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let alone being responsible for all those budding minds.”
    She may have only had one child but Jason was willing to bet money that Jill had half-brothers and sisters running around out there. It seemed like good ole Thad shared his seed all over the country. Jason berated himself. He shouldn’t have been thinking like that, but he couldn’t help it.
    “Yeah, but you’ve got a good kid. Why mess with perfection?”
    Laughing in a proud kind of way, she said, “She is pretty terrific, isn’t she? I guess it was a good thing Jilly had history first thing this morning. She got the benefit of your instruction before she started thinking of parties and shopping and friends and such.”
    It was more than evident how much she loved her daughter. The kid was her world. And for the first time in his life, Jason wondered what it would be like to have a kid of his own. He shuddered.
    “You okay?” She glanced over, sideways.
    “Yeah… Just caught a chill there for a second.”
    “It is a little cool tonight,” she agreed kindly.
    “I’m not really sure that anybody benefited much from my morning classes today. I was a little off and they called me out on it.”
    “Oh? Does that happen often?”
    “That I’m a little off or that they call me out?”
    “Um, both I guess.”
    “Well, this is the first time I’ve read the same paragraph four times through and didn’t pick up on it myself. And because it’s Friday, they just let me go on and on because I was wasting their time, for a change. But no, they call me out whenever I mess up. They live for it. Breakin’ in the new teacher bit by bit.”
    They reached the bank. She opened up the slot and slid the bag inside.
    Lainey turned back and smiled up at him. “So what did you have your mind on that was so distracting on your Friday morning, Professor? Parties, friends or shopping?” She grinned, her eyes twinkling under the street lamps.
    “You,” he said, before he had thought better of it.
    Her expression dropped. “Me?” She squeaked as if she were appalled by the very idea. She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
    Well, screw it . “You don’t understand why a guy might not be able to get you out of his head? You’re kinda beautiful, Lainey. I haven’t been able to think of much else since you walked into my classroom.”
    “But I didn’t do anything,” she defended.
    “No, no,” he rushed. “You didn’t do anything. You didn’t have to. I just really liked talking to you. And I’d like to talk to you some more. I’d like to get to know you.”
    Blinking, she continued to stare up at him.
    “Say something, Lainey, I’m putting myself out there and you’re leaving me hanging.”
    “I don’t know what to say.”
    “I realize you’re going through a tough time with the divorce and all and dating is probably the last thing on your mind but…”
    “Dating?” she blurted, clearly aghast by the notion. “You said talking.”
    “Okay, talking. Whatever you can handle. Whatever you want. Talking. Walking. Coffee. You set the pace.”
    “Well, I don’t know,” Lainey said, bewildered that a guy like Jason would want to get to know her—especially right now. She was a mess. Maybe that’s just what he needed, though, to spend some time with her and find out just how damaged she was. He would go running, no sprinting in the opposite direction. Especially once he got a taste of the nasty tricks her soon-to-be-ex liked to play. It would be too much for any man to have to put up with. This wouldn’t last long. But for a little while it would be nice to talk to someone different—an adult. Particularly one that looked like Jason. It most definitely wouldn’t be a hardship. He’d already shown her that she might actually enjoy sex again someday. Her parts were undeniably thawing with him around. Taking Jilly’s advice, she blurted, “How about coffee? Like we did this morning.”
    He smiled and