“Yes,” Kylee nodded. “You got the correct answer.”
“I’d kiss you now, but we have an audience full of impressionable kids.”
“It’s a lesson they need to learn,” shouted Mr. Rowen from the side of the stage. Beside him, Mrs. Steen dabbed at her eyes and shrugged, as though giving them permission.
Their encouragement was joined by the kids in the audience. For the first time in his life, Ron bowed to peer pressure and kissed the woman he planned to spend the rest of his life with in front of everyone that mattered to him. The sigh Kylee made against his lips was the bonus that told him he’d aced this final exam.
Epilogue
Molly grinned as she stared up at her mom and her soon to be step-dad. The kids around her applauded, giggled, ew’d and ah’d as the two of them pressed their lips together.
Molly didn’t applaud. She sat back with her arms crossed over her chest. A self-satisfied grin spread across her face at her handiwork.
“Wow,” she said. “That wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.”
“What do you mean?”
Molly turned to her right and looked at the girl next to her. She was dark-haired with a pretty face. Molly had watched some of the meaner girls at the school point and whisper loudly about her. Mariana, that was her name.
Molly hated mean girls and had considered going over to those girls and telling them about themselves. But she was trying to stay out of trouble these days. And besides, it looked like Mariana had a friend of her own.
“Is that your mom?” Mariana’s friend asked. Molly believed her name was something like Lilly. Or maybe Lila?
“Yup,” said Molly. “And I just got myself a new dad. It all happened according to my plan.”
“I wish I had a dad like Principal Kidd,” said the girl with the name that began with L.
“Yeah, I know Lizzie. Principal Kidd is awesome,” said Mariana.
“Your dad’s awesome,” said Lizzie.
“Yeah, he is. But I wish I had a mom like yours.”
“Yeah, my mom’s pretty great.”
The two girls turned back to the stage to watch Molly’s mom and her new dad who were still on the stage. They’d stopped with all the kissy face and were now talking about the upcoming tests that all the kids would have to take.
Molly wasn’t interested in the tests. She was an excellent test taker like her mom. She had no worry that she would ace whatever questions this test held.
Molly didn’t take her eyes off the two girls. They didn’t see what’s so plain to her. They each had the answer to the other’s problem. They just didn’t realize it yet. But Molly had a feeling they’d latch onto the idea real soon…
What’s Next?
Read the prologue of MOMMY LOVES THE MILITARY MAN book 2 of Mommy’s Little Matchmakers…
Lizzie darted out the door as soon as the bell rang for recess. The last fifteen minutes of class had been so long. Why did they have to study math? It made no sense to her. But class was over now, and she got to play with Mariana. Thank God her new best friend had moved to town over the summer. Lizzie had seen her across the playground on the first day of school, slumped in a swing, kicking at the dirt while all the other girls huddled and gossiped in the corner. Those girls were mean, talking about other people. So, Lizzie had asked the dark-haired girl if she could swing with her.
The girl’s eyes lit up. Lizzie knew right away that they would be friends. And by the end of that recess, they had made plans to sit together at lunch.
Lizzie screeched when she saw Mariana across the playground. “Mariana!”
Mariana ran up and hugged Lizzie like she hadn’t seen her just yesterday. Lizzie didn’t mind. After feeling like the outsider for the past few years, the girl from California who didn’t quite fit in Virginia, Lizzie finally had a best friend. Mariana grabbed Lizzie’s hand and started running. “I saved you a swing.”
Lizzie and Mariana plopped down side-by-side and started kicking their legs. A few minutes later, Lizzy was no longer worried about long division. “Whew, I’m so glad class is over. Mrs. Simmons was in a bad mood tod
ay.”
“Mrs. Martin was no better. She made us recite our parts of speech all morning. Blech.”