Forever With You (Bayou Dreams Book 5) by Farrah Rochon Page B

him and gave him a slight nod.
    That was all the encouragement Gabe needed. He strode up to the group and greeted them with a smile.
    “Good evening,” he said. “I hope you all don’t mind me intruding. I know most of you, but wanted to introduce myself to those of you I haven’t met yet. I’m Gabriel Franklin, science teacher and interim assistant principal.”
    If the parents in this group had heard the rumors floating around about the Lock-In, they didn’t let on. They spent several minutes discussing different events that would be held throughout the remaining six weeks of the spring semester, and Gabe even received verbal commitments from several of them to sign up as volunteers. Some of the anxiety that had plagued him since Tristan had told him about the rumors began to dissipate.
    Kyle Dorsey, the only male parent in the group, and a mechanical engineer who Gabe had just convinced to come talk to his fifth-grade science class, pointed out that it was after eight o’clock, which meant Parent/Teacher Conference night was officially over. They all bade each other farewell, but before she could leave, Gabe caught Leslie by the hand.
    The spark that shot between them rendered him momentarily speechless.
    She had to be interested.
Had
to be. Energy like this just didn’t exist between two people for no reason.
    Her gaze dropped to where he held her hand and then traveled back up to his eyes. Something told Gabe to let go, but he ignored it. Letting go of her amazingly soft hand was the last thing he wanted to do right now.
    Unfortunately, she took the choice out of his hands. Literally.
    She slowly extricated her delicate fingers from his hold and took a step back.
    Slipping his hands into his pockets, Gabe said, “I wanted to thank you for whatever you said to the parents before I came over. I didn’t expect that to go so smoothly.”
    “Actually, I didn’t have to say anything. The rumor doesn’t seem to be as widespread as you first thought.”
    “That’s a relief.”
    “However, it
is
still out there, and some
do
believe it.”
    “Yes, I know,” he said, running an aggravated hand through his hair. “Which is why I still need to figure out a way to clear it up. I’m hoping we can set up a meeting with the PTO. It’s obvious that I’ve gotten off on the wrong foot with some of the parents, and I want to rectify that as soon as possible. I
need
to rectify it. It will be very difficult to do my job if the parents aren’t behind me.”
    “I can put you on the agenda at the next PTO meeting,” she said. “We meet on the third Wednesday of the month.”
    Gabe winced. “That’s still a couple of weeks away. Look, I know I’m new to Gauthier, but I’ve been here long enough to recognize the potential damage this rumor can cause if it gets out of hand. I need to nip this issue in the bud, and the sooner the better.”
    “Oh, believe me, I know,” she said. “Of course, you could clear the air instantly by just sending an email through GEMS Connect.”
    He shook his head. Gabe had considered the school-wide email system used to communicate between parents and faculty, but using it in this instance would be too impersonal.
    “This is something that needs to be handled face-to-face. Email leaves too much up for interpretation. I also want to bounce some of my ideas off parents so that they’ll know I want their involvement. Please, Les...Mrs. Kirkland.”
    Her brow rose at his slip, but she didn’t comment. Maybe there was hope for them eventually working their way to a first-name basis after all.
    “I really need your help with this,” Gabe continued. “You’re the PTO president. Parents trust you. I’ve explained my motives to you. You know now that I never had any plans to disrupt the way things are done here. Please help me to get the parents on my side.”
    She stared at him with a thoughtfulness that made it seem as though she knew her decision could very well affect his entire