Lanie
“Deep breath, and exhale as you transition into cat-cow.” The yoga teacher’s smooth voice wafted across the room, and I closed my eyes, losing myself in the gentle piano music. Everything was good and right. Smooth. Easy.
Until a short giggle interrupted my flow.
I cracked an eye, taking in Erica, who stretched on the mat next to me. She had her ass pressed as far back as it would go and was wiggling it slightly under the facade of stretching.
There goes my inner peace.
Following Erica’s eyes, I clocked Dirty Pirate Guy watching from across the room. His mouth hung open as he stared at Erica, and I swear a bit of drool dripped onto his mat.
“This is yoga,” I hissed at my best friend. “Not Tantric Sex 101.”
Erica bit back a giggle and went into downward dog. I followed suit, allowing my head to collapse forward. Some days, there was just no trying with Erica. The girl lived to get a rise out of people. As annoying as that sometimes could be, it was also the reason I loved her.
“Namaste,” the teacher said, and everyone echoed the word that meant class was over.
Everyone except for Erica, of course.
“Nay, I’ma stay right here,” she whispered, bumping me with her elbow.
I rolled my eyes as Dirty Pirate Guy, wearing a grin, walked toward us. As his gaze fell lower, though, it hit Erica’s hand—and the Claddagh ring showing she was taken.
Just like that, his trajectory switched, and he veered toward the exit.
“You must get off teasing men like that.” I rolled my pink yoga mat up and stuck it in the waiting tote bag.
“Yeah, actually, I do.”
“Oh my god. Don’t tell me you’re actually attracted to Dirty Pirate Guy.” With most of the class already departed, I headed for the door.
Piling her long, blond hair into a messy top-bun, Erica fell into step next to me. “Don’t call him that. It’s mean.”
“He’s the poor man’s Jack Sparrow, Erica. Did you not see the earring and the dreads? And ‘mean’ is you flirting with dudes when you have a perfectly amazing guy at home. What would Matt say if he saw you doing that?”
“He loves it.” Lies. She really never flirted with anyone. Matt was too much for her as it were.
Erica pushed the yoga studio’s front door open, and we emerged onto the street. The chilly Seattle air struck my sweat-slicked skin, cooling me down immensely. Though the pedestrians darting to and fro all wore sweaters or jackets, I was entirely comfortable in only a tank top and windbreaker. It had been a cold September, just the kind I loved.
“You remember when Matt came to this class with us and the instructor totally made him do all that crazy crap for talking?”
Erica snorted and laughed. “He still talks about it.”
“You think he’ll ever come back?” I couldn’t help but chuckle at the memory. The guy was a total goof, and yet, he complimented Erica in a way her ex, Tanner, never could have.
“No.” She laughed. “He’s meeting us next week after we’re all done, but there was no getting him to come inside. I think he still has nightmares about it.” Erica winked.
“You’re crazy.” I laughed again. “Or maybe he is.”
“We both are?” she offered.
With a shrug, she looped her arm around mine, and we crossed the busy intersection, making a beeline for the t***s bar on the corner. It went without saying that we were headed there. Like yoga, cocktails were a Sunday-evening staple.
“I hope I’m crazy with someone eventually. Now I just need to get a man that meets some of my standards and doesn’t look like a teenager, a homeless person or a girl.”
“Not going there.” Erica smirked and bypassed the boyfriend conversation all together as we plopped into seats at the end of the bar. “The usual?”
Shauna, the Sunday bartender, must have seen us coming from across the street because two glasses of red were on the bar in no time at all. I slowly took the first sip, relishing the relaxing effects of the alcohol mixing with the relaxing effects of the yoga.
Yep, Sunday rocked.
“So. Are you excited?” Every one of Erica’s teeth showed in a giant smile.
There was no need for a segue. Tomorrow’s big event had been on my mind all day long. At this point, it was like there was a giant ticking clock over my head, counting down the seconds till my new job began.
“Yeah.” I took in a long breath. Oxygen didn’t help. Nope. I needed another sip of wine.
“Don’t worry. You’ll do a great job.”
I looked at her over the rim of my wine glass, not quite sure what to say to that. How could she know whether I would perform well or not? This would be my first job as a counselor. I’d done all right in grad school, yeah, but this was the real world.
“It’s not kindergarten.”
“No,” Erica agreed. “It’s not kindergarten. And your point is?”
“My point is this.” I went to twist some hair around my finger, something I did when nervous, and then remembered I’d chopped my locks off weeks ago. The wispy pixie cut, though everyone said it looked great, was still taking some getting used to.
“Mm-hmm?”
“I’m just worried.” My shoulders slumped, and I curled my fingers tight around the glass stem. For a brief moment, I missed kindergarten. The six years teaching it had been a whirlwind. While that kind of environment was probably too chaotic for some people, it was comforting for me. It was what I knew.
And what was headed my way the next day? Something I wasn’t familiar with. Not at all.
“It’s high school,” I pointed out.
“It’s what you wanted,” she said, nearly cutting me off.
I pursed my lips, and Erica followed suit, mocking me. She’d known what I was going to say before I even opened my mouth. That was both a perk and a downside of having the same best friend since first grade.
Erica unzipped her sweatshirt and flapped it around, getting some air on her sweaty skin. Though it was September outside, the t***s bar was incredibly warm. “You always wanted to get into counseling. Kindergarten was never part of the long-term plan.”
“I know.”
She was right, and another thing was true as well. I would have never taken the steps to become a school counselor if Erica hadn’t encouraged me. Change wasn’t in my nature. Maybe it had something to do with my standard, happy upbringing, where the greatest mix-up in routine involved taking the family camping trip in June one year instead of July. Or maybe staying stagnant was just inherent for me. Either way, shaking things up could be terrifying.
Which is probably why I had a best friend who thrived on the new and exciting.
If only I'd known what was right around the corner….
Lanie “It’s high school, though,” I said again. “I didn’t think I would be a counselor at a high school. Elementary school, yeah. Maybe junior high. These kids are going to be, like, almost my age.” “Mmm. You’re twenty-eight.” “Yeah, well, I still feel like I’m twenty. Like I don’t know jack shit.” “I think everyone feels that way.” “Are they even going to take me seriously?” Erica inhaled for a long time before blowing out a breath that fluffed her bangs. “Assert yourself, and they will. To high-schoolers, ten years is a big difference.” “True.” I remembered all the teachers from when Erica and I were in school. Half of them weren’t any older than I currently was, but they’d seemed so advanced. Back then, I figured they were all married, with kids and mortgages—three things I now still didn’t have. Though looking for counseling jobs once I received my master’s degree after years of night classes was the obvious thing to do, getting a job offer after my first application had t
Andrew “Have them run the numbers again,” I said, leaning back in my office chair and stretching my cramped legs. “Oh, and move that lunch meeting with Greg DuBois tomorrow from twelve to one.” On the other side of the line, Maggie hesitated. “Sir, Mr. DuBois is very busy. He—” “If he wants a deal, he’ll make time.” “Yes, Mr. Marx,” my assistant agreed. “Anything else?” “That’s all for now. See you in the morning.” “Have a good night, sir.” She waited for me to hang up first, something both of my full-time assistants had been groomed to do. With my home office silent once more, I got back to work on my computer, pulling up the files I’d been perusing. After reading two words, though, there was a knock on the closed door. “Uh-huh?” I called. Karen opened the door halfway and peeked in, an apologetic smile on her face. “Sorry, Mr. Marx. I didn’t want to interrupt you while you were working.” “It’s fine.” I was always working. Even in my sleep, I ran numbers and shook hands. B
Andrew“Hey!” Raven cried as I turned out the lights.Wet footsteps echoed in the space, coming closer to me.I turned the light on, finding Raven standing just a few feet away, hair dripping and eyes flashing. Without any warning, I gasped. Those bright green eyes, wild with emotion, the long, honey waves and sharp chin.With each day that passed, Raven looked more and more like her mother.Maybe that was part of what had made our relationship so hard in the last year. But who the fuck knew?“What do you want from me?” she demanded, attitude turned up to the max.I shook my head, more to get ahold of myself than anything else. Raven was not her mother. They were two completely different people. I needed to remember that.“I should be asking you that,” I answered. “What do you want that you don’t have? Why are you screwing up your life?”Her arms folded and then quickly unfolded, showing her discomfort. Avoiding my eyes, she snatched her towel from the chair and began to dry her hair
Lanie South Seattle High School was bigger than it was supposed to be. At least that’s what I thought as I stood outside looking at it on my first day. Had it been so gargantuan when I had gone in for my interview? I didn’t think so. Although, maybe the fact that I didn’t feel intimidated at all that other morning led to me being confident and getting the job. This day, though, I was anything but sure. I felt like it was my own first day of high school as I navigated the swarm of students in the main hallway, none of who gave me so much as a second look. Right then, I was just another adult to them, someone whose name they thought they wouldn’t remember in five years. I hoped to change that. South Seattle had over a thousand students, which meant there had to be hundreds of kids there who needed help in some way or another. Luckily, that’s what I was there for. Hopefully, by the time these teenagers left high school, they’d be at least a little more adjusted, thanks to me. Really
Lanie Trailing my finger down the page, I found the girl’s stats. Raven Marx. Seventeen. A senior at South Seattle. Had some disruptions the previous year, including skipping classes and talking back to teachers. The last few weeks, though, things had gone further south. She’d taken to cussing in class and threatening other students with harm. Moving past Raven’s file, I read the few other ones in the folder. Just judging from the family information on the other pages, I got a sense of why the kids were likely having troubles. One boy’s father was in prison, and another’s parents were going through divorce. There was more information on all the kids, but I left the detailed reading for another time and moseyed my way down the hall. There were coworkers to meet. Too soon, the teacher’s lounge was in front of me. With sweaty palms, I opened the door and went in. Two women not much older than me stood talking in the little kitchen area, and a man with salt-and-pepper hair hunched over
Andrew Dead silence filled the boardroom. I let the door fall closed behind me as I stood there, finding all eyes where they were supposed to be. On me. “Well?” I barked. Kyle cleared his throat, and the four other employees sitting around the table all looked anxiously at him. “Mr. Marx, it appears there is an issue with an account. Houghton Graham. There is, uh, twenty thousand dollars missing from the account.” He pressed his lips together hard, probably waiting for me to yell. “Then find it,” I simply answered. “No need to call a meeting. You.” I pointed at Carolyn. “Go through the statements from the last few months.” “I already—” “Do it again. And you.” I nodded at Kyle. “Make sure this doesn’t get out. Don’t notify the client until we know exactly what’s going on. The rest of you, make yourselves busy. And if you lose one more damn check, you’re all fired.” With a string of curses checked but rumbling in my throat, I turned around and left the boardroom, Maggie trailing
Lanie The piercing scream shook my bones, making me jump in my seat and drop the scholarship papers I’d been looking over. Heart thudding, I left the papers on the floor and rushed to the door. Someone fainted? Or brought a weapon to school? A dozen awful possibilities ran through my head. Cracking the door the slightest bit, I looked down the hall. Near the front office, a girl with long, blond hair stood with clenched fists. “It’s not fair!” she yelled. “Miss Marx,” a female voice said from inside the office. “Have a seat. Now.” So that was the infamous Raven Marx. My second day at school and she already had a run-in. Not surprising in the least. “Why?” Raven shrieked. “I didn’t do anything. Nothing that the bitch didn’t deserve.” I cringed at the harsh words. Everyone up and down the hall had to hear Raven. The other voice said something I couldn’t make out, and Raven stood there for a few more moments, her chest heaving up and down. I took the time to inspect her closely.
Andrew I curled my fingers around the golf club, the new gloves Maggie had ordered just for this occasion clinging snugly to the grip. Sinking into my stance, I pulled back, set my eye on the ball, and swung with precision. The club’s head hit the ball with a satisfying smack, sending it flying through the air and onto the grass, about five feet away from the hole. A booming laugh echoed across the green. “Well done for a man who says he’s rusty.” I grinned at Paul Nordmeyer, polo shirt stretched tight across a bulging belly and neck red from the sun. “Guess I’m a natural.” “Beginner’s luck,” he good-naturedly mumbled through his caterpillar mustache. “You’ve been away for so long, you might as well be starting over. How long did you say it’s been?” I shrugged. “About a year. Used to play all the time, though.”“All the time” was an exaggeration, but what Paul didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. I stepped to the side, watching as Paul took his turn. The course was close to empty, with