The Principal's Office (16 page)

And she was gone. He hadn’t come, but Rand didn’t care. He stroked leisurely, keeping himself hard, and imagined her spread-eagled before him.

He imagined stealing into her room to give her a fantasy.

Christ, it was good awakening Rachel from the deep slumber of a seventeen-year marriage.

RACHEL COULDN’T BELIEVE SHE’D CALLED RAND. FOUR NIGHTS IN
a row, she’d succumbed. By last night, Wednesday night, she’d called him the moment she was sure the boys were asleep, giving up resistance completely. Where the Borg and Rand were concerned, resistance was definitely futile. As she put together lunches for the boys, she couldn’t stop thinking about Rand, about the way he made her come with just words. God, she needed him. How the mighty fall when they’re horny. He’d figured out how much she loved the burglar and pirate fantasies, and he embellished, sometimes giving her to the whole darn crew, who were, of course, well bathed and freshly shaved before they had at her, as befitted a fantasy. Rand made sex so much fun.
Especially
over the phone.

Life was good everywhere. Nathan was human again. Justin was a perfect little eighth grader. They did their homework and even helped with the dishes.
What’s
up with that? She knew she shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth, but honestly, she’d started to worry that her sons had been taken over by pod people.

The high school and middle school were across the street from each other, and though they could have walked, she’d been driving them this week. Or rather, she’d been letting Nathan drive to get his practice hours in. The lessons were improving his sense of
responsibility. And what Nathan did rubbed off on Justin; it always had.

Hot sex and well-behaved children did wonders for a woman.

Rachel breezed through the morning, marveling at her efficiency. Bree was closeted in her office with the IRS auditor. The guy was wide-shouldered and tall, like the watchdog he was supposed to be. Rachel was proud of Bree. She’d been nervous about firing Marbury and conducting the audit herself, but she was in there doing her thing. Rachel gave her a thumbs-up behind the auditor’s back before Bree closed the door.

When Rachel delivered Dominic’s mail, he was in his office rather than his testing lab. “Hey, Rach.” He smiled.

Dominic was a hottie at six-one, with dark hair and a sexy smile that made a girl melt. Of course, he only had eyes for Erin, which was amazing after fifteen years of marriage and the tragedy they’d been through.

Rachel liked the nickname he used for her. Funny thing, she hadn’t noticed his smile until Rand walked into her life. Then, all of a sudden, she’d started seeing all men in a sexual light. Like a woman in heat.

She laid his mail on his desk. “It’s mostly junk.” But Dominic liked to pick through his own junk.

“You have a few minutes to review a sales brochure for me? I’ve got Atul and Cam working on something else right now.”

Dominic did all the marketing, in addition to engineering their products. Atul handled the website and documentation, and Cam was their software engineer.

“I don’t know enough about the products, Dominic.”

“It’s not rocket science. Check it for typos and stuff that doesn’t make sense. It should be in layman’s terms anyway. Give me your opinion on whether it catches the eye.”

She felt a rush of pleasure, just as she had when Erin complimented
her on how she’d handled Matt and Steve. “Sure, I’ll read it right away.”

He slid the brochure across the desk. “Take your time. Tomorrow is fine.” Then he started leafing through the mail.

Back in her office, Rachel got out her red pen and began marking up the brochure. It was fun. She wondered if Erin had said something to Dominic about giving her more to do. When she’d started at DKG almost five months ago, she’d answered phones and sorted the mail. She didn’t have any job skills, but thank God Erin had taken pity on her and given her a chance. Now she did everyone’s filing, matched payables and receivables, and entered purchase orders, too. She was learning a bit more about each of the systems, becoming more valuable.

She returned the corrected brochure to Dominic after lunch and told him she’d help out anytime. At one-thirty, the phone rang, and Rachel was shocked that the caller wanted her. No one ever wanted to talk to the receptionist.

“Hello, Mrs. Delaney, this is Miss Watson from Principal Torvik’s office over at the high school.”

Rachel’s heart started to race, and spots swam before her eyes. “Is Nathan okay?”

“He’s not injured. Don’t worry. Principal Torvik would like to meet with you today at four-thirty.”

“Meet with
me
?” She felt like an idiot, echoing the woman. Principal Torvik the dickhead wanted to see her. “Did Nathan use his cell phone in class again? Because I told him not to after the last incident.”

“No, Mrs. Delaney. Principal Torvik simply wants to discuss some behavioral symptoms Nathan is exhibiting.”

That sounded ominous. “What does that mean?”

“Please, Mrs. Delaney. That’s what the principal would like to discuss with you. At four-thirty.”

Dammit, why wouldn’t the woman tell her? Maybe Miss Watson didn’t know. “Yes. All right. I can be there.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Delaney.”

She stared at the phone for fifteen seconds. Just when she thought things were improving, what had Nathan done? Rachel left a terse message for him to call her at his next break. She’d barely pushed End when her cell rang.

It was Gary, not Nathan. “What the hell is going on, Rachel? The principal’s office just called and ordered me down there for a meeting this afternoon.”

It would have been nice if Miss Watson had said she’d informed Gary, too. “She didn’t give me any information.”

“Well, he’s been with
you
the last four days. What the hell have you let him get up to?”

“I haven’t
let
him get up to anything. He’s been fine, doing his homework, just fine.”

“Right.” Gary growled under his breath, as if she was the
only
problem Nathan had. “I don’t have time for this, Rachel.”

Yes, well, when they were married, she’d have attended the meeting on her own, but now they had two separate households. She held her tongue about who was responsible for the divorce in the first place. “We need to show Nathan a united front.”

“This Torvik guy sounds like some ass who’s into power trips. It’s probably not Nathan’s fault at all.”

She didn’t disagree with him, especially since Nathan had been so good this week. “Let’s hear the man out, Gary.”

He grumbled and said what she’d known was eventually coming. “Can’t you handle this, Rachel?”

“He’s with you half the time, Gary. We both need to hear what’s going on and come to a mutual understanding about how we’re going to deal with it.”

“Fine,” he spat into the phone, then she heard dead air.

He hadn’t always been like this. Yes, he’d been depressed, but even after he’d said he wanted a divorce, he still hadn’t been such…an asshole. There wasn’t another word for it.

Nathan didn’t return her calls. This is why they had the phones, for emergencies, not for texting their buddies. At four, she called Justin, told him they had an appointment at the school, and she’d be home right after.

So far, Justin was pretty easy. He hadn’t taken up Nathan’s habit of pitting her and Gary against each other, but then, he hadn’t wanted anything badly enough yet.
Note to self: Start saving for Justin’s driving lessons and insurance.
She hadn’t realized how it could affect their self-esteem.

When she arrived at the school administration offices, the principal’s door—bearing only a black nameplate that read
PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE
, as though the principals changed too often to get a real nameplate—was closed. Nathan was already seated in a waiting-room chair. Everyone who passed stared at him through the glass windows, the kid that had gotten sent to the principal’s office. He kept his head down.

Before speaking to her son, Rachel approached the desk. “I’m Nathan Delaney’s mother.”

Miss Watson was at least sixty, with a long nose, steel hair, and huge glasses that had been popular back in the seventies. She glanced up at Rachel. “Principal Torvik is running a bit behind.” She held her thumb and finger apart to indicate how far behind. “Since Nathan’s father isn’t here yet”—she raised a brow and left it at that—“please have a seat.”

As Miss Watson turned back to her computer, Rachel sat down next to Nathan. “You didn’t return my calls,” she said quietly.

“I’m not supposed to use my cell phone in class,” he said, the sullenness back in his voice.

“I asked you to call me back
between
classes.”

“I didn’t have time.” He glanced outside the office window, his eyes following a pretty blonde in a cheerleader uniform.

Rachel pressed her lips together. Dammit, things had been going so well. “What happened?”

“Nothing,” he said, his lips in a petulant frown.

“Nathan, why does the principal want to talk to us?”

“Ask him.”

She put her hands on the chair arms and let out a sigh. “All right. That means we’ll hear his version first.”

“It won’t make any difference. You’ll still take his side.”

“Nathan,” she started, but just then Gary burst through the door.

He didn’t look at Nathan, but spoke instead to Rachel. “Do you know what it’s like trying to get across town at this time of day?” As if it were her fault.

“Mr. and Mrs. Delaney,” Miss Watson said. “I’ll let the principal know you’re both here.” She punched a button on her phone console, then murmured into the receiver.

Moments later, the office door opened and a young man backed out, his eyes downcast. He was older than Nathan, probably a senior judging by the slight shadow of manly beard on his chin. “Thanks, thanks, thanks,” he said in triplicate.

His jeans rode too high on his waist and were therefore too short, and he wore a white button-down shirt beneath a dark blue Windbreaker that was too tight. He bobbed his head at the low rumble of a voice from within the office. Then the boy turned. His eyes flitted over Nathan’s polo jacket, and his body stiffened. Gaze on the carpet, he turned sideways, hugging the edge of Miss Watson’s desk, as if to keep as much distance between himself and Nathan as possible. Once past, he almost tripped over his own feet in a rush to get out.

Then the principal himself was at the door. “Mr. and Mrs. Delaney, sorry to keep you waiting.”

Rachel didn’t hear anything else. There was just a roar in her ears, like she was standing between two freight trains fighting to drag her under their wheels.

One of the trains was Gary.

The other was Principal
Rand
Torvik.

HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN SILENT ONE OVERLONG SECOND, BUT THAT
was Rand’s only reaction. Then he extended his hand. Gary was there first, shaking it, smiling like a glad-hander at one of his National Society of Accountants meetings.

Oh my God, oh my God.
That’s all Rachel could think. For God’s sake, she’d been having nasty sex with her son’s principal. They’d made a
movie
. Wasn’t there some school rule against that kind of thing?

Rand was holding his hand out. Did he expect her to shake it like everything was fine and dandy? Yes, obviously he did.

His grip was warm, firm. His gaze didn’t reflect a thing. “I’d like to talk with you both, then we’ll invite Nathan in.”

Neither she nor Gary disagreed.

He wore a white shirt, red tie, and dark suit. It might have been the same one he’d worn that day in front of the vibrator shop.

“Please, have a seat.” Ever so polite, he ushered them into two
chairs opposite his desk. Afternoon sun fell on his blond hair as he sat down in his commanding leather chair.

Framed diplomas and certificates hung on the walls, the print so small, Rachel couldn’t read them. Books filled shelves and topped filing cabinets, and binders were stacked neatly on a conference table. He had a computer, a phone, pens in a holder. His inbox wasn’t empty, but it wasn’t full either. He kept on top of things, and his office looked normal.
He
looked normal.

Good God, he was a teacher, a principal, he worked with kids. And he was
kinky
. He watched his neighbors have sex. He videotaped her.

Rachel couldn’t wrap her mind around it all.

Yet she was a mother, a receptionist, and she had boys over to her house for tent nights in the backyard. And she’d gotten kinky
with
Rand. She took off her panties while his neighbors had sex. She masturbated for him over the phone.

Heat flushed her skin.

“Is that all right with you, Mrs. Delaney?”

She hadn’t heard a word he’d said. This was about Nathan, and she wasn’t even listening.

Rand rescued her. “I want to review the details before we bring Nathan in.”

“Yes, yes, of course.”

“First of all, he’s a good kid, very smart. I’m sure on some level, he realizes his behavior is inappropriate.”

“Just cut to the chase, Principal Torvik,” Gary said. “We can take it.”

She sliced a glance at Gary. Was she imagining it, or had he deepened his voice? She had a horrible moment of comparing them. Rand had six inches and thirty pounds of muscle on Gary. Gary had five years on Rand, but he wore them like ten, with dark puffy pouches beneath his eyes and his hair thinning where Rand’s was thick. She cut off that train of thought.

Rand eyed them both. Did she imagine that his gaze softened when he glanced at her? “Nathan has been involved in some instances of bullying.”

Gary puffed his chest up and scowled. “My son doesn’t bully.”

For once Rachel had to agree with him. “Nathan would never pick on anyone. We’ve taught him better than that.”

“Nevertheless, he’s been reported in some incidents of name-calling and other forms of bullying.”

Gary drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair. “I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it.”

Rand ignored him. “Specifically, we have a class of developmentally challenged students. Nathan has been overhead using slurs, especially against one boy in particular.”