BLIND: A Mastermind Novel (46 page)

“Perfect. I’ll see you tomorrow. Have a good night.”

“Goodnight, Mr. Armstrong.”

Once he left she was too excited to focus on the papers she should have been grading. Although she typically returned assignments in record turnaround time, her students would understand. For the first time in weeks, she was truly happy about something.

When she got on the road she dialed Nicole.

“Hello?”

“Hey. Guess what!”

“Well, aren’t you in a chipper mood? What?”

“We got the grant!
”
Her feet stomped on the floorboard of her car as she squealed. She wished she could honk her horn and let the world know how big of a deal this was.

The company that managed OddSquad, also the founders of GeekPeek, the largest, most lucrative social network on the planet, was only offering the tablet program to one school in each district. Scarlet had obsessed over the grant writing, desperately wanting their school to be chosen.

“That’s great, Lettie. Did you just find out?”

Of course her friend didn’t share her enthusiasm, but that was fine. “Yeah. Calvin came into my office to—get this—ask me out, and then he told me and—”

“Wait, wait, wait,
wait!
Who’s Calvin and did you say he asked you out?”

“He’s my principal and yes, but I don’t think I’m going to go—”

“Of course you’re going.”

“No, I’m not there yet, Nicole. I’m still fragile and way too cynical. If I saw a penis right now I might snap it like a pencil.”

“Scarlet, listen to me. I know you’ve been hurt.
”

Her friend didn’t really know the whole of it. It was too much to tell, too personal and private, too deep.

“But you have to get back out there. Stone is gone. Over. Let him go and move on.”

Nicole didn’t know how much she’d fallen for him. Scarlet didn’t have the courage to tell her friend all the mortifying details, though she’d told her enough.

“I know,
”
she whispered, her elation giving way to deep sorrow.

It was clearly over. He hadn’t contacted her just as she asked and that was for the best. There was no point in wanting someone who didn’t want her. But it would still take time to heal. He wasn’t hers, but she also wasn’t ready to let him go.

She pulled into her driveway. “I just need a little more time. I’m home now. I’ll call you later.”

Nicole congratulated her one more time on the grant and Scarlet slid her phone into her purse. She entered the empty house, greeted only by a silent brush of Tho
r’
s tail.

The familiar crush of loneliness seeped into her shoulders, weighing her down as she fell heavily on the couch. Her gaze drifted to the shelf beside the blank television. There, within the mahogany box, were his letters.

She sighed as the ache inside of her bloomed and burst into palpable heartbreak. She needed to let it out at night. Every day she struggled to hide the agony of losing him, to keep it together in front of others and not fall apart. But at night, when she was all alone in the deafening silence, that was when she’d let down her guard and let the pain swallow her whole.

****

The following Friday Scarlet was giddy with expectation. The delivery was coming that afternoon and the front office was going to buzz her the moment it arrived.

She’d done a wonderful job of avoiding Calvin and evading his invitation to dinner, but chances were he’d have the unfortunate opportunity to ask her again today.

She was torn. Part of her wanted to say yes and force her recovery, the other part wanted to save him the torment of dating someone as scarred and screwed up as herself. Both reasons were selfish and exactly why she had to tell him no. Not a single part of her was remotely considering the possibility of romance. Such things no longer existed in her world.

When the call came, she requested coverage and speed-walked to the front office. She spotted Calvin through the glass wall speaking to a man in a burgundy shirt and striped tie. A large box sat on the counter and her fingers itched to set up the devices.

Taking a calming breath, she turned the knob and entered the office with an air of professionalism.

“Ah, here she is,
”
Calvin announced. “Ms. Farrow, I’d like you to meet Mr. Garnet, CEO and co-founder of GeekPeek and OddSquad. Mr. Garnet, this is Scarlet Farrow, our sixth grade math teacher and grant writer extraordinaire.”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Garnet.
”
She shook his hand with two of her own. This guy was like a celebrity genius.

“Likewise.”

Her armpits were starting to sweat, so she tried to reel in her exuberance. Also, the guy looked a little skittish. “Thank you so much for choosing our school.”

His smile was tight. “I wasn’t responsible for the selection. You’ll have to thank my partner for that.”

Noting how uptight the man seemed and finding it strange, she dropped her energy another notch. Maybe he didn’t visit the schools often. “Would that be Hunter Turay?
”
He’d come to introduce the kids to the OddSquad program in the beginning of the year. She hadn’t met him personally, but the teachers running the program raved about him.

Why was he looking at her like that? Did she have food in her teeth?

Calvin cleared his throat, obviously sensing the weird vibe in the room. “Yes, Mr. Turay was wonderful. Please send him our thanks.”

“The selection was made by my other partner. Asher Roan.”

Why does that name sound familiar?
She must have heard it on CNN or read it somewhere. “Oh, well please express our gratitude. We’re very excited to have such an incredible opportunity—”

“You really don’t remember us, do you?
”
he suddenly interrupted.

“I…I beg your pardon?”

“We went to school together.”

Her social inadequacies exploited, she bravely excused her short-sightedness. “I’d heard that your company was local, but I didn’t realize you graduated from—”

“Not just me. All of us,
”
he corrected. “We all went to school right here, me, Hunter, Jet, and Asher. You were in my homeroom.”

“You’ll have to pardon my forgetfulness. I’m terrible at remembering names and faces.”

“Not a problem…
Lettie
.”

Her heart jolted at the familiar term only people from her past used, but he hadn’t said it endearingly. He spoke the nickname as if to prove a point she wasn’t seeing.

Feeling like an outsider looking in on a project she’d initiated, she tried to refocus the conversation. Maybe she was being overly sensitive. “Well, it must be neat for you to see all the changes to the building.” What else could she say? This guy was crabby.

He turned to Calvin. “Asher and Jet will be here first thing Monday morning to do an orientation. Hunter will set up the sound system and overhead before they arrive. We ask that students be in the auditorium by nine-thirty sharp so everything can be wrapped up within two hours, leaving room for plenty of questions. The teacher orientation will be the following two Wednesdays.”

“Perfect,
”
Calvin agreed. “Thank you again for selecting our school. I think you’ll find you made a great choice.”

Mr. Garnet nodded and turned, his eyes narrowing as he glanced her way. “Scarlet.
”

She frowned as the door shut behind him. Did they not get along in high school? She was nice to everyone. And who remembered stuff like that? They graduated twelve years ago.

“Are you excited?”

She turned, shaking off all thoughts of the confusing man. He was a wealthy CEO of a global company. That had to make a person eccentric and slightly awkward. Smiling, she faced Calvin. “I’m thrilled. Let’s open one up and play.”

“Come into my office.
”
He lifted one of the boxes and stashed the others behind the counter.

Once the door was closed and the box was cut open, she crowded in. Individually wrapped tablets stacked neatly in tight little rows. “Wow. Do you think they’re charged?”

“They should be.”

They each removed a tablet and unwrapped the protective foam paper. Everything was so shiny, not a single fingerprint on the screen. They powered on easily and she laughed, still finding it surreal that a company had made such an incredible donation.

“Have you thought any more about my offer?”

And there it was. Lowering the tablet as it booted up, she smiled regretfully. “I’m flattered, Calvin, but I just don’t think I’m in the right state of mind to…
”

“Eat?”

She laughed. “What?”

“I asked you to dinner, Scarlet. You don’t have to promise me your first-born. Just have a meal with me.”

“But I don’t want to lead you on.”

“I’m a big boy. I think I can handle it.
” 
When she didn’t answer, he said, “Come on, we can celebrate the grant. Let me buy you food in exchange for healthy conversation and maybe a few laughs.”

The offer was tempting. Thor was disappointingly unenthused about the grant when she told him. Plus, she had a really hard time disappointing others. “Okay, but just as friends, Calvin.”

His smiled expanded. “Deal. How about tonight? We can go from here.”

“That works.
”
The teachers often had happy hour on Fridays, though Scarlet usually passed, but this was good. Maybe they’d run into other members of the staff there and it would actually feel like a small gathering of co-workers instead of a date.

“I’ll meet you in the parking lot after detention.”

“Sounds good.”

When the last bell rang and the last student left, Scarlet grabbed her tote and locked the classroom. The building was always peaceful and somewhat changed on Friday afternoons, more so than any other evening. It was as if the school was finally able to exhale.

The click of her heels echoed down the long corridor as she walked toward the exit. The office door opened as the light flicked off as Calvin came out, wearing his shoulder bag that likely contained his laptop.

They stilled as they spotted each other, a twinge of awkwardness setting in with the hint of expectation. “Perfect timing,
”
he said, turning the key in the office lock. “How do you feel about Italian?”

“Italian’s just fine.”

They remained close but not within accidental touching distance on the walk to their cars. “Should we drive together?
”
he asked.

Her mind rejected the offer immediately, not wanting to complicate a simple thing. “That’s okay. I’ll follow you. That way you don’t have to drive me back to get my car at the end of the night.”

“Okay.”

Stowing her belongings on the passenger seat, she started her car and stilled, her fingers curling delicately around the sword keychain with a garnet stone.
Mr. Stone.

What was he doing at that moment? Did he ever think of her? Had he forgotten her? For all she knew, he had multiple women he toyed with and fucked over. What made her think she was something special?

Her phone buzzed when Calvin texted the address of the restaurant. “Isn’t this disappointingly normal,
”
she mumbled, shifting the car into reverse and following his Volvo east.

As she drove she carefully listed all the reasons why it was illogical to continue loving a man that didn’t want her. Not only had she never laid eyes on Mr. Stone, she didn’t know his name. She couldn’t describe how he kissed, had never known his mouth against hers for more than a whisper. She wouldn’t recognize him if he were standing beside her.