Take My Hand. Ruth Scofield

give Cliff an after-school detention for now,” Alexis quickly said into the phone. “You can pick him up at four-thirty. Perhaps we can arrange for a meeting then?”

      “Guess I can’t avoid it. Okay, I’ll be there.”

      “Fine. I’ll expect you.”

      Breathing a sigh of thankfulness, Alexis glanced at her watch. There was just enough left of the school day to tackle a short math lesson.

      J.D. surprised her by arriving a few minutes early. Almost silently. She glanced up, and he was there, staring at her with a soft gaze.

      Cliff and two other students sat in her room. She’d taken after-school duty, trading another teacher for her time. Kathy had offered to stay, too, but she had put in a lot of overtime throughout the winter, so Alexis had declined.

      Cliff sat at his desk, refusing to look at her. For the past two hours he hadn’t looked at anyone. He’d sullenly refused to apologize to Tyler, insisting Tyler deserved his wrath. Tyler had laughed and made fun when Cliff missed hitting the ball in the softball game.

      J.D. advanced into the room. “Okay, I’m here, Miss Richmond. Now what?”

      “Why don’t you be seated, Mr. Sullivan, until I can dismiss the other students.” She briefly wondered what the “J.D.” stood for—she much preferred using complete names rather than initials. “Here, take this chair.”

      It didn’t matter. He was “Mr. Sullivan” to her.

      She went about closing out the day, knowing he watched everything she did. Grown men were a rarity in her classroom. From the corner of her eye, she noted J.D.’s long legs, clad in well-washed blue jeans, as he thrust them out in front of him and crossed his ankles. Her pulse quickened.

      In her specialty, parent-teacher talks were often filled with tension, but not usually this kind: male to female.

      What was wrong with her? She’d just broken off a two-year relationship that had been going nowhere, and she wanted time to recover from residual feelings. She was determined to give herself at least six months to a year before dating again. Heaven knows, a crush on a student’s father was certainly one thing she didn’t need right now. Or anytime, for that matter. Especially a careless lump who didn’t seem to have any natural instincts as a father.

      Then she caught his gaze. The way he looked at her indicated he certainly didn’t lack other natural instincts. He exhibited very basic ones without any problem.

      This would never do. She must be having a rebound reaction….

      Mentally shaking herself, Alexis stilled her riotous thoughts. She was still the teacher and she had a job to do. Turning a competent face to J.D., she murmured, “All right, now…”

      They talked with Cliff for fifteen minutes as Alexis explained her reasons for insisting the boy apologize to the child he’d whacked. “You need to own up to your actions, Cliff. That’s a part of growing up, you see. Learning to handle your anger correctly is tough, but I’m sure you can do it.”

      J.D. listened as attentively as his son, but he surprised her further when he backed her up.

      “If Miss Richmond says you have to apologize, then you have to. First thing Monday morning. Understand?”

      Cliff started to debate the issue, but then, catching the stern look on his father’s face, he lost some of his belligerence. “Yeah, I guess.”

      “Good,” Alexis said. This session had gone better than she had thought it might. “I’m sure things will improve for you soon.”

      She excused Cliff. The child shot from his seat to glue himself to the windows.

      Alexis turned to the father. “This is a positive step. It’s very difficult for a child to change schools so late in the year, and adjustments are especially hard for our special students. Now let’s find a time when all the professionals involved in Cliff’s welfare can meet with you, Mr. Sullivan.”

      They set a time for early the following week. That gave J.D. time to read his son’s papers, and, hopefully, think about Cliff’s needs. Alexis rose and offered her hand to signal the meeting’s close.

      “Thank you for coming in so promptly. I’m sure Cliff will settle in soon.”

      “Hope so.” J.D. enveloped her small hand in his and shook it twice. His touch teased her senses.

      She blinked and pulled her hand away. She pressed her lips together in tight denial. Dropping her lashes, she said, “’Bye, Cliff. See you tomorrow.”

      Cliff dashed from the room without replying. J.D. gave her a curt nod, then turned to follow his son.

      Alexis let out a long sigh, then gathered her briefcase and purse. She was eager to get home. She planned to pick up a carryout meal to drop by the home of Mrs. Nelson, a woman who attended the same church as she. The old dear had been house-bound a lot this past winter, and her daughter had recently moved. Alexis felt a heart tug to give the woman some needed company.

      After that, she had a pile of papers to slog through. Plus some lesson plans to form. It would be enough to keep her from thinking too much about the sad state her personal life was in. She’d been on her way to planning a wedding when she discovered that life with Ron would never work. Ron was more interested in his ambitions than her. She’d broken off the engagement during spring break.

      Alexis didn’t really regret her decision. She only regretted spending too much time on a man not right for her. In the end, she’d parted from Ron without a backward glance. But at thirty, she surely did wonder what God had in store for her now.

      Yes, Lord. What now? She wanted a husband of her own to grown old with, a man and children to cherish. Yet she knew…the Lord hadn’t failed her. She was the one who kept falling for the wrong kind of guy.

      Lord, am I destined to only teach children that are not my own? she couldn’t help asking. What more can I do? Will I never find an intelligent, Godly man with whom I can spend a lifetime?

      Outside, she breathed deeply in the spring air. Only two months or so left of the school year. As much as she valued and thrived on teaching, she looked forward to the close of the long semester. She really needed this summer’s break. It was the first one in five years that she had free—she was neither teaching summer school nor attending a class.

      Most of the school emptied out five minutes after the last bell rang. The spring weather coaxed everyone to enjoy the outdoors. As usual, she seemed to be one of the dawdlers. Only three cars, including her own, remained in the parking lot.

      She tossed her things into the passenger seat and slid behind the wheel.

      Only it wouldn’t start. The motor made an irritating grinding sound, but wouldn’t catch. She tried again with the same results. Then she got out of the car.

      This topped her day. It really did. She felt like kicking tires or something, like one of her students might. If that would help—which it wouldn’t. Her hands on her hips, she merely stared at the vehicle. Now what?

      “Trouble, Miss Richmond?” A deep voice startled her.

      She glanced over her shoulder. J.D. strolled her way. He had a lazy grace when he wasn’t angry or tense. A naturalness. Something that didn’t come from a gym.

      Alexis hadn’t noticed him sitting in the old black truck parked on the street—half the population of this country town owned trucks. She glanced that way, wondering where Cliff was. The boy leaned out the window, looking bored. He didn’t wave. She supposed he was still miffed with her.

      “Yes. I suppose I’d better call someone. I don’t believe there’s a dealership in town for my car.”

      “I know a little about mechanics.”

      “Ah…yes. I suppose you do.” In her opinion, most men arrogantly assumed they knew about motors and that women had no clue.

      “Don’t