More laughter, but the PTA brigade frown harder.
“Alright then,” she says, pointing to a boy nearly falling out of his chair.
“What’s it like to block a slapshot?”
“Depends on the shot,” Reid says.
Another hand rockets up. “Does it hurt when you get hit in the nuts?”
The room breaks into giggles, and Lulu shakes her head, fighting a grin. “I don’t think Mr. Hutchison is going to answer that one, Daniel.”
“Yes,” Reid says, completely straight-faced as the kids collapse into hysterics. “A lot.”
A girl blurts, “Why are you so serious all the time?”
Reid’s eyes swivel until they land on her. “I’m smiling on the inside.”
The desks rattle as the kids all chuckle harder, and Lulu presses her lips together, eyes shining as she glances my way.
All I can do is watch her—how she takes what should be bedlam and spins it into something alive. She doesn’t crush their chaos; she channels it and makes them feel part of the magic.
I’ve seen coaches lose their shit trying to wrangle twenty grown men. She’s got thirty kids worshipping her with nothing but sass and a smile.
Another hand shoots up, arm flapping. “Do you have any pets?”
Before Reid or I can answer, another blurts, “Miss Parnell has Miso!”
The room erupts with delighted agreement.
“Miso’s the best!”
“She wore a little pink sweater!”
“She gave me kisses on the nose!”
I almost choke. Lulu actually brought that demon dog in here, and apparently, it didn’t terrorize the children. She played dress-up and handed out kisses like some furry saint. The same dog that tries to shred my skin every time she sees me.
Lulu just laughs, easy and warm. “Technically, Miso belongs to my brother and his wife, but yes, she’s visited before.”
“Miso should come back!”
“Miso’s the nicest dog in the world!”
Nicest.Right. Tell that to the scars on my sneakers.
Another kid blurts, “Logan has a dog too!” and suddenly thirty pairs of eyes swivel my way. “I saw him on the TV!”
“His name’s Dusty,” Lulu supplies sweetly. “He’s a giant floofball of fun.”
“They should get married!”
“Dog wedding!”
“Miso’s the bride!”
“Dusty can be the groom!”
I drag a hand down my face. “Miso’s a little psycho,” I mutter, low but not low enough. The front row hears me, and they fall against their desks in wheezing laughter.
