She hated the way that they looked at him.
He was one of her best friends and didn’t deserve this, especially since he’d been nothing but kind to them no matter how rude they’d been to him. She also wasn’t looking forward to spending the next two hours discreetly removing Robert’s hand from her leg or trying to ignore the sexual innuendos whispered in her ear all night.
They both looked over in time to see Robert stand up and head in their direction.
Great.
This night was about to get worse.
Jason grinned as he leaned down and whispered, “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
He really was the best friend ever, Haley decided with a solemn nod as they made their escape.
Chapter 12
“I’m sorry, Mr. Bradford,” Eric, normally one of his best students, mumbled quickly as he averted his eyes away from Jason’s murderous glare.
For the past three weeks, he’d been biting everyone’s head off. His normally easygoing façade was completely gone now. It didn’t make any sense. He’d been getting the best sleep of his life, he was more focused, and Haley had quickly become the most important person in his life. He couldn’t imagine living without her. He didn’t want to.
No matter what they did during the day, at night, they came together. Not in the way he would like, but he was still able to find peace at the end of the day. Two weeks ago, they both gave up on rushing out of each other’s bed to get ready for work in the morning. Now, he had toiletries in her bathroom, space in her closet and bureau, and she had the same at his house.
It was weird, but probably not as weird as two best friends who slept together that didn’t so much as kiss. It was like they were living together but alternating between houses for the hell of it. They spent a lot of time together, but they also spent a lot of time on their own or with friends. When he was away from her, he wondered what she was doing and thinking. A few times, he had to stop himself from calling her to find out. The only thing that was saving his sanity was the knowledge that she wasn’t dating anyone. He didn’t know how he’d feel about that. Judging by the urge to put his fist through a wall every time he thought about her with another guy, it wasn’t good.
Another loud cheer went up next door. He clenched his jaw tightly as he focused on the fifteen students in his Honors U.S. History class. This was their two-hour study block to go over the material for the final exam, which was tomorrow. They were only ten minutes into their review and he already wanted to throttle every last one of his students.
He threw his review packet on his desk in disgust, making his students shift nervously in their designer school uniforms.
“I don’t understand this. We’ve gone over this material all year and none of you have any idea what the hell I’m talking about!” Jason snapped, not really fucking care that several of the girls in his class looked like they were on the verge of crying.
God, he was fucking losing it.
Another roar of applause came from next-door, drawing his attention back to the woman who was always on his mind. He ran his fingers through his hair as he paced the floor. He was wound so damn tight right now and so goddamn close to snapping.
A soft knock came from the door connecting his classroom to Haley’s. Without waiting for a reply, she popped her head in with a warm smile. That smile was like a balm to his soul, instantly calming him.
“Yes?” Jason asked her in a much softer tone than the one he’d been using with his students.
Haley nibbled her lip nervously. “Mr. Bradford, I was wondering if I could ask you and your students a huge favor. I need some help preparing my kids for their test tomorrow and since both classes are studying the same material, I was hoping that you wouldn’t mind coming in here and giving me a hand?”
“Yes, of course,” he found himself answering immediately. Who in the hell could say no to someone so adorable? She pushed her glasses back up on her nose and smiled again, damn near making his knees buckle.
“Excellent!” Haley said brightly, pushing the door open all the way. “Why don’t you join us?” She turned to face her class. “Alright, you bunch of miscreants, make some room!”
Jason grabbed the review packet he’d made over the weekend and followed his students into her classroom. As he walked past Haley, he couldn’t stop himself from grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze. If any of the kids saw, they smartly kept their mouths shut.
He watched as his students filled the empty seats in her classroom. They kept shooting him nervous glances. No doubt they were waiting for him to start yelling again. Little did they know that his little grasshopper kept him grounded.
Haley hopped up onto her desk and crossed one beautiful leg over the other, drawing every guy’s attention. He had to stop himself from killing the little bastards then and there.
His little grasshopper seemed oblivious to the attention she drew as she reached back to grab a large, brown paper bag. She winced a little as she picked it up and placed it on her lap. She wrapped her arm around the bag as she grabbed a thick study packet off the desk with the other hand. He didn’t wait for an invite. He sat down on the desk next to her.
“Alright, guys, for those of you who are just joining us, we’re having a review for tomorrow’s exam. We’ll each take a turn asking you a question. If you know the answer, you’ll get a prize,” Haley explained as he watched his students visibly relax.
Curious about the prize, Jason leaned over and gasped. How dare she hide these from him! He sent her a glare, earning an adorable roll of her eyes as he reached into the bag only to have his hand slapped away.
How dare she?
“You can have one after five of your students answer a question correctly,” Haley informed him with a firm nod.
