Bad Girlfriend (First & Last #4) (16 page)

Lying on my stomach I stretched my arms over my head and buried my face in the pillow.

“If you don’t stop making those sexy little noises, I’m going to be late for work,” Adam said, running his hand down my spine and over the curve of my butt.

I rolled over and smiled up at him.  He was dressed for work
in dress slacks, a button down shirt and a sweater vest.  He rarely wore his glasses when he wasn’t working, and I wondered why.  Because they made him look so nerdy sexy.

“I’m starting to think you’re all talk and no action,” I teased.  “We haven’t even
passed second base yet.”

His eyes flared with heat, and before I knew it he was on top of me.  One hand pinned both of mine over my head, and his other hand trailed down my side and slipped underneath my shirt.  Instinctively I arched my back, willing his hand to go higher.

Adam leaned down and nipped at my bottom lip before thoroughly kissing me senseless.  When he sat up, I could see his erection straining behind the fly of his pants.

“Will you stay over again t
onight?  After the carnival?” he asked.

“Yes,” I breathed, still incredibly turned on from just his kiss.

“Good,” he smirked.  “No talking allowed tonight.”

I was nearly giddy with anticipation.  Maybe he would forget that this was only our fourth date and not the sixth.

As if he could read my mind, he said, “I haven’t forgotten the rules.  But there are a lot of things we can do between first base and a home run.”

I sat up and pulled the sheets up to my waist as I watched him pour his coffee into a travel mug and stuff some papers into his briefcase.  Before he left he came over and planted a kiss on my mouth.

“Stay here as long as you want.  And make sure to roll around on the sheets.  I like it when they smell like you.”  He winked at me.

He was halfway out the door when I called out, “Oh, Adam?  I might do more than just roll around.”  Then I winked at him.

His mouth dropped open and then he cleared his throat and regained his composure.  Shaking his head, he shut the door behind him.

I did stay in his bed for another hour, though I didn’t do what I had hinted at.  If he stayed true to his word, I would only have to wait until tonight to get some relief from the ache low in my belly. 
The ache that seemed to flare up whenever Adam was around.  Or when I thought of Adam.  Or when I pictured Adam in his sweater vest and glasses.

When I thought it was late enough that Gram might wonder where I was, I got up and changed back into my shorts and tank top.  I neatly made Adam’s bed and locked the door behind me when I left.

I glanced over at my swing as I walked down the stairs on the outside of the garage.  Thinking of how peacefully I had slept in Adam’s arms, I knew I had found my new safe place.

Chapter Sixteen

Adam

Puppies.
  Sleeping puppies.  Sleeping puppies on fire.

I tried to think of anything other than Brooke lying half naked in my bed.  Brooke doing God knows what in my bed…by herself.

Slowing to a stop at the only traffic light between my place and the school, I thumped my head back against the head rest.  What kind of a sick fuck was still turned on after thinking about sleeping puppies on fire?

One who had the sexiest redhead on the face of the Earth in his
bed.  That’s who.

My phone rang and the display showed it was my best friend from college, Graham.

“What’s up, Graham,” I answered.

“Hey, Adam.
  How’s it going out there in Mayberry?”

Graham and I had
been roommates all four years of college.  After graduation I had started teaching while he went on to law school at Harvard.  We had roomed together again when he moved to New York City to start working.  He had given me a hard time about taking this job and leaving the city.

“It’s turning out okay,” I replied.  Truthfully it was.  The only thing I missed about the city was Graham.  It seems a certain redhead had been very welcoming and helpful in my transition to small town living.

“Really?  I would have thought you’d be ready to throw in the towel by now.  What’s it been?  Three weeks?”  I could hear the skepticism in Graham’s voice.  He was born and bred in the city.  I knew he couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.

“Yeah, well.  The job has its challenges, but overall it’s a quieter, slower pace here.  It’s nice.”

“Nice?”  Graham scoffed.  “How are the people?  You’re not just holed up in your apartment like a loser, are you?”

I rolled my eyes.  We were complete opposites, yet the best of friends.  “The people are great.  Hey, you’ll never believe who lives happily in this small town?”

“Who?”

“Lindsay Ross. 
Senator Ross’ niece.”

Graham whistled.  “No, shit?  What’s she doing there?”

“She’s married to the owner of the local boat repair shop.  This dude is badass, Graham.  Long hair, tattoos, the whole nine yards.  They’re complete opposites, but it seems to work for them.”

“Well, it sounds likes you’ve made some friends.  What about women?  The pickings have got to be pretty slim.”

“Actually, there’s a surprising amount of beautiful women in this town.”  One, of course, stood out above all the rest for me.

“Make sure you make the rounds for me,” Graham said.  Graham never had a shortage of women in his life.  He wasn’t unlike the guys I hated for taking advantage of Brooke.  The difference was that the women he hooked up with knew the score going in.  Graham was nothing if not
brutally honest.

I pulled into the parking lot of the school.  “I’m at work, so I’ve got to go.  But you’ll have to come out and visit
soon.”

I could hear the New York traffic in the background as Graham promised to get out here as soon as he could manage a couple of days off.
  With his rising career in corporate law, I wasn’t holding my breath that would be anytime in the near future.

There were only a few other cars in the parking lot when I walked into the school, one of them being Louise’s.  No matter how early I arrived she was always here before me.

“Good morning, Louise,” I said pleasantly as I passed her desk on the way to my office.  As always, she had opened my door and placed the newspaper on my desk.

“Mr.
Branigan,” she said, rising to follow me into my office.  “Superintendant Cole will be coming by to meet with you at eleven.  You are scheduled to observe Mrs. Rausch’s class at two o’clock and Mrs. Campbell’s class at two forty-five.  And of course you have carnival set up immediately after school is dismissed.”

All of this was already on my calendar, except for the Superintendant’s visit.  “Do you know why the Superintendant wants to meet with me?”

Louise pursed her lips.  “No, sir.  Will that be all for now?”

She always
requested to be dismissed like I was keeping her from more important tasks, even though I never actually asked for her to give me a rundown of the day’s schedule in the first place.

“Uh, yes.
  Thank you, Louise.”

When she left I set the newspaper aside and started going through my e-mails.  Nothing out of the ordinary today, and paperwork and reviewing new policies kept me busy until Superintendant Cole arrived at exactly eleven o’clock.

“Superintendant Cole is here to see you,” Louise announced from my doorway.

“Send him in, please.”

I stood up to shake hands with Thomas Cole when he walked into my office.

“Thomas.  It’s good to see you.”

“How is Louise treating you?” Thomas asked, and I got the feeling he might be afraid of Louise too.

“She’s very efficient,” I replied tactfully.

Thomas laughed as he took a seat in one of the chairs on the other side of my desk.  “This is just an informal meeting today, Adam.  I just wanted to stop by and see how you like the job.”

I relaxed back into my seat.  Even if I was on friendly terms with Thomas and had known him for a long time, he was still my boss.

“The job is great.  Really.  The teachers are all extremely capable, and the parents are involved.  I have no complaints.”

“That’s good to hear.  I have to tell you my office has received good feedback about you from teachers and parents
alike.  All good feedback…except for one parent.”

I leaned forward and placed my forearms on my desk.  I knew from experience that not everyone would like m
e or the way that I ran the school, but I always took negative feedback seriously.

“What’s the complaint?”
I asked.

Thomas laced his fingers over his expansive stomach.  “Mrs. Morris filed a formal complaint earlier this week that you were dismissive of her concerns over her daughter’s well being and education.”

Mrs. Morris.  The mere mention of her name had me wanting to roll my eyes.  But I kept it professional.

“Listen, Thomas.  I’ll be honest with you.  I’m not surprised to hear that.”

Thomas frowned at me.  “Are you saying her concerns are valid?”

“No
.  Not at all.  Mrs. Morris did schedule a meeting with me to discuss her concerns about Caitlyn.  I reviewed Caitlyn’s records and talked with her teachers before meeting with Mrs. Morris.  Her grades are great, and her teachers had nothing but good things to say about her behavior and social development.  I relayed this to Mrs. Morris and offered to point her in the right direction if she wanted to have Caitlyn evaluated further.”

Thomas nodded.  “That sounds reasonable and appropriate.”

“The thing is, Thomas, Mrs. Morris was clearly requesting my services for something other than Caitlyn’s education, if you understand what I’m saying.”

He didn’t look surprised and his mouth drew into a thin line.  “I can’t say I’m surprised to hear that, having known Mrs. Morris for a long time.  Thank you for clearing that up for me, Adam.”

Thank God he believed me.

“After the situation with Principal Edwards, this district can’t afford to have any doubts about its new principal.  I trust you will do whatever it takes to keep your reputation sparkling clean, Adam.”

“Uh…of course, Thomas,” I said, somewhat confused by the direction this conversation was going.  It was the same kind of warning message that Mrs. Larkin had relayed at the PTO meeting.

He clapped his hands together and stood up.  “Great!  Now I have some good news.  Angela is in town for a short visit.”

It took me a minute to process the change of topic.  Angela was in town?  And this was good news, because…?

“Come on, son.  I’ll take you two out to lunch.  I know Angela is anxious to catch up with you.”

Thomas was standing by the door, clearly waiting for me to join him.  Since when was Angela anxious to see me?  If I remembered correctly, she couldn’t get away from me fast enough once she found out I wasn’t ready to get married.

“Don’t make the girl wait, Adam.”

This day was getting stranger by the minute.  I grabbed my keys and walked to the door.

Thomas wasn’t kidding about Angela being anxious to see me.  She was standing in the front office chatting with Louise.  It had been several years since I had seen Angela, and my first impression was that she had changed a lot.  Not
necessarily physically.  Her dark hair was cut in the same sleek bob, and her clothes and makeup were impeccable and classy as always.  Her face was still classically pretty, though she looked every bit of the thirty years old she was now.  It was the sharpness in her eyes and the hard set of her mouth, even when she was smiling, that made her look so different.

I couldn’t help comparing her to Brooke - her blatant sexuality,
expressively honest eyes, and sweet mouth in stark contrast to Angela.  Never before had I been more attracted to Brooke and less attracted to Angela.

“Adam!”
Angela exclaimed when she saw me.

“Angela.  It’s good to see you.”  I started to offer my hand for a cordial handshake, but she stepped right up to me and hugged me tight.  My hands hung loosely by my sides for a moment before I lightly patted her on the back. 
The fact that I had at one time been intimate with this woman made this moment all the more uncomfortable.

“I’ve been wondering where you ended up, and when I heard from Uncle Thomas that you were here, I had to come see you.”

“Yeah, I decided it was time for a change.  I like everything about the job and the town so far.”

Thomas started toward the door and Angela looped her arm through mine and began to pull me along.  Louise loudly cleared her throat behind us.

“Mr. Branigan?  Before you go I have a message for you,” Louise said in her no nonsense way.

“You two go ahead.  I’ll catch up,” I said to Thomas and Angela.

When they were out of earshot, Louise leaned toward me and harshly whispered, “Watch out for that one.  I don’t like her.”