“Sorry, dude. Private matter.” Brett winked and walked into the living room. “So how are you and Tracy?”
“So far, so good. But soon, I’ll have to tell her.”
“Worried?”
“Healthy concern. Hey, maybe if it works out the four of us can—”
“Whoa.” Brett held up his hands. “I’m not going to go there with Mia.”
“Ah, so you are in love. Not that I doubted, but just your refusal tells me everything.”
“I am in love, and it grows every day. Let me tell you what just happened.” Brett explained the teacher situation, and how they planned to solve it.
“It looks like everything is working out for you all around. You deserve it, man.”
“Thanks.” And for the first time in a long time, Brett believed that he did.
Chapter Twenty-One
The room was full. Mia was nervous to be standing in front of people she had come to think of as family. What really sucked was that she’d received the letters of forced retirement a week before the teachers had, so she had been the one to break the news to them. She hadn’t wanted them finding out through a cold form letter from the district.
She nodded to everyone as she made her way to the front of the room. She carefully placed her briefcase on top of the cherrywood conference table and took out the proposal.
Brett had emailed her his half last night. She merged all the important details and propositions together. She had looked it over carefully, taking out unnecessary items on both ends. When she was satisfied with the end result, she emailed it to Brett. He looked it over and sent it back. They both thought it was perfect.
She hoped she could sell it to the solemn faces staring back at her.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen. We all know why we’re here. I hope what I have to show you will sweeten this retirement the district seems to think you need.”
Her sarcasm wasn’t missed by her colleagues, who groaned.
“Wasn’t it nice of them to give us a year to plan out our retirement?” huffed George Tingle.
“Guess they wanted to make sure they got the new blood in,” Bob Jones commented.
“Well, that’s why I called this meeting.” Mia began passing out the proposal. “I had a conference call this morning with the district, hoping I could talk some sense into them. I even threatened to drive up there, make an appearance, and talk with them personally.” Mia sighed. “No dice. So that’s where Plan B comes in.”
“Plan B?” asked Ms. Kelly.
“That’s right, folks!”
Mia and the group turned toward the booming voice coming from the doorway. It was Brett. He’d said he wanted to come and stand by her side. Mia had said no, that it was time to fight her own battle. She was happy he hadn’t listened.
“Hey, Brett,” shouted Mr. Tingle. He extended his hand to him.
“Hello, Mr. Wyndam!” Jane Kelly, Brett’s former English teacher, stood up to shake his hand.
Brett worked the whole room, smiling and shaking hands like a politician, then he stood by Mia. He placed his hand possessively at the small of her back. Mia’s face heated up when she saw some of the looks she was getting.
Brett winked at her and took a seat.
He was telling her everything was going to be okay. And for the first time, Mia really believed it would be.
“Well, where was I?” Mia asked, clapping her hands.
“Hey, what’s this?” asked Tingle, reading the proposal.
“That’s what this meeting is for,” Mia said, finally sitting down. “Brett does research work and community-building in Ghana. He built a school, among other things, and it desperately needs teachers.”
“I’m going to be honest with you,” Brett said, picking up where Mia left off. “I had some teachers lined up, but due to the unstable government and a recent coup, they changed their minds. However, NATO and the UN came in, and everything is stable. In fact, I daresay it’s safer there than it is in New York.”
The teachers chuckled. This is good. “So Brett and I got to thinking,” Mia said. “Since all of you love the profession of teaching so much, and you had no intentions of retiring—”
“You thought maybe we would consider going to Ghana?” Ms. Kelly finished.
Mia looked at Brett. His demeanor seemed more confident than hers.
“Yes,” Mia said.
“That’s a real tall order,” said Tingle. “To be honest, I don’t think anyone here, with the exception of Ms. Emerson, knows where Ghana is.”
Everyone in the room laughed.
“Seriously,” said Jane Kelly. “I understand about the unrest, but it could happen again. What protection will we have?”
“As much as our government and theirs is willing to give,” Brett said. “Look, this isn’t a glamour job, but I can promise you, it will be the most rewarding job you’ll ever do. Not trying to sound like a commercial for UNICEF, but it’s true. I’ve been working with the people of Ghana for six years, and I can’t think of anything I rather do.”
“May we have a little conference?” Ms. Kelly asked. She was the best World Lit teacher the Cincinnati school district had.
“Sure.” Mia said. “Brett, can you join me in my office?”
“No problem.” He got up with all the confidence in the world and walked with Mia to her office. Once there, Brett shut the door with his foot, turned Mia around, and kissed her.
“Brett, we can’t do this now…here!”
Brett pulled back a bit. “Why? Afraid one of your comrades might walk in and see you making out with a former student?”
“No, but it is inappropriate in the middle of an important meeting.” Mia pulled away and walked to her desk.
Brett walked slowly to her and leaned on her desk as he watched her straighten a bunch of papers. “Did you mind me showing up? Helping you out there?”
“No. In fact, I’m glad you came.”
“Are you okay with me being here?”
She knew what he meant. A few weeks ago she would have panicked like a wild horse if Brett had come in and showed his obvious affection toward her. She had been nervous for a moment, with Brett’s hand on her back in front of her colleagues, but she was a grown woman, and he was a grown man. So what if he was a former student? If he were just another younger man, she would have gotten the same looks. “I’m fine with you being here, Brett.”
“Good. So what do you think? You think they’ll bite?” Brett asked.
“I don’t know. I mean, honestly, I’m sure they would rather take the forced retirement and move to Florida.”
“That’s a frank answer. If I were in their shoes, I’d probably walk away from the deal.”
“No matter how it turns out, we tried. And if it doesn’t work out, we’ll figure out something else. We’re in this together.”
Brett leaped over the desk and took Mia in his arms. He began kissing her passionately. She was about to lose herself when they heard a knock on her door.
“Yes?” Mia asked, still in Brett’s arms.
“We’ve made a decision,” Ms. Kelly said through the door.
Brett and Mia looked at each other. Mia was more concerned about the decision the teachers would make than what they thought of her relationship with a former student.
***
Brett watched Mia take her seat in front of the group. He sat at the far end of the conference table. He didn’t want to make her any more nervous. He had made his point to the group—she belonged to him and vice versa. He’d wanted to shout on the rooftops and announce to the world that she was his woman. Mia didn’t bat an eye at his entrance, and when she’d said she was with him on this all the way, he felt a lump in his throat. She’d been uneasy at first, but it was probably more about this meeting than their relationship.
Now, he was nervous about their proposal, too.
Not many people would considerer teaching in Ghana. It was hard to find young people with that special something to take on such
a task. To ask people who were at retirement age was asking for a miracle.
George Tingle spoke first. “We’ve studied the proposal very carefully. We also reassessed all of our personal situations. I have three grandchildren. Jane is about to become a grandmother for the first time at the end of the year. Mrs. Johnson has been widowed for three years and is just recently going back on the dating scene.”
There were a few chuckles at that one.
“As you know, we didn’t choose the profession of teaching lightly. I think I can speak for the rest of us here when I say that I planned on teaching until they had to roll me out on a stretcher.”
The group nodded in agreement.
“Our families look up to us. My grandchild wants to be a teacher because of me. She sees the joy and satisfaction it brings.”
“My grandchild sees all the letters and notes I get from my students,” said Jane Kelly.
“Same here,” Ms. Emerson said. “My grandson marvels at all the gifts I get at the end of the school year.”
“Of course, this is still a very difficult decision to make,” Tingle continued. “We read the package thoroughly and the incentives that you put forth.” He took a page from the contract. “This part here, expenses paid….”
“I know it’s a lot to take in, that’s a forty-page proposal, but if you look at page”—Brett thumbed through his copy—“page sixteen, those expenses include being flown to and from Ghana to anywhere in the world. You’ll be on rotation.”
The teachers looked at each other.
“Which means that half of you will be in Ghana for a month or two at a time. The rest, if you like, can be vacationing in Florida with your grandchildren. On me.”
The room lit up with smiles.
“You’ll also have access to my private physician—just in case.” He gritted his teeth. This was going to be a tough sell. “I know I’m asking a lot. Like I mentioned before, Ghana isn’t paradise, but it’s ten times better than it used to be before people like our team started doing work there. And with people like you, it will keep getting better.”
“Well,” continued Tingle. “I’ve been to Africa, on safari, and I’m pretty rugged. Don’t know about the others here.” He looked over the top of his glasses at the rest of the room and chuckled. “But with a sweet deal like that, how can we refuse?”
Everyone in the room laughed.
“I’m no wimp!” Kelly looked around the table and smiled. “Seriously, though. Nothing would give us more pleasure. Not only will we still be doing what we love best, we just won’t be sitting around, growing old.”
“And nothing would make our loved ones prouder than if we took you up on your offer.” Emerson nodded to the others.
Brett sighed in relief. He’d gotten his miracle.
Ms. Kelly cleared her throat. “Besides, at least there we know we’ll be appreciated and not tossed aside like an old shoe.”
Brett stood up. “Thank you.” His voice cracked. “Thank you. You don’t know what this means to the children and to me.”
“I think we do,” Ms. Kelly said, as she looked at him and Mia and smiled.
After all the papers were signed, Mia and Brett left for his place. Once there, Brett grabbed Mia, lifted her off the floor, and swung her around. “You have made me the happiest man on earth!”
“Well, thank you.” Mia held tightly to Brett’s shoulders. “But you did all the heavy lifting.”
“Don’t be so modest. It was your idea in the first place.”
“Yes, but it was your compensation. It was a sweet deal for them, considering the circumstances.”
Brett put Mia down, took her hand, and led her to the kitchen. “They are worth more than I can offer.” He handed her a glass and went to the little wine cooler by the fridge.
“None for me, thanks.”
“What? Don’t you feel like celebrating?”
“I do, but I’m a little queasy. I’ve felt like this for a few days.”
“It’s the heat. Want some iced tea?”
“That would be great.”
Mia took the tea and sipped it slowly. It had been hot these past few days and nights.
“So, what’s next on the agenda?” Mia asked.
“I gotta call Derek and Latisha,” Brett said, still beaming. “This will just blow them away. Then I have to make arrangements to fly to Ghana as soon as possible, to get things straightened up over there. Since the last teachers left, neither of us have been able to do anything but scramble for replacements.” Brett walked into the living room.
“Great! I’ve always wanted to go to Africa. I can’t wait to meet Derek and Latisha and the twins.”
Brett stopped mid-stride and turned to face Mia. “You are not going to Ghana. You’re staying here in the States—period.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Mia sat on her oversized loveseat, looking around at nothing in particular. She sipped her hot tea slowly, letting the calming warmth soothe her stomach. It went from one thing to another. She first needed cold tea, now her stomach was doing flip-flops and needed something hot.
She still was reeling from Brett’s outburst a few days ago.
How could he go from being the happiest man in the world and grateful for everything she’d done for him to forbidding her to go to Ghana?
Why couldn’t she go? His excuse, that it was too dangerous, was nonsense. Latisha, Derek’s wife, was there. He had helped her to convince retiring teachers to go there.
Well, she was going to get to the bottom of things. She deliberately hadn’t spoken to Brett after that. When Brett realized that Mia was shutting him out, he made a desperate plea to come make his case. He called her office to leave several messages; he sent flowers—the whole nine yards.
Mia called the one person that knew him best—Hunter.
The doorbell rang. She opened it, and there stood the finest chauffeur she had ever seen.
“Hello, Ms. Mia.” Hunter bowed low.
“Forget the formalities. Come in.” Mia stood back and allowed him to enter.
“I have a feeling I know what this is about. Brett is having a hard time.” Hunter looked back at her as she approached him.
“He should.” She pointed to the couch.
Hunter sat, and then looked at her curiously. “Brett told me about the little fight you had, but he didn’t go into great detail. He said you haven’t been returning his calls, but beyond that…I’m afraid for the first time in a long time, he’s shut me out. I hope you’re not considering ending the relationship. Other than the last few days, he’s the happiest I’ve seen him in years.”
“That’s just it.” Mia sat down beside him. “Hunter, what are his trips to Ghana like?”
“Hell.”
Mia pulled back. Not so much from the revelation, but because of Hunter’s tone. “I…I see.”
Hunter grinned, showing a deep set of dimples within his five o’clock shadow. “You seemed a bit shocked. Was it my description?”
“Well….” Mia fidgeted.
“Ghana on the whole is okay. I mean, if you go to the tourist areas. But there’s a lot of poverty and hopelessness there, too. It’s just like here in the States, but on a higher scale.”
Mia nodded, but said nothing, wanting Hunter to continue.
“Brett’s work is concentrated there. I don’t think he wants to expose you to that, especially this early in your relationship. He’s in villages where there is no sanitation, no clean water, it’s hot, and the food is questionable at best.”
“Good grief. I just sent a bunch of civilian teachers there.”
“They’ll get the appropriate training. Our government just doesn’t let anybody up and go to third-world countries. They’ll be fine. The fact that they’re willing to go is half the battle. They know what they’re in for.”
“So Brett doesn’t think I can handle it?”
“He still has you on a pedestal. He loves you. He wants everything to be perfect f
or you. Naïve on his part? Maybe, but I understand where he’s coming from.”
Mia sighed heavily. She still felt pushed to the side.
“So, since this is what he’s feeling, I have to go along with it. I wouldn’t come between you two on this, anyway. It’s his decision.”
Mia felt as though she would fall through the floor. “How could you say that? I’m a part of his life. At least that’s what he keeps telling me.”
“You are, and trust me, not a day goes by that he’s not talking or thinking about you. That’s why you can’t go to Ghana with him. He thinks it’s too dangerous for you right now.” Hunter shrugged.
“But, what about Latisha? She’s been there forever!”
“They trained for six months before they left for their first third-world venture. They’ve been doing this for years.”
“I can’t believe this. So he’s shutting me out when it comes to the most important thing in his life?”
“He feels he can’t chance anything happening to you.”
“I’m not fragile.” Mia was about to make another argument, but the look in Hunter’s eyes told her this conversation was over.
Hunter got up and held out his hand. Mia looked at it then took it. He brought her to him, placing his other hand over hers. “Mia, Brett loves you deeply. The distance you’ve put between you two is killing him. You helped him in more ways than one, but trust him on this.” With that, he turned and headed toward the door.
Although his words were meant to soothe her and let her know that she was a part of Brett’s life, at that moment, she still felt like an outsider looking in.
***
Brett sat looking at his computer screen for the umpteenth time that afternoon. He was trying to make all the arrangements for the teachers, but he was stuck. Mentally stuck.
Mia wouldn’t return his calls or answer her door at home or school. The one time he caught up with her, she’d told him she would talk to him later. But she never called.
Obviously, she was mad. No. She was pissed!
He wanted her to understand his position. She’d never been to a place like Ghana. While there was hope and change, there were still regions that were dismal, diseased, and dangerous. The school where the teachers would be was outside the perimeter of danger, but Brett still didn’t want Mia anywhere near there. It was too risky. She would later understand.
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