The Billionaire Band Director

Chapter 17

    Back at Dahlia House, Josie was bouncing off the walls. 

    “Just like Cinderella! Betsy is like a skinny fairy godmother, isn’t she Martha?”

    Martha did not want to disparage Betsy to Josie.  She knew that, at some point, it might be necessary to warn her, but not yet.  

    “If money is magic, then sure.” Martha replied gruffly.

    Josie didn’t notice Martha’s grumpy response.  She continued to gush, until she spotted her new bell set and remembered that she had very important practicing to do.  Martha went to her loft to get away, but the openness to the living area and echoing off the high ceilings only made the twanging metallic chimes seem louder up there.  Martha changed out of her brunch dress and into some sweatpants and headed back downstairs.  She escaped to the back deck and shut the door, cloaking herself in the silence of the woods.

    She pulled out her phone.  No new texts.  Still. She had sent her message to Landry hours ago, and there was no response.  She toyed with the idea of sending him a snarky message about Josie’s new bell set destroying her peace and quiet, but she decided not do.  She didn’t want to message him again when he had not yet responded to her.  More than that, the bell set was not what she wanted to talk to him about.

    Landry must have known that teachers at the school are not allowed to date.  Was that why he hadn’t responded?  Martha liked Landry.  She liked him a lot.  She liked him more than she was willing to admit to herself.  But she also knew how important this job was.  She had no chance of finding another opportunity like this.  The house, the salary, and the curriculum- it was like something she wouldn’t have even dared to hope for.  Landry’s bedroom eyes and sizzling touch were compelling, but they would not put a roof over Josie’s head. 

    Martha looked back to her phone.  Instead of checking for new text messages, she opened her email.  The school had emailed her a copy of the employee handbook the day she accepted the offer, but she had not read it carefully.  She had looked at the parts that had mattered to her, but at the time she did not know that her sexy mysterious Starbucks gardener was actually a coworker.  Martha found the handbook section she wanted and read it carefully. 

    “Romantic relationships between employees are not permitted.”

    Not permitted.  The language was not as strong as Betsy’s word choice of “absolutely forbidden,” but it was pretty cleared.  Martha had hoped that the language would be a bit softer.  What if romantic relationships had simply been “discouraged”?  She wouldn’t want to start off on a bad foot at her new dream job, but if she absolutely could not help herself she could live with doing something that was “discouraged.”  Martha was concerned that the situation truly was one where she absolutely could not help herself, and that she may end up doing something that was “not permitted.”

    Of course, that would require consent from Landry.  At present, he did not seem inclined to further any sort of romantic relationship.  Martha tried to tell herself that this was a good thing.  She couldn’t be with him anyways, remember?  It was much better for her if he just walked away.  That way, she had no temptation to reject, no decisions to make.  Her pride might be hurt, but her job would be safe.  And besides, whatever real life Landry decided, he never had to know what Martha’s fantasy Landry was up to…

    Martha turned around and looked into the house.  Josie had disappeared into her room, and the bell set had disappeared too.   Martha took that to mean that the practice session was still going.  Martha waited a while, but Josie did not return to the living room.  The woods were thick.  No matter where she looked, Martha could see nothing but trees around her.  Martha sank back into her lounge, closed her eyes, and slid a hand into her sweatpants. 

    Martha remembered Landry leaning over to touch her in the car, but she decided to do a slight rewrite of the event.  Fantasy Landry leaned over and tucked Fantasy Martha’s hair behind her ear.  He brushed his soft lips along her cheekbone and up to her ear.

    “I’m a man of my word,” Fantasy Landry whispered into her ear.  “Usually.”

    “Landry,” panted Fantasy Martha, “What do you mean?”

    Fantasy Landry ran the tip of his tongue over Fantasy Martha’s earlobe, then pulled it into his mouth and gently sucked on it.  Fantasy Martha gasped and moaned.

    Releasing the earlobe, Fantasy Landry said, “I promised you nothing would happen tonight.  And I tried, Martha, God knows I tried.”

    “Landry…” moaned Fantasy Martha.

    “I just can’t help myself around you,” whispered Fantasy Landry.  

    Real Martha was making small circles with her fingers, trying to decide what Fantasy Landry would do next, when she her a vibrating sound.  She saw the screen of her phone light up with a notification. A text.  From Landry.

    “Are you free on Saturday?”