Twins for the Teacher

“There’s always the local bars,” Carrie joked. “Or the sex-toy shop.”

Jolie laughed. Trust Carrie to put things into perspective, even if slightly skewed. “Perish the thought. I’m not that desperate yet!”

The women sat for a moment, each in her own thoughts. Then Carrie said, “I don’t know how you do it. I mean that in a good way. I don’t think I could be out there dating again.”

Carrie had married her childhood sweetheart. Neither had ever gone out with anyone else after meeting in eighth grade.

“You just do it,” Jolie said, picking up a stray blue pen and putting it in her desk drawer. “It’s not what I planned for my life, but I’ve learned to take it as it comes. So get home to that guy and consider yourself lucky. I’ll see you Monday.”

“Sounds good. Don’t work too hard.” Carrie rose and left and Jolie finished grading her papers.

PAPERS WERE the bane of a teacher’s existence, Jolie thought the next week while her class was at music. She pushed the stack aside, dreading the phone call she had to make.

“How are you doing?” Carrie asked, taking the chair next to Jolie’s desk. Their plan time overlapped by ten minutes, so Carrie usually popped in after dropping her class off at phys ed.

“Getting ready to make a call,” Jolie said.

Carrie winced. “Ethan?”

“Yep.”

“I don’t envy you. His sister is a dream. Be sure to tell their dad that. Maybe it’ll soften the blow.”

“Of what, telling him that Ethan…” Jolie stopped herself from saying aloud that Ethan was a monster. He really wasn’t a bad kid, and she wasn’t the type of teacher who gave up on anyone. But in four days, Ethan Friesen had so tried her patience she’d reached her tolerance limit.

Not that he was a horrible kid. Just misguided. He wasn’t accustomed to the formal structure of school. He didn’t see the reason for rules and pushed the envelope at every opportunity. Even Carrie, who taught history to both classes of fourth graders, was having difficulty keeping him under control. He liked to speak out, get up, wander around and he refused to comply with simple requests.

“It’s probably just because he’s used to being with his grandmother and not in a regular school environment. I’m going to request their Dad come in for a conference tomorrow afternoon if possible. Can you make it if it’s right after school?”

Carrie thought for a second. “Yes. It would probably be best if we were both there.”

“Then I’ll let you know if I set it up.” Jolie reached for the card she kept on each student, and, as if on cue, Carrie left the room to give her some privacy. Jolie dialed the number.

“Graham Nolter Resort and Conference Center,” a bubbly voice answered. “How may I direct your call?”

“It’s Jolie Tomlinson from Nolter Elementary. Will you please connect me with Hank Friesen?”

“Is this an emergency?” the girl asked.

“No,” Jolie said, scanning the card for a cell-phone number or even an e-mail address.

“Please hold.”

Thirty seconds passed before a deep voice answered the phone. “This is Hank Friesen.”

Jolie had talked to a lot of parents, but for some reason she felt nervous with Hank on the other end of the line, and she was pretty sure it wasn’t all because of Ethan. She forced herself to take a deep breath. “Hi, Mr. Friesen, this is Jolie Tomlinson. Is there any way you could meet me after school tomorrow for a parent-teacher conference? Ethan’s off to a bit of a rough start and I’d like to be proactive and work with you on getting him settled in.”

“You mean settled down, don’t you?” She heard Hank sigh, as if he’d been expecting this to happen. “I know Ethan can be a handful. We’ve had babysitters who’ve refused to come back after spending one night caring for him. My mother-in-law had a handle on him, but she was, in my opinion, a little too indulgent.”

“That may be,” Jolie said, her tone sympathetic. No parent liked to hear that his child wasn’t an angel, and it made her job easier that Hank seemed to be taking the news pretty well. Some parents became argumentative and immediately blamed the teacher for their child’s problems.

Jolie relaxed her fingers. “I’m thinking that tomorrow afternoon we can come up with a plan that addresses Ethan’s behavior. I’d like to set up some rewards and consequences for both school and home.”

“And that will work?” He seemed hopeful, yet skeptical.

“In my experience I’ve found it to be a perfect starting point,” she reassured him. “Having a behavior plan the child understands often ends many of the issues. I’m not saying it’ll be an overnight transformation, but it will be a beginning.”

“What time?” Hank asked.

“School dismisses at three. Could you do three-fifteen? That way Ethan and Alli are already at the latchkey program.”

She heard a shuffle of papers. “Hmm…I have an appointment at three, but I’ll have my assistant reschedule it.” He paused. “I’ll be there,” he told her finally. “This is important.”

More of her tension left. Even though she’d been contacting parents during the twelve years she’d been teaching, it never got easier. She only felt she’d developed more professionalism and understanding over the years. Parents wanted results and answers. Hopefully she could provide a little of both.

“Excellent. Thanks, Mr. Friesen. I’ll see you tomorrow.” With that she replaced the phone and sent an e-mail to Carrie saying the meeting was on.

HANK PRESSED the button, ending the call he’d taken via speakerphone after cutting short a meeting of the Nolter’s day managers. They’d been about finished, anyway, so he doubted anyone was upset the meeting had ended early.

He exhaled, trying to ease the sense of foreboding taking root. As this week had unfolded, he’d hoped nothing was wrong. He’d convinced himself that the reason Ethan didn’t have homework like his sister was because he was in a different class. Alli loved school already; Ethan claimed it was “okay.” Alli raved about what she was learning; Ethan sat sullenly at the dinner table and said nothing, which was rare for a boy who normally overshadowed and outshouted his sister.

All the wishful thinking had been for naught. Hank had hoped his son’s sullen behavior was a phase related to the adjustment of going to an actual school, instead of being taught by his grandmother. Hank had done research on Nolter Elementary, and it had won many educational awards.

Hank glanced at his personal organizer and then pressed the intercom button on his phone. His administrative assistant answered immediately. “I need to reschedule my three o’clock tomorrow. Tell Stan to bring me the full catering report at—” Hank flipped the pages of the planner “—eight forty-five on Monday. As for me, mark me as off-site as of two-thirty tomorrow afternoon. If it’s an emergency, you can reach me on my pager.”

“Will do,” she said, disconnecting.

Hank picked up the five-by-seven framed portrait in front of him and leaned back in his chair. It was the last picture taken of the entire family, right after Ethan and Alli had turned four. They’d had a formal portrait done; the entire family had dressed in blue so that they coordinated. Everyone smiled broadly and appeared extremely happy, but if you looked closely, you could see the hollow circles around Amanda’s eyes.

She’d been so brave, so full of gentle spirit until the very end, which had been mercifully quick. Hank’s throat constricted slightly and he touched her face, as if trying to run a finger down her cheek. Instead, he obliterated her face entirely, reminding him she was but a memory of what should have been. They’d deserved it all. They hadn’t had enough time. Would they even be in this situation with Ethan if Amanda had lived? He’d lost the love of his life; his children had lost their mother. Everyone, especially Amanda, had lost the future they’d deserved.

No one ever said life was fair. Hank had learned that lesson many times over. He forced away the melancholy and returned the frame to its place between recent pictures of Ethan and Alli. He had to focus on the future, not on the hopes and dreams they’d all lost.

He was doing the best he could to manage without her, and, damn it, his efforts had to be enough.

Chapter Three

Hank had never attended a parent-teacher conference before. As he strode across the parking lot, he received a few odd glances from mothers in cars waiting to pick up their children.

The few male teachers who taught at Nolter probably didn’t dress in business suits. Maybe the mothers thought he was a book salesman or something.

Hank grimaced as he entered the building. He’d thought about changing first, but he’d run out of time as his meeting with the head accountant had run late. Time was one of those things Hank never seemed to have enough of, no matter how well he delegated.

Besides, he was comfortable in his attire. America had gone casual, and a suit still said class and power. That gave him a sense of security in this unfamiliar territory he was entering. He stepped into the office and announced to the secretary he had a meeting with Jolie Tomlinson.

The secretary had him sign in on a form. “She’s expecting you. Just go down to her classroom. Do you remember the way?”

Hank nodded. He found Jolie Tomlinson’s room, knocked on the metal door frame and entered.

“Hi.” She rose to her feet and wiped her hands on her denim jumper before offering him her hand. “I’m glad you could make it.”

“Like I said, this is important,” he replied. He took a breath and tried to relax his shoulders.

She nodded. “Of course. I can tell you are a man who cares very deeply for his children.”

Were there parents who simply didn’t care and wouldn’t show up? Hank wondered. The thought was appalling, but he remembered news reports he’d read while living in Chicago and realized that sadly, such parents did exist.

“So what seems to be Ethan’s main problem?” Hank asked, cutting to the chase and steeling himself for the worst. She’d gestured to an adult-size chair placed in front of her desk. He sat. About four feet separated them.

“Ethan is having a few issues accepting authority. He has a very dominant personality. He can’t shout out the answers to every question. He needs to share playground toys. When a teacher asks him to do something, he should do it immediately. Ethan has had to have a few time-outs for failing to meet class expectations.”

Hank understood the concept of time-out, which was when a student was removed from the group. “So are these punishments during class?”

“We like to think of them as consequences and, no, they happen at recess. We operate on a check system. First check is a warning. Second check a student loses five minutes of recess, and the third check ten. Four checks is the whole recess and five checks means the child is sent to the office.”

“How many check marks has Ethan had?”

“I keep track of them on this clipboard.” Jolie passed a clipboard over and Hank saw today’s sheet. At least, aside from Ethan, there were two other children on the list.

“Yesterday he had four check marks. I kept him inside during the entire twenty-minute afternoon recess. Instead of sitting quietly or reading, he kicked the underside of his desk the entire time. He’s also not doing any homework. This morning I found a lot of the workbook pages I assigned wadded up in his backpack.”

“I wondered about that. Alli seems to have at least a half hour of homework every night and Ethan always says he has none.”

“Carrie Hillhouse and I do a lot of team teaching. She’d planned to attend this meeting, but she had an emergency. She teaches my class social studies, for example, and I teach hers science. We do a lot of the same lessons and we’re planning to take both our classes on a field trip to the Shepherd of the Hills fish hatchery just below the Table Rock Dam the second week of May. We’re studying pond and river habitats, and the hatchery is the largest trout-production facility in Missouri. I’d hate for Ethan to not be able to join us.”

Hank knew many hotel guests visited the site, but he hadn’t yet been there himself. He hadn’t done any Branson shows either, and Branson had more theater seats than Broadway in New York City. “I think Ethan would like to see the fish,” Hank said.

Jolie brushed a loose tendril of hair from her face. Her hair was a soft brown that looked almost auburn in the light of her desk lamp. And Hank wondered how silky it would feel. As he had the first time he’d seen her, he couldn’t help noticing that Jolie Tomlinson was extremely attractive. He had the sudden urge to find out…He shook his head. She was his kids’ teacher. What was he thinking?

“Yes, Ethan has told me he wants to go on the trip,” Jolie responded. “And I think we can use the trip as extra incentive for him to improve his behavior. Your son is a very smart boy.

“He loves to read, so that’s not a problem area. I tested him in math, and he’s low. But not too low,” she added quickly. “I think it’s more that his grandmother didn’t teach him a few concepts other kids his age learn, rather than any lack of ability on Ethan’s part. Some after-school tutoring would bring him up to grade level by the end of the year. I’m confident he’ll catch on quickly.”

“Will that be available during latchkey?” Hank asked, suddenly overwhelmed by everything. They had yet to discuss the behavior plan.

He ran a hand through his hair, pushing it back off his face. Fatherhood didn’t come with an instruction manual, and at the moment Hank really wished it did. Luckily it seemed that Jolie had the answer. She was the professional and he needed her help. “Just tell me what I need to do.”

SHE WAS LOSING him. She’d seen the eyes of many a parent glaze over when discussing their children’s problems.

She knew the symptoms. The parents, or parent in this case, were well-adjusted people. They held good jobs, made decent money. They loved their offspring and weren’t abusive or neglectful. So how could they have children who had issues? They always figured she somehow knew all the answers.

Unfortunately neither of her college degrees came with magic wands. Still, she’d been taught some solutions and developed tenacity. You kept applying various strategies until one clicked. Something about Hank made her desire to help even stronger than usual. Maybe she was simply a sucker for a handsome face.

No, that wasn’t it. She empathized with his plight. She wanted the best for him and his kids, the same thing she wanted for all her students and their parents. She reassured herself her motives were purely professional.

“Mr. Friesen,” she began, careful of the words she used. “Ethan is a ten-year-old boy. He’s not showing any signs of anything but being a normal boy who hasn’t grown up attending regular school. I’m planning on working with him after school to teach him math. I also think this will help with some of the behavior issues, as he’ll be getting extra face time with me. I suspect some of the motivation behind his behavior is that he wants my attention and is willing to do negative things to get it. If he can have my attention in a positive way, such as in a one-on-one tutoring session, that should reduce his outbursts.”

“So that’s math. How will the behavior plan work?” Hank asked.

“I have a copy of the plan I use with another student. I will be tweaking it slightly for Ethan.”

Jolie handed him the sheet of paper. “Basically for every half day Ethan goes without a check mark, he earns one point. At the end of the week he should have ten points. You’ll see the redemption chart at the bottom of the page. The first reward, which is five minutes extra recess time, is achievable after ten points. If he gets a check mark, he doesn’t lose his previous points, but it will take him longer to earn the reward, since he won’t earn any points when he gets a check.”

“Do you think he can go a week?” Hank asked. His gray eyes held her gaze. He had nice eyes…She blinked and glanced away.

“I’m going to allow Ethan to earn the first reward after six points or three days. It’s a teaser, but like a free month of cable or Internet, the reward is designed to hook you into using the program and staying with it.”

Hank nodded. “What about home?”

He hadn’t objected, which was a huge positive. “I would suggest that you reinforce everything I do here. For homework completion he earns one point. For each day with no checks he earns a point. Then place a value on something he really wants and have him earn it.”

Hank frowned as he contemplated the plan. “Should I discipline him if he gets check marks at school?”

“That’s up to you. I’m already giving him consequences here in the classroom. But taking away his video-game system or not letting him watch television until his homework is done or until he behaves the next day would tell him that you want him to act properly no matter where he is. The key is, you must be consistent. You can’t back down. If you do, your plan and mine will fail.”

“Do you have kids?” he asked.

The question caught her off guard and she swallowed hard. “No.”

He waited, then continued speaking when she didn’t say anything more. “I guess we can try this. We’re already in a period of flux, so maybe some set guidelines would help. I know this is an unsettled time for the kids. They were five when their mother died of ovarian cancer. And their grandmother has played a huge role in raising them since then. This is our first real attempt at being just the three of us on our own.”

Jolie nodded her encouragement, appreciating that he was opening up to her. He was a man of strong character, the kind of man she’d always hoped to marry. She smiled. “I understand and please be assured I’m going to do everything I can to help you. Knowing your background helps.”

Hank’s pager beeped. “Sorry.” He removed the pager from his belt and pressed a button, frowning as he read the number. “This isn’t good. Will you excuse me a moment? It’s work.”

“Certainly,” Jolie said. Hank stood and headed to the hallway. Through the open door, she watched him take out his cell phone, make a call and pace as he gave instructions to whoever was on the other end. She could hear snippets of his side of the conversation now and then, something to do with a corporate report and some revenue figures.

Jolie reached forward and looked over the behavior plan she’d handed Hank. In her conversations with Ethan he’d often complained that his dad worked all the time. She frowned. Hank had been interrupted in the middle of a scheduled conference. Surely the hotel could survive without him for an hour.

Hank was obviously struggling, like many single parents, to make things work for his family. They’d probably all been happy once, before his wife’s illness. Hank was the provider; his wife was probably the stay-at-home nurturer. And then the grandmother had replaced her in that role. Now it was just Hank, all by himself, living in a hotel where the job was twenty-four/seven, trying to help his children settle into a new town and a new life. He relied on staff for roles that should be filled by family. The balance was upset. Hank needed help to keep his little family together.

He finished his call and came back into the room. “I’m sorry about that,” he apologized. “I cleared my afternoon, but emergencies come up. It goes with the territory, I guess.”

She smiled sympathetically. “Are you going to be able to pick up the children after our meeting? Ethan mentioned that you’d said they might get to do something touristy tonight. He’s worried that because of our talk he might not get to go.”

“I’ll sit down with him tomorrow and discuss everything. Tonight we have tickets to the Dolly Parton Dixie Stampede. I heard it was good. All finger food and a trick-horseback-riding show.”

“I haven’t seen it, but, yes, it’s supposed to be fantastic. I’d dress in jeans, though.”

Hank’s smile split his face and Jolie felt a slight pang of longing. While many men in their midforties were sporting beer bellies and bald spots, Hank had aged like George Clooney. He was like a fine wine, only getting better with age.

His hair was rich and thick. His gray eyes crinkled at the corners, but those tiny laugh lines only added character to his handsome face. She’d definitely be interested if she’d met him in another place and another time.

It was an unspoken rule that you didn’t date your students’ parents. Not that Hank would be interested in her, anyway. The man had enough baggage and complications in his life. If he did date, he’d probably choose someone more glamorous and worldly. She had no idea what his wife had been like, but if she was half as pretty as her daughter, she’d been beautiful.

“I’ll wear jeans,” Hank responded to her earlier comment. “Ethan and Alli don’t know it yet, but they’re going to be special guests and participate in one of the events.”

“That sounds wonderful. Ethan will really like that. Even more, I think he’ll enjoy spending time with you,” Jolie said. “I’ll be telling him about the behavior plan on Monday. When you talk to him tomorrow, feel free to let him know it’s coming. The more you show your support for what I do here at school, the better.”

“I’m happy to help in any way,” Hank said. He reached for the copy of the plan, folded it in thirds and tucked it into an inside jacket pocket. He stood again, and Jolie noticed the cut of his suit. It certainly hadn’t come off the rack as her brothers’ suits had, and she thought the three Tomlinson boys looked pretty good all decked out. Hank was divine.

“Thank you for coming in,” Jolie said, rising to her feet. She didn’t tower over him, which made a nice change from a lot of the other men she met. Growing up, she’d endured plenty of jokes about the weather up there, and, no, she didn’t play basketball. “If there’s anything I can do, don’t hesitate to let me know.”

She reached into a business-card holder and handed him a card. “This is the direct line into my classroom. If I can’t answer, you’ll get my voice mail.”

“Great.” He handed her one of his cards. “The best way to reach me is to page me. My e-mail address and pager number are at the bottom.”

“Thank you. I’ll e-mail you Monday afternoon and let you know how the day goes.”

“That sounds great.” Hank reached out and shook her hand, and this time Jolie noticed how firm but gentle his grip was. A delicious shiver ran up her arm from the contact. “I appreciate everything you’re doing for Ethan.”

And with that, he was out the door. It was Friday and there were five weeks of school left before summer vacation. She had plenty to do, but for the first time in a long time, she was too distracted to think about work.

Hank had unnerved her. He was the kind of man she’d dreamed about long ago when she’d believed in fairy tales. And he was way out of her league.

“SO HOW’S SCHOOL going? Ready for summer break?”

“Am I ever not?” Jolie answered her mother with a chuckle. Jolie lifted the bowl of potato salad and trekked the short distance to the oversize screened-in porch where all the food would be set out. It was Sunday, two days after her conference with Hank, and the entire Tomlinson clan had gathered to celebrate her sister Jennifer’s twenty-eighth birthday.

Located about twenty minutes north of Branson, the hundred-acre farm where Jolie had grown up had been in the Tomlinson family for three generations. Her older brother, Bill, had recently bought ten acres adjoining her parents’ land and built a house for his wife and kids.

Ten of Jolie’s nieces and nephews were running around. Three were Bill’s, two were Jennifer’s, four were her brother Clay’s and one was her twin brother Lance’s. The only child not moving was Lance and his wife’s newest addition, ten-month-old Natalie, who slept in the battery-operated baby swing, oblivious to the noise around her. There were eleven grandchildren in all, one short of a dozen.

Jolie’s nieces and nephews ranged in age from Natalie to Chris, who was turning twelve next weekend. That meant another party to attend, this time at Bill’s house.