The class burst into laughter.

He looked angrily at her, and Grace realized she had made an enemy. She moved on and took the paper from Max, who gave her a cheeky wink, before taking Jackal’s, who gave her a warning look. She nodded. She’d known she had made a mistake as soon as the words had flown out of her mouth. Men like the Church never forgot being humiliated in front of others. He would hold a grudge.

She walked back to the front of the room, noticing Ice had straightened in his seat, watching Church.

“Read the next section in your book and complete the page at the end. You’ll get one thirty-minute session available on the computers before the next class.”

Grace gathered her papers, placing them into her briefcase. As she did, she saw a note mixed in with the paperwork still on her desk. Shuffling it among the others, she closed her briefcase before walking toward the door.

As she walked across the room, Church stuck his legs out. She didn’t pause or look toward him as she passed, moving on toward the doorway. The guard opened the door and followed her outside.

She briefly considered opening her briefcase and handing him the note she had seen, but curiosity at who had given it to her overpowered her better sense. She decided to read it and then hand it over before her next class on Friday. There was no need to make a fuss if it was completely innocent.

Later, she realized that was where she had made her first mistake.

Chapter 3

Grace sat down on the side of her bed, clutching the note with her heart in her throat. The ominous message terrified her. The small piece of paper had contained only one brief, written sentence.

Don’t come back.

The man sitting in front of her desk was the only one with the opportunity to have placed the note there. She had every intention of taking his warning seriously and had spent the last hour trying to convince Ross the class should be cancelled until next semester.

“No, I can’t cancel the class. What reason can I give? You got a vague note? The president will ask why I don’t place CeCe there if you’re so scared. That’s going to open a whole can of worms. You’re the only option.” A deep sigh came over the phone. “Grace, give it a couple of weeks. You said teaching the class wasn’t as bad as you’d expected.”

“That was before I got the note.”

“Which you should have given to the guard immediately.”

Grace remained silent. She knew she had screwed that up. He was right.

“Give it two weeks. If you’re still unhappy, I’ll pull the plug, okay?”

“I don’t really have a choice, do I?”

“I’m sorry, but no, you don’t.”

Grace disconnected the call.

Placing the note in the drawer of her nightstand, she went into her bathroom to take a bath. She didn’t look in the mirror as she took off her clothes before getting into the bathtub to soak. She laid her head on the back of the tub and tried to divert her thoughts. However, in her mind, she kept seeing Ice’s hard features.

While CeCe would melt in a puddle if she saw him, Grace was having her own issue with the man. She wasn’t blind; he was ruggedly good-looking. She had looked back over her information on him. He was single and had lived in Queen City his whole life. The weird thing was his eyes had said he had seen it all. They had looked world-weary.

She took down her hair, washing it, then stood and turned on the overhead shower to rinse herself off.

She had two options, she mused as she dressed for bed. Either show up for class on Friday or quit, and she wasn’t going to quit. She loved her job and the town she lived in. She wasn’t going to move away, because she wouldn’t be able to find another job. That only left showing up Friday to teach the class, despite the warning in the note.

Her phone rang as she was about to lie down on her bed.

“Hi, sis.”

“Hi, Dax. What has you up so late?”

“Just got off work and thought I would call to check up on my favorite sister.”

“I’m your only sister,” Grace mocked, waiting for him to get to the reason for his call. It was eleven o’clock her time; therefore, with the time difference, it was two in the morning his time.

“Which means I need to watch out for you even more.”

“What’s up?”

Dax took the meaning of being the overprotective, big brother to the next level. Not only did she deal with her parents’ constant calls, checking on her, but Dax’s when her parents turned their concern over to him.

“Mom and Dad say you’re teaching a class at the prison.”

Grace’s stomach sank. “And how did they find out?”

“CeCe.”

Grace was going to kill her friend for opening her big mouth. She had introduced her parents to CeCe on one of their visits and had regretted it ever since. Grace believed her mother talked to CeCe on the phone more than she did her own daughter.

“It’s just for this semester, and they have three guards in the room,” Grace explained.

“I don’t give a shit if there are twenty guards; tell them you won’t do it,” Dax demanded.

“I tried. It’s either teach the class or get fired.”

“Then come work for me.”

“No,” she refused gently. She didn’t want to hurt her brother’s feelings, but she had to make a stand for the independence she had fought for from her family. “I love my job and the town. I’m not going to quit over something that’s really not that bad.”

“You have to teach in a fucking prison.”

Grace winced.

“I’m not quitting,” she said firmly.

Silence from the other end had her biting her lip.

“Grace…”

“I already know what you’re going to say. I’m safe. I promise. Have I ever made a promise and not kept it?”

“No,” he answered begrudgingly.

“Then listen to me. I’m telling you I’m perfectly safe. Nothing can happen. They have too many safeguards.”

A deep sigh came over the phone. “All right. But it’s just this semester or you quit.”

“Okay,” Grace agreed. She had already decided on that point.

“You doing all right? Dating anyone?”

“I’m fine. And if I was dating someone, you would already know. CeCe would have told Mom.”

“I have a friend—”

“I have to get some sleep. I have an early class,” Grace broke in, used to her brother trying to fix her up with someone who lived closer to her family.

“Okay, okay, I get the message. I’ll see you soon.”

“Bye, Dax. Love you.”

“I love you, too. Bye.”

Grace hung up the phone with tears in her eyes. She missed her big brother. He was funny and sweet. They were not only siblings but best friends. He was rock-solid, and she could always count on him.

Grace turned off her light, lying down on the bed. Her mind went back to Ice, wondering if he had any family.

Quickly forcing her thoughts away from him, she made herself think of her classes for the next day and the lunch she planned to have with CeCe to give her hell for tattling to her mother.

* * *