Page 29 of The Other Side
“Because things aren’t like they used to be at Montgomery. If the wrong person finds out, we’ll both be in danger,” Chance warned her.
What did he mean about how things “used to be at Montgomery”? What kind of danger would they be in?
I had asked Jolene to check the school records after the mixer because Chance seemed so familiar with the headmaster, but she confirmed that nobody named Chance Harper or similar-sounding names had attended Montgomery Prep in the years that would have aligned with his age.
“You want to pursue this, don’t you?” he tried to confirm her intentions.
“Yes,” she said more vehemently. “You know I do.”
I could feel my heart racing as I pressed my back against the hallway. Alarm bells were blaring in my mind, but I tried to quiet them to continue listening. Because at best, he was conspiring with a student over something that was likely unauthorized, but at worst…I shook my head. Their tone wasn’t romantic. I didn’t want to consider the potential of a relationship.
I had just spent weeks feeling guilty over giving him the cold shoulder, thinking he was a good guy—that it was me who was fucked up—and here he was, sneaking around, having hushed conversations with a young girl.
“Good.” Chance sighed in relief. “Meet me after dinner, okay?” he asked kindly.
“Okay,” the girl agreed.
I only had a moment to gather myself. I stared in shock as none other than Claire DeLongpre strolled out of my class, appearing completely unbothered.
“Hey, Miss Price.” She gave me a tight smile as she passed me, but oddly didn’t seem to be concerned about having been overheard. What on earth was going on between them?
I took a moment to gather my thoughts and rein in the confusion that was likely showing on my face.
Apprehensively, I walked into my classroom.
Chance was also oblivious to the fact that I had overheard his rendezvous with a student.
“Good morning, Violet,” he simpered, leaning against my desk, almost provocatively, with his eyebrow raised in anticipation of my terse response. That day, he wore a vest over his button-up shirt, which only accentuated his criminally lean and tapered waist.
“What do you want?” I grumbled.
“It wasn’t my intention to chase you out of that room, you know.” He pushed himself off the desk and followed me as I placed the midterm packets on each of the student desks.
“Why does it matter to you if I like you or not?” I was quickly becoming aggravated with him, despite how good he looked in that damn vest.
“You know why.” He attempted to block my way, but I sidestepped him. “I don’t know what I’ve done to incite such contempt.”
It further angered me that he was always so elegant with his words. But he had all but confirmed my suspicions that there was something more sinister to Chance Harper. And I had a feeling that whatever he was up to with Claire was far from the only secret he was keeping.
“I don’t have time for this.” I again pushed past him to make my way to the dry-erase board to begin writing the test instructions.
“They all think very highly of you.” Chance suddenly switched tactics.
I spun around, eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?” I hissed.
There was no humor in Chance’s stance. “You’re so concerned with what everyone thinks of you. You’ve convinced yourself they hate you—that they’d get rid of you in a heartbeat if you so much as looked at a student the wrong way.”
“This is not the time—”
“Violet, nobody is out to get you—least of all me.”
Chance paced toward me, trapping me against the whiteboard.
“They might be a little put off by you, but they think you’re a good person and a great teacher.” He raised his hand slowly, delicately combing his fingers through the ends of my hair. “You isolate yourself, but if you give them a chance…”
Again I found myself furious with my heart, for pounding so fast, and with my body, for angling toward his touch.
He could be a predator…
