Read Banished: Book 1 of The Grimm Laws for Free Online Page A

question?”
    She swallowed hard. “Yes, I suppose I do.”
    Disappointment crossed his features and then disappeared as quickly as it had come. He gave her an enigmatic smile and scratched his head before shoving his hands in his pockets. “That’s a great question, Elle. But a topic for another time. Go, get ready. At this rate, we’ll be lucky if we get you there before halftime.”
    She started walking out of the room and then stopped. She turned back to him. “You just convinced me to walk out on the football field, in front of hundreds of people, wearing jeans and a sweater.” She shook her head. “How did you do that?”
    He flashed a crooked smile that caused her heart to flip. “What can I say? I’m the most persuasive man alive.”
    She laughed. “I’ll give you that.”
----
    “ Y ou’ve got to be kidding me!”
    “What?”
    Elle made a face and pointed at the motorcycle. “You want me to ride on that?”
    “It certainly beats walking.”
    Her phone buzzed. “Hey … Rae …”
    “Finally! You recognized my voice.”
    “Yeah.”
    “Where are you? The attendants are leaving the classroom now and are getting ready to line up on the sidelines!”
    “I’m on my way. Rush is here with his bike. We’re leaving now.”
    “You’d better hurry. Who’s escorting you onto the field? Edward?”
    “Yes.” Elle looked sideways at Rush who was getting on the bike and putting on his helmet. She could tell he was listening to her conversation. She didn’t know what … exactly … was going on between her and Rush, but she didn’t want him to hear her talking about Edward. It was too awkward.
    “That’s what I thought. I told Miss Caskill as much, but she keeps saying that Coach Harris told her that he wouldn’t allow any player to leave the field house during halftime.”
    “He got special permission from Coach Harris to leave—”
    “Wait a minute. She’s walking this way. She wants to talk to you.” She heard rustling and then the clipped tone of her English Teacher.
    “Miss Worthington! You are late!”
    “Yes, Miss Caskill, I’m on my way.”
    “And whom, may I ask, is escorting you onto the field?”
    “Um …” She glanced at Rush. “Edward.” She saw him tense.
    “No, Miss Worthington, you are mistaken. Mr. Harris specifically told me that he would not allow any of the players to leave the field house during halftime.”
    “He got special permission from Coach Harris.”
    “Are you sure about that, Miss Worthington? I’ve been willing to make special allowances for you because of your … err … your memory loss issues. You have already put me in a bind, and I’ll not have you further compounding matters. Your tardiness is inexcusable, and now you’re telling me that Edward Kingsley is escorting you onto the field, when I expressly heard Mr. Harris say that he wouldn’t allow it!” There was a pause. “Are you sure that you’re remembering things correctly?”
    Blood rushed to her head. The woman was insufferable. She blew out a breath and fought to keep her voice even. “Miss Caskill, I can promise you that Edward Kingsley is going to escort me onto the field. He told me so himself. Now if you don’t mind, I need to end this call, so that I can get to the school.”
    “Very well, Miss Worthington. Get here soon.”
    Elle ended the call. Rush turned and handed her a helmet. She got on the bike. She could tell from his jerky movements that he was ticked about the phone call. How quickly the barrier had gone up between them. She knew she should feel relief, but instead she felt … well, she wasn’t sure what she felt, but it certainly wasn’t relief. She sat there for a moment, unsure what to do. When he grasped the handlebars, she had no other choice but to put her arms around his waist. “Look, about that phone call.”
    “Prince Charming saves the day. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Save your breath, Elle.”
    Irritation clouded over her.