Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“Your amount of homework is pretty consistent, isn’t it?”
“It depends how much everybody talks during the day,” he says.
While we eat, we talk more about his class, about his friend David, and other random topics. It’s a bit of everyday, normal life that I savor, even when things are stressful.
Once we’re at school, I give T.J. a hug and we head in our separate directions.
Moon Ridge Elementary is a wonderful school. Up until yesterday, I was feeling incredibly lucky to be here, and I still am, despite the danger that’s tracked me down.
This is my first position as principal, and at thirty-two, I’m younger than most people expect for the role. If we’d stayed in the city, it would have likely taken several more years to reach this level, but in rural areas like Moon Ridge, schools struggle to fill positions.
It’s not as if I’m inexperienced, though. Aside from maternity leave, I’ve been working in education since I graduated from college, and I earned my master’s degree online when T.J. was little. I thought I’d have an uphill battle earning the staff’s respect here, but everyone has generally been supportive and kind, and the school year’s been going well.
After quickly checking my voicemail and email, I go back outside to greet students as they arrive by bus and car. After the bell rings, I review an attendance report, prepare for a meeting with the counselor, respond to a new district email, and meet with a parent who drops in. I always plan my day, and I always end up reacting to whatever comes up. At first, this felt like a failure on my part, but I’ve learned it’s how things go. The work still gets done, just not necessarily in the order I’m aiming for.
Mid-morning, I receive a text message from Kira Parker. She’s quickly become my closest friend in Moon Ridge, even though she gave me a fake name when we first met, which is a long story.
“I’m coming into town today. Any chance you can get away for lunch?” she asks.
The idea is tempting, but the stacks of files on my desk and my early afternoon lineup of meetings dampen my enthusiasm.
“Sorry, I don’t think I can get away today,” I text back. “Any chance you can drop by the school for a quick coffee break around 11? I can brew a pot of decaf for you in the teacher’s lounge.”
She sends back a laughing emoji. “I’ll be there, but I’ll bring coffee for both of us. I don’t trust the teachers to have coffee without caffeine.”
I chuckle at that. We’re all a pretty caffeinated bunch around here, but Kira is seven months pregnant, and she usually opts for herbal tea.
I dive back into my paperwork, and it seems like only a few minutes pass before Kira’s tapping on my open door. She comes in, closes it behind her by nudging it with her elbow and hip, then hands me one of the cups she’s carrying before she sits in a chair across from my desk.
“I got you a caramel latte,” she says.
“You know I drink coffee black.”
Kira sets her drink on the edge of the desk before she unzips her coat. “And I also know you like it better when you let yourself have the sweet stuff.”
I laugh as I inhale the nutty scent. “You’re right. Thank you.”
“What happened across the street? When did that building burn?”
Kira just came through a dangerous ordeal, so I hesitate before I answer. I know she’d offer a sympathetic ear to anything I wanted to discuss, but I don’t want to cause her any stress, especially since she’s pregnant.
Plus, I’d rather set my troubles aside for a few minutes and enjoy some girl talk.
“There was a small fire there the other night. The building’s just used for storage, so no real harm was done,” I tell her.
“Oh. Okay. Well, that’s good. Was it an electrical fire?”
“They’re still investigating.” It’s not a lie, even though it’s not the full truth. I just can’t bring myself to want to talk about it.
Her smile returns, along with a twinkle in her eye. “Did you happen to see any hunky firemen at the scene?”
Kira caught me looking once, a few weeks ago, when she and one of her men, Silas, came to the park with T.J. and me. While Silas tossed a football with T.J., she and I were walking on the trail that looped the park. Two firemen, one of whom I now know was Weston, were doing something with a hydrant near the parking lot, and I guess I might have watched them a bit longer than necessary.
That day, she teased me about it gently, and even more gently asked if I dated. I told her I hadn’t dated anyone since before I was married, and I hadn’t had any desire to. Privately, I wondered if my attraction to the good-looking firemen was a sign that I might be ready to start thinking about it.