“Um, we just move around a lot,” I answered, puzzled where he was going with this.
“How many schools did you attend before that?” he asked, clearly interested.
“I’ve lost count. I guess maybe twenty or so since fifth grade,” I said, trying to recall all the schools I’d attended.
“Is your father in the military?” he asked, sounding confused.
“No sir. My mom just likes to move,” I said, trying to make the situation appear normal.
“That’s insanity. How does she expect you to keep up if she keeps moving you around?”
“I always manage,” I said, trying to cover for Lucinda.
He looked at me skeptically, obviously not believing me.
“I’m sure you do,” he said quietly, studying me intently. I flushed slightly at his focused stare. Fooling the teachers here was already becoming a trial. “Well, it’s clear we have our work cut out for us. Do you know how long you’ll be here?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “We never know,” I said, delving out more information than I normally would have.
“Okay, well, first we need to get a gauge of your math skills. I see you took basic math last year. Have you ever taken any kind of algebra class?” he asked as the noise level in the classroom rose.
“No sir.”
“I see. Hmmmm—well, I’m going to send home this assessment so we can get a better idea of exactly where you are,” he said, rummaging through his desk drawers. “Here we go. This one should give us a rough idea.”
“I’ll do it as soon as I get home,” I said, relieved he wasn’t ready to set me back yet.
“Well, relax and take a little breather, then you can work on it.”
“Okay,” I said, clutching my books to my chest as I fled from the room before he could change his mind about me.
“Hey, what took so long?” Max asked, startling me.
“What are you doing here?” I asked a little defensively as I tried to slide the assessment in between the pages of my text without him noticing.
“I told Mr. Graves maybe I should check on you, in case you got lost,” he said, shooting me a mischievous smile.
“Seriously, and he fell for that line?” I asked, unable to resist laughing. “I’m pretty sure you told me earlier that the school’s layout was a piece of cake.”
“He doesn’t know that,” he said, trying to appear innocent.
“Well, I know I’m new, but even I realize our class is only two doors down,” I said, still laughing.
“So, what did Hanson want?” He asked, changing the subject.
“He wants me to fill out an assessment,” I said sighing, not knowing how much he had heard outside the door. All the honesty at this new school was making me slightly nervous. I had gone three and a half months at my last school without anyone getting a flicker of what my life was like. Now, in less than twenty-four hours, the cutest guy I had ever talked to, knew a whole lot more about me than I liked.
“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be nosey. Anyway, it’s no big deal. Anyone starting school midway through the year might need some help,” Max said, misreading my sigh.
“What makes you think I need help?” I asked cautiously, trying to see exactly what he had overheard.
He looked sincere, returning my gaze earnestly. “Well, if you need any help I could come over and tutor you if you want.”
“Um, maybe,” I said, knowing without a shadow of a doubt that hell would freeze over before I ever invited him over.
“I see you found her,” Mr. Graves said as we entered the room, making it clear Max’s ploy hadn’t gone unnoticed.
Max laughed and winked at me, making my body tingle. It was one thing to resist his dimpled smile, but the wink was my weakness and he was just downright dangerous.