I nod. Yes, that makes sense. Plus, I wanted Nadine for myself. None of those other douchebags.
“You told them I was a teacher, and when one of them made a joke about me fucking like one?—”
“Oh.” It hits me like a ton of bricks. It was Donaldson. He had a problem keeping his dick in his pants and ended up retiring early after some sexual assault allegations popped up. I believed them, and he deserved to be in a jail cell, instead of enjoying a quiet life somewhere in Michigan.
“He asked if you’d ever had a fantasy about fucking one of your teachers,” Nadine starts.
“And I said not ones who look like her,” I finish, and she nods, eyes cast down. But it still doesn’t make sense. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
That makes her lift her gaze, an angry divot between her brows. “Why would I? You humiliated me.”
“Humiliated you? How?”
She tosses her hands out. “By making fun of me. By evenparticipating in that conversation, basically talking about me like I was a piece of meat.”
“No.” I slice my hand through the air. “I shut that conversation down. I wasn’t going to let anyone talk about you like that.”
She scoffs. “You didn’t shut anything down. You played into it.”
I tunnel my fingers into my hair, not knowing what to do. It’s like we heard two different conversations that night. “I didn’t. I didn’t want anyone talking about you or to you because I wanted you.”
“I didn’t—what?” She cants her head back, whatever argument she had dying on her tongue. “What?”
“I said I never had a fantasy about fucking one of my teachers because I never had one who looked like you.”
Her eyes dart back and forth between mine, as if working to translate my words, make some sense of them. “You… That’s not…”
“Is that all you heard? Because after that, I told them you were completely off-limits.” Looking back now, I don’t know what I was going to do, play some kind of long game? Telling everyone to back off because eventually I’d make a move? I don’t know, but it was all overturned anyway.
“I was trying to stick up for you, in my own stupid way, I guess. But I swear I wasn’t aiming to put you down. When I saw you that night, I thought you were stunning. Took my breath away.”
Her jaw works, but nothing comes out for a long time. And when she finally does speak, it’s not what I expect. “Your sister started making bracelets. She made one for her best friend and me.” She holds up her left hand, where a colorful woven bracelet winds around her wrist. “She made one for you too. You better wear it, okay?”
“Okay,” I agree, my voice barely audible.
Nadine licks her lips, takes a deep breath, and then spinsaway from me, saying, “I’ve got to get home. Pack a bag. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She practically sprints out, and I’m left staring at the spot she stood moments before, a myriad of emotions crossing her features: hurt, shock, denial, and most interesting of all, something that looked a lot like satisfaction.
Since I can’t dissect the female brain—especially one like Nadine’s—I make my way over to Paisley. She has Rocky in her arms, and I stroke my index finger over his head.
“Where’s Nadine?” she signs.
“Had to run out. She said you made me a bracelet.”
My sister hands me the guinea pig to scurry away, and I ask the—truthfully—cute thing, “You like the name Rocky better, don’t you? Yeah, I’m sure you do.”
His tiny nose scrunches, and I bring him to my chest as my sister rounds the couch again. “Here,” she signs, then holds out the bracelet, maroon and gray thread braided together. “For good luck.”
I hold up my hand so she can tie it around my wrist.
We win against Kansas City.
CHAPTER 14
NADINE
With so muchtime on my hands, I’ve been doing a lot of introspection. I started journaling and have explored a variety of graduate programs, which would allow me to look into different careers in the education field. With so much extra spending money from Daddy Warbucks, I can easily pay for another degree. Especially because I paid off my student loans in one big chunk.
