And money is always at the root of those decisions.
I felt protective of Zoey. Close to her in a lot of ways. She frequently was the last one to be picked up from school, and more often than not I would bring her back into the classroom to read. Or build. Or simply talk to. She was a bright little girl with a beautiful smile who was intelligent beyond her years. Her home life wasn’t the easiest, especially being the youngest. Her brothers were fiercely protective but also acted out towards her in their own anger.
And there wasn’t a sober parent to referee anything.
Today was one of those days. I held the girl close to me as her older brothers stood at my side. We all waved off the busses for the afternoon, and someone hadn’t been by to pick them up yet. We all stood there for a few minutes before I escorted them back to my classroom, and the four of us drank juice boxes while we sat.
“Did you enjoy school today?” I asked.
“Yes, Miss Gentry. I like it when you talk about Mom at the end of the day. You do that a lot.”
“Where is Mom?” Hunter asked.
“Is she sick again?” Benjamin asked.
“I’m not sure, you guys. But your mother has accomplished a lot in her life. We can learn a lot from her, and that’s why I talk about her at the end of my classes,” I said.
“It makes her feel like she’s here,” Zoey said.
“Maybe you could come to our classes and talk about her, too,” Benjamin said.
My heart sank for the children in front of me. Hungry and thirsty for a mother that was constantly battling her demons.
“You know you can always talk to me, right?” I asked.
“I know,” the kids said.
“Is there anything you guys want to talk about?”
“Is that my family I hear?”
I turned my head towards the door and I found a man leaning against the doorway.
But not just any man.
Ryan Aaron was standing in my classroom doorway.
“Uncle Ryan!” Zoey exclaimed. “Where’s Mom?”
“Is she in the hospital again?” Benjamin asked.
“Is that where we’re going?” Hunter asked.
“Your mother simply needs a break. And who better to take a break with than me?” Ryan asked.
The man held out his arms and flashed his million-dollar smile as the kids began to stand from their seats.
He was tall. Cocky. His teeth shone with a white glare and his dark brown eyes were deceptive, at best. He had raven black hair that was swooped back, and his skin was tanned from lazy days on the beach. Or maybe he was the type to run with his shirt off.
Oh, yeah. With that type of cocky attitude? He definitely ran with his shirt off.
His body wasn’t bulky, but the muscles underneath his tailored suit were unassuming. I could see the money dripping from the fabrics he wore as the navy suit clung to his body. His long legs held him steady on his feet as he pushed off the doorframe and his large hands slid into his pockets. Everything was long on him.
And his gaze was unnerving.
“I’m here to take you guys back to my place,” Ryan said.
“You can’t,” I said.
“Why not?” Zoey asked.
“Why can’t we go with our uncle?” Benjamin asked.
“He has to be on your release form, guys. And the only two people on that form are your mother and your nanny,” I said.
“The nanny is a bit indisposed at the moment,” Ryan said. “I’m sure you won’t mind.”
“Actually, I do. It’s policy. I could lose my job releasing them to you.”
“I have identification if you wish to see it,” he said with a grin.
“So I can compare it to a sheet your name isn’t on? Sounds like your next million-dollar idea,” I said.
“Billion actually,” he said.
My protective instincts were flaring, that much I knew. But policy was policy, and whether this man was their uncle or not, I couldn't hand them over to him.
“I promise I know him,” Zoey said.
“And I have no reason not to trust you. But these rules are in place for a reason, and I have to abide by them,” I said.
“I’ll buy you a drink,” Ryan said with a wink.
I glared at the man in the doorway. What the hell did he think this was? Some kind of barter system? A date for three children whose mother paid this school a tremendous amount of money to protect in her absence?
“Unless you can get their mother or nanny on the phone and have one of them verbally authorize your departure with these children, I can’t release them to you,” I said.
I watched the man’s nostrils flare as I reached over and took Zoey’s hand.
“Where’s Mom, Uncle Ryan?” she asked.
“We can talk about that later,” he said. “But right now, we have to get you guys home.”
He held out his hand as I shot up from my seat. I stepped in between Zoey and the man and his eyes were flaring with anger. I felt Zoey wrap her arms around my body as her cheek fell against my hip, and I opened my arms so the boys could wiggle their way in as well.
“I want Mom,” Hunter said.
“Get their mother on the phone,” I said. “Or get off the premises.”
This man wasn’t leaving with these children. Not if I could help it. There wasn’t an ounce of him I trusted. Not with that sleazy grin and those brooding eyes. It didn’t matter that they seemed to know him. They were all under eight. And highly impressionable. For all I knew, he was someone attempting to abduct them. Attempting to wiggle in between them and their mother and harm them in some way. I didn’t know the nature of the relationship Mr. Aaron had with Valentina. Brother and sister didn’t necessarily mean they had a good relationship.
And it was my job to protect my high-profile students from anything like that.
The man held up his hands in mock surrender as his smile grew. I didn’t like the way he simply assumed he could command the situation. I’d stay here all night with these children if that was what it took. Hell, I’d take them home with me before I handed them over to this man without their mother’s explicit permission.
Then, he offered me something that made me want to laugh in his face.
“Fine. If they can’t come with me without you, then why don’t you come with us?”
I balked at the man as my hand landed between Zoey’s shoulder blades.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“Come with us. It’s obvious you won’t hand them over to me, and all I’m doing is taking them back to my place. So, come with us.”
“No,” I said.
“I’ve got good food there. And wine.”
“If you don’t leave, I’m calling CPS.”
“Then they can find a way to confirm my story,” he said.
“I’m not going with you,” I said.
“It’ll be a lot of fun.”
“Uncle Ryan’s apartment is fun,” Zoey said.
“And he’s got a chef that can make you anything,” Benjamin said.
“Will you come with us, Miss Gentry?” Hunter asked. “We could watch a movie!”
“And cuddle,” Ryan said with a smirk.
My eyes flashed over to him as I held the children tighter to me.
“Leave now, or I’m calling CPS,” I said.
Three
Ryan
The phone call wasn’t shocking to me in the slightest. But it did have me worried. My older sister, Valentina, had always struggled with substance abuse. Pills from her company. Over-the-counter medication she put into her vodka tonics as a topper. She was a partier like I was until her kids came along. She got clean for a while, to grow them and raise them through their infancy. But once the oldest hit school, things went downhill from there. The company took off after years of fighting in the trenches and her partying ways came back. Big celebrations at the company and rewarding herself with weekend trips to Bora Bora. Her substance abuse issues c
ame back heavier than ever, and now she was in the hospital.
But this time, the court had intervened. Stripping her of her rights to her children and granting me temporary custody.
Me. Custody of three fucking kids.
I loved my niece and my two nephews, but I wasn’t a damn father figure. Hell, most people would argue I was headed down Valentina’s same track. Partying all the damn time and drinking when it became too much. It wasn’t true, of course. I wasn't throwing back pills and topping off my whiskey sours with a Nyquil punch, but I did enjoy a good time.
And no one could have a good time with three little kids around.
I’d tried to look after the kids as best as I could. Especially Zoey. Benjamin and Hunter got a glimpse of their sober mother, but Zoey never did. Valentina tried her best to stay sober when she got pregnant with my niece, but the moment she popped her out it was back to her partying ways. Formula-feeding Zoey so she could keep her Nyquil-vodkas in her life.
I was very protective of my niece.
Watching the kids hadn’t always been easy. I got on Valentina a lot about stepping up and being a mother. I always tried to convince her that her partying days were over. Weekend trips were no longer a thing because she chose to have a family. And it would always spark a fight between us. She would accuse me of trying to manipulate her because she was a woman and I would accuse her of being selfish for neglecting the family she willingly created.
Her divorce didn’t do much for her state-of-mind, especially when the deadbeat man she’d attached herself to willingly gave up his rights to his three children.
That was when she made me their godfather. She claimed, in the last sober state I ever saw her in, that I was the only man she trusted with her kids. So when the court’s intervened and found that paperwork, I was the logical choice.
Except my life was nowhere near tailored to take on three kids.
When I got to the hospital and saw Valentina hooked up to a bunch of machines, I knew what was going to happen to her. They were going to force her through withdrawals before getting her the psychological help she needed. Which meant she would need a doctor to clear her mental state before she got her children back. I had no idea how the hell I was going to take care of three children full-time, but I knew I was their only hope. I knew I was the only man in their life, period, and I couldn’t rob them of that because I lived a bachelor life.
So, I signed the paperwork at the hospital and went to go get the kids from school.
“CPS, huh?” I asked with a grin. “Go ahead. You’ll see I’m the only one in a position to pick up the kids right now.”
“I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean.”
“When you call CPS, they will. And I don’t believe I caught your name.”
“Because I didn’t give it,” the woman said.
Wow. She really was a feisty one. And with her honey blonde hair pulled back at the crown of her head and her stormy blue eyes, I could envision all the things I’d do to her. I bet underneath those clothes of hers was a woman waiting to be explored. Longing to be bent over her desk and taught a lesson of her own. I licked my lips and allowed my eyes to travel her form, taking in all the places her clothes dipped in.
She really did have some curves on her.
“This is Miss Gentry,” Zoey said. “She’s my teacher.”
“I gathered that,” I said with a smile. “And she seems to be a very good one.”
“Miss Gentry, we promise it’s okay to go with him,” Benjamin said.
“I’m sorry, you guys. But I have to have either verbal or written consent from your mother since he isn’t on your pick-up list. That’s just how it is,” Miss Gentry said.
“Do you have a first name?” I asked.
She glared at me and it made me chuckle.
“Emma,” she said flatly.
“Emma. I’m Ryan.”
“I know,” she said.
“Then you know these children are safe with me.”
“My stance isn’t changing,” she said.
“Which is fine. I enjoy a woman with a strong resolve.”
“I don’t care if you enjoy a woman covered in jello, Mr. Aaron. These children are staying here until I can talk to their mother.”
“Oh, so you have a thing for jello,” I said.
“Not appropriate,” she said flatly.
“Just tapping into a topic you brought up,” I said with a smirk.
“I like jello,” Hunter said.
“Well, once I can get your teacher to relinquish you to me, we’ll go get some,” I said.
“Miss Gentry?”
“Yes, Benjamin?”
“I really wanna go home,” he said.
“See? He really wants to go home, Emma,” I said.
I could see her biting down onto the inside of her cheek as she reached her hand out. She picked up her phone and dialed who I assume was CPS, then left a message with them saying it was urgent.
“We’ll have to wait until they call me back,” Emma said.
“I’m afraid we might not have that kind of time,” I said. “The kids have homework, I’m sure. And I still have to figure out dinner before putting them to bed.”
“If the kids get hungry, I can order us pizza,” she said.
“You really are going to wait this out, aren’t you?”
“It’s for the safety of the children. What I do in this situation will set precedence.”
“In my sister’s defense, she probably wasn’t in the best state of mine when she filled out that pick-up form.”
“And I’m assuming since you aren’t calling her that there’s a very serious situation in the works. Which is all the more reason for me to keep these children underneath a safe and neutral roof until CPS calls back,” she said.
“Or, there’s our other option.”
“I’m not going with you,” she said.
“Miss Gentry, I’m hungry,” Zoey said.
“How does pizza sound?” she asked.
“But I wanna eat pizza and watch a movie.”
“I’ve got movies here,” she said.
“But Uncle Ryan has the awesome couch,” Hunter said.
“And the best apple juice,” Benjamin said.
“And my favorite pillow,” Zoey said.
“Plus, the pizza that delivers to my place makes those square slices. They really are the best,” I said with a smile.
Emma flashed her eyes up to me as she cradled the kids close to her. The fight in her was admirable, and her wanting to make sure my niece and nephews were protected gave me hope that Valentina really had chosen the proper school for them. But I was growing tired of our argument and I needed to get the kids home. I had to figure out where the hell they were going to sleep and how much homework they had. And I was getting hungry myself.
“Please, Miss Gentry?” Hunter said.
“Come with us. I promise you’ll like Uncle Ryan’s apartment,” Benjamin said.
“And you can watch the movie with us,” Zoey said as a smile crossed her face.
I watched Emma mindlessly stroke her fingers through Zoey’s hair as her eyes danced across my face.
“I’m not leaving your apartment until CPS returns my call,” she said.
A wave of relief cascaded over me as the kids ran towards my body. They wrapped me up in hugs and planted kisses on my cheeks. I loved these three and my heart ached for them. I knew I would eventually have to tell them about their mother. I was thankful for the few outfits of theirs I had at my place already. It would prevent me from having to step foot in my sister’s drug-addled house to get their things.
Because I knew going over there would only serve to make me angrier.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way, Miss Emma.”
“Emma’s fine,” she said as she picked up her purse. “Lead the way.”
“Will you be following us in your car?” I asked.
“I will be, yes.”
> “What kind of car do you drive?”
“The rust bucket parked at the end of the lot,” she said.
Bitterness saturated her voice, and I studied her closely before Zoey took her hand. The boys hung onto mine as we all walked down the hallway, Emma’s heels clicking softly along the floor. We all dumped out into the parking lot and I looked across the way, taking in the sight of the nasty car sitting in the corner.
“Where’s your car?” Emma asked.
I nodded my head in front of us. Towards the shining red Jaguar. Not the car you want kids riding in, but they would be safe until we got back to my place. I could see the look in Emma’s eyes. Part of her was ready to roll them in my direction and part of her was lost in her thoughts. I wondered what she was thinking about as her eyes danced along my vehicle.
I found myself wanting to ask her but buried the sensation.
“At least I won’t lose you in traffic,” Emma said.
“I’ll wait for you to pull around,” I said.
Emma looked over at me with her stormy blue eyes before she walked Zoey across the street. She helped all of the kids get into the car, then she hurried off towards the end of the parking lot. She made no mention of my car or whether or not she liked it, and I leaned against the hood as I watched her hips sway. To and fro, side to side. Deep and salacious as her heels found their way along the pavement.
If I didn’t have the kids with me, that woman would’ve been in trouble tonight.
Hell, maybe she still was if I could get the kids to go to bed early enough.
Four
Emma
I was familiar with the reputation that preceded Ryan Aaron. How much of a party boy he was and how his antics had gotten his company into hot water. He specialized in fetish hotels. At least, that was what I called them. His company called them personalized luxury hotels, which was code for ‘we can set this room up anyway you want without any questions asked’. He was a womanizer. A man who thought that throwing his money around meant he was automatically entitled to the first woman he set his eyes on. I avoided San Francisco’s dating scene specifically to avoid men like him. They were everywhere. And I wanted nothing to do with them.
6+ Us Makes Eight: A Teacher and Single Dad Romance (Baby Makes Three) Page 2