Page 25

HOLT

“I can’t believe this is happening.” Merit’s downtrodden voice echoes in my ears.

The football game ended a couple of hours ago, but I had to stay late to get caught up on some paperwork. My school grades are due by midnight. I glance at the clock on my computer before I shut it off. Twenty minutes to spare.

“She just said she decided to stay at her current job? That’s it? No other explanation?” Holding the phone against my ear, I lock the exterior door to the gym.

“She said that her current job came back today offering her three dollars more per hour. I can’t match that.” She sighs into the phone. “She was supposed to start tomorrow. What the heck am I gonna do?”

“You’ll just have to start looking again. You need another employee, there’s no way around it.”

I’m surprised to see my truck isn’t the only vehicle in the parking lot. Parked a few spots away from me is a beaten-down car with a girl standing outside. “Hey, Mer, let me call you back. I think someone’s having car trouble.”

“Who?”

I chuckle. Curious Merit, as always. “It looks like a student.”

“Okay. Call me back.”

When I get closer, I realize I recognize the girl. I think her name is Heidi. She was a flyer on the cheerleading team last year, but she had a terrible fall during a competition around Christmas time. Broke her ankle and needed surgery. She was in a cast for months, and her recovery must not have gone as well as expected—she’s not on the sidelines with the team this year.

“Heidi, right?” Engrossed in texting or playing a game on her phone, her head whips in my direction.

“Oh! Hi, Coach.”

I look around the parking lot, but I don’t see anyone else. “It’s pretty late to be out here alone. Is everything okay?” I unlock my truck and open the door.

She pats the trunk of her car. “It’s my car. It won’t start.”

I sling my bag into my back seat and walk over. “Let me take a look.” I take the key from her and try to turn the ignition. “The battery is dead. Did you leave your lights on during the game?”

She shakes her head, staring at me with big brown eyes. “No, this car always has problems. I’m trying to save up for something better.” She kicks the ground with her shoe. “But that’s a slow process.”

I pull my truck around and connect the jumper cables. We try several times, but it doesn’t work; there’s no life left in the thing at all. “Have you called someone to pick you up?” I ask, packing the cables away in my toolbox.

“Yeah, I called my uncle about an hour ago, but he’s not the most reliable person. I have no idea when he’ll actually show up.”

“Anyone else? Parents?”

“It’s just my mom, and she can’t drive at night because of the fibromyalgia medicine she has to take.”

“Friends?”

She giggles. “It’s Friday night. After a massive football win. All my friends are three sheets to the wind.”

I should chastise her classmates, but there were a few times I celebrated a high school win a little too hard myself. In fact, it’s how Ridge’s favorite T-shirt got ruined. Cheese balls and cheap wine coolers don’t mix.

“Could you take me home?”

I vehemently shake my head no. “Oh, Heidi, students aren’t allowed to ride with teachers unless there’s written permission from your guardians and the school ahead of time.”

“Oh…” Her face falls, and she studies a crack in the asphalt.

It reminds me of Merit. Well, the old Merit.

Looking down, uncertain and unsure.

“But don’t worry, I’m not leaving you here. I’ll wait with you.” Lowering my tailgate, I nod, giving her permission to sit down. She jumps up and we small talk about school and her classes. We wait another twenty minutes, and there’s still no sign of her uncle, despite her calling and texting him. She also talks with her mom. I do my best to hide my yawn, but I’m unsuccessful.

“You should go. It’s really late, and you’re probably exhausted. I’ll be fine. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”

I stand up and walk closer to the road, taking a look. No cars, no headlights. Everything is abandoned. I really shouldn’t take her home, but I don’t see any other choice. I can’t leave her alone in the middle of the night in an empty parking lot. There’s not even school cameras in this section. If something happened to her, no one would even know, and it would be completely my fault. “Maybe I should just go ahead and drive you home,” I say against my better judgment.

She jumps down from the truck, clapping her hands in excitement. “Really! Oh, that would be awesome.”

“I need to call your mother for permission.”

She holds out her phone. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“No, I need to call the official number listed for her in the school system.” I start walking back toward the gym. “C’mon, we’ll call from my office.”

Once I get her on the phone, Denise, Heidi’s mom, nearly bursts into tears. I have to interrupt her waterfall of thank yous to tell her we better get on the road before it gets even later. When we’re walking back out to the parking lot, Heidi tells me where she lives, and I’m relieved it’s somewhat on my way home because I’m dog-ass tired. All I wanna do is wrap Merit in my arms and pass out. If I had to guess, she’s already asleep. She’s having a season closeout sale on summer clothes tomorrow, so the store will be flooded with customers.

Five minutes into the drive, I hear a barely audible sniffle. In the reflection of the passenger window, I watch as Heidi wipes some tears from her eyes. “Heidi, is everything okay?”

She gasps, shocked I noticed her crying. “Oh, I’m okay. It’s just been a really bad day.”

“Your car?” I ask.

She nods. “That, and I lost my job.”

“You lost your job today? What happened?”

“I had a disagreement with my boss.” When I lift an eyebrow, she continues. “I’m a half-day student. I get out at noon every day and go to work at a daycare. Today, a little boy from the four-year-old class had an accident and wet his pants. My boss forced him to stand in the corner for timeout. I disagreed with the punishment. It was an accident. He was playing outside and having so much fun…he just didn’t wanna take a break for the bathroom. It’s something every little kid has done.” She shrugs. “Anyway, I really needed that job. Like I said, I’m saving money for a new car. After graduation, I plan to move to the beach and live with some of my friends who graduated last year. They go to nursing school at the community college during the day and work in the restaurants at night. You can make really good tips from all the tourists. Plus, since they would already have a year of school under their belt, they can help me if I have any trouble with the classes.”

Holy shit. This could be the answer to all our problems.

“You work in a daycare? You like kids?”

Her face lights up. “Oh, I love kids.”

“Have you ever worked in a store or a restaurant with a point-of-sale system?”

She cocks her head, answering slowly. “Last summer I worked at the snow cone stand. They had a POS. Why?”

I drag my hand across my face, wondering how much I should say. Considering I don’t want Merit to work herself to death—like she’s been doing over the past several years—and considering I want more of her to myself, I dive in, head-fucking-first. It’s not like I don’t know Heidi. Plus, I saw her grades when I was looking up her mom’s phone number. She’s in the top ten percent of her class. Learning how to shut the store down should be a breeze for her. “Listen, I’m not trying to get your hopes up or anything, but my girlfriend is looking to fill a part-time position at her store.”

“Her store?”

“It’s a children’s store— Run and Jump and Twirl. ”

Her face brightens up, and she bounces in her seat. “Are you serious! That would be so amazing! I swear, I would be the hardest worker ever.” She looks out the windshield, covering her mouth with her hands in excitement. “It’s gonna be so much fun. Oh my god, I can’t wait!”

I can’t help but laugh at her innocence and joy. “Hey now, this isn’t a done deal. Who she hires is completely Merit’s decision.” Heidi holds her breath, waiting for me to say more. “But why don’t you come by the store tomorrow night after it closes? About seven? I can introduce you.”

“Yes! Absolutely! And tell her I can work whenever she needs. Every single afternoon and night and all day Saturday. Whenever she wants.”

We pull up in front of Heidi’s house. It’s a small brick home with peeling paint on the front door and a cracked window off the porch. A couple of the shutters dangle, about to fall off. They’re dangerously close to being lost in the overgrown bushes. If it’s just Heidi and her mom—and her mom is sick—it’s not like I can really fault them for not having time to tackle deferred maintenance.

I think I see movement at one of the window curtains when Heidi catches me completely off guard, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. Her breath drags across my neck. “Thank you so much, Coach!”

I immediately press back against my door, trying to ease away from her embrace.

Her cheeks turn bright red, and her eyes widen. “Oh crap, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I’m just so excited.”

Nodding, I take a deep breath and smile, trying to diffuse the awkwardness of the situation. I know her action was totally innocent, and it just sucks that as a teacher you can’t even high-five a kid without worrying about what other people think. Let alone give a kid a hug. “It’s fine.” I brush it off as a non-event. “So, we’ll see you tomorrow night at the store?”

She jumps from the truck. “I’ll be there! Thanks so much for the ride, Coach.”

Fifteen minutes later, I’m tiptoeing down the hallway, trying not to wake Merit. Turns out, she’s somewhat of a light sleeper. Not me. I sleep like the dead. I’m fairly certain I could sleep through a hurricane. Literally. It’s a by-product of years of football camp—hundreds of loud, snoring guys all sleeping in the same dorm. I slide my cell phone out of my pocket and leave it on the side table outside the door to the Children’s Wing. When I get to her room, I lean against the doorframe, studying the curve of her body. Lit by the soft moonlight, she looks like an angel.

“Are you planning on standing there all night and watching me sleep? Because that’s kinda creepy.” Looking over her shoulder, she tosses back the covers, inviting me into her bed. Stripping down to my boxer briefs, I crawl in next to her. Pulling her against me, I ignore my growing erection. I know she can feel it against her ass because she stops breathing. Her reaction always makes me chuckle. Nuzzling against her neck, I whisper, “I think I solved the problem.”

“What problem?” she yawns. “By the way, you never called me back.”

I’m too tired to even answer her. We can talk tomorrow. For now, I hold her against me, determined to never let her go, and I fall into a deep, soundless sleep.