“You’re gorgeous,” Deon squawked.
She turned her attention to the bird, fixing it with a hard glare. “Deon, give it a rest already,” she scolded. “Be quiet.”
Keelan turned on his heel and made his way across the stage to the area containing the table and chairs. She followed more slowly behind him.
Wow, she thought, what a strange sensation that had nearly overtaken her when her hand brushed Keelan Robinson. She could still feel the scorching heat tingling up her arm.
It was probably static electricity.
No, she thought, in the next instant. That was an easy out explanation and she knew it wasn’t true. Her feet hadn’t touched an inch of carpet since she stepped out of the car. It had been a man—woman thing—a physical connection that was discombobulating to say the least. Keelan was one of those dangerous men who exuded blatant masculinity by doing nothing more than standing there. He was the type who had to beat women off with a stick. Oh, yeah, Keelan was very, very dangerous.
She settled into a folding chair, smiled politely at the people on either side of her, then nodded her appreciation to Keelan as he placed Deon’s cage on the floor in front of her. She folded her hand in her lap and pasted what she hoped was a pleasant and professional expression on her face.
Only then did she realize she was seated directly behind Keelan, who now stood at the podium. Oh my. He made such a delectable sight. Coach Robinson had a very nice tush, and those long beautifully muscled legs weren’t bad either. The man’s body just didn’t quit. He had it going on from head-to-toe.
Oh dear, there was that heat again, only this time it was traveling in a different direction, swirling low within her. She had to do something different. There was something off. She didn’t have reactions like this to men she’d known for about sixty seconds. She didn’t have reactions like this to men she’d know for years.
She had to get herself together. Enough was enough. She needed to quit gawking at Keelan Robinson’s buns and collect herself. Get herself back under control.
Slowly and with great reluctance, she turned her gaze to the sidewall of the auditorium. A huge Carter Cowboy banner hung there. Sitting here on the stage brought back so many memories for her. School plays, assemblies and the ever-popular pep rallies. Her years in high school were fun. Still, she wouldn’t go back and do it again if you paid her to. Those had been hard times in her life. Her motivation to get out as quickly as she could stemmed from them. She imagined it was the same for most of those students. That was a depressing thought.
“Call me sometime,” Deon said
“Hush,” she whispered, nudging the cage with her toe.
* * * *
Keelan shuffled the papers in his hand, then clear his throat. He felt like he’d been punched, hard. When his fingers had brushed Nataleigh Brown’s, heat had surged up his arm, then pooled into his lower body. The woman he just met had thrown him for a loop.
It was more than the touch, from the instant he turned and spotted her, the room shifted. She was a very attractive woman. The cream-colored blouse and brown slacks defined her feminine curves. While she looked young, there was no doubt she was all woman. She also had a potent impact on him. He wasn’t used to this sort of reaction. This kind of thing didn’t happen to him. He didn’t like it, not one bit.
Hell, she wasn’t even his type. He didn’t date women that looked young and innocent enough to be his kid sister—if he had one. He stuck with sophisticated women, the ones who knew the rules. A good time was had by all, and no one got hurt.
Enough of this insanity, Keelan.
If he didn’t get this program started he’d have a riot on his hands. The inmates of Carter High were definitely growing restless.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen,” he started, speaking into the microphone. “All of you need to settle down.”
“We want the lady with the bird, Coach,” a student shouted. “Bring on the Bird Lady.”
The students stomped their feet and cheered, obviously in hopes that their request would be granted. He fought the urge to groan and rub the back of his neck. The students were creating a deafening roar. He told her she wouldn’t have to go first because she had no idea what to say. However, he was going to have to break that promise.
“Chill out,” Keelan said, holding one hand up. “Now.”
Silence fell quickly as he knew it would. The students knew when he meant business.
“Let’s try this again,” Keelan stated into the microphone. “This is your career day so therefore I respect the fact that you should have some input in how it is presented to you. With no further ado, please welcome Ms. Nataleigh Brown.”
He turned and smiled at Nataleigh, who glared at him in return and did not budge from her chair. He closed the short distance between them and leaned over slightly to speak to her.
“I know you wouldn’t want to go first,” he whispered, “but you have captured their curiosity which is great. Now I need you to keep it or they will zone out and I will have to cram the rest of this program down their throats.”
“Great?” Nataleigh questioned, arching a dark brown in his direction. “How is this great? I just told you I have no idea what I’m supposed to say.”
“Keep it simple. Just tell them what you do and the training required to be able to do your job.” He chuckled. “Wing it, Bird Lady.”
“That is so not cute,” she grumbled.
He shot her his best award-winning smile, picked up Deon’s cage and sat it on the table next to the podium. He hoped his plan didn’t blow up in his face.
“What have I gotten myself into?” Nataleigh mumbled as she stood.
He stepped back to allow her access to the podium. Nataleigh made her way toward it stiffly. All of a sudden her body jerked, then she turned toward him. “You can’t sit behind me.”
“Why not?” he asked.
“Because I won’t be able to focus with you sitting there.”
He frowned. “Why? This chair is good as any other.”
“Please move,” she responded, making a shooing motion at him. “Go find another chair.”
He placed his hands on his thighs and pushed himself to his feet. “Yes, ma’am, Ms. Brown,” he replied. “As you wish.”
“Thank you,” she murmured, then turned back to the podium.
Keelan sat back down in the chair.
“Good morning,” Nataleigh began, as she looked out toward the crowd. “I’m Nataleigh Brown and I would like to thank you for having me here today.”
Well, well, he thought. No wonder she was adamant about him not sitting in the chair she’d vacated. The pretty lady had been checking him out while he stood in front of her. The view offered the perfect opportunity to stare at his butt, maybe he ought to do the same to her. Ms. Brown definitely had a nice, feminine bottom.
A second later, he frowned as he felt that heat again, that distracting heat, began to coil deep and low within him. This is insane, he muttered to himself with disgust. His body was reacting to Nataleigh the way one of his students with a hormone rush would. He wasn’t a lust driven seventeen-year-old. He was a fully grown rational, self-controlled, thirty-two-year-old man. The ridiculous effect Nataleigh had on him was becoming very, very irritating.
Then quit staring at her gorgeous rear end, he ordered. He lifted his gaze to the back of Nataleigh’s head and immediately wondered what those silky dark curls would feel like sliding through his fingers.
That’s it. He stood again. He’d had more than enough of sitting in this chair.
He moved toward the end of the row of chairs, then folded his arms over his chest.
Nataleigh looked at him, her expression full of puzzlement.
“Ignore me. I needed to stretch my legs.”
“Okay,” she replied, turning her attention to the students again. “As I was saying, ever since I was a little girl I wanted to work with animals. I was always bringing home dogs, cats, birds, anything and everything that I was convinc
ed needed to be cared for by me.” She paused. “My dream didn’t change as I grew older, but there was a hard reality I had to face. The amount of money it would take to become a vet was far beyond what my family could afford. In spite of the many resources available for financial aid, my dream was not obtainable.”
He glanced out toward the students, seeing their total captivation, hearing the complete silence as seven hundred pairs of eyes remained riveted on Nataleigh. She had them. These kids knew, they understood, about dreams that would never come true.
Good job, Nataleigh. You’re on the right track. They can understand and relate to everything you are saying.
“Thankfully I got lucky,” she continued. “I found out about a program at University of Texas at Arlington that would allow me to become a veterinary technician in half the time and less than half the cost of the veterinary medicine program. So, I looked at the benefits of the certification program, saw a way to be in the career arena I always wanted to be in, even if it wasn’t in the capacity I hoped for. For the past couple of years now I’ve been employed by Drs. Emmitt and Janice Sanders, a husband-and-wife veterinarian team.”
“What do they let you do, Bird Lady?” a male student yelled out. “Scoop up the poop of the dogs and cat’s that have been there?”
Nataleigh laughed. “Yes I do. But I also give follow-up treatments to animals that have had surgery, inoculations, examinations—and the list goes on. I find it all very fulfilling and rewarding.”
“What’s with the bird, Bird Lady?” another student asked.
“This is Deon,” Nataleigh responded. “In addition to their regular office, the Sanders also offer a boarding service for pets. I thought it might be interesting and fun to bring Deon with me today. His owners are traveling around the world for six months or so.”
“Travelling around the world for six months?” a girl repeated.
“Isn’t that nice for them?” another student quipped.
Watch it, Nataleigh, Keelan warned mentally. Don’t get onto a subject these kids will never be able to relate to. Try to keep their attention.
Nataleigh opened the door of the cage and the bird hopped out onto the table.
“Deon is a Magma Double Yellow Amazon Parrot,” Nataleigh stated. “I’m sure most of you heard him speak earlier. He has a habit of saying things that fit the moment, making a person believe, at times, that he’s carrying on a conversation. However, if you are in his presence long enough you will see that he isn’t. After the Sanders hired me, I took extra classes in the care of reptiles and birds because they board several of them throughout the year.”
“Wanna snuggle, sexy?” Deon squawked.
Laughter filtered out from the crowd.
“How much does a bird like that cost?” a student questioned.
Oh hell, Keelan thought.
“Well, it depends on the lineage. Deon comes from a good line,” Nataleigh stated matter-of-factly, “so he would go for right around two-thousand dollars.”
“For a bird,” a girl replied. “Lady, you are crazy.”
A few heckles and jeers sounded out from the students. Keelan stepped forward and raise his hand. “Be quiet,” he demanded, his voice booming. “I said quiet down. I understand where you guys are coming from, but it doesn’t give you the right to, be rude.”
He didn’t miss the look of utter astonishment and confusion on her face. The negative response from the students didn’t lesson any.
“Cut…it…out.”
He looked at Nataleigh just in time to see her eyes widen. A second later, he figured out why. A sharp pain travelled up his backside as the bird bit him.
Chapter Two
It was complete madness.
Keelan roared, then spun around, anger very clearly etched into his features. Deon ruffled his feathers then made a beeline for the cage and rushed inside. Nataleigh quickly shut the door.
The students erupted into wild laughter; hooting and pointing in Keelan’s direction in very evident delight at what had just happened. They begin cheering and whistling. A few even shouted Deon’s name.
I have to get away from here, Nataleigh thought frantically.
A gentleman she didn’t know stood and made his way toward them. “I’ll take over,” he told Keelan. “You’d better exit the stage with Ms. Brown and your attacker.” He chuckled. “Do you need to see a nurse about your wound?”
“No,” Keelan muttered, his jaw tightening. “I need to find a recipe for grilled parrot.”
“Don’t speak like that in front of Deon,” she demanded. “He was upset by the rowdy crowd and acted a little out of character. Out of all the stunts he has pulled, he has never bitten anyone before. He was definitely startled and your…your rear end was right in front of him so—”
“Whatever, lady,” Keelan responded gruffly. He reached for the cage with one hand, then gripped her upper arm with the offer. “It’s time for us to leave,” Keelan grumbled.
“Bye, Deon,” a chorus of students sang out. “Bye, Bird Lady.”
Nataleigh smiled and waved with her free hand. The last thing she wanted to do was get the kids upset with her again. She had already experienced what could happen if they turned on her. Evidently, she took too long with her farewell for in the next instant she was nearly lifted off her feet as Keelan began to haul her toward the stage exit. The gentleman that had approached them and informed Keelan that he would take over stepped up to the podium.
“Okay, you have had your fun,” the man said, “but it’s time to quiet down and get serious. Settle down. Good. Now our next speaker is—”
Before she could hear the name of the next speaker, she was outside the auditorium, the door slamming shut behind her, Deon and Keelan. Keelan placed the cage on the ground, then rubbed the area of his anatomy that had been bitten.
“Damn it, that really hurt,” he growled, glaring at her. “Not only that, but your idiotic bird made me look like a fool in front of the students.”
“It wasn’t Deon’s fault.” She folded her arms beneath her breast and glowered at Keelan. “He was startled by the students’ outburst. Frankly, so was I. One minute I’m telling the students about my experience and the next thing I know I almost had a mini-riot on my hands. What for? I have no idea.”
Keelan exhaled deeply and picked up the cage. “Come on, Nataleigh,” he commanded. “I will escort you to your car. Even in broad daylight you can have problems in this area if you are not careful.”
She laughed. “I don’t think anyone would even notice me. Besides I have an attack bird to protect me.” When silence met her attempt at humor, she looked up, straight into Keelan’s displeased expression. “Sorry I was just trying to lighten things up. Whether you believe it or not, there is a bright side to this. You could have been facing Deon and he could have bit into something else. Now that would have been embarrassing, not to mention painful.” It was difficult to keep her amusement from showing at his horrified expression.
“Where did you park?” Keelan asked, no hint of a smile on his face.
She exhaled deeply as she moved around him. “Spoilsport. I’m in the visitor’s parking lot.”
Keelan fell in step beside her as they exited the school. Thankfully Deon remained quiet.
“Well?” she finally asked after they’d made it down the steps and halfway to the parking lot. “Are you going to tell me what awful mistake I made during my speech?”
“You really don’t know, do you?” He frowned at her, then shook his head. “You truly don’t get it.”
“Normally I am a very astute woman, but in the case no I don’t get it.”
“Honestly, you started out fine, really good. Those kids could relate to your story of having a dream, but realizing you didn’t have the financial means to achieve it. These kids live it every day. Because of that you had their interest and complete attention.”
“Yay for me.” Nataleigh responded in a droll tone. “I would be happier if it had last
ed longer.”
“Because you told these kids something they could relate to. You were stopped short of your goals your dreams,” Keelan responded, “but found a way to get as close as you could in spite of your barriers. Then you veered down a path most of these kids will never be able to relate to.”
Nataleigh arched a dark brow in Keelan’s direction. “Yes, you keep saying that. However, what you are telling me is how. What did I do that is considered so deplorable?”
“Deon’s owners are traveling the world for the next several months? Even better, the price of the birds is an amount of money some of the kids could never even dream of seeing. Come on, Nataleigh, get real.”
“What I told them was real.”
“Which is the problem, but you can’t see it,” Keelan muttered. “In the eyes of those kids, you are a sell-out. You struggled, you settled for less than you originally dreamed of, then you ran as fast as you could into the world of the idle rich.”
Nataleigh couldn’t keep her mouth from falling open as Keelan’s words penetrated her brain. Who is he to jump to such a conclusion? He doesn’t know me at all. But he is about to.
“First, I am not a sell-out, so don’t you ever call me one again. Secondly, the Sanders offered me a good paying job and I took it. In case you have forgotten, that’s what most people do when they have rent to pay and food to buy. Third, what difference does it make where I’m employed? I am able to use the skills I worked so hard to obtain.”
“There is a big difference, Ms. Brown. You could be with the Human Society or with a veterinary clinic in a low-income neighborhood like this one. There is even the option of working for an organization that finds families for homeless animals in danger of being euthanized.” He shot a disapproving look in her direction. “But no, instead you are caring for the animals of people who earn more in one week than some of these kids parent’s make in a year. You copped out on your roots, on who you are, and those students realized it the longer you talked.”
“He’s got a gun,” Deon squawked. “Call the cops.”
Hard to Resist Page 2