by Kathryn Shay
“It was interesting.”
His cocked his head. “What does that mean?”
“Unique. Unusual. We’re used to long syllabi and one to five texts for each class.”
“As I said, I need to know you first. Maybe we’ll order some books later.”
“Yours was near perfect for the course, Dr. Dubois.”
“You read it?”
“Of course, over Christmas.”
“Yvette said your sister got married and Lilliana was the flower girl.” His daughter had bonded with her daughter when they met last semester at Stepping Stones, Georgetown’s after school care for the children of students and teachers. “When did you have time for my book?”
“It was a long break.”
He studied her for a few seconds. She was tall and slender and her carriage was completely regal. Her clothes were classic and fit her well.
“Dr. Dubois? What did you want to talk to me about?”
He tensed inside. This was going to be tricky. “By tacit agreement, we’ve kept things professional since the girls met last semester. But Yvette has gotten belligerent about something lately, which is rare. Very rare.” He could still picture his eight-year-old’s pouty little jaw and stiff stance.
Ms. Moretti set down her bag. “About what?”
“She’s been insistent I let her have a sleepover with your daughter. I said no when Lilliana asked her to stay with you a couple of times.”
“I didn’t know Lilliana offered. She and I talked about this. I explained you would be my teacher this semester and we needed to keep our relationship with your family…distanced.”
“I’m afraid those little girls didn’t obey our requests. My daughter said they agreed when this year started they’d sleepover with each other.”
“What do you think we should do?” she asked.
“Truthfully, I’m at a loss. I hate to make my child sad.” She’d had enough of that in her life.
“Same for Lilly and me. Dr. Dubois, I don’t know how to say this tactfully, and it’s no reflection of you as a person, but I can’t imagine letting Lilliana stay at the house of a man I hardly know.”
“That’s a bit of a stretch. We bumped into each other a lot at school last spring. Several times, I picked Yvette up at your house when she went over to play on weekends. But come to think of it, Lilliana has has never been to our home.”
“I’m sorry if that insults you. My sisters say I’m overprotective. My parents agree.”
“I understand your concerns. I’ve gone overboard to shield Yvette from certain things. However, you and Lilly aren’t one of them.”
The woman seemed thoughtful. “I have a suggestion, then. Would you trust me with Yvette?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s start with us having her for an overnight. Then we’ll go from there. When would be a good time for you?”
“I’m the keynote speaker at a conference at Harvard next weekend. I planned for a sitter. You could have Yvette Friday night and her sitter can pick her up Saturday. Or vice versa.”
She smiled. “I have a better idea. Why doesn’t she come home with me from Stepping Stones on Friday and she can stay with us the entire weekend. That should be enough for them for a while.”
“Won’t we be imposing?”
“Not a bit. I’d love to have her with us. So would Lilliana.” Her expression turned soft. “And it’s the least I can do for you since you agreed to take me on as an independent study in French Law.”
“That is in a no way a hardship.”
“Neither is having Yvette for the weekend.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I am.” She took her bag and hiked it over her delicate shoulder. “Good night, Dr. Dubois.”
“Good night, Ms. Moretti.”
She walked out of the room.
Jordan watched her go. He liked this woman. They’d had more contact last semester over the girls than she admitted. Especially when he got Yvette from their home. But she was skittish around him. And formal. Very formal.
Which was only right. She was his student, and he needed professional distance from her. The fact he noticed those deeper-than-midnight dark eyes, the high cheekbones and her patrician features had no bearing on things.
Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he picked up his satchel and walked out of the room, too, a bit disturbed by his thoughts.
About the Author
A NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestselling author, Kathryn Shay has been a lifelong writer and teacher. She has written dozens of self-published original romance titles, print books with the Berkley Publishing Group and Harlequin Enterprises and mainstream women’s fiction with Bold Strokes Books. She has won many awards for her work: five RT Book Reviews awards, the Bookseller’s Best Award, Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year and several “Starred Reviews.” One of her firefighter books hit #20 on the NEW YORK TIMES list. Her novels have been serialized in COSMOPOLITAN magazine and featured in USA TODAY, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL and PEOPLE magazine. There are over ten million copies of her books in print and downloaded online. Reviewers have called her work “emotional and heart-wrenching.”
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