Total pages in book: 168
Estimated words: 164910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 825(@200wpm)___ 660(@250wpm)___ 550(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 825(@200wpm)___ 660(@250wpm)___ 550(@300wpm)
I look up and down the windowsill. One of the students could’ve moved it.
But it’s not there. Heading over to the windows, I move books and swipe reams of paper to the floor, but it’s missing.
I look behind the bust of a gladiator a student made in ceramics last year, a light catching my attention.
The gymnasium below glows bright, the clear, retractable roof completely open. Rain pours in, spilling into the pool.
My heart feels like it jumps two fucking inches. Backing away from the window, I slowly turn and head out of the room, descend the stairs, and walk to him.
I wish I could say I would’ve done things differently five years ago.
Maybe I wouldn’t have fought with him, then fucked him, then fought with him some more, but I know I would do the same damn thing if I could go back. As much as I know it was my fault for messing with a seventeen-year-old and playing fast and loose with his head, I knew he would come back someday, and I knew he’d want to hammer me into the ground.
I was hoping for it. I waited for it. I’m not surprised by anything that’s happening right now.
Slipping through the locker room, I pull open the door to the pool. Callum stands near the far end of the ten-lane Olympic-size swimming pool, and I drift next to lane one, watching him as I close in.
Bleachers are positioned on both sides with a small cushioned patio set off to the right and another one at the end of the pool, complete with wicker couches, chairs, and table.
A blonde sits on the one to the far right, feet propped up on the coffee table as she scrolls her phone with her headphones on.
Callum doesn’t seem to be aware of anything, wandering slowly, waist-deep with his head tilted back. Rain sprinkles the water around him and drips onto his face, down his back, and in thick ripples running alongside his spine.
As I come up on him, I can see his eyes are closed, and he just looks like he doesn’t have a care in the world.
Pulling off my baseball cap, I fling it into the pool.
He opens his eyes, tilting his head so he can see me. “Mr. Jaeger.” He sinks down, dipping his hair into the water and smoothing back the strands. “Is it customary for teachers to be here so late?”
“You invited me with your bullshit curfew,” I spit back. “Don’t think I don’t know it was you.”
He picks up the black cap where it floats on the surface and tosses it back onto the deck before he hauls himself up out of the pool.
His black shorts fall a little higher than mid-thigh, showing off muscular legs and every curve of his ass. As he walks to pick up a towel, I let myself look, taking in his narrow waist and toned and tanned skin from head to toe.
Fucking piece of shit…
He turns, rubbing his towel over his hair. “What could a philosophy teacher be doing out past midnight anyway?”
“An adult can do whatever they want.”
I don’t owe him an explanation.
But he says, “Mr. Ames.”
“What?”
Reaching down, he plucks a grape and pops it into his mouth. “You’ll address me as Mr. Ames here.”
I straighten my spine, almost choking on his fucking ego. Another reminder that the grace of the good boosters of this school pays my salary.
I glance over at the girl, but I do a double take. Amy Chandler, Clay and Krisjen’s former high school friend, bobs her foot to the music as her robe spills off her shoulder, just the straps of her bikini visible from here.
Does he know I had her?
I’ll bet he does. He seems well informed.
“The curfew isn’t unreasonable.” He tosses the towel down, speaking calmly, as if I’m really just a teacher and he’s my boss. “We’ve had some break-ins in previous years, and this protects everyone from the weather and the empty houses from burglars.” He sits down on the couch, facing me as he adds ice to a glass. “You shouldn’t be inconvenienced, all the way over in Sanoa Bay.”
I take a step closer, keeping my voice down. “What happens if we’re caught here after hours?”
“Well, what happens to anyone who breaks the law?” He peers up at me in between scooping up some green-powder shit and adding it to the ice water. “There’s no telling how long you’d sit in jail, what with Judge Conroy on vacation for several weeks.”
He swirls the liquid, mixing it up and watching me as he takes a drink.
I keep myself from grabbing him and slamming him into the fucking tile.
Unable to keep the disgust from twisting my lips, I pull off my soaked shirt and squeeze both fists around it, ringing out the water onto the pool deck.