Third Date Read Online Free PDF Page B

be convincing. Which was one thing I was very good at.
    “Yes, Sir. Mr...” Tilting up his name plaque, I said, “Mr. Clint, it's vital that you let me do my observations as required by the state of Rhode Island. You certainly wouldn't want this to come back and bite you in the ass, excuse my language, would you?”
    Tilting his head a hair, his brows quirked. “How come no one informed me of this pop in today? Why wasn't I made aware you would be here?” Folding his hands together, he brought his chest closer to the ledge of the old, withered desk.
    There was intimidation in his demeanor, a powerful man, set in charge of a world within itself; Mr. Clint had an ego that went well beyond his name plaque.
    And he wanted me to feel it.
    This school really needs some new supplies. A man of power shouldn't sit behind a desk that was designed in the sixties, and had probably been there since it came off the line.
    Even with me biting my tongue to stay calm and neutral, I wanted to knock him off his golden stallion. Intimidation... That didn't work on me.
    I was the intimidation.
    “Sir, does the health inspector announce to restaurants that they're coming in?” Holding up my hand, I stopped the answer resting on the tip of his tongue. “No, they don't, because that gives them too much time to clean up any messes. What I'm doing is the same.” Grabbing the folder I brought, I flipped through blank pages of nothingness, staring at imaginary words. “If you want me to leave, I will. I'll just place a check mark here in the refusal to cooperate box. The board will discuss further action with you at another date.”
    Is he going for it? I wondered, eyeing him under hooded lids.
    The principal of Hopkins Elementary shifted in his seat, his beady little eyes trying to read mine as they darted back and forth. “What did you say your name was?”
    “Layne, Sir. Layne Torres.”
    “Mr. Torres, I don't want to cause any issues with the board, I just would've expected some notification of this, that's all.” Leaning back, his fingers danced across his bottom lip. “How long is this inspection, and how many teachers are you observing today?”
    “Just one to start, we don't want to overload the teachers or the children.” Lifting a finger, I bounced it in the air. “And we've realized that by doing it this way, teachers increase their attentiveness to the classroom by a margin of thirty percent.”
    Am I good on my toes or what?
    Pressing his fingertips against his jaw, the balding man drew in a slow breath. “Really? Thirty percent?” Shaking my head sternly, I closed my folder. Mr. Clint held his hand as a tight smirk raised across his lips. “Mr. Torres, welcome to Hopkins Elementary, I hope you enjoy your experience today. I believe you'll find that Ms. Davidson is one of the top kindergarten teachers in the state, and we are proud to have her as one of our own.”
    Gripping his hand with firm fingers, my lips formed an excited smile. “I'm sure I will, Sir. The board appreciates your cooperation.”
    I knew he'd fall for it.
    Maybe I should've gone into acting?
    “Please, follow me, I'll lead you to her class.” Principal Clint, stood up, and he was much shorter than I'd expected. By the way he sat in his chair, and puffed up his chest, I would have thought he came close to eye level on me. But he wasn't even close, he lacked at least four inches, reaching five foot six—tops.
    Looking down on the top of his head, I hadn't noticed before how intense his combover truly was. The thin patch of hair was stretched to its limits, tugged as tightly as it could be across his scalp. The suit dressing his oddly shaped body looked like it came off an already buried corpse, made from cheap fabric with cracked leather patches stitched around the elbows.
    I knew the school departments were strapped for cash, but that didn't excuse his horrible taste in representing his position. Even a twenty dollar suit from Sal's would emit a