Golden Trail (55 page)

“Hard not to see you’re ripped,” Rocky
commented and Dylan immediately stood and cut some poses, flexing
his muscles while more wads of paper were thrown at him and
comments were shouted. Dylan ignored them, kept posing and Rocky
spoke over them. “That kind of strength, I bet any bully you saw in
the halls doing stuff and saying stuff they shouldn’t, you called
them on it, they’d stop. That’s strength
and
compassion.”
She grinned. “Now you just have to pass my midterm and maybe you’ll
add wisdom to that.”

The class burst into laughter, Dylan grinned
back at Rocky, sat down and another kid called out, “Don’t hold
your breath, Ms. Merrick!”

The bell rang and Rocky held up her hands.
“All right, more Jem, Scout, Boo and Atticus tomorrow and Friday
because we’re watching the movie and I’m introducing you to Gregory
Peck so be prepared to get your socks knocked off. But remember,
Friday, I want you all to bring in the title of your favorite song.
We’re talking lyrics, not music, people. And if one of you brings
in the title to a boy band song, automatic detention,” she
threatened, there was more laughter and she turned toward the
stage, saying, “Dismissed.”

The kids shot up and filed out and as they
did, Layne realized that every one of them had read the damned
book. There was mass participation but even though he barely tore
his eyes off Rocky, he’d noticed even the kids who hadn’t called
out comments or questions had been totally engaged.

He stepped into the auditorium from the
entryway, the kids saw him and some of them stared, some grinned,
some nudged others and avoided his eyes.

But when Dylan saw him, he turned back and
shouted helpfully, “Mr. Layne is here, Ms. Merrick!” and a bunch of
girls giggled when he did.

Rocky had been picking up her papers but she
whirled at Dylan’s comment, scanned the back and her eyes locked on
Layne as he strode forward. She dropped her papers and started up
the aisle toward him, meeting him halfway with a smile.

“Hey,” she said softly through her
smile.

“Hey,” he replied and tore his gaze off her
dimple to look in her eyes.

“What are you doing here?” she asked,
tilting her head to the side.

“Wanted to watch you do your thing,” Layne
answered.

The smile faded but her lips parted and she
stared up at him with something in her eyes he couldn’t quite
read.

So he guessed.

“Baby, I was only there for ten minutes. I
didn’t –” he started to explain but she cut him off on a
whisper.

“You wanted to watch me do my thing?”

Layne studied her face, still couldn’t read
it so he kept explaining. “You made me want to reread that book and
the way you did it made me appreciate it in a way I wouldn’t have
if you hadn’t loved it so much. You told me you were teaching it
and…” Layne stopped talking when she looked down and to the side
and he lifted a hand to curl it around her neck. “Roc.”

Her head twisted back, her eyes locked on
his and she whispered, “Jarrod didn’t discuss my kids, my work,
none of it. He had zero interest. None. And you’re spread so thin
it’s a wonder you aren’t transparent and you find the time…”

She suddenly trailed off, bent to the side,
dislodging his hand and looked around him as he heard the sounds of
kids entering the auditorium.

“Up front, center, first three rows,” she
called to the kids. “Kayla, do me a favor and tell folks when they
come in. Mr. Layne and I need a minute.”

“Sure, Ms. Merrick,” Kayla called back and
Layne wasn’t sure what was going on in Rocky’s head, even though he
figured it was good, but he was fucking thrilled the “Ms. Merrick”
thing had caught on.

Rocky grabbed his hand, her fingers wrapping
strong around his and she tugged him down the aisle and along the
front of the seats. She kept hold of his hand as she led him up the
steps at the side of the stage and then ducked backstage with
him.

When they were out of eyesight, she stopped,
kept hold of his hand and stepped into him so their bodies were
nearly brushing.

“Okay, well, it goes without saying if a hot
private investigator can’t make out with me at a football game, I
can’t lay one on a hot private investigator
in
the school
with my class assembling fifty feet away so you’ll just have to
make do with the knowledge I really,
really
want to make out
with you right now, Tanner Layne,” she announced and he grinned as
he stifled a laugh.

He dropped her hand and put both of his to
her hips, bringing her the inch forward he needed for their bodies
actually to be brushing while he murmured, “Sweetcheeks.”

She rested her hands on his chest and asked,
“Was it okay?”

“Was what okay?”

“The lesson. There’s just so much to say
with that book, you can’t get to it all so I have to melt it down.
I mean, we could talk about it for a month and not –”

Layne cut her off. “It was okay.”

She stared into his eyes. “You sure?”

He dipped his face closer to hers and
whispered, “Baby, they were eatin’ it up.”

She instantly blew off his compliment. “It’s
a good class. Those kids are bright.”

“No, Roc, you’re a good teacher. Those kids
might be bright but
you
make it interesting and I reckon you
changed a few lives in there today, or at least the way they look
at things.”

“You think?” she whispered.

“Oh yeah,” Layne whispered back.

She smiled, eyes bright with dimple and,
fuck, but he wanted to kiss her.

“You need to negotiate a new contract,
sweetcheeks,” Layne informed her and she burst out laughing then
tilted her head down and pressed the top into his chest above her
hands before she leaned back and looked up at him.

“Guess what?” she asked, the laughter still
playing about her lips.

“What?” he asked back, watching her
mouth.

“Adrian Cosgrove called in sick Monday and
yesterday,” she stated and his eyes went to hers.

“Yeah, you told me.”

“Well, he didn’t call in sick today.”

Layne’s brows shot up. “No shit?”

She shook her head. “No shit. You haven’t
heard?”

“Been busy, baby.”

“Then you should call Colt or Merry and get
the lowdown because he barely stepped in the door when the
principal called him into his office. Then, about five seconds
after Principal Klausen suspended him, Chris Renicki and Marty Fink
arrested him for assault and battery.”

Layne grinned. “Day’s lookin’ up.”

Rocky grinned back. “Definitely.” Then her
grin faded and she stated, “He’ll make bail.”

Layne shook his head. “Don’t worry, Roc,
Paige and Seth will stay where they are until they’re safe. They’ll
be covered.”

She nodded and asked, “Did Jas call you
during lunch?”

“Nope,” Layne answered. “Everything
okay?”

She nodded again and said, “Yeah. Apparently
Tripp negotiated a double date.”

“Come again?”

“He asked Giselle if she’d ask her parents
if it was okay, after football practice but before Youth Group, if
Giselle could go out with Jas, Keira and him for pizza and then
Jasper could take her home and they said yes.”

Layne smiled. Jas was right. Religious or
not, the parents had caved.

“Why are you smiling?” Rocky asked.

“Nothin’, sweetcheeks.”

She let it go and announced, “That means I’m
heading home tonight.”

Layne’s smile died. “Why?”

“The boys won’t be at your place, you told
me you have to work late and then you’re staking out Gaines’s car
so
you
won’t be there and as much as I like Devin, without
you and Jasper and Tripp running interference, I don’t know if I
could take a night of mostly full on Vera while waiting for you to
come home.”

It was definitely time to have another chat
with his mother.

“Roc –”

“Anyway,” she interrupted him. “It feels
like I haven’t been home in ages so it’ll be good to go through
mail, make sure no lab experiments are fermenting in my fridge and
watch something other than football and cop shows.”

“There’s something other than football and
cop shows?” Layne asked and she smiled.

“Yes, celebrity dance contests,” she
answered, Layne tipped his head back to look at the ceiling and
tipped it down when he felt her press close. “I’m kidding,
sweetheart. I hate those shows. I much prefer football.”

His hands gave her hips a squeeze, the bell
rang and her head turned to the side.

“Key,” he said quickly and she looked back
at him.

“Sorry?”

“Drop your extra key at my house or in the
mail slot in the door to my office. Text me where you put it. I’ll
come over when I’m done and spend the night at your place
tonight.”

She looked to the side again as the noise
the kids were making unsupervised got louder and then back to
him.

“You sure?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“What about Jasper and Tripp?”

“They’re not kids anymore, sweetcheeks, and
anyway, Vera and Devin are there. Devin can have a bed. He’ll be
fuckin’ thrilled.”

She looked to the side again and whispered,
“I have to go.”

“Roc. Key,” he ordered on a squeeze of his
hands at her hips and she looked at him.

“Mail slot at your office. Just in case
Devin isn’t home when I stop by.”

Yep. He definitely needed another chat with
his mother.

“Right,” he said.

She made to move away from him, repeating,
“I have to go,” and Layne released her.

“Baby,” he called when she’d walked three
feet away and she turned back. “You owe me a make out session.”

She grinned. Then she disappeared.

Layne found the backstage door and headed
down the side hall to the corridor and then to the office where he
signed out and made nice with all the office ladies, keeping them
sweet because he figured, with Rocky working there, one day he’d
need it.

Layne was headed out the front doors when he
heard his name called and he turned to see Nick Fullerton jogging
down the hall toward him.

“Heard you were in the school. Glad I caught
you,” Nick said when he made it to Layne.

“Hey Nick, everything all right?” Layne
asked and Nick grinned.

“Yeah, got promoted officially to head coach
today,” Nick answered.

Layne shook his hand and clapped him on the
shoulder. “Congratulations. Way you called the second half of the
game Friday, they made the right choice.”

“Thanks, man,” Nick was still grinning.
“Anyway, been spendin’ the last coupla days in Adrian’s office,
goin’ through stuff. Just wondered if there’s a reason Jas isn’t
talkin’ to the scouts. He decide he’s not goin’ to college or
something?”

Layne felt the muscles in his neck contract.
“What?”

“Scouts,” Nick said. “From Ohio State,
Illinois and Ball State. They’re interested in Jasper. They know
he’s got the goods even if he isn’t handling the ball. He’ll make
all-county and, he performs under me, maybe all-state. He doesn’t
have great grades but he’s scored high on the SATs and he’s a class
officer.”

Layne felt a muscle jump in his cheek before
he said low, “Nick, far’s I know, Jasper hasn’t heard word that any
scouts have come forward and declared interest. We knew they were
scoutin’ but nothin’ after that.”

Nick stared at him hard.

Then he said, “I’ll return some calls.”

“Obliged,” Layne murmured, Nick nodded and
turned to jog back down the hall.

Layne watched him for three beats until his
neck relaxed and his temper was under control.

Then he turned and walked out the door.

* * * * *

“Merry, you been dodgin’ me for three days.
You get this, you call me. I don’t hear from you by tomorrow, I
hunt you down,” Layne growled into his phone and snapped it
shut.

No sooner had he closed it when it chimed in
his hand and he looked to see he had a text from Rocky. He opened
his phone and read it.

Going to bed early. Have a headache. You
don’t need to come over. See you tomorrow?

Layne clenched his teeth and hit the reply
button with his thumb.

I’ll be over.

He hit send, flipped the phone shut, tossed
it on the seat beside him and looked out the windshield of his
truck toward the side doors of the church.

Youth Group should be out any minute
now.

He wanted to get this done. He wanted to
shut Gaines down; find a way to make Adrian Cosgrove pay for
beating his wife and son and fucking with Jasper’s future; rest in
the knowledge his ex-wife was safe in her own home; take down
Rutledge and whoever was pulling his strings; bring Jarrod Astley
low so he’d be out of Roc’s life; talk his mother into getting her
shit together or getting her ass back to Florida; and he wanted to
talk to Merry so he could sort Rocky out.

Then he wanted to go on vacation.

With Rocky.

And maybe his boys.

His phone chimed, he looked at it sitting in
the seat, its screen lit and he picked it up and flipped it open.
Another text from Raquel.

Okay, baby. You have dinner?

He smiled at the phone, his earlier
irritation evaporating, and texted back.

No but I’m good.

He sent the text, flipped the phone shut and
started upending and twisting it in his fingers as he looked back
at the doors to see kids coming out.

Youth Group met in the old sanctuary, the
church that had stood there for fifty years before they built on
the new, modern sanctuary which was four times the size and the new
build included a Fellowship Hall, kitchens and offices. They still
used the old sanctuary for church business, like Youth Group, and
rented it out. The new church wasn’t new, as such. It had been
built when Layne was a kid. But it didn’t resemble the old church
at all, even if it was attached to it. The new church was
attractive but the old church had charm, it fit the ‘burg. Even
when he was a kid and his mother took him there, Layne never
understood why they built it that way. The two buildings were
attached but they didn’t match. Two different styles, two different
eras and the new church, even though it dwarfed the old one, never
seemed like it belonged.