The Teacher's Billionaire

by Christina Tetreault

  ***

  Stuffed with apple cinnamon pancakes, they headed to Brook Farm State Park for a day hike. “What do you think? Do you have enough energy left for a challenging trail or do you need one of the beginner ones?” Callie asked as they looked over a map of the various trails.

  “I’m up for a challenge, but if you’re tired, by all means, a beginner one is fine.” Dylan kissed the side of her neck and smiled when she tilted her head, exposing more of her neck to him.

  “You’re trying to distract me so I’ll pick an easy one. It won’t work.” Callie took a few steps away. “Follow me.”

  Neither of them spoke much as they made their way up steep inclines and through the various vegetation. Dylan didn’t mind the lack of conversation. It allowed him a chance to really take in his surroundings. One of the things he loved about hiking was how isolated you felt. Living in the city, he constantly had people around him. Out here, though, you could almost imagine you were the last person on Earth.

  The lack of conversation also allowed him to focus on Callie. She made her way up the mountain with ease. She actually made it look effortless. Though he was in excellent shape, it’d been a while since he last hiked and his legs were certainly feeling it. Callie showed no sign of sharing his discomfort.

  I’m going to feel this in the morning. Reaching into the side pocket of his pack, he pulled out his water. Morning, now there was a time he wasn’t looking forward to. He’d be waking up alone tomorrow. Doing so had never bothered him before, but now he found himself wishing Callie was coming back to the city with him tonight.

  For a moment, he considered inviting her. Bad idea, his brain screamed as he chugged water. I’m letting myself become too attached. Besides, she has work tomorrow, he reminded himself. He knew she only had a few days of school left.

  “Why don’t we stop here for a rest,” Callie called out to him, interrupting his thoughts. They’d broken through to a fairly level area with a small stream running through it.

  “Sounds great.” Dylan removed the backpack he wore and joined her beside the stream. Settling himself on the ground, he used a large boulder as a backrest. “I’m glad we did this today.”

  Callie took a long drink from the water bottle he handed her. “Me too. I haven’t been hiking since last fall. I love it out here. Whenever you want a hiking partner, just holler.”

  He couldn’t think of her as a hiking partner. That made her sound too much like just a buddy. She was certainly not that. The term girlfriend didn’t fit either. That implied a possible long-term situation. Yet he couldn’t think of her as just another casual relationship that he would forget about in a few months either.

  “I’ll do that,” he replied before they both fell silent, content to enjoy their surroundings and each other’s company.

  Dylan had no idea how long they sat there before the ringing of his cell phone broke the peaceful silence around them. Surprised he even had service out here, he yanked the phone from his jeans pocket.

  Marty Phillips. The man’s name appeared on the screen. Bloody hell. Now what does he want?

  “I’m sorry, Callie, but I need to take this call. I’ll be right back.”

  “No problem,” Callie said.

  Dylan pressed the talk button as he walked away.

  “What?” Dylan snapped, not caring if the campaign advisor heard his annoyance or not.

  Perhaps detecting Dylan’s feelings, Marty didn’t bother with any small talk either. “Have you spoken to Miss Taylor about skipping the fundraiser next weekend?”

  The man sure knew how to ruin a nice afternoon. “I told you, Phillips, I’m not going to do that. Warren wants her there, and she wants to go. End of story.” Dylan didn’t mention the role he’d already played in convincing her to go in the first place.

  “Someone might pick up on the family resemblance. Warren doesn’t need that right now.”

  The tone of the man’s voice never changed, but Dylan knew he was ticked. He’d spent enough time around Marty to notice the clipped edges to his words. “No one will notice, Marty.”

  Most of the people at these types of events were so self-absorbed they wouldn’t notice if a whole legion of women walked in resembling Warren.

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Callie wanted time to stop. Not forever, but for a little while. The weekend was quickly slipping away, and she wasn’t ready for Dylan to return to the city.

  With a small sigh, she watched him from where she sat. Who was he talking to anyway? She couldn’t hear him. Yet his mannerisms suggested he was having a disagreement with someone. If she asked, he would probably tell her. So far, he’d been nothing but completely open and honest with her. Even during his second visit to her apartment when she’d questioned why her father hadn’t come to see her himself, he’d been honest.

  She loved how he was always so honest with her. It was the complete opposite of what she’d experienced in her last relationship.

  Callie didn’t remember the last time she’d thought of Michael Adams, but sitting here watching Dylan, she couldn’t help but compare the two. She’d met the corporate lawyer through a mutual friend. For the first few months, he’d been the perfect boyfriend, even though they had few things in common. Things changed sometime around their third or fourth month together. He became secretive and abusive. Not physically abusive, but emotionally abusive. Despite being told the obvious by her mother and close friends, Callie had denied there were any problems. It had taken her a year and a half to see the real Michael. That had been two years ago.

  Michael and Dylan were like night and day. Dylan sometimes teased her, but always in a good-natured fashion, and never once was he anything but a gentleman; pulling out chairs and opening doors.

  Men like Dylan didn’t come along often. She suspected he might have ruined her for anyone else. No other man would ever be able to compete with him in her eyes.

  Enjoy being with him while it lasts. That was basically the same thing Lauren had told her earlier that week. Minus the while it lasts part. Lauren seemed to think wedding bells were a possibility. She always had believed in fairy tale endings. Callie was too practical to believe she and Dylan would ever reach the altar. Still, she planned on enjoying her time with Dylan while she could. Who knew how much longer she would have with him? For all she knew, after the fundraiser in New York, she may never spend time like this with him again. He was too polite to back out of his offer to have her stay with him in the city, so she had at least one more weekend with him, but who knew after that? He had been unusually quiet at breakfast that morning. Maybe he’d been reconsidering their relationship, or even regretting their involvement? Perhaps he’d been trying to decide when and how to end it.

  Always the pessimist. Maybe he really had been tired.

  Dylan sat down next to her again. “Sorry about that. I can’t believe I even got cell service out here.”

  Callie handed him one of the granola bars from her pack. “Everything okay? You looked agitated over there.”

  Instead of answering right away, Dylan bit into his bar. “Issues with an acquisition I’ve been dealing with. I told them I’d handle it tomorrow.” He finally answered after chewing and swallowing his food.