Bad to the Bone(36)
She and James also went on a couple of dates to the movies away from the club. It had been refreshing going out. He was always surprising her.
An hour later, four sets of parents arrived, and Cora wasn’t surprised to see James tagging along with Lucy. Cora had called ahead to the bank to let Lucy know what had gone on. Stuart’s father was dressed in a suit, and he shook James’s hand as they entered.
Sharon came and escorted all of them into her room.
“Wow, that looked scary as shit,” Stacey said.
“Shouldn’t you be teaching?” Cora asked. Lunch had long since finished.
“Michael’s taking over for me. I didn’t finish lunch, and I went and snagged us these sandwiches from the cafeteria.”
Cora was starving, and she didn’t even argue with her friend. Sitting down, she unwrapped the egg salad roll and started eating.
“Tell me something,” Stacey said.
“I’ll tell you something if you tell me something,” Cora said, striking up a deal.
“Okay, deal. Do you have feelings for James?”
Pausing in chewing her sandwich, Cora thought about it, really thought about. “Yes, I do.”
“Really?”
Cora nodded. She did like James, had feelings for him, but she wasn’t going to be ruled by her feelings. “He makes me happy, and he doesn’t make me feel bad or guilty for what I like. I’ve never had that, not once.”
It didn’t matter what she wanted to do to him, or for him to do to her, James didn’t judge her. He didn’t treat her like some weird person for wanting sex, hot dirty sex.
“It’s time for my question,” Cora said, bringing the focus back to Stacey.
“I’m ready.”
“What’s going on with you, Leo, and Paul?”
Stacey let out a sigh. “I hate this game.”
“This is not a game. I’m being serious here. What’s going on? I answered your question. It’s only fair that you answer mine.”
Seconds passed while Stacey took a bite of her sandwich.
“They’ve asked if I would be willing to date them both,” she said, slowly.
“And what did you say?”
“I told them they were both crazy. I’m not going to date even one man, certainly not two.”
“Did you really say that?” Stacey was many things but mean wasn’t one of them.
“No, I couldn’t bring myself to hurt either of them. They’re so nice, and I’m just not ready.”
“You know they’re not going to be like your ex.” Cora never said his real name. There were times when Stacey couldn’t handle hearing his name.
“I know. I’m just not ready to settle down with a couple of men I don’t know anything about.” Stacey ran fingers through her hair. “I never know what to expect from them. They’re nice guys, and any woman would be crazy to tell them to suck it.”
“You’re going to tell them to suck it, right?”
“I don’t know, Cora. I’m not ready. I’ve told them both that I’m not ready. I don’t want to hurt them. What else should I say?” she asked. “It was only supposed to be a bit of fun.”
“Nothing. There’s nothing you can say.” They finished eating their lunch, and Stacey left to go and finish teaching her class.
The parents and their students left, one after the other. James moved close to her while Lucy and Ryan waited.
“I’ll be by tonight,” he said. “I’ve got to take care of some business.”
“If you don’t want to come by, you don’t have to,” she said, not wanting him to feel obliged to come.
“I want to see you.” He dropped a kiss to her lips. “Thank you for looking out for Ryan.”
“I’d have looked out for any kid. I don’t like it when they’re all outnumbered.”
“See you tonight.”
“I’ll shave my legs,” she said.
One week she’d forgotten to shave her legs, and they’d ended up in a heap laughing about her furry legs. James gave her a wink, and she watched him go.
Grabbing a coffee for Sharon, she walked into the office. Her head was resting in her hands. Cora paused. It was the first time she’d seen Sharon look so broken.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
Sharon jerked up and wiped under her eyes. “Cora, hello, what is it?”
“Nothing. I brought you a coffee. I figured you’d need it after that.”
“Thank you, and thank you for making sure those boys didn’t beat the shit out of Ryan.”
Cora was even more surprised. She couldn’t recall a day when Sharon actually swore. “No problem.”