Miss Liz’s Passion
Sherryl Woods

www.mirabooks.co.uk

Elizabeth Gentry put all her passion into her students. Educating them, encouraging them, reaching them—that was easy. It was the living that was hard. After the betrayal, the grief and the pain, there was a kind of peace in giving away her heart to her pupils.

That was what made Todd Lewis so dangerous. With his dogged determination and rugged handsomeness, he had slowly staked his own claim on her heart and made her feel again. Made her want to hope and dream. But her hopes, her dreams, her heart—were so fragile. Could she entrust them to him? Or would he destroy them for good?

Although Dolphin Reach, the characters and the incidents in Miss Liz’s Passion are fiction, a similarly innovative program is currently under way at the Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Florida. A special thanks to Dr. David Nathanson for sharing his expertise, to the enthusiastic Dolphin Research Center staff and to Spring and her family for sharing their time and enthusiasm.

For Moira, who brings dedication, imagination and love to some very special students.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Epilogue

About the Author

Prologue

The bite mark was an angry red, only one shade darker than Teri Lynn’s face as she howled at the top of her lungs and clutched her injured arm. Breathless from streaking across the grassy playground to break up the fight, Liz Gentry knelt between the crying girl and her eight-year-old tormentor.

“Kevin, what is the meaning of this?” Liz demanded as she wiped away Teri Lynn’s tears with a lace-edged, lavender-scented handkerchief.

The towheaded boy she addressed stared sullenly at the ground, scuffing the toe of his sneaker back and forth in the dirt. She put a firm hand on his chin and forced him to meet her gaze. “Kevin?”

She sighed as he remained obstinately silent.

“He bit me, Mrs. Gentry. For no reason, he just bit me,” Teri Lynn said between sobs.

“Did not,” Kevin muttered defiantly.

“Did, too,” Teri Lynn insisted with a sniff as she inched closer to Liz’s side.

“Kevin, if you didn’t do it, who did?” Liz asked impatiently, then sighed again.

Of course, Kevin had done it. She’d seen him herself. One minute he and Teri Lynn had been tossing a ball back and forth on the playground. Seconds later he had flown at her in a rage. Half a dozen shocked classmates had stared on silently, while others, seemingly immune to Kevin’s displays of temper, continued with their noisy games.

So much for her hopes for an uneventful recess, she thought as she comforted Teri Lynn. Thanks to Kevin, at the rate the school year was going, she would have had a quieter time of it in the Marines.

As the bell rang ending recess, she surveyed the combatants. Both of them had cuts and scrapes, but that bite mark on Teri Lynn’s arm was the worst injury.

“Okay, we won’t argue about it now. Teri Lynn, I’ll take you to the school nurse as soon as I get the rest of the class inside. Kevin, you and I will discuss this after school. In the meantime, you will go to the principal’s office and wait for me.”

Her tone left no room for argument. Not that Kevin would have given her one. He simply nodded as he always did. Inside the building, as she watched, he walked down the deserted hall and turned into the office. She knew from experience she would find him there at the end of the school day, sitting on a bench, his expression stoic. Only the telltale traces of tears on his cheeks ever offered any indication that he’d found the recurring incidents of misbehavior or the punishment upsetting.

The last hours of school dragged on interminably. She tried to listen as the students read their English assignments aloud, but she couldn’t get her mind off Kevin. Despite his troublesome behavior, something about the child’s lost, world-weary expression tugged at her heart. She cared about all of her students. She loved the challenge of making them respond, of making learning exciting for them. With Kevin the challenge had been doubled because her usual methods had failed so miserably. Whether it was her own ego or Kevin’s apparent need, he had gotten to her in a way that none of the other students had.

But how on earth was she going to handle this ongoing behavior problem? No matter how compassionately she felt toward Kevin, his conduct had to be corrected. There was a fight or a temper tantrum, or a sulking retreat almost every day. The child clearly needed help, more help than she could possibly offer him in a room crowded with thirty-five energetic third-graders.

It was only the first month of school and already she had repeatedly sent notes home to his father, who had sole custody for reasons not made clear in the file. No mention was made of the mother. In her first letter to Todd Lewis she had explained Kevin’s behavior problems in depth, detailing her suspicions about the cause and requesting a meeting to discuss solutions. The second note and the third had been a little more impatient, a little more concise. Admittedly, the last one had been barely polite.

Todd Lewis had yet to call, much less appear, which told her quite a lot about the man’s indifference to his son’s wellbeing and left her thoroughly frustrated. Reaching him by phone had been no more successful. With an increasing sense of urgency, she had left at least half a dozen messages on his home answering machine in the last two days. If he had a business number, or cell phone number, she couldn’t find it. The emergency number in the file had turned out to belong to a neighbor, who looked out for Kevin after school. Liz had been unwilling to draw the woman into the midst of the problem. She had asked her only to relay a message asking Todd Lewis to call. The woman had agreed readily enough, but admitted she rarely saw him.

Liz resolved to try just once more to arrange a meeting. If the man failed to show up yet again, she would have to resort to stronger action. There were authorities she could ask to intercede. Filled with indignation on Kevin’s behalf, she dismissed the class, asked the teacher next door to get her students to their buses, then wrote the harshest note yet, hoping to shake Todd Lewis from his parental apathy.

When she’d finished the note, she went to get Kevin. As she’d expected, he was sitting on the wooden bench in the office, his short legs sticking out in front of him, his hands folded in his lap. He didn’t even look up as she sat down beside him. She was torn between wanting to hug him or shake him. He looked as though he desperately needed a hug.

“Okay, Kevin. Let’s talk about this for a few minutes before you catch the school bus. Tell me what happened out there this afternoon,” she began quietly.

He shook his head, his expression hopeless. That look broke her heart. No child of eight should have eyes that devoid of hope.

“Why not?” she probed.

“Doesn’t matter,” he said in a voice so soft she had to lean down to hear him.

“It does matter. Fighting is no way to settle an argument.”

“Teri Lynn started it,” he said with more spirit.

“Kevin, I was watching. I saw you knock her down.”

“Only because—”

“Because what?”

His chin set stubbornly.

“Kevin?”

“She said something,” he mumbled.

“What?”

He shook his head again.

“Kevin, this is not the first fight you’ve had. I can’t help, if you won’t tell me what the fights are about. I don’t want to recommend that you be suspended, but that’s where you’re heading.”

Blue eyes shimmering with tears blinked wide at her stern tone. Liz felt her heart constrict. If only she could get to the bottom of this. Her voice softened. “Honey, please, what did she say that made you so mad?”

His lower lip trembled. Liz waited as he started to speak, swallowed hard, then tried again. “She-she…said…”

“Come on, sweetheart. You can tell me.”

His shoulders slumped and tears spilled down his cheeks. “She said I was a…a d-dummy.”

Liz felt the sting of salty tears in her own eyes at the note of despair she heard in his voice. He believed it! This bright, outgoing child believed he was a failure because of the cruel taunts of a classmate and her own inability to find teaching methods that would reach him.

Kevin needed diagnostic testing. He needed special classes. Most of all, he needed a father who loved him enough to see that the answers to his learning dilemma were found before Kevin withdrew into himself entirely. Damn Todd Lewis!

More than ever, she was glad that this latest note had been worded so strongly. The man’s indifference was appalling. Furious, she decided if he failed to respond this time it would be the last. She renewed her vow to set in motion whatever regulations were necessary to see that Kevin got the help that would enable him to learn. More important, she would see that something was done to restore his rapidly deteriorating self-esteem.

“Kevin, you are not a dummy,” she said with every ounce of conviction she could manage. “You are a very smart little boy.”

He regarded her doubtfully. “But you’re always correcting me. That’s why Teri Lynn said it. She says you don’t like me, that nobody likes me because I always make mistakes.” He sighed heavily. “And I do. I can’t get nothing right.”

“Anything,” she corrected instinctively, then could have bitten her tongue. Why just this once couldn’t she have let a mistake slide? “Honey, I do like you. I know this is hard for you to understand, but I believe that the reason you make mistakes is not because you’re not very, very smart, but because you have something called a learning disability. That’s what I want to talk to your father about. I think we should do some tests to find out why it’s so hard for you to learn.”

“Is that what the note says?” he asked, fingering the sealed envelope suspiciously.

She considered the note’s indignant comments. For a fleeting instant she was almost grateful that Kevin had difficulty reading. “More or less,” she said wryly. “Kevin, is there some reason your father hasn’t been able to come in when I’ve asked him to?”

He stared at the floor and shook his head. “I don’t know. He’s pretty busy, I guess.” There was an obvious note of pride in his voice as he added, “He works real hard.”

“You just tell him that I expect to see him tomorrow. Okay?”

“I’ll tell him.” He frowned. “You’re not gonna be mad at him for not coming before, are you?”

Liz struggled to keep her tone impassive. “Don’t worry about that. We’ll work things out and once your dad and I talk I’m sure things will get better for you. Now run along before you miss the early bus again today.”

He was on his feet at once, his natural exuberance restored.

“Kevin!”

He glanced back at her. “We’ll discuss your apology to Teri Lynn in the morning.”

He nodded once, shot her a cheerful grin and was out the door, leaving her to ponder exactly how many years she would spend in jail if she tarred and feathered Todd Lewis.

Chapter 1

The neat, handwritten letter had all the primness of some Victorian maiden’s blush. According to the indignant opening line, it was not the first such reprimand that Todd Lewis should have received in the past month. The prissy, uptight tone might have amused him had the contents not infuriated him so.

Exhausted by an endless and frustrating day under the hot Miami sun, he reached for the can of beer beside his chair. Perhaps he was overreacting. God knows, it would be understandable. He was bone-weary. His shoulders ached, his back felt like someone was holding a burning knife in the middle of it and his thighs throbbed from the strain of struggling with those damned girders since just after dawn. He had little patience left for someone who’d spent a few hours lolling around in an air-conditioned classroom and still had complaints about how tough the workday was.

He took a long swallow of beer, then slowly read the letter again. The words and the crisp, precise, censuring tone hadn’t mellowed one whit. Neither did his dark mood.

Elizabeth Gentry—he was willing to bet it was Miss Gentry—was sharply criticizing his son. For some reason he couldn’t quite follow, she didn’t seem to be too thrilled with him, either. She demanded that Todd come in the following afternoon at 3:30 to discuss the boy’s “uncontrollable behavior, deplorable manners and inappropriate language.”

Todd felt his blood pressure begin to soar again. He did not appreciate being chastised in such a demeaning tone by a woman he’d never even met. Nor was he wild about the labels she’d slapped on his son. Another sip of beer soothed his parched throat but not his fiery temper.

He could just picture the woman. Gray hair drawn back in a tidy little bun, a spine of steel, no makeup, rimless glasses sliding down to the end of her too-large nose, nondescript clothes in gray or brown or maybe one of those little floral prints his grandmother used to wear. He sighed at the daunting prospect. He had no idea how to deal with a sexless, unimaginative woman like that.

He took another sip of beer and read on. “Your continued refusal to take action in this matter indicates a startling lack of interest in Kevin’s educational well-being and social adjustment. Should you fail to keep this appointment, I am afraid it will be necessary for me to pursue the matter with other authorities.”

What other authorities? Was the woman actually suggesting that he be reported to some local bureaucrat, maybe even a state agency? A knot formed in his stomach at the insulting suggestion that he was an uncaring father, who approved of—what was it?—uncontrollable behavior, deplorable manners and inappropriate language.

Okay, he was willing to admit that Kevin was a handful, but what eight-year-old wasn’t? He just needed a little firm discipline every now and then.

Suddenly the nagging memory of his ex-wife’s endless complaints about Kevin’s manageability returned with untimely clarity. He’d dismissed her rantings at the time as yet another excuse for walking out on them. Sarah had wanted to leave long before the night she’d finally packed her bags and departed. She’d been too young, too immature to accept the responsibility of marriage, much less a troublesome son. He had blamed the inability to cope on her, not Kevin.

The comparison gave him a moment’s pause, but he dismissed the significance almost at once. No doubt this terribly proper and probably ancient Miss Gentry was equally inept with children. If she couldn’t handle an eight-year-old boy, perhaps she’d chosen the wrong profession. Perhaps she should be teaching piano and embroidery to sedate young ladies in frilly dresses and dainty white gloves, instead of third-grade boys who got dirt on their clothes even before the school bus picked them up in the morning.

He glanced across the room at his sturdy, blond son. Kevin was quietly racing small cars through an intricately designed village he’d built from the set of Lego blocks he’d begged for and received for his birthday. Todd figured the subdued behavior would last no more than another ten minutes, long enough for his son to feel secure that this note from his teacher would not result in some sort of punishment.

“Kevin.” He kept his tone determinedly neutral. Still, wary blue eyes glanced up from the toy Porsche that was about to skitter around the village’s sharpest turn. A tiny jaw jutted up, mimicking all too accurately Todd’s own frequently belligerent expression. That look warned him that there just might be something behind Miss Gentry’s complaints.

“What’s this all about, son?”

“Same old stuff.” Kevin directed his attention back to the car. It whizzed around the turn and up a hill.

“What stuff?” Todd persisted. “I gather this is not the first time your teacher has written.”

A guilty blush spread across Kevin’s round, freckled cheeks and he continued to look down. Todd nodded with sudden understanding. No wonder the teacher had been indignant. She thought he’d seen all of her earlier notes and had intentionally ignored them.

“I see,” he said wearily. “What did you do with the other letters?”

There was the tiniest hesitation before Kevin said in a whisper, “I lost ’em.”

“Really? How convenient,” he said, barely controlling his temper. “Suppose you tell me what they were about.”

Kevin studied the miniature red Porsche he was pushing back and forth and mumbled, “She said she told you in this one.”

“I want to hear it from you.”

Kevin remained stubbornly silent. Todd knew from experience that getting him to talk now was going to require tact and patience. He was shorter than usual on both tonight.

“Son, she says this is the fifth note in the last three weeks. Are you sure there’s not something happening in school that you should tell me about?”

Kevin’s expression turned increasingly defiant. “I told you, Dad. She don’t like me. That’s all it is.”

“School just started a month ago. Why would you think your teacher doesn’t like you?”

“Everybody knows it, Dad. She’s always telling me how to do stuff.”

Despite himself, Todd grinned. “She’s a teacher. That’s what teachers do.”

“Yeah, but Dad, she only tells me. Even when I tell her I can’t do it, she makes me. The other kids get it, but I can’t. I try, Dad. Really.”

The tears that welled up despite the tough facade convinced Todd that his son was telling the truth, at least as he saw it. A swift surge of compassion swept through him, blotting out for a moment his need to get to the bottom of the teacher’s complaints. His overwhelming desire to protect Kevin at any cost refueled his anger at the stiff, unyielding Miss Gentry and gave substance to all of his long-standing suspicions about the school system’s ineptitude. It had done a lousy enough job with him. He’d obviously been foolish to hope that things had improved.

What kind of teacher would single out a child day after day like that? He’d tried his darnedest not to interfere, to let the school do what it was supposed to do—educate his son, but he wouldn’t have the boy made out to be some sort of freak because he was a little slower than the other kids. Kevin was smart as a whip. Anyone who took the time to talk to him could see that.

“Are you going to talk to her, Dad?” Kevin’s voice was hesitant, the tone a heartbreaking mix of hopefulness and fear. Todd wasn’t sure what response his son really wanted.

“Don’t you want me to?” he asked, though he knew there was no longer any real choice in the matter.

Kevin shrugged, but his little shoulders were slumped so dejectedly it made Todd feel like pounding his fist through a wall. “She’s made me stay after school almost every day this week,” Kevin finally admitted. “A couple of times I almost missed the bus. I think she’s real mad at both of us now.”

Todd sighed. Kevin tried so hard not to let anyone fight his battles for him. If only he’d told Todd sooner, perhaps this wouldn’t have gotten so far out of hand. The prospect of confronting Miss Gentry’s self-righteous antagonism held about as much appeal as putting in another grueling, mishap-ridden twelve-hour day at the site of his latest shopping center.

“Then maybe it’s time I have a talk with her,” he said, anyway. “Don’t worry about it, son. I’ll get it straightened out. Tell her I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon.” He recalled the string of problems he’d left behind at the construction site and the imperious tone of that note, then amended, “Or the next day, at the latest.”

But despite the reassurance, fear still flickered in Kevin’s eyes. That frightened expression aroused all of Todd’s fierce protective instincts. He remembered every single humiliating moment of his own school experience and swore to himself that Miss Elizabeth Gentry would not put his son through the same sort of torment.

Liz stared longingly out the classroom window at the swaying palm trees and deep blue sky. It was a perfect Florida day. The humidity had vanished on the breeze. She had only five more spelling papers to grade before she could leave the confining classroom and enjoy what was left of the early October afternoon. The prospect of a long swim raised her spirits considerably.

She had had an absolutely hellish day again. The school had instituted yet another form that had to be filled out, though no one knew quite why. Two of her students had been sent home with the flu, after generously sharing their germs, no doubt. She’d had cafeteria duty, which almost always left her with a headache. Today’s was still throbbing at the base of her skull. And Kevin had gotten into another fight. This time he’d sent Cindy Jamison to the school nurse with a bloody lip. She herself had gotten a lump on her shin and a run in her hose trying to break up the brawl.

Now Kevin was sitting at his desk, his head bent over another assignment as they waited for his father, who was already forty minutes late. The man probably had no intention of showing up this time, either, though Kevin had vowed that he would be here.

She heard a soft, snuffling sound and looked back just in time to catch sight of a tear spilling onto Kevin’s paper. Her heart constricted. Blast that stubborn, indifferent father of his.

“Kevin, bring me your paper.”

He looked up, his expression so woebegone that once again she felt like taking his father apart piece by piece.

When Kevin didn’t move, she said, “Aren’t you finished?”

He shook his head.

“That’s okay. Show me what you have and we’ll do the rest together.”

“It’s not very good.”

“No problem. We’ll work on it.”

Kevin approached her desk with the look of a child being told that Santa Claus was leaving him only a lump of coal. It was an expression without hope. Stoic and resigned, he placed the rumpled page in front of her. “I made a lot of mistakes.”

“Then let’s see what we can do about them,” she said briskly. “You know everybody makes mistakes when they tackle something new. It’s nothing to be ashamed of and it’s definitely no reason not to at least try.”

Kevin regarded her with surprise. “My dad says that, too.”

Liz was startled that they’d even discussed the subject. Her image of Todd Lewis did not include supportive father-son talks. She’d been certain that he either ignored the boy altogether or pressured him by expecting perfection.

“Does your dad help you with your homework?”

“Sometimes,” Kevin said evasively. “Mostly Mrs. Henley helps me.” Mrs. Henley was the woman next door.

“Sometimes, if Dad’s real late, she fixes dinner and helps me with my homework.”

Liz felt that familiar surge of helplessness rush through her again. For the next half hour she and Kevin worked on correcting his paper. It was a tedious, frustrating process for both of them, but Kevin’s glowing smile at each tiny success made the effort worthwhile. When he printed the last of the words on his list perfectly, she hugged him.

“That’s exactly right. I think you deserve a reward. What would you like?”

His eyes widened. “You mean like a present or something?”

She grinned at his look of delight. “A small present.”

He chewed on his lip thoughtfully, then finally said, “I’m really hungry. Could I have a hamburger?”

It wasn’t exactly what she’d had in mind, but he was looking at her so expectantly, she shrugged. “Why not? I’m sure we can find someplace nearby for a hamburger and maybe even some french fries.”

“Great, but what about my dad?”

Liz wasn’t much in the mood to talk to Todd Lewis about anything, but regulations demanded it. “If you give me the number, I’ll call him at his office and get his okay.”

Kevin’s face fell. “He doesn’t work in an office. You can’t call him.”

“What about a cell phone?” she asked.

“He only uses it for work, I don’t know the number.”

She should have realized that the minute she’d made the first call last week and gotten only an answering machine. “Where does he work?”

“He builds stuff. You know, like shopping centers and things. He’s building one now that’s really neat.”

Liz made one of those impetuous decisions that occasionally got her into very hot water. She didn’t believe in breaking rules, but she sometimes bent them in two if she thought it would help one of her students. Right now, Kevin needed all the positive reinforcement she could give him. She’d brave a lion in his den, if that’s what it took. Todd Lewis seemed only slightly less formidable.

“Do you know where it is?”

“Sure. He takes me with him lots on the weekends. Sometimes we even go by at night, if he has to go back and work late.”

It didn’t sound like any sort of lifestyle for a young boy, Liz decided, and only added to her conviction that Todd Lewis was treading dangerously close to being an unfit father. Yet Kevin always spoke of his father with such obvious pride. He clearly idolized the man. That intrigued her.

“Come on, then,” she said to Kevin. “Let’s go see him.”

When they found Todd Lewis, he was standing with one dusty, booted foot propped on a steel girder that was about to be hoisted to the third level of a future parking garage. A yellow hard hat covered much of his close-cropped brown hair and shaded his face. A light blue work shirt was stretched taut over wide shoulders. Liz found herself swallowing hard at the sight of him. He was bigger—at least six-foot-two and probably two-hundred pounds—more imposing and more masculine than she’d imagined. He made her feel petite and fragile and very much aware of her wrinkled shirt, the run in her hose and the fact that she hadn’t stopped long enough to put on lipstick.

His eyes, when she got close enough to see them, sparked with intelligence and curiosity. At the sight of his son running toward him, those eyes filled with something else as well, a warmth and concern that startled her and made her wish for one wild and timeless moment that the look had been directed at her.

“Dad, this is Mrs. Gentry,” Kevin blurted with a wave of his hand in her direction. Something in Todd Lewis’s self-confident demeanor seemed shaken by that announcement, but there was no time to analyze it because Kevin was rushing on. “We came to see you because we’re going to celebrate, but Miss Gentry said we had to get your permission and we couldn’t call you, so I showed her where you are. Is it okay?”

There was another flash of amazement in those clear hazel eyes. An errant dimple formed in that harsh, tanned face. “A celebration?”

“Yeah. I got all my homework right. Mrs. Gentry helped me while we were waiting for you. I told her you were coming, but that sometimes you got really busy and forgot things. You know like you did when you had that date last week and she came to the house all dressed up and you were working on the car.”

Liz noted that Todd Lewis nearly choked at that. She figured the revelation served him right.

“Sorry,” he said. “I told him to tell you I’d be there today or tomorrow.”

He didn’t sound the least bit repentant. Before she could stop herself, she reminded him, “And I asked you to come in today. I’m sure if you’d explained things to your boss, you could have arranged for the afternoon off.”

“I am the boss,” he said matter-of-factly. “And I can guarantee you that I didn’t get the title by walking off the job in the midst of a crisis just because of some damned whim.”

Liz had to do some quick revising. She glanced around at the sprawling mall with its Spanish-style architecture, man-made lakes and fountains already bubbling. Even weeks away from completion, it promised to be spectacular. How on earth could a man in charge of all this run a business without an office? Perhaps he was one of those laid-back eccentrics who delighted in going his own way and was talented enough or wealthy enough to get away with it. She, however, didn’t operate that way.

“It was hardly a whim, Mr. Lewis. If I hadn’t thought it extremely important, I wouldn’t have requested the meeting.”

“Demanded.”

“Semantics, Mr. Lewis. The point is that you did not come. Again,” she added.

“I’m sorry,” he said again, this time sounding genuinely apologetic. “Your earlier notes…” He gazed pointedly at Kevin. “They seem to have gone astray.”

She felt some of her tension and antagonism begin to ease. That put things in a slightly different light. She should have guessed that Kevin hadn’t passed them along to his father.

“And the phone messages?”

He stared at her blankly. They both turned to gaze at Kevin. He was staring at his shoes.

“Sorry, Dad. I guess maybe they got erased.”

Todd Lewis sighed wearily. “We will talk about all of this later, son.” He smiled at Liz and shrugged. “I guess that explains that. I really am sorry. No wonder you had such a lousy impression of me.”

Liz blushed as she thought of the barely veiled charges she’d leveled at him in her last note. She probably owed him an apology of some sort. Still, he had ignored that one. He wasn’t entirely blameless. Or was he?

“You did get the note I sent yesterday, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Well…” If she’d expected to intimidate Todd Lewis with a cool stare and an unyielding attitude, she’d vastly underestimated him. Those hazel eyes pierced her without once wavering.

“It is nearly five o’clock, Mr. Lewis,” she stated pointedly, not sure why she felt the need to attack rather than be conciliatory. Perhaps it was because she wasn’t one bit happy about the way her pulse had been skipping erratically ever since she’d gotten within five feet of Todd Lewis.

He grinned. Her pulse leapt. She wanted to attack. Yes, indeed, that was it. An instinctive and vitally necessary response.

“Thank you for enlightening me,” he retorted. He held out his hand, displaying a forearm that was bare to the rolled-up sleeve of his shirt. “I don’t wear a watch on the job. I don’t like clock-watchers.”

She wasn’t sure whether he was referring to himself, his employees or her. Either way, if he’d hoped to rattle her, it was working. She couldn’t take her eyes off that muscular forearm. If the man weren’t quite so large or quite so masculine, she’d be tempted to grab it and experiment with that self-defense technique she’d learned at her last karate lesson. The prospect of flipping him onto his backside cheered her considerably.

“You know what I meant,” she said stiffly. “I expected you at 3:30.”

“And I had hoped to be there,” he said so solemnly that she knew he was mocking her. “You know Miss Gentry…”

He made it sound as though she were some dried-up old prune. “Mrs. Gentry,” she retorted.

He shrugged indifferently. That faint suggestion of amusement continued to play about his lips. “You may be in charge of your classroom, Mrs. Gentry, but I’m in charge around here. Unfortunately at a construction site things are apt to go wrong according to whim, rather than your rigid schedule. If you can think of some way to make these girders do your bidding, more power to you. I’ve had a helluva time with it.”

This time he waited expectantly. Liz felt her insides quiver. Possibly with fury. More likely with something entirely less rational. The man was positively maddening. And far too attractive. She suspected the two characteristics were probably related. She realized she was gripping the handle on her purse so tightly the leather was biting into her flesh. She tried to relax. When that didn’t work, she went for the jugular.

“You’ve already explained that you run the company, Mr. Lewis. You don’t strike me as the sort of man who’d be foolish enough to believe he’s either indispensable or indestructible. I’m sure you have assistants who could handle any crisis that occurs in the brief time it would have taken for you to keep an appointment with me.”

He simply scowled at the note of censure. “That’s not the way I do things,” he said with finality. “Now what was so all-fired important that it couldn’t wait another twenty-four hours?”

She glanced at Kevin and hesitated. She’d already said far more than she should have in front of him. What on earth had gotten into her? “I don’t think this is the time or place to be discussing this.”

“You picked it,” he reminded her.

“Mr. Lewis!”

He stared at her intently, then finally nodded. “Kevin, go into the trailer and ask Hank if he’ll take you to the top of the garage. It’s another story higher since the last time you were here.”

“Oh, wow! Great, Dad. Thanks.” He bounded off without a second glance at either of them.

Todd Lewis watched Kevin until the door of the construction trailer slammed behind him. Then once again he propped his foot on a pile of girders, put his elbow on his knee and said, “You were saying…”

Liz sighed at the challenge and tried very hard not to stare at the way his jeans stretched across his hips. “Mr. Lewis, I did not come here to argue with you. I came to ask permission for Kevin to have a hamburger with me as a reward for working so hard this afternoon.”

“Are you sure you didn’t just want to check out his irresponsible father firsthand?”

The teasing glint in his eyes unnerved her. Again. “I’m sorry for some of the things I suggested in the note.”

“But not all?”

“Kevin is a problem.”

“Maybe you just don’t know how to manage him.”

The cool, unexpected taunt struck home. Liz practically shook with indignation. It was a welcome relief after all those other feelings she’d been experiencing.

“Don’t you dare try to turn this into my failure, Mr. Lewis. Since you are so cognizant of your responsibilities, I’m surprised you don’t pay more attention to Kevin. Surely he counts among them. If you had, you would have noticed long ago…”

Her furious tirade faltered as his expression suddenly became all hard angles. She’d seen pictures of cold, merciless dictators who looked less severe. His eyes glinted dangerously. She actually shivered as he took a long stride to tower over her. For an instant she regretted the impulsive tongue-lashing.

“I do know my son. He’s a good kid. Maybe a little high spirited, but that’s all to the good in a boy. Kevin and I do just fine,” he said in a voice that chilled. “We don’t need some high-minded do-gooder interfering in our lives. If he’s having a problem with his schoolwork, we’ll talk about it. Otherwise, you stay the hell out of our lives.”

She flinched under the attack, then dared to glower right back at him. This was too important for her to back down now. “I can’t do that. Kevin is in trouble in school and that’s my responsibility.”

“Fine. I said I was more than willing to talk about his schoolwork. I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon, no matter what the damn girders do. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll be getting back to work.”

He strolled away without a backward glance. Before Liz could fully recover from the unnerving confrontation, she saw the burly, redheaded man who’d accompanied Kevin to the top of the skeletal structure join Todd Lewis. Hank, that was his name, she recalled as she watched them. For some reason, she couldn’t tear her gaze away from the encounter between the two men. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she was seeing a drama of some sort unfold. Suddenly, with a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach, she realized that Kevin wasn’t with them. Even from a distance, she thought she could see Todd Lewis’s complexion turn ashen.

Unaware that she had even begun to move, she found herself not more than a few feet away. She heard Todd Lewis’s harsh oath and Hank’s apology.

“I swear, Todd, I thought he was coming right back to you. You want me to get the men together?”

“Not yet. What exactly did he say?”

“He asked me for some quarters for the soda machine, then he took off. That’s it. Last I saw him, he was in the trailer getting a drink. If he’s not there and he’s not with you, I don’t know where the hell he could have gone.”

Hesitantly, Liz touched Todd Lewis’s arm. “You think he heard us arguing, don’t you? You think he’s run away.”

He turned on her, his shoulders tense, his jaw tight. That furious stance might have frightened her, if she hadn’t looked into his eyes. There was the expected flash of anger, but there was also panic and a touching vulnerability.

That glimpse into Todd Lewis’s soul removed forever any lingering doubts she might have had about the depth of his love for his son. It also left her shaken in a way she couldn’t begin to understand.

Chapter 2

Todd felt like strangling somebody. Right now it was a toss-up whether it should be Hank or Elizabeth Gentry. He glowered at both potential victims, then muttered a curse under his breath. There was no point in blaming them. They looked every bit as worried and dismayed as he felt. Besides, he was the guilty one. He knew how sensitive Kevin was, how easily hurt. He should never have been discussing him where Kevin might overhear the argument. The kid had a way of popping up when you least expected it. Sending him off with Hank had been no guarantee he wouldn’t be back ten seconds later.

“Hank, you take your car and head east,” he said finally, fighting to think clearly through the haze of self-recriminations. With great effort, he kept his voice calm and reasonable. “I’ll go west on foot. He can’t have gotten too far.”

Hank, the most easygoing man he’d ever known, looked downright uncomfortable.

“What is it?” Todd demanded impatiently.

“Don’t forget he had those quarters. He could have taken a bus.”

The already tense muscles across Todd’s shoulders knotted. Only the quiet presence of Elizabeth Gentry kept him from uttering a whole arsenal of swear words. He closed his eyes and imagined shouting every one of them at the top of his lungs. Even the imagery had a restorative effect.

“Okay,” he said with the careful deliberation of a man battling hysteria. He clung to his businesslike ability to remain calm in a crisis, to put his emotions on hold until every last detail had been handled. “Then we’d better take both cars. We’ll meet back here in an hour. If you find him, call me.”

To his amazement he sounded decisive and controlled. He felt as though he were splintering apart.

“What about me?” a soft voice interrupted. “What can I do?”

Todd stared at her. “I think you’ve done enough for one afternoon,” he said in a cutting tone that brought Hank’s head snapping up. Elizabeth Gentry stared back at Todd. She appeared serene and unfazed by his bark, but there was fire in her eyes. That look challenged him to put aside his animosity for Kevin’s sake or further establish her impression of him as a jerk.

“Oh, hell,” he said finally. “Come with me.”

“Wouldn’t it be better if I took my own car? I’ll drive south toward the school. He might have gone back that way.”

“I think school’s the last place he’s likely to head,” Todd retorted, wondering why the hell she’d bothered to ask his opinion, since she had every intention of doing exactly as she pleased.

Her cool demeanor slipped just a bit at his pointed sarcasm. Then her chin jutted up. “Fine. I’ll go north. Let’s just stop wasting time.”

With that she stalked off, her head held high, her back as ramrod straight as he’d once imagined it to be. The effect, though, wasn’t at all what he’d anticipated. Thoroughly bemused, he stared after her.

How had he gotten it so wrong? Kevin’s teacher was no prim, dried-up Victorian maiden. Far from it. She was all ripe curves and passionate indignation. Even with his son missing and his anger fueled, he’d still had the most overpowering urge to tangle his fingers in that flame-red hair of hers and hush her with a breath-stealing kiss. Desire had slammed through him with the force of a hurricane sweeping across the Florida keys. Its unexpectedness had stunned him.

Her amber eyes had challenged him in a way that made his heart pound louder and faster than any jackhammer. Her derision had irked him. Her sensuality had provoked him. The hell of it was, she was also married. Mrs. Gentry. The combination was enough to set off warning bells so loud only a man stone deaf could ignore them. Elizabeth Gentry spelled trouble and it had very little to do with her threats about Kevin.

One good thing had come of the encounter: he knew with absolute certainty now that she would never turn her disagreement with him into a public squabble with the authorities. She’d only used the threats to assure Kevin’s well-being. He’d seen the genuine concern and affection in her eyes, the caring that ran as deep and true as a mother’s fierce protectiveness. It was a look that could make any man less wary than he fall in love. It was a look he couldn’t ever recall seeing in Sarah’s eyes, at least not toward the end.

With a disgusted shake of his head, he snapped his attention back to Kevin’s disappearance. Still muttering apologies, Hank had already followed the teacher to the parking lot. Todd sprinted to his own mud-streaked, battle-scarred pickup. Gravel flew as he spun out onto Kendall Drive, forcing his way into the stream of rush-hour traffic. Locked into a slow-moving crawl, he kept his eyes peeled for some sign of a small, proud boy walking dejectedly along the edge of the highway.

His impatience mounted with every block. Horn honking, he tried weaving through traffic, but it was a wasted effort. No lane was moving any faster than a snail’s pace. With each quarter mile he covered, his panic deepened. So many terrible things could happen to a kid, especially in a city the size of Miami. Kevin was all he had, all that meant anything in his life. If anything happened to him… He couldn’t even allow himself to complete the thought.

His heart thudded heavily as dismay settled in. This was pointless. He’d already covered miles without seeing any sign of Kevin. If he had gotten on a bus, he could be anywhere. If he hadn’t and if he’d come this way, Todd would have found him by now.

Praying that Hank or Elizabeth Gentry had had better luck and just hadn’t called, he finally turned the truck around and went back to the nearly deserted construction site. The crew, unaware that there had been any sort of a crisis, had left in his absence and only one car remained in the lot—hers. In an odd way it reminded him of her. It was an ordinary, small blue Toyota, sedate and practical. Only the sunroof hinted at her sense of daring.

Had she found Kevin, he wondered as he hurried toward the trailer. If she had, he thought he might be able to forgive her anything.

He swung open the door of the trailer and saw the two of them—laughing. Her laughter was low and full-bodied. Kevin’s high-pitched and raucous. Her arm was around the boy’s shoulders as they studied a drawing done in red marker. The quiet intimacy of the scene, the suggestion of family, made Todd suck in his breath. For an instant an irrational fury clouded his vision, overriding his relief. He’d been out searching, his stomach knotted by worry and they were in here laughing like two thoroughly happy conspirators.

“Where’d you find him?” he asked. His curt tone drew startled glances from both of them.

“Hi, Dad,” Kevin said cheerfully, obviously oblivious to his father’s mood. Todd regarded him suspiciously. He was not behaving like a child who’d run away in anger.

“We’ve been waiting for you. See what I did. Mrs. Gentry says it’s pretty good.”

A surge of righteous outrage burst inside him. “Go to the truck,” he said, his voice tight.

“Dad?” Kevin’s voice was puzzled, his expression confused. He stared up at his teacher, which only infuriated Todd more. Since when had Kevin turned to someone other than him for instructions.

“Now!”

Shoulders slumping and lip quivering at the shouted command, Kevin started toward the door.

“I think you’d better let me explain,” Elizabeth Gentry said. She spoke quietly, but there was an edge of steel in her voice. He knew instinctively it was her classroom voice. It probably terrorized the kids. He ignored it.

“Kevin, you heard what I said.” His voice was calmer, but no less authoritative.

She stepped closer to Kevin and put a protective hand on his shoulder. She glared defiantly at Todd, the look meant to put him in his place. He had to admire her spunk. Under less trying circumstances, he might even find it a turn-on. Right now, it was only an irritant. He scowled right back at her.

“Save your attempt at intimidation, Mr. Lewis. When I found Kevin, I realized that in my desperation to find him, I forgot to get your number. Kevin did not run away. Don’t take your frustration out on him or, for that matter, on me.”

He stared from her to his son and back again. Swallowing hard, he tried to regain control over his temper. “I don’t understand.”

“Tell your father what happened,” she urged. When Kevin appeared to be hesitant, she smiled at him. “It’s okay. Tell him what you told me.”

“I went to get a drink. Hank gave me the money. And there was this cat.” He regarded Todd hopefully. “It was a great cat, Dad, but he’d gotten all wet. I guess he fell in that big mud puddle in back of the trailer. Anyway, I tried to get him so I could clean him up, but he ran. I chased him across the field. When I came back, you were all gone. I must have been gone longer than I thought, ’cause Mrs. Gentry says you all were worried. I’m sorry I scared you.”

Relief rushed through Todd. A cat! Kevin had been chasing a stupid, wet cat. He massaged his temples. The pounding in his head began to ease as his tension abated. He stared at Elizabeth Gentry and gave a small, apologetic shrug before grinning sheepishly at Kevin. “Did you catch the cat?”

“No,” he said, obviously disgusted. “He was too fast. Anyway, he ran inside a garage. I guess he must belong to somebody.”

Suddenly exuberant, Todd picked Kevin up and swung him in the air. “You want a cat that badly?”

“Not really. I’d rather have a dog, but you said we couldn’t have one, ’cause we’re not home enough.” He recited Todd’s old argument without emotion. “I just wanted to play with this one.”

“Maybe we’ll have to rethink that,” Todd said. He caught Elizabeth Gentry watching them. She was smiling, but there was something about her eyes that got to him. She looked sad. He couldn’t imagine why. Everything had turned out just fine. His son was safe. He felt like celebrating.

“I’d better be getting home,” she said, the flat declaration tempering his mood.

Suddenly uncertain, he said with awkward sincerity, “Thanks for helping with the search.”

“I’m glad it wasn’t really necessary. I will see you at the school tomorrow, won’t I?”

The woman had the tenacity of a terrier with an old sock. He grinned. “I promise not to stand you up again.” He took her hand, holding it just long enough to confirm the solemnity of his commitment. Her grip was firm, her skin like cool silk, but she trembled. That tiny hint of vulnerability set off warning bells again. He released her hand, but not her gaze. The air sizzled with electricity.

“Hey, you guys, what about my hamburger?”

Todd glanced away at last to stare blankly at Kevin. When he looked back at Elizabeth Gentry, her cheeks were flushed, her eyes hooded.

“I don’t think today is…” she began with surprising uncertainty.

Kevin’s face fell. Todd was torn between his son’s disappointment and his own need to escape the confusing emotions this redheaded firebrand raised in him.

“I’ll take you out for a hamburger, son. Mrs. Gentry probably has to get home to her family.”

“No, she doesn’t. She doesn’t have a family. She told us her husband died,” Kevin announced ingenuously.

Todd’s heart took an unexpected lurch. Glancing over Kevin’s head, his eyes met hers. “I’m sorry.”

“So am I,” she said quietly, but with a surprising lack of emotion.

Todd felt guilty at the relief that swept through him. He had not wanted Elizabeth Gentry to have a husband. He was equally glad to see that it didn’t appear she was living with ghosts, though why it mattered was beyond him. He didn’t date women like the one standing before him. He ran like crazy from innocence and vulnerability and commitment.

“See, Dad, I told you,” Kevin was saying. “Besides, she promised. She should come, too. She’s probably really hungry by now.”

Suddenly bolder, Todd surveyed her from head to toe with lazy deliberation, then felt renewed guilt at the look of confusion his teasing aroused. For some reason he wanted to provoke her into a mild flirtation. Perhaps he merely wanted to prove to himself that she was as unfeminine and boring as he’d once imagined her. Maybe he just wanted to shake her cool facade. Either way he knew he was playing with fire.

“Are you?” he asked in a voice thick with innuendo.

Startled eyes blinked at him. “What?”

“Hungry?”

As if she suddenly guessed the rules by which he was playing, she returned his impudent look with a touch of defiance. “Starved, actually.”

Todd laughed at the prompt response to his challenge. “Then the two of you go on. I’ll meet you there in a few minutes. I just want to finish up a little paperwork and give Hank a call to tell him not to worry.”

“Dad, it’s already late. Couldn’t you just phone him on the way?”

“It won’t be long.”

Kevin’s forehead creased with a worried frown. “You won’t forget or something, will you?”

The question told Liz all too much about his tendency to get caught up in work. He caught the quick flare of concern in her eyes. Todd’s gaze locked with those serious amber eyes. “No,” he promised softly. “I won’t forget.”

With an odd tightening in his chest, he watched the two of them walk away from the trailer. She bent down to listen to something Kevin was saying, then the two of them laughed, the happy sound rippling through the evening air. How long had it been since he’d shared laughter like that with a woman? He hadn’t trusted any of them since Sarah. Something told him, though, that he could trust Elizabeth Gentry. He wondered if he’d have the courage to try.

Before he could immerse himself in wasted philosophical musings, Hank came back. He gazed after the departing woman, noting the child by her side, then directed a searching look at Todd.

“Everything okay?”

“Fine.”

“Who’s the looker?” The interested query was made with Hank’s usual lack of tact and reflected his appreciation of all things feminine.

Todd bristled. “Kevin’s teacher,” he said stiffly, not sure why he felt so resentful of the innocently appraising remark.

“Why didn’t I ever have a teacher who looked like that?” Hank said wistfully. “I might have learned more.”

“You have an engineering degree now. What more would you have learned?”

“Life, my friend. A woman like that could teach you all about life.”

Todd groaned. “Does your libido ever take a rest?”

“Not since junior high,” Hank retorted with an unrepentant grin.

“Go heft a few girders, then. Maybe it’ll wear you out.” He picked up a folder of papers and stuffed them in his briefcase.

“Not a chance. Let me know if you’re not interested in that one. Maybe I’ll take a shot at her. I have a real thing for redheads.”

Todd looked up, incensed. “She’s Kevin’s teacher, dammit. Not some floozy you saw in a bar. Stay away from her.”

Hank stared at him consideringly. “So, then, you are interested.”

Todd slammed his fist on the desk, scattering papers. “I am not interested. I am just trying to see that my son and I get through the school year without being responsible for his teacher’s downfall.”

His outburst didn’t seem to faze Hank. “Don’t worry about that,” he said easily. “I’ll absolve you of all responsibility. Just give me her name and I’ll take it from there. I won’t even mention I know you.”

“Hank!”

“Yes, partner?”

Todd recognized that innocent tone all too well. He shook his head. “Take a hike, buddy.”

“Right.”

Todd heard him chuckling as he left the construction shed. One of these days a brave and daring woman was going to come along and capture Hank Riley’s outrageously fickle heart. Todd just hoped he’d be around to watch the fireworks.

Less than an hour later Todd Lewis slid into the booth across from Liz, his long legs immediately and sensuously tangling with hers. He did it deliberately. She knew it. She sat up straighter and tried to draw away, but there was no way to escape, not when the man was dead set on rattling her. She recognized that perfectly innocent gleam in his eyes for exactly what it was. Temptation! A flat-out dare, which no lady would take and every woman dreams about.

Liz returned his gaze evenly, determined not to let him see that his touch was affecting her in the slightest, that it had been driving her crazy all afternoon long. Beneath the table, though, her fingernails were probably cutting right through the booth’s bright blue plastic seat covers.

“Where’s Kevin?” Todd asked, glancing around the crowded restaurant. Sound echoed off the glass walls and tiled floors. It was one of those places that had apparently been designed on the theory that the more noise there was in a restaurant, the more convinced people would be that they were having fun.

“He made a dash for one of the video games the minute we walked through the door.”

“And you didn’t dash with him?”

“I told him I’d order.”

“After making such a fuss to get you to come, he shouldn’t have left you alone. I’ll go get him.”

“Mr. Lewis—”

“Todd.”

“Mr. Lewis, I’m used to being on my own. Kevin’s with a friend. Let him enjoy himself. Besides, it would probably embarrass him to have anyone catch him with his teacher.”

Her easy acceptance of being abandoned amazed him. A lot of women would have been insulted, even if the male who’d left them was only eight. “You really understand kids, don’t you?”

“Don’t sound so surprised. It is my job,” she said, then added, “but if what you’re really saying is that I genuinely seem to like kids, the answer is yes. I think they’re great. They usually say exactly what’s on their mind and they’re open to new experiences.”

“What about you? Are you open to new experiences?”

He was doing it again, lacing the conversation with enough innuendos to disconcert a saint. “I’d like to think so,” she managed to say without stumbling over the response.

Todd settled back in the booth. “Then I think we should get to know each other better, don’t you?”

“I suppose,” she said cautiously, making the mistake of meeting his steady gaze. Her heart somersaulted. Those eyes of his could lure a woman into forgetting all reason, to say nothing of professional ethics and quite possibly her name. Her hands slid right off the seat. She clasped them tightly in her lap, drew in a shaky breath and added quickly, “For Kevin’s sake.”

He nodded. “Of course. Why don’t we start by using first names?”

“I really don’t think it would be appropriate, especially not in front of Kevin.”

“But he’s not here right now. Let’s compromise. You call me Todd and I’ll call you Miss Liz.”

She grinned despite herself. “You call that a compromise?”

“You’d rather call me Mr. Todd?”

A faint smile playing about his lips mocked the seriousness of his tone. Liz frowned at his determined impudence, but she couldn’t bring herself to look away. Retreat now would give him a victory in a battle she’d almost forgotten how to fight. Instead the tension built just as it had earlier, crackling through the air like summer’s lightning.

It was Kevin who broke it, joining them with a huge grin on his face.

“Hey, Dad, guess what! I beat Joey Simons at Battle of the War Lords!”

“That’s great, son,” he said without taking his eyes from her mouth for one single second. Her lips were parched and she wanted very badly to run her tongue over them, but knew perfectly well that would only inflame the situation. She grabbed her glass of water and drank the whole thing. Todd grinned with unabashed satisfaction.

“Will you and Mrs. Gentry play with me?” Kevin pestered. “Joey had to go home.”

With obvious reluctance, Todd tore his gaze away from her and looked at Kevin. “What about your hamburger? It should be here in a minute.”

“Oh, yeah.” He slid in next to his father. “I forgot.”

Watching Kevin and his father together, Liz felt a lump lodge in her throat. Suddenly she wanted to cry. There was so much adoration in Kevin’s eyes, such a sense of camaraderie between them, it almost reminded her of… Closing her eyes against the surge of pain, she sealed off the thought before it could form.

“I think I should be going,” she said suddenly, just as the meal arrived. “I’ll pay the check on my way out.”

“No!” The protest was voiced by father and son.

“Really, it’s late.” She needed to escape before the threatening tears embarrassed her.

“We just got here. You haven’t even eaten your hamburger,” Kevin said.

“I’m not really hungry. Your father can have it.”

“A little while ago you said you were starving,” Todd reminded her. His penetrating gaze seemed to see right through her flimsy excuse.

“Besides, it won’t be the same,” Kevin said. “You promised me a celebration.”

At the mention of the promise, her determination wavered. Kevin might be manipulating, but he was using the truth to do it. She had promised. However, if she’d had any idea what sitting in this booth across from Todd Lewis would be like, she would have devised some other reward for Kevin. She would have seen to it that it didn’t require being crowded into such close quarters with a disturbingly masculine parent who insisted on toppling all barriers between them, starting with the informal way he meant to address her. Miss Liz, indeed!

Kevin was gazing at her now with wide, hopeful eyes. His father’s eyes had a speculative gleam in them, as if he’d guessed that he was the reason for her desire to run and was wondering how to capitalize on his advantage. That decided her. She would stay. She would eat every bite of her hamburger, even if she choked on it.

She gave Todd Lewis her most defiant, go-to-hell glare and picked up the ketchup. Her gaze never wavered as she shook the bottle. Kevin’s sharp gasp drew her attention. She glanced down. Her hamburger had virtually disappeared in a sea of thick red ketchup. She groaned. How could she have done something that stupid?

“I’ll order you another one,” Todd said, reaching for her plate.

She grabbed it back. “This one’s fine. I like a lot of ketchup.” Her tongue nearly tripped over the flat-out lie. Still, she refused to admit to her foolish mistake.

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll take it and get you another one.”

“I’ll just scrape a little of this off,” she said stubbornly.

He shrugged finally. “Suit yourself.”

Liz determinedly scraped off enough ketchup to serve all the fans in the stadium during next Sunday’s Dolphins game. She took her first bite, then forced a smile as Kevin and Todd watched her expectantly.

“You’re sure it’s okay?” Todd asked, his expression doubtful.

“Just fine,” she said with forced cheer.

To herself, she vowed to get through the next half hour without coming unglued, if it was the last thing she ever did. She also swore that she would not under any circumstances ever admit to either of the males across from her that she absolutely never ate ketchup. It gave her hives.

Chapter 3

Todd pulled his pickup into the lot behind the elementary school. The dusty playground was empty, except for a forgotten soccer ball. The swings shifted slowly in the hot stirring of humid air. The cloudless sky burned a merciless reminder that Miami was still weeks away from the first cool nights and gentle days.

As if the weather weren’t enough to sap energy, Todd felt an age-old feeling of intimidation squeezing his chest as he walked around the corner of the low, brick building. When he’d finally graduated from high school two years late, he’d vowed never to cross the threshold of another school. He was here now only because of Kevin. And one feisty teacher who wouldn’t let well enough alone, he reminded himself.

As he neared the entrance, he heard the faint ringing of a bell and a moment later the quiet erupted into a scene of absolute chaos. Several hundred noisy, rambunctious students began pouring through the doors like salmon frantic to get upstream. He stood out of the way and watched, hoping to catch a glimpse of the determinedly staid Mrs. Gentry in the midst of the pandemonium.

It took him only a few minutes to spot her. Her red hair was pulled tautly back. Curly strands, indifferent to her efforts at restraint, had escaped to create a halo that glittered a coppery gold in the sunlight. In her slim beige skirt, emerald green silk blouse and sensible beige pumps, she was solemnly leading a perfectly formed line toward one of the bright yellow Dade County school buses. The impression of rigidity returned with a thud, correcting a night of more alluring dreams.

Then he saw a small girl of six or seven lift a laughing face toward her. Elizabeth’s—Miss Liz’s—generous mouth curved into an answering smile. With fingers that seemed somehow hesitant she reached out and lovingly brushed a strand of hair back from the child’s face. There was an odd sense of yearning in that fleeting touch that wrapped itself around Todd’s heart.

Contradictions! So many contradictions, he wondered if he’d ever understand them all.

There’s a lifetime to try.

The unexpectedly wayward thought careened through his head, slamming into his consciousness with the impact of a fullback charging at full speed. His breath rushed out, followed by a colorful, resistant oath. There was no way in hell this woman—any woman—was going to get to him again. Not after Sarah.

But his palms were sweating like a lovestruck teen’s and his heartbeat skittered and danced in a way he’d all but forgotten. He seized on past hurts and entrenched bitterness to chase away the symptoms of an imagination gone awry. They did a damn poor job of it, he noted wryly as he waited at the entrance for Elizabeth Gentry to join him. He rubbed his palms on his denim-clad thighs and hoped the heat in his loins would cool.

While he waited, she stood watching—a lone sentry—until the last school bus pulled away. Again he caught that flash of yearning on her face, the subtle droop of her shoulders when the children were out of sight. An aching need built in his chest, a need that made no sense. A tender wondering filled his soul with questions he wanted to ask, but didn’t know how, didn’t even know if he had the right to ask. Worse, he couldn’t even imagine where all these thoughts were coming from. He covered his confusion with a smile meant to tease away the frown on her lovely face.

“Why so glum?” he asked softly, stepping from the shadows as she neared the front door.

Startled eyes met his. He thought there was the beginning of a smile, but it ended before it could brighten her face. She merely nodded in satisfaction.

“So, you came.”

“I told you I would. Right on time, too,” he noted as if seeking approval.

That did earn a full-blown grin. “Are you expecting a gold star for attendance? If so, it will hardly make up for all those zeros.”

Despite her teasing tone, his voice and his mood went flat. “I stopped worrying about report cards long ago.”

“Even Kevin’s?” she queried briskly, chasing away any last remnants of the light mood.

Disappointed and unable to figure out why, he snapped, “You’re all business, aren’t you, Miss Liz?”

She scowled disapprovingly. The prim set of her mouth wasn’t all that far removed from his original image of her. With an urge of pure devilment, he felt like kissing those lips until they were bruised and swollen and parted on a sigh of pleasure.

“It’s Mrs. Gentry,” she corrected with that familiar snap in her voice. “And I do try to act like a professional when I’m having a business meeting. Shall we go inside?”

“By all means,” he said, responding to her cool demeanor with a touch of sarcasm he couldn’t have stopped if he’d wanted to. The woman infuriated him. Worse, something told him she enjoyed it, that she liked watching the barriers go up. He wondered why. Did she need them there to protect her heart? Not from him. He wasn’t interested. Perhaps he should tell her that.

As soon as they reached room one-twenty-two, she grabbed an eraser and attacked the blackboard as if the day’s lessons had offended her by lingering on display. Chalk dust filled the air with a fine mist and a scent that dragged Todd back nearly twenty years.

He pulled a too-small chair up beside her desk, turned it around and sat down straddling it to wait. With each moment that passed, his impatience grew. Only when the blackboard was cleaned to her satisfaction and the chalk lined up neatly and the papers on her desk straightened into tidy piles, did she sit down. It took several more minutes for her to lift her gaze to meet his. Only then did he realize that she’d been gathering her composure, not putting him in his place.

“Tell me about Kevin,” she suggested, idly scratching at a blotchy red spot on her arm. When she pushed up her sleeve, he saw the marks went all the way up.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She regarded him blankly. He reached over and touched one of the raised blotches. “What happened?”

Red flamed her cheeks. “Hives,” she said curtly. “About Kevin…”

Hives, hmm? Generally caused by allergies or nerves. He wondered which had caused hers? He decided not to ask. It would give him something to speculate about later, when her image was plaguing him.

“I thought you wanted to tell me about Kevin,” he said instead. “Isn’t that why we’re meeting?”

“We’ll get to my observations. I thought it might be helpful if I knew whether his behavior in school reflected his behavior at home. Does he give you any discipline problems?”

Sarah’s complaints sprang to mind, but he shook his head. “No more than any kid his age.”

She seemed surprised by that. “Are you sure?”

“I know what I was like at Kevin’s age. He’s no different.”

She smiled. The effect was like the sun emerging on a cloudy day. It warmed his heart, even as she said, “But I suspect you were a holy terror. That’s hardly a fair comparison.”

“I turned out okay,” he countered, responding to her amusement. “For a holy terror, that is.”

“Don’t you want more for Kevin?”

He sighed. “I assume you’re thinking ahead to college.”

She shook her head. “Right now, I’m thinking ahead to passing third grade. He won’t at the rate he’s going.”

Her somber prediction had the desired effect. It shook him up as none of her vague warnings had. “It’s that bad?” he said skeptically. “Surely—”

“Mr. Lewis, he can’t read.”

“He struggles over a few words.”

“The simplest words.”

“Then why did he pass second grade?”

“I can’t account for another teacher’s decision. All I can tell you is that the situation cannot continue without doing irreparable harm. Once a child has lost the chance to acquire solid reading skills, everything else becomes almost impossible. History, geography, science, even math. Kevin is bright, but he’s frustrated and angry. He takes it out on his classmates.”

The scenario had an all-too-familiar ring to it. “Boys like to fight,” he said defensively. “It’s perfectly normal.”

“He’s clobbered two girls in the last week,” she said bluntly.

Todd was genuinely shocked at that. He found he could no longer cling to the hope that this was all a tempest in a teapot. He’d scattered blame and defenses since the conversation began and Liz had countered every one of them. “I’ll see that he’s punished.”

“I’ve already seen to that. More punishment is not the answer.”

“What then?”

“Testing. Maybe special classes.”

Todd felt his stomach knot. “I will not have my son made out to be different.”

“But he is different,” she said with surprising gentleness. “Denying it won’t help him.”

“Dammit, he’s just a little boy,” he snapped, frustration and anger on Kevin’s behalf making his head pound. So much about this was familiar. Familiar and painful. He closed his eyes against Elizabeth Gentry’s patient, compassionate expression. He rubbed his temples, but the throbbing kept on.

He loved Kevin, just the way he was. Why hadn’t Sarah? Why couldn’t Liz Gentry? He didn’t expect him to scale intellectual mountains. He just wanted him to grow into a man who could take pride in whatever skills he had. His unquestioning love and support should be enough. It was more than he’d ever had. He had no idea how to explain all of that to the woman who was waiting so quietly for him to reach the right decision. Whatever the hell that was.

He studied her, wondering what made her tick, why she fought so hard for one little boy when there were dozens more needing her attention. Far more about her puzzled him. When had a woman so full of feminine promise become so wary around men, so determined to keep the focus of her life on her classroom? Or did he have that wrong, as well? Perhaps he was the only man who seemed to throw her.

“Why are you so uptight around me?” he asked suddenly.

She paled and said staunchly, “I am not uptight.”

“Oh, really? Do you always destroy paper clips that way?”

“What way?” she said, staring at him blankly.

Liz recognized a desperate attempt at distraction when she saw one. Unfortunately, though, Todd Lewis was right. He was pointing toward her desk, smirking in satisfaction, mischief making his eyes sparkle. She glanced down. There was indeed a pile of twisted bits of metal in front of her. She sighed. Okay, so she was uptight. It didn’t mean anything. Admittedly, though, it was usually the parents who got nervous about these conferences.

She took a closer look at Todd Lewis. He did not seem nervous. In fact, he looked every bit as overwhelming and lazily self-confident as he had the previous afternoon on his own turf. He’d obviously gone home to change before the meeting. His jeans were pressed. His shirt was crisply starched and open at the throat to reveal a tantalizing swirl of dark brown hair. His hair was damp and recently combed. He smelled of soap and the faintest trace of after-shave. It all added up to raw masculine appeal. Not even the fact that he was sitting on a scaled-down chair meant for third-graders diminished him. If anything, it simply emphasized his powerful build.

“I’ll ask you again,” he said. “Why do I make you nervous?”

“You don’t make me nervous, Mr. Lewis.” These flat-out lies were getting to be a habit around him. She scratched harder at her hives. “You make me mad.” That, at least, was the truth.

It also made him tense up. “Meaning?”

“You and I seem to agree on one thing, that Kevin is a bright child. His IQ scores are well within the normal range, at the high end of the scale, as a matter of fact. Despite that, he is failing in school. His behavior is deplorable. In the last week he has bitten one classmate and bloodied the lip of another one. Is that the way you’re rearing your son to respect girls?”

His distress seemed genuine. “I wish I had known about this sooner. Why didn’t…”

“Don’t even think about finishing that sentence. When was I supposed to tell you? When it first started happening? I wrote you a note after the first incident. I wrote you again after the second and third. You know that. You also know that my phone messages were intercepted.”

“Which should tell you that Kevin knew exactly how upset I’d be. I don’t tolerate that kind of behavior.”

“Kevin’s behavior is not the real problem.”

“But you just said…”

“It’s a symptom of his frustration. His self-esteem crumbles more each day that he can’t keep up. From what I’ve observed and what little testing I am competent to do, I would guess that he has a learning disability. I think if you’d agree to testing, we could identify the problem and get Kevin the help he needs. Right now, he needs some positive things to start happening for him. Without the right kind of motivation, he’ll just give up.”

“Look, I love my son. I want him to have the best of everything, but I won’t baby him,” he said with that stubborn jut of his chin that was so often mirrored on Kevin’s face. “He just needs to try harder. I’ll have a talk with him.”

Liz could see she wasn’t getting through to him. “In Kevin’s case, it’s going to take more than talk. Please, let me have him tested.”

“You said he needs the proper motivation. I’ll see that he gets that.”

There was an edge to his voice that told her exactly what Todd would consider proper motivation. Liz’s heart sank.

“Why are you being so ridiculously stubborn about this? Your son’s entire future may be at stake and you’re acting as though it’s a personal insult to suggest he have help.”

“Maybe that’s it,” he retorted unreasonably. “Maybe I don’t see where you get off telling me how to raise my son. You can’t even keep your classroom under control. These fights are happening while he’s under your supervision.”

“I can’t prevent your son’s disruptions unless I put him in a straightjacket,” she reminded him tightly. “I could suspend him. Is that what you’d prefer? That would take care of my problem, but it would do nothing about Kevin’s.”

“I’ve told you I’ll take care of that.”

“How? By punishing him? Pressuring him with expectations he can’t possibly meet? How exactly do you plan to take care of it, Mr. Lewis? Are you capable of teaching him yourself? From what Kevin has told me, you don’t even help him with his homework.”

He stood up. For a moment she had forgotten how tall he was, how impressively built. She felt her heart catch as he towered over her, his expression cold and unyielding.

“And that’s my problem, isn’t it? He’s my son. What’s the old saying about teachers? Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach. That’s why you’re in the classroom, isn’t it? You don’t know the first thing about raising a child of your own. You’ve never had to stay up through the night worrying whether a cough would turn into pneumonia or how you could make up for some terrible hurt. I spend every day of my life trying to make up to that boy for the mother he lost, the mother who didn’t want him, didn’t want either of us. I won’t have him thinking that I don’t believe in him.”

Liz felt the sharp sting of tears. For an instant she wasn’t sure if they were for Kevin and Todd Lewis or for herself. How dare he talk to her of loss as if she’d never experienced one of her own! How dare he suggest that she knew nothing of mothering and worrying and loving!

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Mr. Lewis,” she said coldly. She tried to tell herself that he was angry, that he was only lashing out because of what he perceived as an attack on his child. Still, the cruel comments hurt.

“I think I do know exactly what I’m talking about. I was wrong about you yesterday when I said you understood kids. You don’t know the first thing about real kids and their needs. You learned it all in some textbook, but when it comes to kids who don’t conform, who fight and get dirty and make mistakes, you can’t handle it.”

A memory, as sweet and clear as it was painful, skittered through her mind. Laura looking angelic in her new Easter dress. Then, moments later, the bow in her golden hair askew, a smile of delight on her face—and chocolate streaked from head to toe.

Todd’s accusation was true. She had yelled at Laura over a silly dress. She had been upset. And it had all been over nothing. Today she would give anything to take back the words. She would barter with the devil himself to hold her child one more time, to feel those plump little arms around her neck, to kiss that chocolate-sticky cheek.

She lifted eyes that shimmered with tears to stare at Todd Lewis. In a voice that shook with fury and anguish, she said, “Don’t patronize me, Mr. Lewis. I know exactly how hard it is to be a parent.”

The words lingered in a moment of stunned silence before he said slowly, “You have a child?”

He sounded as if the very thought of it were mind-boggling. If she hadn’t been hurting so at the flood of memories, she might have smiled at his startled expression. Instead, she simply shook her head.

“But Kevin said—”

“I had a child. She died when she was three. My husband died in the same accident. So don’t tell me about loss, Mr. Lewis. Or guilt. Or worrying. Or loving. I could write the textbook on every one of those emotions myself.”

Chapter 4

If Liz’s quietly spoken words stunned Todd, the stricken expression on her face was almost his undoing. She reminded him of a wounded doe. Her eyes turned bleak as her anger faded. As he watched, shadows of fear and dismay dimmed the sparkling amber to a dull, lifeless brown. He felt her loss as sharply as he’d once felt his own, recalling in vivid detail the emptiness of those painful weeks and months after Sarah had walked out of his life, the awful sense of betrayal, the hurt of rejection.

But he’d had Kevin and, oblivious to his father’s grief and anger, four-year-old Kevin had filled the house with laughter and tears and impatient demands. For the last four years Kevin alone had kept the memory of love alive in Todd’s aching, embittered heart. Kevin had been the one thing left worth fighting for. That much had never changed. He would still fight tenaciously for his son.

Liz had lost both husband and child. Todd couldn’t imagine anything to compare with that.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly, wishing he knew more comforting words. For the first time in many years he cursed the inadequacies that had kept his vocabulary unpolished, his manner rough. He knew all the right words to keep a crew of a hundred or more men in line and on schedule. He knew just what to say to difficult suppliers or demanding tenants. He even knew the glib and easy words necessary for a casual seduction. But in the presence of this kind and wounded lady, he knew a fierce longing to be a truly gentle man with a gift for mending.

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