Titus: Book Two of the Cantrell Brothers Series

Chapter Thirty-Nine

At the island table, Anna played with her simple meal of scrambled eggs and jellied toast. She ate the food in cautious bites, her eyes glancing to the clock and then back again. It was seven o'clock on a chilly Thursday morning; it was a day in which she didn't feel like having to deal with more than a handful of people.

The fork felt heavier in her hands as she thought about the long day she had ahead of her. The kids, as always, would be so excited to see her and would be expecting all of her attention. She would give it to them but at a more lazy pace than usual, her body just not having been into it these past couple of school days.

Like the wilting roses from Jane's wedding a few weeks ago that were right next to her sack lunch, her body felt tired, as if it were being dried of all its energy. The lack of energy, in turn, made her just feel slower and a little out of it. The only time she really did feel awake and alive was when she got to come home, sit down for a nice meal, and then spend the rest of her evening with Titus.

Her chest fluttered at the thought of getting through today and coming home to just simply talk with the man. Thinking about the way his eyes crinkled at the corners or how the cords of his neck stood out whenever he threw his head back in laughter brought a smile to her face, and as she reached for a dying rose from the vase, Anna found herself still smiling – even as a petal partially disintegrated within her palm.

After putting her dishes away, Anna tucked the flower into her gray pea coat pocket and headed out the front door to where her car awaited. The drive to Napolm Elementary hardly took any time at all, but Anna didn't mind, the thought of seeing Titus after school putting a smile on her face and a bounce in her step.

She waved to Sam as she walked past her friend's classroom. It was too early in the morning for any of her students to be here, so she took the time to search the school's laptop for a new, creative idea for St. Patrick's Day projects.

Finding one that would be entirely too messy for her kindergarteners but incredibly fun, Anna printed out exactly twenty-five copies of the instruction page and walked over to the small library where the school's printer was located.

She greeted the little old librarian before collecting all of the sheets that came from the printer. A good set of copies for an older class were underneath hers and Anna was just about to set them down neatly on the librarian's wooden desk when a hand snatched them up, followed by an impatient huff from the woman behind her.

Not wanting Mary Ellis to infect her with a sour attitude that she had just discarded, Anna walked right past the brunette woman, only offering a stiff nod before heading back into her classroom where her students were already beginning to fill the room.

All of them, even Simeon, had been behaving like the little angels she knew they could be, all taking turns, staying in their lines, and cleaning up even before their clean up song would come on. Anna watched as they played hide and go seek in the small room, all working as a team and giggling wildly whenever they were found.

When the bell signaling the beginning of school rang, she didn't even have to tell them to sit down, for they were already there for her, little heads raised and curious eyes continuing to stair at her twenty-four-weeks pregnant belly. It was as if the key to the world was hidden within her uterus.

Readjusting the demi-panel waistband and pulling her plain white blouse over the top, Anna allowed her hands to hold her unborn child for just a moment before turning to the board and writing out a few short sentences made out of mostly articles, a three-lettered noun, and very simple verbs.

They popcorn read like that for awhile, everybody going around the room quite a few times. She introduced the new St. Patrick's Day project that she herself was actually excited about and told them all the details, having them all write on the board in their sloppy handwriting what items they should use and what colors they should have.