Fringe Benefits by Sandy James

first marriage. She’s a sophomore at Douglas this year. Wants to be a teacher, no matter how much Mallory tells her not to.”
    Nate snapped his fingers. “Amber Carpenter. Fourth period. Didn’t make the connection ’cause I’m still learning names.”
    “Takes a few weeks,” Robert said. “I sure don’t miss having to memorize a hundred-plus new names every year.”
    “Not talking about the students,” Nate teased. “Talking about all of you.”
    At least the men laughed.
    “Why’d you leave teaching?” Nate asked Robert.
    Shooting a grin at Connor, Robert replied, “This cocky bastard breezed into town and turned my life upside down.”
    Connor let out a chuckle. “Now, Robert… you need to blame Tracy as much as you do me. Barrett Foods is what turned your life upside down.”
    It wasn’t hard for Nate to fill in the rest of the story. “Barrett Foods. I’ve got tons of kids whose parents work there. I take it you built most of their houses.”
    Robert replied with a nod.
    “Do you like being a builder?”
    “Love it,” Robert replied. He inclined his head at Ben. “We both thrive on breathing sawdust and sheetrock powder.”
    “I envy that,” Nate said. “My dad isn’t very handy with tools. My stepdad is, but he and Mom travel a lot. If I’m gonna buy a house, I can guaran-damn-tee you it’ll need work, so I’ll have to get my hands dirty. Doubt my stepdad will be able to help much. He and Mom are usually on the road to somewhere new.”
    “I’ll be glad for any help you wanna give, and I’ll teach you anything you want to learn.” Ben slathered a little more barbeque sauce on the ribs and then shut the lid to the stainless steel grill. Then he sat down on the bench and glanced at Robert and Connor before he leveled a hard stare at Nate. “Time for the tougher questions.”
    Bracing himself, Nate took a long swig of his beer. “You want to know about me and Dani.”
    Connor let out another laugh. “Damn, kid. You really cut to the chase.”
    All Nate did was shrug. He’d learned quite a bit from watching his parents’ marriage fall apart. The biggest lesson was to always be honest, something his father had a hard time doing, even with his sons. “There’s nothing to tell. Not really. Dani and I are colleagues. Technically, she’s my boss. Or so she keeps reminding me…”
    “Heard you didn’t worry about that when you got locked in the supply closet,” Robert drawled. “Got quite cozy, didn’t you? And then you took her on a date to Aspen Grill.”
    So the Ladies shared information not only among themselves but also with their husbands. Another shot of envy sliced through Nate. How wonderful would it be to have friends? Especially friends who could be trusted with secrets?
    Nate’s closest friend had always been his brother, Patrick. Come to think of it, Nate had been such a horribly shy geek and had never made any close friendships. Unless he counted the people he killed daily in online role-playing games. Cyberfriends hardly counted.
    One of the reasons he’d chosen to be a teacher was because he wanted to help kids who were like he’d been. Alone. Feeling like a misfit. Wondering when or if life would really begin.
    “No girlfriends back at IU?” Connor asked.
    Nate shook his head, biting his tongue against the overwhelming need to talk to someone about Kat.
    “You’re holding back,” Ben insisted. “What don’t you want us to know?”
    “Mind you,” Connor added, “keeping secrets has a way of biting a guy in the ass.”
    That was a loaded line if he’d ever heard one. “It’s… embarrassing. Makes my life sound like a soap opera.”
    Robert plopped onto the bench next to where Nate had taken a seat. “We love soap operas. So spill.”
    “Would you believe my ex-fiancée is now my stepsister?”
    The three men stared at him in stunned silence.
    Nate let a wry grin spread over his face. “I know, right? Very Greg and Marcia Brady.” He figured now