Chapter 15

Quinn - One Month Later

I sighas I look at a sullen Noah.

Andrew is with the nurse after my little man decided to throw a pair of scissors at him, scratching his face, after I told the class that he"d be taking over my role in a few months.

Noah's behavior has escalated over the past month. Unfortunately, he"s now taken it too far.

"Noah…." I start, but he sniffles, hurting my heart.

"He-he"s trying to-to take you from me and Daddy…."

I flinch at his words and say, "Sweetheart, he"s not taking me away. He"s going to be your teacher soon, that"s all."

He shakes his head and shouts,"No, I want you!"

I get up, rush to his desk, and kneel, hating his tears. This little boy has wormed his way into my heart.

Maybe I"ve fallen more than I realized….

I gently cup his cheeks and whisper, "Noah, I can"t be your teacher forever; you"ll move up in your classes. But know this: wherever I end up, you"ll always be in my heart. Do you understand?"

He sniffles but nods. As I take him in my arms, holding him tightly, I feel his eyes on me. I don"t need to turn to know who it is. It's the same man who sits outside my apartment door every evening before he goes to work.

I pull back from Noah, gently wipe his tears, and whisper, "I love you, little man. Do you hear me?" He nods with a sniffle, and I kiss his head and rasp, "Why don"t you do your numbers to show your Grams how amazing you are?"

He nods again, and I stand, walking back to my desk. Without turning, I say, "Ms. Holden is waiting for you in her office, Mr. Mendoza."

He hums and states, "I know. I"ll be having words with her while I"m there. She should have put your contract back to normal a month ago, and don"t you dare go back to calling me that. I"m your Alex, and you know it, Goldie, and so does our boy over there."

Despite the flutters in my stomach, I ignore his words, admitting, "She couldn"t because Lola also spoke to the parents before she saw Ms. Holden. They"ve all declared war against me, making my job harder. Now, I think you should go to your meeting. I"ll keep Noah here until it"s finished."

I wait for him to leave, but instead of hearing his boots fading away down the corridor, they echo closer until the sound stops behind me.

His arm goes around my waist, his lips gently kissing behind my ear before he rasps, "If you think I"m going to allow you to move across the country, you"ve got another think coming, Goldie. I meant what I said last month, and I mean what I say every single night outside of your door. I"m in love with you, and I"m not losing you, baby."

Tears blur my vision as his heat disappears. His mumbled, "I never should have touched Suzy," hits my ears as he walks out of the room.

I hate that the feeling hasn"t gone yet. I feel like I can"t breathe without him but I can"t let myself fall, either. I just can"t. If I thought seeing him in bed with his ex or whatever she is was bad, even though I know it was a set-up, hearing he got with someone else…. My breath stutters and my heart feels like it"s cracking wide open.

I feel betrayed when I shouldn"t; I ended things with him, but my heart feels like it"s dying, knowing he moved on so quickly.

I wait until his footsteps are silent before I let my tears fall, keeping my back to Noah because I don't want to upset him anymore than he already is. Both Liv and Violet have mentioned he"s acting up at home and I don"t want him to act up anymore.

Taking a deep breath, I go to my desk and grab the children"s work, ready to look through it.

God, I"m going to miss this place. California isn"t going to be the same.

An hour later, I"m halfway through a book when Ms. Holden and Breaker walk in. Noah doesn"t acknowledge his father, who sighs, and I narrow my eyes at the little tyke.

"Noah Mendoza?" he looks at me, eyes wide at my stern voice. I ignore the two people in the doorway and raise my brow at him. "Is there a reason you"ve not said hi to Ms. Holden and your daddy?"

He looks down, twiddling his pencil in between his fingers before mumbling, "Daddy hurt you, and she"s making you leave."

I sigh and stand, walking over to kneel beside him. I take his little hands in mine and whisper, "Sweetheart, I need you to focus on being you. What happens between me and any adult is between us. Don"t punish your daddy for something you don"t understand when he loves you so much, and don"t punish Ms. Holden when she only thinks of you. All these pranks you"ve been doing can"t keep happening, Noah. Otherwise, you won"t be able to stay in this school with all your friends, and if you"re not here, who will look out for April?"

His eyes widen before he looks at Ms. Holden and says, "I"m sorry. I promise I will be good."

I smile, trying not to correct him because he still doesn"t acknowledge his father.

One battle at a time.

I stand and run my fingers through his hair before looking at Breaker and Ms. Holden.

Breaker tilts his head at me, anger shining in his eyes, which means he knows. Crap.

Ms. Holden clears her throat. "After our meeting, it"s been decided that Andrew will not take over this class when you leave Quinn. I"ll, uh, be looking for a replacement in the coming weeks, unless you change your mind." I nod, not answering her. I go to walk to my desk when she speaks again. "Is there anything we can do to get you to stay?"

I shake my head, looking her way. "The parents have made their feelings perfectly clear. Regarding Lola's accusations," I tilt my head. "One of which, I believe, was I apparently made took advantage of the fathers…." I ignore a very angry Breaker and continue, "Instead of standing by me, Ms. Holden, when you and the board knew about our relationship, you fed me to the wolves, believing that Lola had any say in removing the sponsorships when all you had to do was call the club president. Even without the parents and the petitions, I still wouldn"t stay here. I"m sorry."

She nods before clearing her throat and looking back at Noah. "Okay, Noah, because of the incident with the scissors, you will not be allowed at school for three days." His eyes widen. "This is not a vacation. You will be given work to do at home, and I want you to write a letter of apology to the teacher you hurt. Do I make myself clear?"

He nods, looking a little scared, and I have to swallow down my growl as I make eye contact with Breaker, who smirks at me. I narrow my eyes at him as Ms. Holden says her goodbyes, not realizing I"m ready to shout at her for scaring him.

Breaker leans against the doorway when Noah goes back to ignoring him, and he states, "Did the mama bear just peek through there, Goldie?"

I clear my throat and round my desk, shuffling my papers.

I state, "I don"t know what you"re talking about," making him chuckle and I continue, "Are you okay with him home for three days?"

He hums and says, "Yeah, Momma can have him if I get called out on club business."

I nod and swallow hard, wondering if I can ask…. I mean I used to watch Noah, and I am leaving soon….

Fuck it. "Is it, uh, is it okay if Noah comes home with me today, and I"ll drop him off at the club tomorrow morning before school? Then, um, maybe I could pick him up after school, and he can stay tomorrow night?"

Noah"s head shoots up, and I wait a couple of minutes for Breaker to say something. When he doesn"t, I look his way only to see him smiling at me.

God, why do I have to be in love with him?

He nods. "I think that would be alright, but on one condition…." I furrow my brows as he grins and says, "I want a kiss on the cheek."

I chuckle, making him grin wider while Noah looks at me expectantly.

Damn it….

Shaking my head, I get up from my seat and walk over to him, trying to ignore the memory of that bitch hanging off him. I stop in front of him and look up. Damn, even in heels, he still towers over me.

He doesn"t move from his spot, he just smirks, and I shake my head, mumbling, "The things I"d do for that kid," making him smile, his eyes softening.

I go on my tip toes before placing my lips on his stubbled cheek, but the ass decides to move his head at the last second, catching my lips with his, shocking me. I gasp, allowing him to shove his tongue into my mouth, to tangle it with mine, and instead of moving away like the smart person I am, I flipping kiss him back.

Damn, I missed his taste, his lip ring….

After a few seconds, he pulls back first and grins, nodding, and states, "Yeah, you're not moving to California, because you're fucking mine."

I blink in shock, wondering if that happened, as he looks at Noah. "Be good for Quinny Noah, and I"ll see you tomorrow. Love you, Bud."

Noah doesn"t respond as Breaker kisses my forehead and rasps, "I love you too, baby," then walks away, leaving me speechless.

"I think my daddy loves you, Quinny. I love you, too."

I chuckle, shaking my head, and admit to the five-year-old, "Yeah, little man, I know he does. I love him, too, and you." He grins at me, and I shake my head. "Okay, troublemaker, let"s pack up our stuff. How about a movie marathon and junk food?"

He cheers, making me laugh. After I"ve locked my classroom door, he grabs my hand, and we head out for a night of just us two.

My heart pounds as he squeezes my hand, and the thought of leaving him breaks my heart. I feel like I"m leaving my own child.