She glanced between him and Becky.
Tinker glanced at Becky. “David or Katherine can let you know what happens next if you have any questions.”
Her face fell like someone had told her there were no more free kittens. “Oh. Yeah. Okay.”
Abby shifted and secondhand embarrassment rushed through her as she watched Becky walk away. The exchange was uncomfortable with awkward undercurrents she didn’t really understand.
Tinker stared at her for several, even more uncomfortable, seconds before a grin spread across his face in slow motion.
She braced.
“Hi, Abby.”
That was it? “Hi.”
“Do you remember me?” The low timbre of his voice suggested there was more to their meeting than there had been.
“I have a vague memory of talking to you.” She reached one arm across her lower back and grabbed the other arm.
His gaze dropped down to her chest, but he quickly raised it again.
She pulled her arms to her front and crossed them, but that gave her boobs a boost. She had no idea what to do with her arms. They’d only been attached to her body her whole life, but now it was like Frankenstein had given her someone else’s arms and she had no control over them. She settled for uncrossing them and lacing her fingers together in front.
His mouth twitched as he watched her flail around. “What do you remember?”
More than she wanted to and not enough judging by Lindsey’s teasing Saturday morning. “There was a suit of armor.”
“Uh-huh. Do you remember telling me you thought I was hot and sexy?”
Her face was on fire again. “I was told I might have said something to that effect.”
“You should let me take you out, since you think I’m hot and sexy.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m sure there’s really nothing about me you’d find interesting.” She glanced behind him where the other bikers were getting onto their bikes to leave and sent a small prayer he’d be joining them.
He followed her gaze and nodded to an older man with his arm around Katherine. She waved at Abby and Abby waved back.
“You’re an art teacher, right?” Tinker asked.
She frowned. “Yes. What does that have to do with anything?”
He winked and walked away.
“What does being an art teacher have to do with it?” she called after him.
He tilted his head back and started belting out Van Halen’s Hot For Teacher.
Several voices chimed in to sing the last part. Including Katherine. Abby saw Angela on a bike riding behind Dani, both laughing. Had they just arrived or had she been so distracted by Tinker that she didn’t notice them at all?
And why couldn’t it be summer so a freak thunderstorm would roll in, and lightning could strike her where she stood, because that would be less painful than the embarrassment she was dying of.
She felt a presence next to her and found Lindsey and Naomi, her other best friend, laughing along with everyone else. Traitors.
“She gets out of school at four if you want to carry her books home!” Lindsey called out.
