which probably means he’s either scared or doesn’t have the power to.

It wouldn’t surprise me if we found out he’s in retreat mode since we took down so many of his men this summer. ”

“When Duke was abducted?”

“And my family,” he nodded.

I winced. “How is that safe?”

“It’s not, man. But…we’re Silver Legends, aren’t we? That means something. This island deserves it. It deserves to be free and safe, as do the people who live here, so if we have to go to war, so be it.”

I shook my head and glanced at the house, blowing hot air in frustration and confusion. They were out of their minds. All of them.

A man walked out of the house, planted himself on a chair on the porch, and lit a cigarette.

The house didn’t even have a front door.

Just a beaded curtain. They couldn’t look more conspicuous if they tried.

But the team had been watching them for a while now and hadn’t unearthed anything more sinister.

Maybe they wouldn’t. Maybe the place was never a stash house, or maybe this Salieri guy dropped it ages ago, and Goodman was chasing a dead lead.

Whatever it was, I didn’t like it. I didn’t like it one bit. The worst part was I could already feel myself getting involved, whether I liked it or not, if only to ensure Bear and I remained safe.

A loud, piercing ringing interrupted the relative peace inside the car, and I turned to the culprit. My phone.

It was an unknown number.

I turned to Azrael, then back to my screen, and slid the answer button slowly, as if I were dealing with a bomb.

“H-hello?” I asked.

“Hello, may I speak to Mr. Olson?” said a very composed, formal voice, and I frowned.

“Speaking.”

“Oh, excellent. Hi, Mr. Olson, it’s Wesley Crawford, Bear’s teacher?”

I sat up and my throat tightened in an instant.

“Is Bear okay? What happened?”

“Oh no, Teddy. He’s fine. Nothing’s wrong. I just have my conference period for the next hour and a half, and I was wondering if you’d be able to stop by so we can…talk?”

His words might have come out well articulated and reassuring, but it didn’t ease the restriction on my throat that felt like a noose around my neck.

“Talk about what?”

“I’d rather talk in person if possible. Are you free by any chance?”

I nodded before I remembered he couldn’t see me. “I’m on my way,” I said and hung up.

Azrael watched me and started the engine before I could say anything.

“What about the stakeout?” I asked.

“I’m sure it will be fine for twenty minutes. This is more important.”

I didn’t know if Goodman would agree, but I kept my mouth shut and sat back as Azrael drove me to the elementary school and dropped me off.

“Let me know how it goes. You still have my number, yeah?” he asked before he sped off back to the house on Aster Lane and I was left alone to face this new unknown. I tried to stop the horror scenarios running through my head, but it was simply impossible.

I made it inside and navigated—successfully this time—to Wesley’s classroom and knocked on the door.

I watched him through the glass panel as he got up from his desk and approached to let me in.

“Thank you for getting here so fast,” he said, offering me an adult-sized chair.

I sat across from him and a waft of lavender assaulted my nostrils, barely managing to calm my nerves but making me take pause and study Bear’s teacher closer.

The lens of his glasses reflected a soft glare from the windows making his kind green eyes brighter as he stared back at me. His soft smile almost…sizzled against my skin, making me feel warmer. After a moment, my insides stopped tossing and turning violently, and I cleared my throat.

“Is Bear okay?” I managed to ask.

“Yes. Bear is okay.” His smile deepened, and I smelled lavender again.

It was intense one moment and almost nonexistent the next. I couldn’t quite place where it was coming from, but something told me it was him.

“I’ve been meaning to catch up with you all week. And…” He looked down. “There was an incident in class today.”

“What happened?” I leaned forward and searched for his gaze, feeling almost untethered without it.

“Nothing serious, really! Bear had an argument with two boys during brain break.”

I frowned.

“Brain break?”

Wesley looked up, his serious expression softening with a chuckle.

“Oh, that’s a mini recess between lessons, but it takes place in the classroom. I try to give them creative tasks that will keep them interested while also not being too demanding on their little brains.” He chuckled again.

“I see.”

The way he spoke so elegantly, so gently, was comforting. It was endearing too. And it gave me some confidence that he was a great teacher for Bear to have. Someone who cared.

“So what happened during brain break?”

“It was nothing, really. A miscommunication that got a bit out of hand. One of the other kids pushed him, and he tried to hit him, but I stepped in before anyone was hurt.”

He rubbed his wrist and focused on the desk again.

“I thought it’d be a good opportunity to check how you guys are getting on at home. How are you two adjusting to this new…chapter in your life?”

I shrugged and sat back in the chair, taking a deep breath.

“I mean…it’s only been a couple of weeks or so. It’s going as well as it c—” I looked around the classroom as if I’d find the right answer on its walls, but then my gaze landed on his wrist, which he had freed from his hold.

It was red.

“What happened there? Did…did Bear do that?”

Wesley hid his hands under the desk and pressed his lips together.

“He didn’t mean to. It’s okay.”

I brought my hand up to my mouth and bit my fist.

“I’m so sorry,” I mumbled and offered him my hand. “Can…can I see?”

“It’s really not that bad. It looks worse than it feels, I swear,” he said, but I didn’t back down.

He placed his hand between my fingers. The hairs on the back of my neck stood and a sharp chill ran down my spine, making every muscle in my body tense.

What the hell was that?

I shook my head against whatever effect his sensation had on me and inspected the bruising closer.

“ He did that?” I asked in utter disbelief.

He was only seven for crying out loud. How on earth had he done that?

“He’s still young. He’s still learning his body and how to use it.”

“Yeah, but still,” I said, turning it to look at the other side, and he hissed. “You lied. It does hurt.”

Wesley pulled his hand back and shrugged.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“But it does,” I said and attempted to take his hand back for no reason other than that it had felt good to touch him.

“Honestly, I’m more interested in finding out how you two are adjusting. Bear went through terrible trauma. I just want to make sure he’s taking the time to process it and express his grief.”

“Right.” I sat back and pursed my lips. “Honestly, he’s okay. I think. I mean, he doesn’t talk much, but he’s always been a bit quiet.”

“Yes, of course,” Wesley said and put his elbows on his desk, supporting his head with both hands. “That’s perfectly normal. We don’t want to change who he is. How is he when you do his homework together? Is he engaged? Does he get easily distracted?”

“Homework?”

Seven-year-olds had homework?

Crap. How the hell did I not know that?

“Yeah,” he replied, and his lips quirked into an empathetic smile. “You didn’t know, did you?”

I shook my head.

“I thought as much. He hasn’t handed in any homework all week. I wasn’t sure how to bring it up.”

Great. Poor kid hadn’t been with me for more than a few weeks, and I was already fucking it all up.

“I’m sorry. I…I didn’t think to check. I feel so stupid.” I buried my face in my hands and tried to breathe through this asphyxiating embarrassment wrapping around me.

“Hey!” He raised his voice and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “No name-calling. I have to remind the kids all the time, don’t make me have to remind you too.”

I looked up and raised an eyebrow. Why was he being so nice to me? I didn’t deserve it. And yet, when I gazed into his eyes, I could almost start believing that I did. Which I guess was a good attribute for a teacher, right?

“Sorry.” A knot formed in my throat.

“It’s okay. You’ve been through a lot. You’re new to this. You’re bound to make mistakes. That’s why I’m here to help and support you as much as I can.”

A warmth spread in my chest, and it even cleared my throat. All of a sudden, I couldn’t look away from Wesley’s piercing eyes.

“Honestly, it’s super easy. You just need to check this folder after school.

” He lifted a two-pocket folder from beside him and passed it to me.

“I put any worksheets or notes in here, and they’ll usually say when they’re due.

You just need to sign them once they’re done.

It’s ideal if you let him do the work and only help him when he’s stuck.

Otherwise, he’ll become too reliant on others giving him the answers.

And it’s a great bonding opportunity, especially for a new guardian. ”

The folder had Bear’s name on the outside, and when I opened it, I found a few pieces of paper already inside.

“Crap. I’m so sorry. We’ll get right on it,” I said.

Thankfully, it looked easy enough. And organized, which helped considering I was freaking clueless.

“Don’t worry. It’s still the beginning of the school year, and I tend to not give them too much homework in the first couple of weeks, so he’s not behind or anything.”

“I don’t know what to say. Thank you so much.”

“You’re very welcome, Teddy,” he said. “I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

His glasses glimmered in the light seeping through windows once again and staring into his wonderful eyes made it hard to breathe.

But this time, it wasn’t the stress or worry of screwing up. It was something else.

Something I couldn’t quite define but wanted more of.

Him.

As odd as that sounded, I wanted more of…this. With him.