Angels Everywhere - Debbie Macomber [136]
Brynn walked up and down the aisles, delivering the papers. It flustered her a bit when she found her own name toward the top of the page. Emilio’s handwriting was immediately recognizable, and she flushed. She’d never intended for anyone to put down her name.
“You aren’t going to want these back, are you?” Yolanda pleaded.
“No. Keep them.”
“Ms. Cassidy.” Denzil’s hand waved frantically. “There must be some mistake. I didn’t get any papers.”
“That’s because you’re greedy,” Yolanda took delight in informing him. “Besides, why would anyone want to kiss you?”
“Hey, you didn’t have any problem the other night.”
“I’d had too much to drink and you know it.”
“That’s not what you said earlier.”
The bell rang just then, and Brynn was saved from having to break off a spat between the two for the second time that day. Whatever was taking place between Yolanda and Denzil was best settled outside the classroom.
“For your assignment,” Brynn said, raising her hand to capture their attention before the room emptied, “read the next chapter of The Diary of Anne Frank.”
Her words were followed by a loud moan.
“I’ll see everyone tomorrow afternoon. Have a good evening.”
It never ceased to amaze Brynn how fast her classroom emptied. It was as though her students stampeded toward the door in an effort to escape a nuclear holocaust.
As was her habit at the end of the day, Brynn sat at her desk and graded assignments, but today she didn’t have much time because of a dental appointment in New Jersey. After a half hour, she tucked what she hadn’t finished into her briefcase and headed toward the staff parking lot.
“Yo, Ms. Cassidy!” Emilio raced toward her.
“Hello, Emilio.”
His steps soon matched hers. “You probably guessed it was me who wrote down your name, right?”
Brynn could feel her face growing warm.
“Listen, I thought I should explain,” he said quickly, looking slightly embarrassed himself. “I gotta be careful paying too much attention to any one chick. You see, there are three or four in the class who’ve got the hots for me. I was trying to be diplomic about it.”
“Diplomatic.”
“Yeah, that.”
“I understand, Emilio, and applaud your efforts.”
“Good, ’cause I don’t need chick trouble.”
“I figured it was something like that,” she assured him.
“Great.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said, doing her best to disguise her amusement. One thing was certain: she didn’t want to be the cause of “chick problems” for Emilio Alcantara.
Emilio turned and hurried across the parking lot toward the basketball hoop where his friends were busy playing two on two.
Brynn climbed inside her car and turned the key. It flickered to life, sputtered, and then quickly died. Surprised, she tried again, with the same results. She hadn’t left her lights on that morning, she was sure of that. Her vehicle had recently been serviced. She tried once more, and this time the engine did nothing more than cough and choke.
“No, please, no,” Brynn murmured, and pressed her forehead against the steering wheel. Trouble with her car was the last thing she needed.
Hannah shouldn’t be this eager to see Joshua again, but she was. Again and again her gaze drifted toward the deli’s front door as she waited impatiently for the man she’d met at Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
Her heart pounded like a race car piston every time she thought about Joshua. He’d been so gentle and caring. So considerate.
Although they’d only just met, they hadn’t lacked for conversation. Joshua was the kind of man she could talk to for hours on end. Generally Hannah found herself tongue-tied and uneasy around men, but not with Joshua. It was as if they’d been friends for a long time.
Friends.
The word comforted her and eased her conscience.
Carl had joined her family for Thanksgiving dinner, and afterward he’d sat in the living room with her father. The two men had talked far into the evening, debating political issues and other matters. Before he’d left, Hannah’s parents had discreetly