Faithfully Yours. Lois Richer

Чтение книги онлайн.

       Chapter Three

      Gillian stared at the cut on the boy’s knee.

      “Jed, I told you to stay with the rest of us. How did you do this, anyway?” She dabbed at the injury carefully, noting the dirt imbedded in the cut.

      “I had to go pee” she was told in no uncertain terms. “When I was doing up my pants, I tripped on somethin’. It made me fall.”

      Gillian grinned. No responsibility for Jed. If something had cut him, it certainly wasn’t his fault. She grimaced. There was no doubt in her mind that Mr. Nivens would believe that the cut was all her fault.

      “Come, children,” she called, ushering them ahead of her onto the path through the woods. “We have to get back to the school now. It’s almost time for the bell. Quietly, Rowena.”

      Who are you kidding? she asked herself sourly. Quiet? First-graders? Not likely. As they stumbled and pushed and shoved their way back into the classroom, she glanced round surreptitiously. Her heart fell as she noticed the man in the blue pin-striped suit heading directly for her.

      “Come along, children. Let’s get your things together now. Don’t forget to collect as many leaves as you can this weekend.” She handed out knapsacks and lunch bags, just managing to grasp Jed’s arm before he headed out the room as the bell rang. “Just a minute, Jed. We’ll have to see to that knee.”

      “Miss Langford? What is the meaning of this bedlam?” Mr. Nivens’s voice was raised to counter the excitement coming from the rest of the children now pouring into the hall.

      She ignored him as she drew Jed over to the sink and began dabbing antiseptic from the first aid kit onto the child’s knee. She held one bony little shoulder firmly as the boy wriggled.

      “Ow!” His bellow was loud and angry.

      “Has this child injured himself on school property, during school hours, Miss Langford?”

      Old Jerry was in a cranky mood, she decided glumly. There was no way he would let her off easily for this one.

      “We went on a nature hike, and Jed cut his knee,” she told him, still gripping the child’s wriggling shoulder. “If you could assist me with this, I’d appreciate it. I have to cleanse the area.”

      “He should be seen by a doctor,” Jeremy Nivens began firmly, but he knelt beside the boy and peered at the affected area. “At least it won’t require stitches,” he muttered, taking the cotton from her hands and briskly wiping the grit and particles of soil away.

      “That hurts, ya know,” Jed shrieked. His face was red with anger.

      “Nonsense. A great big boy like you wouldn’t feel a little nick like this. You have to be strong when these things happen—stiff upper lip and all that.” His finger slapped a Band-Aid across the knee with surety, and he pulled Jed’s pant leg swiftly down.

      “Huh?” Jed sat staring at the older man in perplexity.

      Gillian bent down and stared into Jed’s puzzled face. “He means that you were very brave for handling that so well, Jed. Here’s your knapsack now. You’d better run and get that bus.”

      As the boy scurried from the room, he cast a suspicious look at Jeremy’s suited figure. “My lip’s not stiff,” he told the older man seriously. “My leg is, though.”

      “Have a good weekend,” Gillian called and waved briskly, watching the most daring member of her class dodge the other children in his rush to get to the bus.

      “Miss Langford, you and I need to have a discussion.”

      She turned back wearily to face her towering boss’s stern face. He had that glint in his eye, she noticed. The one that always spelled trouble. For her.

      “Have a seat, Mr. Nivens. I’ll just clean up a bit as we talk.” She avoided his eyes as her hands busily picked up the shuffle of papers on her desk, brushing the bits of twigs and crushed leaves into the garbage.

      “I would prefer to speak in my office. In a more formal setting.” He was still standing, Gillian noted.

      “Oh, why bother to walk all the way down there?” she murmured airily. “We’re both here now. Why don’t you just tell me what’s on your mind?” Smoothly, without a pause in action, Gillian slipped the books into order on her shelves, removing a bubble gum paper from Jonah’s reader. When he didn’t speak, she finally glanced up and found his remote stare fixed firmly on her. “Well?”

      “Miss Langford, do you ever read the notifications I leave in your mailbox?”

      He brushed a hand gingerly over the edge of the table, checking for stickiness before reclining against it. It was the most relaxed she had ever seen him, and the sight was very appealing. As she watched, Jeremy brushed a hand through his hair, destroying the immaculately arranged strands. “Miss Langford?”

      She jerked her gaze away from the silky softness of his hair and focused on his frowning face.

      “Of course I read them,” she muttered finally. Her thought winged back over the past few weeks, trying to recall which particular missive he could be referring to. If the truth were known, she barely glanced at his memos lately. She had been centering every bit of time and attention on her students.

      Jeremy crossed his arms over his chest.

      “Then I’m sure you noticed that I asked teachers to be particularly aware of permission notes and the necessity of having parents sign if their child was to be taken off the school property,” he said smugly. “May I have the notes?”

      “But СКАЧАТЬ