A Hidden Truth

Recruiting for the Book Club

[Juniper]

    When I arrived at school, everything seemed normal. It was weird. Somehow, the world was going on no matter what happened in my life or how huge it seemed. I guess there was some comfort in that.

    I got out of my car and locked the doors. My friends would be there soon and we always walked in together. Pulling out my planner, I leaned against the car and looked over my schedule. I had more tutoring before final exams than normal. People realized they needed help once they saw where their grades were before the exams.

    “Juni, can I talk to you for a sec?” I heard Clayton beside me. I’d been so wrapped up in what I was doing, I hadn’t even noticed.

    “Your father said you’d leave me alone, Clayton.” I told him, looking up from my planner.

    “I wanted to apologize at supper last night, but you weren’t there. I figured this would be better than tryin’ to catch you in the halls.” He smiled.

    It was like Jaxon’s smile. I hadn’t realized how much they looked alike. Jaxon was taller, Clayton was broader, but both were beautifully put together. Of course, looks weren’t what was important to me. Jaxon was a hell of a lot smarter and sweeter than Clayton.

    “I accept your apology. And I’m sorry for what Hank tried to do. I swear I didn’t send him after you.” I promised.

    Clayton laughed. “No, Teddy did. Part of our plan to get him out of the house so we could break into his office.”

    For a moment, I’d been worried. It seemed he hadn’t been told the other reason we were trying to get Hank out of the house. I relaxed and smiled back.

    “I only found out Sunday, he was a target for the legendary Cleaners. More than happy to make sure he goes to prison for a long time. Our town’s reputation is important.” I replied.

    It was better to have Hank in prison and alive, than Halsteaded and dead. I wanted him to suffer instead of letting him die and ruining Remy’s life. I’d do anything I could to help them get him.

    “Whelp, I better go find Becca and let her know what my parents said about if she bugs you again. Maybe I’ll see you ‘round the property.” He said as he headed toward the building.

“Come to the house if you need help with your math, Clayton. I’ll be hosting study a group for math on Wednesday at four thirty.” I told him.

    He grinned broadly. “Thanks, Juni! That’s what I was gonna ask you on Friday. Before… Becca… you know.”

    “Sure thing. I’ll let your dad know I invited you. Make sure you have a list of things you need to work on when you get there.” I called out.

    He nodded and turned back to the school building. That boy did have one fine ass. But, I liked Jaxon’s better. I smiled and pulled out my phone. I’d taken a picture of him all curled up in my bed. It made me happy.

    “What’s that?” Amber whispered over my shoulder. “Oh, my god! Is that Jaxon in your bed? Nice!”

    I turned off my screen and blushed. “Nothing happened. He just slept next to me.”

    “Oof. I’m guessing he didn’t get much sleep then.” Tammy chuckled.

    “I wish I wasn’t such a deep sleeper. I wanna see one of Juni’s s*x dreams.” Kelly said.

    “How about a picture of Teddy when he came home with Garrett last night?” I smiled.

    “Ah! The bell’s about to ring, you b***h! Show us at lunch. Hurry, or we’ll be late to first period and Maddox is a pain in the ass when you’re late.” Amber whined as she pulled Tammy toward the building.

    As expected, the confrontation between Hank and Clayton, and my argument with Clayton, had made the gossip rounds. By Sunday evening, everyone in town had heard about Saturday’s events. I remembered Teddy’s warning and that Garrett was to be my bodyguard. It was the main reason I was hosting the groups at the house.

    Since I didn’t want Garrett standing over me at the library while I tried to help people with their school work on Wednesday through Friday, I had to move the tutoring sessions to my house. It would cause a bit of an uproar, but I already figured on it before I’d even invited Clayton to the group on Wednesday. I’d almost forgotten to update my study groups.

    I shot out an email with the change of venue. It would spread around school pretty fast and by lunch, everyone would know. I made sure to include Clayton in the email for the math group. His mother told me he was grounded to the property until June except for taking Becca to prom, because she’d spent so much on her dress and was looking forward to going. I’d been fine with that. No reason to ruin a special night for her.

    The first three periods were uneventful. Turning in the weekend homework, getting an idea of what to study for the test, and being handed out the study guides. Most of this week would be guided review of the subjects. By fourth period my new address had circulated fully, hot gossip tends to spread like wildfire.

    “Umm. Juni, do you really think it’s a good idea to have the study group at your house?” Clayton came up and asked.

    “Garrett’s going to be following me around everywhere that isn’t the ranch, Clayton. I don’t want people distracted. He’s pretty imposing. I thought you would’ve picked up on the change when I invited you this morning.” I sighed.

    “I wasn’t thinkin’. You know everyone knows you’re livin’ on the ranch now. Becca’s gonna pitch a fit.” He warned.

    “She can do whatever she wants. I have an obligation to my classmates. Unlike you, they paid for tutoring. Go to your seat, class is about to begin.” I told him sternly. I had no interest in whatever drama Becca would start, and being around Clayton would incite her to make an even bigger thing of it. There were some whispers and pointing through class, but I was able to ignore them.

    I hurried from fourth period to fifth, trying to avoid any unnecessary conversations. Kelly met me outside of the classroom. It was English, one of my favorites. Today, we were discussing Frankenstein and we would start exam review tomorrow. I was excited. Mr. Paulson was so much fun to talk with and he really loved classic literature. I wondered if he could be convinced to take over my book club. I knew he was single. The ladies were always looking for eligible men to introduce girls to.

    The discussion in class was more lively than usual. There were a few kids who had watched the movie instead of reading the book and it showed. I enjoyed contributing my opinion and Mr. Paulson seemed to really like hearing from me. Since lunch was right after, I decided this was a good time to invite him to the club and see if he was even interested.

    Everyone filed out of the classroom and Kelly went out to wait by the door for me. When I walked up to his desk, Mr. Paulson looked up and smiled. He’d do well with the women the club members would introduce him to. He was in his late twenties or early thirties, and had dark blonde hair he wore just a little long, light brown eyes, and a brilliant smile. He was tall and slim. I knew most of the girls in class had crushes on him.

    “I’m going to miss having you in class, Juniper. You always contribute something interesting to the conversation.” He said.

    “Well, I actually came to invite you to the book club I head. I’ll be running it for the rest of the summer and I’m looking for someone to take over after, if you’re interested.” I explained.

    He winced a little. I got that a lot. Most people thought we did modern fiction, self-help, or spiritual novels. It was a pretty common idea.

    “I don’t know that I would necessarily fit in, Juniper. Nothing against your club.” He put his hands up in a defensive sort of pose.

    I laughed. “Well, last week we read ‘Sons and Lovers’ and this week we’re reading ‘Sense and Sensibility’. I try to give them something easy after something trying and we stick to literature that’s at least as old as our oldest member. If you’re interested in just checking it out, we meet on Friday at five o’clock in the conference room of the public library. This week, we’re meeting at four because of test prep. Though most of the members are older ladies, one of our summer members is pursuing a master’s degree in literature. I can guarantee an interesting discussion.”

    He seemed to be thinking it over. It was obvious he hadn’t expected something like that. I could tell he was intrigued.

    “Just come check it out. That’s all I’m asking, sir. Now, I better head to lunch or there won’t be anything good left.” I said as I headed out the door.