Oh, no.

“Hello, Ember,” said the class. Most of them said “Amber” instead.

Mortified, I mumbled thanks and shifted further in my seat while Mr. Theo rolled up his sleeves. Popping up on the edge of the desk, his gaze held mine a second longer before he cracked open a book and started reading from it. I found myself oddly enthralled with how passionate he sounded while reading—probably explained the infatuated looks many of the female students wore.

About forty minutes later, the bell rang and Mr. Theo slid off the desk, talking over the books slamming shut and feet hitting the floor. “All right, don’t forget to read chapter four tonight.” His gaze fell across the room, settling on me. “Miss McWilliams, can you hang out for a moment?”

As the other kids hurried from class, I was left standing in front of this Mr. Theo with no clue why he wanted to talk to me.

He dropped the book on the desk and folded his arms. “I always like to check in with my new students. I know changing schools—even at the beginning of the school year—can be hard. This is a new school for me, too.” He smiled. “I just wanted to let you know that, if you need anything, you can always come to me or any member of the faculty.”

A dozen or so snarky comments formed and they all disappeared the moment I met his eyes. My brain seemed to empty. I stared at the man like an idiot.

Mr. Theo smiled as if he was accustomed to such things. “I see on your transcripts that you transferred from William Allen High School. Your grades were outstanding.”

I blinked a bit, relaxing in the familiar territory. My grades had been awesome—since I kind of had nothing else to do but study when I only had one friend. “Thank you.”

“Got to give credit when it’s earned. Especially if you see the grades I typically do.”

Leaning against a desk behind me, I smiled.

“I hope you don’t let those grades slip with the move and everything,” he said. “It was an easy move, I assume?”

“It was…” Not an easy move, of course. And there was just something about his smile and the genuine warmth in his brownish-green eyes that I didn’t have to second-guess. I wanted to tell him the truth.

“Was…?” he asked.

But I couldn’t. What would Mr. Theo do if I told him the truth? He’d call the authorities like any good teacher would. I suddenly felt dizzy. “It… was very easy.”

“Great. Well, I don’t want to keep you from your next class.” He turned back to his desk and sat. “See you tomorrow, Miss McWilliams.”

I stood there for a moment, unwilling to leave. “All right, thanks… for the grade compliment thing.”

Mr. Theo smiled. “Have a nice day, Ember.”

Practically pulling myself out of his classroom, I hurried to find my next class.

In trig, I would have fallen asleep if it wasn’t for the boy in front of me. Whenever the teacher turned to the chalkboard, he’d flip around and ask me a question. I was half-sure his name was Cory. He reminded me of Dustin—big and brawny, a square jaw and a charming smile, although without the doucheness. He didn’t call me a freak, either. Bonus points there.