Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Corey couldn't remember the last time he'd been this distracted during a faculty meeting.
The principal was talking about winter break procedures, her voice steady and practiced as she went through the same information they covered every year. Around him, teachers nodded politely or made notes in their planners. A few were clearly checking email on their phones under the table.
Corey was staring at the wall behind the principal’s head, replaying the moment when Gayle Walker had walked into his band room.
He'd noticed her eyes first. Warm brown, with a cautious quality that suggested she didn't let people in easily. Then the way she'd held the puppy. She’d been competent and gentle at the same time, like caring for animals was as natural to her as breathing.
And when she'd smiled...
"Corey?"
He blinked. Around the table, several of his colleagues were trying not to grin.
"Sorry," he said, straightening in his chair. "Could you repeat that?"
"I asked if you needed any additional setup time for the winter concert," the principal said. "Since it's only three weeks away."
"Right. No, the current schedule works fine." Corey cleared his throat. "We're in good shape."
The principal nodded and moved on, but he could feel Penny Hall, the choir director, watching him with obvious amusement.
When the meeting finally ended, she fell into step beside him in the hallway.
"So," she said, her tone deliberately casual. "I heard there was some excitement in the band room last week."
Corey should have known word would spread. High schools were worse than small towns when it came to gossip. "Just a stray puppy. Nothing exciting."
"Mmm." Penny’s smile widened. "And I also heard that the woman from the shelter was very pretty."
"I didn't notice," Corey lied.
"You're a terrible liar." Penny laughed. "It's okay, you know. You're allowed to notice when someone's attractive."
"I was focused on the puppy," Corey insisted, which was technically true, even if it wasn't the whole truth.
Penny patted his arm with the kind of fond exasperation that came from years of friendship.
"Whatever you say, Corey. But for the record?
You've been staring into space all morning with this look on your face like you're trying to solve a particularly complicated musical arrangement.
That's your 'thinking about something important' face. "
"I was thinking about the concert," Corey said.
"Sure you were," Penny replied, still smiling as she turned toward her classroom. "See you at lunch."
Corey shook his head and headed for the band room, telling himself that Penny was reading too much into things.
So he'd been a little distracted. That didn't mean anything.
He was probably just tired. The end of the semester was always exhausting, with concerts and grading and trying to keep students focused when all they wanted to do was think about Christmas break.
The band room was empty when he arrived, his next class still ten minutes away. He set his coffee on his desk and noticed a small tuft of tan fur clinging to his chair. Evidence of yesterday's unexpected visitor.
Presti.
The puppy had been so trusting, settling into Corey's arms like he belonged there. And the way he'd looked up at Corey with those dark, hopeful eyes...
Corey sat down, picking up the piece of fur and turning it between his fingers.
He'd never had a dog. Never really thought about having one. His condo had a strict no-pets policy, and even if it didn't, his schedule wasn't conducive to dog ownership. He left for school by seven-thirty and often didn't get home until after five. That wasn't fair to an animal.
But holding Presti had felt... right, somehow. Like a piece of his life he hadn't known was missing had suddenly clicked into place.
He was still holding the tuft of fur when his students started filtering in for third period. Curtis, one of his drummers, dropped his backpack by his chair and immediately asked, "Mr. Roberts, did they find the puppy's owner?"
"Not that I know of," Corey replied, setting the fur aside.
"You should adopt him," Emily suggested, pulling her flute case from her locker. "You two really bonded."
Several other students murmured agreement, and Corey held up a hand. "I’m only fostering him short term. I don't have time for a dog."
"You could make time," Curtis pointed out. "My dad says if something's important, you find a way."
"Your dad's a wise man," Corey said. "But it's not practical. Now, everyone get your instruments out. We're working on dynamics today."
The students settled into their seats, still throwing him knowing looks that suggested the conversation was far from over. Corey raised his baton and brought them in, focusing on the music because that was something he could control.
Unlike the image of Gayle that kept drifting through his mind at the most inconvenient moments.