The grin drops from his lips. He schools his face back into neutrality as he leans back against his desk.
He clears his throat. “It’s unusual for us to have a long-term substitute. Can you tell me a little about your experience with third grade?”
I spit out the truth without thinking. “Kids this age are so open and vulnerable. What they learn now can shape them for the rest of their lives, which I know from personal—” I choke off the words when I remember exactly who I’m with.
Sawyer’s eyes flare subtly. Does he remember tormenting me when we were both students at this school?
Sawyer was the universally-adored loudmouth who singled me out and made me question myself on a daily basis. No matter how much I tried to avoid him, he was alwaysthere.
Choosing the seat next to me on the first day of school to maximize his annoyance all year. Picking me to be on his team in PE just so he could justify throwing balls at my face. Heckling me any time it was my turn to speak in class.
I can’t read his expression. My fists tighten as I wait him out.
After a moment, he says, “I saw you were working at Everett Academy for the last few years. Why the move mid-academic-year?”
There it is.
The question that makes me want to sink into the ground.
Parents in the group chat are probably rejoicing in my departure as we speak, and I don’t believe for one second Sawyer Strong will see my side.
No, I can see it in his eyes. Sawyer just wants ammoagainst me. Somereasonto trigger Blue Ridge into running me out of town with pitch forks.
I can already picture them egging my car as I drive past, shouting “Shame!”
How the hell did I think coming back here was ever going to work?
My nerves prickle, but I force a polite smile because Ineeda semester’s worth of paychecks to, you know, live. “It became clear a change would do me good.”
Sweat beads on my upper lip as I meet his eyes, hoping he won’t ask me anything else about why I quit. A drop rolls languidly between my breasts, and I resist the urge to squirm. My armpits are starting to feel a little ripe, but I stay still.
The minute draws out and I swear I hear the tick of every second from the clock on the wall.
Abruptly, Sawyer pushes off the desk and says, “We better get a move on it before the bell rings.”
My shoulders drop and I visibly wilt in relief for a second before I catch myself and straighten up to follow him out of his office.
CHAPTER 2
BRIE
My heart hammersin my chest as Sawyer leads me down the hall to my classroom for the next five months. At any second he could pick up right where he left off in his office and grill me about Everett Academy.
I wipe all the worry from my face. Sawyer is nothing if not astute, and he knew exactly what buttons to push when we were kids. If I was self-conscious about a haircut, Sawyer was loudly and insincerely complimenting me for it that day in the cafeteria.
If he picks up onanyhint I don’t want to discuss my past employment, he’ll use that knowledge to ruin me.
So far though, Sawyer hasn’t pulled the rug out from under me. He’s playing the part of the consummate professional.
Probably he’s biding his time. There’s nothing stopping him from calling Everett Academy and asking for the story, then treating me like a hostile witness in a murder trial. Or worse, telling the entire town what a failure I turned out to be, to no one’s surprise.
Maybe I’d be smart to get ahead of it, control thenarrative. Still, however he hears about it, I come off looking bad, and Christopher comes off looking sympathetic.
“Brie?!”
I jump a little as the familiar voice interrupts my thoughts. I whirl around, and my mouth drops open. This isn’t how I want either of my sisters to see me—greasy, without a good explanation, and under Sawyer’s thumb.
Mara, my little sister, is already striding toward me, an abandoned cart piled high with computers behind her. My heart squeezes as I look up at her heart-shaped face, swallowing the guilt that threatens to rise in my throat, along with the painful, urgent need to keep her safe. I haven’t seen her in person in months.
