Chapter 301

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“ I really have a lot of respect for you , Teresa , ” Lysander said as he walked over and patted her on the shoulder . “ When I first saw your photo , I thought , you’re absolutely stunning . Honestly , you caught my eye the very first time I saw you .”
Teresa coolly brushed his hand off her shoulder , her fist tightening at her side . “ Thank you , Mr. Carrington . Whether I get a permanent position or not doesn’t matter to me . What matters most is being a good role model for the students . Don’t you think so ? ”
Lysander chuckled , clearly catching her meaning , and looked at her like she was some helpless little bird . “ You’re pretty tough , Teresa . Are you sure you don’t want a permanent spot ? Take a look at this .”
He pulled a gold toad out of his drawer . “ A parent gave me this . It’s worth sixty thousand . If you like it , I’ll give it to you . I can get you even more expensive things – whatever you want , we can work something out . ”
“ I’m not interested in that kind of stuff . My husband already buys me plenty . We have lots at home . ”
“ Lying sets a bad example for the kids , Teresa . Your résumé says you’re single , remember ? ”
Lysander couldn’t help but let his eyes roam over Teresa’s figure . “ It’s not easy for a woman to make it on her own , is it ? These days , what woman doesn’t like money ? With me around , you’d never have to worry about that .”
Before he could finish , Teresa had already raised her phone . “ Mr. Carrington , I thought you called me here for work . Turns out you’re just harassing me . I’ve recorded everything you just said .
“ If you keep this up or try anything worse , I’ll call the police . You won’t be able to keep your job . ”
Lysander let out a soft laugh . “ Call the police ? I don’t think you have the guts – unless you don’t want to work in Everport anymore . ”
“ Then I won’t . I’m not afraid of you . ” Teresa had already turned and walked out .
Back in the office , Teresa acted like nothing had happened , but honestly , there was no way she wasn’t pissed . She’d just started working at this school and already ran into this kind of nonsense .
She used to think shady deals and unspoken rules were just a business world thing . Turns out , anywhere people gather , one’ll find the same old tricks . It’s all the same , no matter where one goes .
Her coworkers said Lysander’s family was pretty influential . Otherwise , with his lack of qualifications , there’s no way he’d be in charge . Teresa told herself she wasn’t scared , but that was just putting on a brave face .
This was Everport , not Nareigh . If she were back in Nareigh , she wouldn’t be worried at all .
But here she was , in a strange city , not knowing how things worked , and on top of that , she was a single mom .
Right now , she was just glad she’d put “ single ” on her job application and hadn’t mentioned her kid . That was definitely the right call .
Her child was her biggest weakness . She was terrified someone might use her kid to threaten her , to force her hand .
She didn’t care what happened to herself , but if anyone dared to use her child against her , she’d fight back with everything . she had .
Teresa was just thinking about it when she unlocked her phone to check the home security camera . Michael was standing in front of the camera , talking to it . “ Mom , why didn’t you wake me up ? Why didn’t you take me to kindergarten ? ”
She could hear everything going on at home through the monitor , but no matter what she said , the little guy couldn’t hear her .
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So Teresa pulled out her phone and called to comfort him . “ Sorry , sweetie . You were sleeping so soundly , I didn’t want to wake you . There’s food in the pot – I made some corn porridge . If you’re hungry , have some , okay ? ”
Just as she was speaking , a teacher walked in . It was Tina , the sixth – grade language arts teacher , from her office . She smiled. and asked Teresa , “ Who are you on the phone with ? ”
“ No one , ” Teresa said , hanging up .
“ Really ? I thought you were talking to your boyfriend . Teresa , you’re so pretty . Do you have a boyfriend ? ”
“ I don’t have a boyfriend , ” Teresa replied , already putting her phone away .
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