Bad Girlfriend(22)
With a less than friendly expression on her face, Mrs. Larkin stood behind the table at the front of the room. She had an actual gavel, which she rapped loudly against the cafeteria table to get everyone’s attention.
“Welcome everyone to the first PTO meeting of the 2012-2013 school year. We have a lot to get through tonight, so I would appreciate it if you would pay attention and keep the chit chat to a minimum.”
There was a quiet murmur that rippled through the crowd and immediately silenced when Mrs. Larkin narrowed her eyes and looked around. Uh, I think someone takes their volunteer position a little too seriously.
She smoothed down her short hair and directed her eagle eyes in my direction. “Before we get started, I would like to introduce our new principal, Mr. Branigan. He is replacing Principal Edwards, who has retired.”
Again a murmur rose, louder this time. I caught bits and pieces of gossip concerning the reason Principal Edwards “retired”.
Mrs. Larkin pounded her gavel so hard I almost jumped out of my seat. “The circumstances surrounding Principal Edwards’ retirement were…unfortunate. I don’t think we need to spend valuable meeting time discussing this. Instead, please help me welcome Principal Branigan.”
A round of applause accompanied me as I walked up to shake hands with Mrs. Larkin. There was even a whistle from somewhere in the crowd that earned a steely glare from Mrs. Larkin.
“Thank you, Mrs. Larkin. I am glad to be here in Penn Yan, and I have enjoyed meeting the staff and students. I’m excited that we have such an active PTO, and I am available to help in any way I can. My door is always open.”
I took my seat again as Mrs. Larkin said, “Thank you, Principal Branigan. Your professional reputation is immaculate, and I expect we will have none of the drama surrounding Principal Edwards now that you are here.”
This woman must be related to Louise with the way her words were spoken like a warning and from the harsh look she was giving me. I felt like I was the student being sent to the principal’s office. I simply nodded though I had no idea what she was trying to convey to me.
Don’t strike up an illicit and illegal relationship with an underage girl? Yeah, I think I can handle that one.
The meeting lasted the full scheduled hour, and it was jam packed with business items. I was glad I was just observing and not on the receiving end of Mrs. Larkin’s impressive delegation skills. It seemed as if every member of the PTO left with a lengthy To Do list. When the meeting was adjourned I stuck around to meet some of the mothers and the lone brave dad who was a PTO member.
As I was walking back to my office, I caught a few snippets of conversation. It seemed Mrs. Larkin’s dictatorship and my “nerdy hotness” were the hot topics of the evening. I wasn’t sure whether to take the latter as an insult or a compliment. With a shake of my head I decided to go with compliment. I had never exactly been a hot commodity before. This was all new to me.
When everyone had left, I locked up the school and headed home. I was lounging on my bed, which also served as my couch, reading a book a couple of hours later when I heard the garage door open below my floor. I hadn’t seen Brooke since Saturday night, which was only three days ago, but I hoped for a chance meeting in the driveway every time I left for or came home from work. Working in a hair salon, her hours were probably much different than mine.
Lifting the blinds next to me, I didn’t see anything except for lights on the first floor of the house. Then a light flicked on at the back of the house on the second floor. Because the curtains were wide open, I could see it was Brooke’s bedroom. The walls were a vibrant aqua color, which suited her perfectly. Brooke walked through the room to stand in front of her dresser. Her back was to me, but I could see she was removing her earrings and necklace. She wore her hair up, piled on top of her head with dark red curls spilling over. My eyes honed in on the curve of her long neck as she tilted her head to the side. Not sure if it was a memory or just wishful thinking, I thought of kissing my way along her neck and sucking on her delicate earlobe.
Turning around she reached for the hem of her white t-shirt, pulling it up. I caught a glimpse of the smooth taut skin of her stomach and let the blinds fall. That’s not how I wanted to see her. If I was lucky enough to see her naked again, it would be because she wanted me to. Not because she was clueless enough to undress in front of her open window.
Her room was at the back of the house, and the backyard was surrounded by tall trees. But anyone could be walking by on the sidewalk. At just the right angle they could get an eyeful. Forget about hoping for an accidental run-in. Tomorrow I was straight out knocking on her door to tell her to close her curtains. As for right now, I was headed for a cold shower.