The Grump I Despise (When In Waverly 3)

“Great, great. I think this is definitely a step in the right direction, and now the rest of us on staff can stop tiptoeing around you two all the time,” Principal Spears laughs. Were people tiptoeing around us? Now that I think about it, there was a lot of staring going on any time Norah and I were in a room together. There still is, but the nervous energy isn’t in the air anymore.

Norah and I leave the office, and as soon as the door closes behind us, she turns to me and grabs onto my arms to stabilize herself. “Did that really just happen?” she asks.

“It did. And why wouldn’t you let me tell her we aren’t dating?” This is going to create so many more problems for us. We’re eventually going to have to tell her it was all just a bunch of ridiculous rumors—rumors that we’ve done nothing to dissuade, but still rumors, nonetheless.

“I panicked. She was so happy about us as a couple, and we’d have to address how the rumors started if we admitted to not dating. And that would lead to discussing things I’d rather keep private for the moment,” she says. She has one hand on her hip and the other against her forehead as she paces in front of me. The clip-clop of her heels is only making my heartrate pick up even more. I step in front of her and place my hands on her shoulders to keep her in one place.

Her big, brown eyes meet mine, and I smile at her, hoping it will help calm her nerves at least a little. She smiles back at me—a real, genuine smile. How am I just now noticing how adorable she is when she smiles? Her nose crinkles a little, and her eyes light up.

“Well, I guess we’re a couple now…” I suggest. Norah’s head rears back as if she can’t believe what she’s hearing, which is hilarious to me since she’s the one who wouldn’t let me tell Principal Spears the truth. What did she think was going to happen? We just signed official forms stating we’re an item and we’ll abide by the rules.

“You mean, you want to pretend to date?” she whispers, looking around the hallway. I glance around as well.

“It doesn’t have to be pretend, per se. We’ll go on some dates, see where it goes from there. If it’s horrible, we’ll let her know we’ve broken up,” I suggest. I shrug my shoulders, trying to appear nonchalant even though I feel anything but. I want to take Norah out on a date, and she has put me in the perfect position to be able to ask her. Everyone in town already thinks we’re dating anyway, so now we won’t even draw a second glance if we stay in town for a date.

“Are you serious?” she asks. There’s a hint of disbelief in her voice, and I don’t know if it’s because the idea of dating me sounds atrocious to her or because she can’t believe we’ve gotten ourselves into this situation. Excuse me…she got us into this situation. But who’s pointing fingers?

“Well, I was…” Norah loops her arm through mine and starts dragging me to her classroom. We get some laughs and stares from students and fellow teachers along the way. I just laugh and wave.

Inside her classroom, she leans against her desk and crosses her arms as she observes me sitting in a student desk across from her. “How are we going to spin this?” she asks.

“We’re not going to spin it at all,” I say.

“People will have questions.”

“And we’ll tell them the truth.”

“You want to tell them that we’re only dating because we need to pacify our boss about the rumors?” She’s getting the wrong idea about this.

“No, I want to tell them that I’ve realized my former enemy isn’t quite as bad as I once thought, and I want to see where this takes us,” I say, standing from the too-small desk. I shove my hands in my pockets to keep them from shaking. I want her to agree to this, and my nerves are starting to get the better of me.

“Oh,” she says. I move to stand in front of her, but she retreats to the other side of her desk, fidgeting with her messy bun on top of her head. Curls have escaped the bun around her face and neck, and I want to twist one around my finger. “That sounds believable,” she says once she’s gained control of her emotions.

“It should, because it’s true.”

“Colby, you don’t mean that,” she says. I don’t know why she won’t believe me. What have I done that has made her so skeptical of my intentions? I wish she would tell me so I can make it right.

“How do you know what I mean, lady?” I walk around the desk to stand in front of her, and she tries to skirt around to the other side again. I wrap my arm around her curvy hips to stop her and pull her into my side. Her hand lands on my chest, and surprisingly, she doesn’t immediately pull it away. The warmth of her palm seeps through the fabric of my shirt and practically lights my skin on fire. I wonder if she can feel my heart threatening to beat out of my chest.

I dig my fingers into her hair at the nape of her neck, debating the merits of kissing her right here and now. Her eyes dip down to look at my mouth, so I know she wants me to. And her plump lips look so inviting. I inch my head ever closer to hers, and she raises up on her toes to meet me halfway. Her lips brush against mine just as the bell rings, and the sound of doors opening and pounding footsteps erupt out in the hallway.

We pull away from each other, and she says, “I guess we did just sign a form saying we would refrain from doing stuff like this on school grounds.”

“When can I take you out?” I ask as she walks to the door.

“Call me!” she says.

She’s about to walk out into the hall when I grab her wrist and stop her. “This is your classroom,” I mutter into her ear. She looks around, and her face turns bright red.

“Oh, right.”

I walk down the hall, trying to hide the grin on my face.