Filed To Story: Kidnapped by My Mate Novel (Belle & Grayson)
It might even be fun.
“No. Promise me.”
Irritation unfurled in my belly. “I promise I’ll tell Madoc if I get another headache.”
“Or if you need to leave the classroom for any reason. Or if someone says something to upset you. Or—”
“If anything goes wrong, Madoc will be the first to know! I promise!” I exclaimed.
“Happy?”
He grunted and hugged me close. “I won’t be happy until I’m by your side again.
But that was a good start.”
He pressed one last firm kiss to the crown of my head and then handed me my books. “I’ll be back soon. Be good.”
Mr. Callahan started science class by handing out our midterm grades. My nerves skyrocketed as I watched him walk from desk to desk, setting tests face down in front of each student.
He was probably my only teacher who didn’t like me. I had no idea why. I always did my homework, I was never late, never skipped a class, spoke up when he asked a question…
And yet, I caught him glaring at me and Ace on several different occasions.
Regardless of his reasons, it gave me severe anxiety.
I took my grades very seriously, had a perfect grade-point average, and was determined to keep it that way. I’d need them if I wanted to go to university.
After all, besides tennis and dance, I didn’t have much else to spruce up my college résumé. And as much as I liked helping my mom in her bakery, Crumbs, I wanted to keep my future options open.
But Mr. Callahan could ruin all that. This grade was worth 20 percent of our final grade, and I was already struggling in the class. I couldn’t afford to get anything lower than a B-Plus.
The moment he set my test down on my desk, I flipped it over, my gaze zeroed in on the red mark at the top of the paper, and my stomach dropped.
C minus.
I got a C minus.
“Miss Kennicott,” someone said.
I glanced up to see Mr. Callahan glowering down at me.
“Where’s Ace?” He held up a paper showcasing Ace’s neat handwriting. There was an A circled at the top.
Of course, of course, he aced the midterm.
No pun intended.
“Um, he’s not here today.”
My words felt weighed down by the realization that I was now an academic failure.
My record was broken. All the effort I’d put toward getting a perfect GPA was down the toilet.
How could I have gotten such a bad grade? I worked my butt off for the test. I spent hours studying…with Ace…who got a perfect score!
Mr. Callahan furrowed his brow and then scanned the room, almost as if he was sure I was lying about Ace’s whereabouts.
“I can give it to him if you want,” I offered, holding out my hand. “I’m seeing him later today.”
The end of class suddenly felt like hours away. I needed Ace with me to confirm I wasn’t making up Mr. Callahan’s distaste. The man clearly had it out for me.
My teacher narrowed his eyes at me, peering over the rims of his glasses.
I gulped.
Dressed in his slightly too-tight khakis, outdated aviator glasses, and a pair of loafers without socks, Mr. Callahan was far from the most intimidating man to look at.
He was also very small for an adult male from Embermoon. I was pretty sure my eleven-year-old brothers were gaining on him in height.
And yet, the way he glared at me made my heart race with fear. It felt like more than the glare of a teacher looking at his least favorite student. There was real and tangible hatred in his eyes.
“Fine,” he said finally, dropping Ace’s test on my desk. “I’ll check in with him the next time I see him, so I’ll know if he doesn’t get it.”
Jeez. ?“Y-yes, sir.” I looked down at the two exams in front of me. “Um, are you offering retakes for this test?”
He regarded me with a blank expression. “This was a midterm.”
“Oh.” I guess that’s a no, then.
Mr. Callahan shook his head and turned without saying another word, leaving me feeling like the stupidest person in the world.
I slumped forward, willing myself not to cry while I flipped through my test.
“Dorothy?” a voice spoke next to me. “Are you okay?”
I looked up at my classmate sitting at the desk next to mine, and tears began to pool in my eyes before I could stop them.
“Ron, um…” I quickly tucked mine and Ace’s tests into my back pocket and wiped away the tear on my cheek with the back of my hand. “I-I’m okay. Just being dramatic. Sorry.”
I hadn’t really spoken to Ron before but had noticed how nice he was from afar. He was always smiling and chatting with people, and everyone seemed to really like him.
I imagined we could be good pals if Ace wasn’t strictly against me having other male friends.
Ron’s eyes softened. “No need for apologies. Is there anything I can do? Where’s Ace?”
“Yeah, Dorothy, where’s your bodyguard?” someone else asked.
I whipped my head around, making eye contact with a smirking Ben Tucker sitting at the desk behind Ron. “W-what?”
Ben was new to the school but had given me bad vibes from the moment I met him.
Sure, he was good looking and charming, but he was also conceited.
He moved to town after his dad was hired as chief of surgery at Embermoon’s hospital and made sure everyone knew that his family was a “big deal” in the medical world.
Apparently, both of his parents had won some big awards.
On top of that, he was with a new girl every week, and yet, they continued to flock around him as if he were some sort of god. I didn’t understand any of it.
“Your pimp? Your keeper, maybe?” Ben continued, leering maliciously at me.
“Where exactly is the almighty Ace? He’s finally decided to let you off your leash?”
“Ben,” Ron interjected. “Don’t.”
Ben’s grin only grew. “Oh, come on, Ronny-boy. Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Ron said. “You shouldn’t talk to her like that.”