Chapter 33
“Hey, Dr. Henderson! Hold up.”
Adam, Michael, and Derrick stopped as they made it halfway to the dressing rooms backstage.
When Adam turned around, he found James Sanders waving at him.
He gave a nod to his boys and sent Michael and Derrick on their way.
Whatever this young man had to say to him, he somehow knew an audience wouldn’t help with the situation.
“What can I do for you, James?”
James jogged the few steps to Adam, greeting him with a warm smile.
“First off, that was a great show. I’d heard some of those oldies from when my mom blasts music on Saturday mornings when it’s time to clean the house.”
The way the young man said “oldies” made Adam cringe. He was a man in his forties. Just how old did this boy think he was?
“Young’un, the Jackson 5 wasn’t even from my era. Just like you, and I presume your mother too, I grew up to my parents jamming to those songs as a kid in the eighties.”
“Wow, that far back, huh?”
Did this child just … the utter disrespect these kids had for the previous generations never ceased to amaze Adam.
“Was there something specific you wanted, James?”
The boy looked around, making sure the hall was empty before he stepped closer to Adam.
“I know you’re seeing my mom.”
Adam tilted his head, trying to gauge if this was going to be a confrontational kind of conversation or an information-seeking one. Either way, this was Janae’s son. Adam knew he had to take care with his words.
The boy held up his hands as if trying to calm Adam’s obvious discomfort with the pending conversation. “Mom told me. And just so you know, I don’t have a problem with it. Not that my opinion really matters.”
“I’m sure if your mother heard you say that, she’d say different.”
“Are we talking about the same Janae Aaliyah Tate Sanders?”
Adam had to laugh at that. Janae was the most confident person he’d ever met. She made decisions based on what she thought was best, not anyone else.
“True.” Adam chuckled. “But you did tell me you wanted to see your parents back together again. Has that changed?”
“I saw my mother worry about her own happiness for a bit and I got excited. If it were up to me, for my own selfish reasons I’d want them back together.
Part of that was seeing how happy she was and thinking it was because she and my dad were getting along again.
If I’d known it was because of you, I never would’ve said what I said. ”
Adam looked at this young man, all of fifteen years old with so much maturity and wisdom, He could almost forget James wasn’t one of his peers. His perception and maturity were just another nod to how well Janae had raised him.
“I know something’s going on between you that’s got her feeling down.” Again, James’ astuteness gave Adam pause. “I also know that whatever it is, you were trying to make it right with that apology medley you were lip-syncing on stage. Smooth overture, by the way.”
Adam’s lip curled into a sly smile. He wanted to accept that compliment, but again, this was Janae’s son, so he had to maintain a certain level of propriety during this interaction.
“You don’t have to admit it. I’m just saying, it was a pretty original idea—”
“James,” Adam interrupted as he tried to use his school administrator’s voice to put things back on an even keel with this conversation. “Is there a point to all of this?”
“Yeah. I just wanted to say that whatever this issue is, you made my mom really happy. I’d like to see her remain that way. If you need any help, any advice on how to get back into her good graces, as the person who stays getting on her nerves, I’m the perfect person to talk to.”
Adam had to laugh out loud to that one. That blunt gene was definitely from James’ mother.
“Thanks for the offer, James. And I’m really happy to receive your blessing on dating your mom. But, whatever’s happening between us right now, we’ve got to figure it out on our own. You cool with that?”
“Fo sho,” James answered, extending his hand to Adam. Impressed with the young man, Adam took his hand and James pulled him into a bro hug, slapping him on his back.
The gesture made Adam proud to know him and solidified that he’d have to do whatever he could to set things right with Janae. He wanted Janae, and now he realized that he wanted to be there to witness her son grow into the amazing man who was just on the other side of James’ horizon.
When they separated, James stepped back and turned to leave, looking over his shoulder one last time at Adam. “Just in case you were wondering, it’s my dad’s weekend again, and he’s waiting outside for me. Now might be the perfect time to try to talk to my mom.”
My man! Adam thought to himself. Not that he needed any more encouragement.
When Janae had texted him to come over and talk after the variety show, he’d cleared out his whole schedule.
The added benefit of not having their conversation interrupted by James’ presence meant he and Janae could take their time wading through the choppy waters of this mess they’d created.
James exited the hall, and Adam continued toward the dressing room with a mission to grab his stuff and head for Janae’s. But the ringing of his phone in his back pocket stopped him in his tracks.
“Hello.”
His voice was gruff with a tad bit of annoyance, and he didn’t care. He wanted to get to Janae, and this was slowing him down.
“Hello, Dr. Henderson. This is Dr. Brent. I hope I haven’t caught you at a bad time.”
“Is there something happening?”
“One, I wanted to congratulate you on your performance. I was in the audience, and I thought it was an exceptional display of how dedicated you are to the kids in this district. We need more administrators to understand it’s not just about the paperwork, it’s about the human beings whose lives we’re trying to make a difference in. ”
Adam stopped in his tracks. He certainly was dedicated to his kids. But they weren’t exactly the only thing on his mind when Derrick had come up with the idea to put this skit together. It was a good thing Dr. Brent didn’t need to know all that, though.
“Thank you, Dr. Brent, I’ll do anything to help my kids.”
“It appears so, that speaks to my second point for calling. I wanted to congratulate you on your getting the district’s creative arts program fully funded.”
James did a bit of mental math and tried to figure out what the school board president was talking about.
“Thank you, ma’am. However, the final tally of tonight’s fundraising hasn’t been done. I’m not sure if we’ve actually reached our goal or not.”
“That’s because you don’t have the information that I hold.
” He waited for her to elaborate. “Tonight, Ms. Vanessa Jared found me as I was entering the auditorium and told me she was part of a charitable foundation that looked for worthy causes to donate to. She informed them about our program, and apparently, they liked what they heard. Tonight, she handed me a check for enough money to fully fund the program for at least five years. The only caveat is that they’ve named you as the administrator of the fund. ”
Adam was nearly weak when he processed what the school board president had to say. How had Vanessa done this without him knowing, without Michael knowing? He was certain if Michael had known, he would’ve told Adam about it.
“Dr. Henderson, are you still there?”
“Yes.” His voice was sharp, filled with shock. “I’m here. I can’t believe this. As an interim superintendent, how will this play out if the board decides not to keep me?”
“Dr. Henderson, you just brought in a multimillion dollar endowment to the district. I doubt very seriously there’s any chance any board member is going to try to vote you out.
Besides, with your obvious dedication to our kids, the job was pretty much yours anyway.
We just had to see how you worked this budget situation out before we made it official. ”
“So are you saying—”
She interrupted Adam. “I’m saying welcome to Monroe Hills Area School District as the new and permanent superintendent. The official paperwork will be in your in-box on Monday. Enjoy your weekend, Dr. Henderson.”
The line went dead as the dressing room door opened and Michael and Derrick stepped into the hall.
“Everything okay, man?” Michael’s query shook Adam out of his fog. He looked at his friend as he contemplated the question.
He should feel over the moon. He should be ecstatic, doing a victory dance right where he stood. And although he was happy about the good news he’d received, he couldn’t find the joy that should’ve been flowing through him.
He closed his eyes and shook his head. He’d been so clueless, just as much as he had been when they were teenagers.
He didn’t recognize it then, he didn’t even recognize it all this time that he and Janae had been dating.
But in this moment when he was at his professional zenith, he couldn’t be as thrilled as he wanted to be because Janae wasn’t at his side. The woman he loved wasn’t there.
He turned to his friends with the widest grin on his face, grabbing them both in a hug.
“Everything will be perfect once I get my woman back.”
He didn’t take the time to explain. Before either of them could form a question, he about-faced and headed straight for the parking lot. Before he ran through the exit, he tossed over his shoulder, “Vanessa is an angel. Make sure you give her a thank-you kiss for me.”
Adam sprinted across the parking lot and got in his car. His life was finally lining up. Everything, absolutely everything, he wanted was within his grasp. But none of it meant anything if he couldn’t share it all with the most important person in his life, Janae Sanders.
Janae sat down in her empty kitchen, slowly sipping on a glass of Moscato. Her nerves and emotions were all over the place.
She’d been mad as hell at Adam for taking his dad’s side. But listening to Cree and Vanessa now had her questioning her reaction. She had to admit she couldn’t be exactly certain that’s what happened because she shot from the hip, stifling any conversation that could’ve happened in that moment.
Every time she thought about it, she became more and more embarrassed. What grown woman did immature crap like this?
One who’s been hurt multiple times by the people who were supposed to love her.
That was the truth and she wouldn’t run from it. She had to face it. How else would she heal the little girl who’d been lashing out to keep from getting hurt all these years?
A knock on her back door broke her concentration. When she looked up, she saw the same paisley shirt she witnessed in the auditorium.
As she walked to the door and Adam’s handsome face came into view, her stomach did a little flip at the sight of him.
Without hesitation, she opened the door and welcomed him into her home.
“Hey, Adam.”
“I’m sorry for taking so long. I was held up at the auditorium for a bit. Since you’ve let me in, I’m assuming the text invite you sent to talk still stands.”
“You assumed correctly. Adam, I just wanted to say—”
“It’s you, Janae.”
He cut her off before she could finish. “Bearing in mind what happened last time, I have to finish what I need to say so you can understand clearly that it all begins and ends with you.”
She stood in the middle of the kitchen with her mouth open, uncertain how to respond, a first for her, she was sure. She managed to shut her jaw and nod, bidding him to continue.
“I wasn’t defending my father. I was attempting to ask if you were okay. I realize now that my body language relayed my anger, but you mistakenly perceived it was directed at you. It wasn’t. My first thought was to protect you, check in with you.”
He took a breath, letting his words settle in the air before he spoke again.
“I’m sorry it appeared that I was reprimanding you in that moment.
I wasn’t. And if you don’t believe me, you can ask the nursing staff how I told my father off immediately after you left.
They had to come in to check to make certain everything was okay.
Oh, and my mother told me to tell you the next time you see my father, he will have a sincere apology waiting for you. ”
She stared up at him and saw nothing but sincerity swimming in his golden eyes. Adam adored his mother. There’s no way he would’ve lied to her about something like that.
“It appears I owe you an apology, Adam. I’m sorry for jumping to conclusions. If I’m honest, I guess I just couldn’t believe someone would defend me, fight for me.”
He stepped closer to her and she was able to take in the slight spice of his cologne. She breathed him in, her senses reveling in getting to once again indulge in his scent.
“Janae, just because I came around doesn’t instantly erase your past. You’ve had to fight some huge battles with little to no help.
Of course you fell into familiar patterns when you felt threatened.
Next time, I just need you to talk to me.
Don’t run out on me. Don’t shut down communication so I can’t reach you.
It nearly killed me that you thought I’d intentionally hurt you and then I couldn’t talk to you, I couldn’t make things better for you.
Don’t you know that’s all I’ve wanted to do since we reconnected, make things better for you? ”
Tears welled up in her eyes. Yes, on a superficial level, she’d known he wanted to take care of her.
It wasn’t until this moment, however, when his voice was so raw with emotion that she truly understood that his “making things better” was him loving her.
Adam only wanted to love her and, more than anything, she was finally ready to let him.
Adam pulled her into his arms when her tears spilled down her cheeks.
She circled her arms around his waist, sighing deeply into his chest as the comfort his presence brought seeped into her.
He tightened his hold on her and placed soft kisses at her temple.
“Why are you crying, baby?”
“Because I understand how much I almost threw away when all I ever wanted to do was stay in your arms forever.”
He found her lips, kissing her softly, letting her feel his presence in every fiber of her being.
“Baby.” He kissed her again, pouring so much love and tenderness into her that she couldn’t help feeling full of his love. “I ain’t even mad at that.”