Chapter 30
Cienna
“Boyfriend? Boyfriend… why?” Too early, Cienna. What were you thinking? And to make matters worse, I butt-dialed him a half hour after that stupid text. He was going to think he had a stage-five clinger on his hands.
The afternoon bell rang, and I groaned. At least twenty small humans would distract me from my misery. All but one adorable ginger child, with her uncle’s fiery curls and silly little attitude to match. It was hard not to think of him when I saw her.
Abigail was first in line when I opened the door to welcome the students back to class. “Cici!” She jumped up and down and clapped. What the fuck did Reed pack in her lunch?
Then I realized she called me Cici. I looked around to see if that caught anyone’s attention, but it didn’t appear to.
I guessed it was time to talk to her about calling me Ms. Vilotta at school, hoping that wouldn’t be too confusing for her.
“Cici, Cici, Cici,” she chanted over and over, bouncing on her toes.
A hand touched my shoulder from behind, and I turned to see Jill.
Well, shit. She looked at me curiously, then down at Abigail, still chanting my name. I knelt to Abi’s eye level and asked her quietly, “Yes, Abigail?”
Not picking up on my calmer voice, she twirled in celebration and cheered, “I went across the whole monkey bars today!”
Wow. Well, that was a moment for a kindergartner, for sure. I gave her a high five. “Awesome job, kiddo!” Her pride was contagious, and I didn’t have the heart to correct her about my name. It could wait. But now I had to face Jill and hope she didn’t pick up on it.
“Cici,” Jill said pointedly. Guess she noticed.
“I just wanted to let you know I put a mock-up of a flyer for the special person’s dance on your desk.
” She really had to come all the way here to do that?
She could send a long-ass email complaining about non-organic fruits and gluten in the cafeteria, but she couldn’t send a copy of a flyer? Figured.
I gave my biggest, fakest smile and thanked her. She glanced back down to Abigail, who was now hugging my leg fiercely. As if her excitement was so big for her body that she had to squeeze some into me.
“That’s sweet. She’s really attached to you.”
I gulped. She was. And I was pretty attached myself. I smiled and nodded. There was nothing wrong or suspicious about a child behaving lovingly toward their teacher. Especially at this young age.
“And she calls you by your name. That’s cute. Do all the children call you by name?”
I didn’t miss how jabby this comment was or how her face betrayed her sugary tone. Thinking on my feet, I said, “It’s just a funny game we play as we learn to spell each other’s names.”
Her brows lifted to her hairline. “Oh, well how fun.” Then she turned back toward the exit without another word.
Letting out a sigh of relief, I turned back to my students. At least Reed was no longer at the forefront of my mind. Now Jill Trumaine and her nosy ass was all I could think about for the remainder of the day.
After the dismissal bell, I watched the students trickle out one by one, until Abigail was the only one left.
Daisy was sometimes late, having to haul a young one with her and then pick up her daughter in a classroom down the hall.
Grabbing a juice box from the fridge, I brought it to Abi, and she grinned up at me.
“I can’t wait to tell Uncle Reed about the monkey bars.
” Her excitement was contagious. And her positive glow was yet another reminder of her resilience.
The sound of shuffling steps caught my attention, and I looked up to find Reed.
Navy suit, tie partly undone, and the sexiest rumpled hair I’d ever laid eyes on.
His eyes were redder around the rims than usual, and his lips were turned down.
Worry gripped my heart as I placed my hand on his arm. “Hey, you okay?”
One corner of his lips quirked up slightly, but the effort it took to make that happen was apparent.
“Yeah. Can we talk tonight?” His voice was a near whisper, reminding me where we were.
I quickly released his arm, then nervously peered around the room to see if anyone else was near.
Seeing no one, I turned back to him, concern rioting through my body and up to my throat.
I had said “boyfriend.” I took it too far, too fast, and now it was too much.
But I nodded as casually as I could manage. “Just call me.”
He must have sensed the defeat in my voice because he asked, “Come over?” His tone and his expression were confusing, but I agreed with another nod and an “Okay.”
He squatted down to Abi, who was about to explode with elation.
“Uncle Reeeeed,” she squealed loudly, then rattled off her story with pride radiating off her.
“Abbers! That’s amazing.” He reflected her bursting energy the best he could but glanced up to me. I gave him a light smile before he returned his attention to her. “I think”—he teasingly tapped his chin—“this deserves a trip to Suzie Scoops, don’t you?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” She did a happy twirl, and her curly red locks swished and fanned around her.
I adored every student I’d ever taught, even the trickier ones, but as I watched Abi spin, a huge smile on her face, seeing what she did to Reed, I realized how much more she clutched my heart than any other child had.
Noticing Jill approaching from behind Reed, I swallowed hard. Was it me, or did she look him up and down and pause at his delicious behind? Jealousy twitched deep inside, but I blinked the feeling away and gave her the most poorly rummaged smile as she walked up next to us.
Just as she was about to speak, a loud shriek came from Abi.
“Oh! Oh! Can Cici come too?” She gave Reed pleading eyes, and he looked down to her, the corner of his lips tilted up.
I knew that smile. He was ready to give in to anything she wished.
Fuck. I prayed that he noticed Jill, but I wasn’t ready to take the chance.
“Abigail, ice cream is a great way to celebrate your super big accomplishment. Go enjoy! Ms. Vilotta has lots of silly teacher work to do,” I interjected as I peeked at Reed, his face confused, before he looked over to Jill.
“Well, this is just the cutest thing.” Something smug and coy underlined her words as her gaze traveled between the three of us and then back to me.
Her brow was cocked in a villainous gaze, and I knew she was devising some kind of scenario in her head.
The problem was, I couldn’t really switch the narrative.
Clearly, Abigail knew my name and felt enough comfort to invite me to ice cream.
I mean, in some cases, that would be super cute and normal for my students.
The ones who were extroverted and exuberant, like Abigail.
But it was clear she felt the pull between the three of us.
That was terrifying, for the sake of my career. And Reed. And Abigail.
“Abi, we gotta hurry before they close! Let’s go.” Caught up in her uncle’s eagerness, Abi jumped into action and followed him out. I caught a glimpse of his face as he called over his shoulder, “Thank you, Ms. Vilotta.” Then he mouthed, “Later.”
I took a deep breath and aimed a final smile at Jill. “Was there something you needed, Jill?”
She held a stack of papers, and I nodded toward them.
“Oh, I was so caught up in all the ice cream excitement, I completely forgot.” The syrupy sweetness of her smile made me want to gag. “I have book fair catalogs for you to pass out to your class.” She handed me the pile.
“Oh, great. I love the book fair.”
Her smile slipped slightly. “Mm-hmm.” Suddenly, her eyes grew wide. “Oh, shucks. I forgot to ask Reed if he’d like to join the book fair as a volunteer. He’d be so helpful with lifting the tables and boxes.”
I tried not to flinch or take any notice of her mention of him by name. But his name on her lips bothered me. “Well, I’m sure you can catch him at our next meeting.”
“Yes, I’ll just catch him,” she practically purred, then added, “later.”
With an exhale, I pivoted, turning back toward my desk. Little did she know, my “later” was coming far sooner than hers, and I was ready to get on with it. “I will be sure to pass these out. Thank you.”
She must have taken that as a dismissal because she began inching back into the corridor. Slinking. “Thank you, Cici.” Ugh, Cici. She did that on purpose. Bitch.
On my drive to Reed’s, music blasted as I tapped my hands, hoping to drown out my worries. Not even blaring “Shake It Off” could stop the cyclone of thoughts spinning. Did something bad happen at his mediation? Was he going to tell me I was going too fast? Was he worried about Jill too?
Barely stopping my car before unbuckling my seat belt, I grabbed my purse and tumbled out of the vehicle. Maybe he felt my chaotic presence heading his way because Reed met me at the door, leaning against the doorframe as I paced up the driveway.
Before I could even set my purse down, he pulled me into a hug and breathed “Hey” into my hair.
Relief washed through me at his embrace. “Hey.” I hesitantly pulled back to peer at his face and the emotion bouncing around in his green irises. Completely ignoring the “boyfriend” situation, I asked, “How did it go today?”
He unlocked himself from me, leaving me feeling emptier. His shoulders sagged with a sigh. “Nothing like I’d expected.”
Before he could say more, a flash of red darted by and attached to my leg. “Ciiiiiciiii!” Goodness, this girl loved to say my name, but I melted at how excited she was to see me.
Clearly, the buzz from the monkey bar celebration was still running high. I leaned down, giving her a little squish, then knelt and met her beam. “Hello, Ms. Monkey Bars. Did you get ice cream?”
She hopped up and down and twirled. “Yes, yes, yes, and I got strawberry like you. And Uncle Reed couldn’t get his mustachio, so he got boring vanilla.”