Phoenix Rising (Phoenix of the Heart) Read online

classroom door. Ashley, the classroom door monitor, dutifully put down her colored pencils to answer it. I was shocked to see an elegant bouquet of flowers coming through the doorway. The secretary carrying it wore a big smile on her face.

  All of my kids said, “OOOOooooooo,” as I took the vase from her.

  “Who is it from, Miss Lynn?” Kyle asked.

  The other students started parroting, “Who’s it from? Who’s it from?”

  I turned beet red as I took the card out of the envelope.

  Surprise, beautiful!

  Have a great day.

  From The Keep

  I looked up and grinned at my class of twenty-five. They looked at me expectantly, so I answered, “Well, class, they’re from a new friend of mine.”

  Kaitlyn squealed, “A new BOYfriend!” The class broke out in giggles.

  I thanked the secretary, then started the task of settling down the troops. I couldn’t help smiling the rest of the day. Every time I looked at the bouquet of irises and white roses, my heart soared. I was overwhelmed by Scott’s sweet gesture. I would have never guessed that his little surprise would be so delightfully romantic.

  When Scott called that night, I gushed with thanks. “Oh, Scott, they’re beautiful! You shouldn’t have, but I’m so glad you did!”

  “I take it you got my surprise?”

  “I certainly did. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve never gotten flowers at school before. I was so surprised, and they’re so beautiful, too.”

  “I think you already said that,” said Scott, sounding amused.

  “Oh, yeah.” I giggled. “But they are beautiful and…um…well, thanks.”

  He chuckled good-naturedly. “I’m glad you like them.”

  “I do, I really do. If you were here right now, I’d hug you.”

  “Then it’s a real shame I’m all the way over in Detroit. Damn.”

  I giggled again. “Well, I’ll hug you when you get back.”

  “Great, I’ll be counting on it.”

  “Since you already know I had a great day, why don’t you tell me about yours?”

  Scott talked about the setbacks he’d had; the conversation was another long one lasting well into the night. Finally, he wished me goodnight. “I hope you have pleasant dreams.”

  “You, too, I already know what I’ll be dreaming about,” I said with a wide grin.

  “What?”

  “A white knight bringing me flowers.”

  I heard Scott’s laughter as he hung up the phone. I smiled to myself, pleased with the day and our conversation. I didn’t feel tired, but I went to bed anyway. I soon realized sleep was impossible, so I got back out of bed and went to my computer. When I logged on, I was surprised to see that I had e-mail waiting from Jim. I was afraid to read it, but my damnable curiosity wouldn’t allow me to ignore it.

  Dear Beth,

  I’m still upset about what happened, but I miss my pretty little Phoenix. I want to see you out on the dance floor in my arms. We’re good together.

  I know we both said things we regret. Give me a call as soon as you read this. Let’s talk ASAP.

  Love,

  Jim

  After everything he’d said and done, why was he was doing a complete turnaround? Now that I knew Jim for what he was, I was desperate to avoid the man at all costs. I erased his message, hitting the delete key a little too hard several times.

  I was almost asleep when the phone rang. I felt sick to my stomach. I knew it was Jim, and I didn’t want to talk. The phone continued to ring, but I didn’t make a move to answer it. Eventually, my answering machine picked up, and I heard Angie’s voice. I breathed a sigh of relief and jumped out of bed.

  “Hey, girl, I thought you were avoiding me or something!” she accused.

  “I’m sorry, Ang. Things were crazy today.” I blushed, knowing I had completely forgotten to call her.

  “I’ve been trying to reach you all night, but I kept getting a busy signal. How did the party go?”

  I groaned and then explained everything.

  “Girl, I’m so glad it’s over with Jim.”

  “Yeah, I know. Turns out you were right about him after all.” I hated to admit she was right because it made me feel like a chump. “If you can believe it, he left a message tonight saying he wants to get back together. I just wish Jim would leave me alone now. I don’t want to see the man ever again.”

  “Ignore him completely and he’ll get the message. Trust me.”

  “I hope you’re right,” I said doubtfully. Something told me Jim was not the type to go away easily, but he was not my main concern. “You know what else is bothering me, Ang? That hot brunette Mike talked about when we were decorating for the party. I’ve never felt so jealous of another person in my life.”

  “So the green-eyed monster is showing its face, is it?” she giggled.

  I paused before admitting my true feelings. “It’s hard because I don’t want to hurt the woman, but I really like Scott.”

  “Like really, really?”

  “Yep.”

  “Well, how serious is their relationship?”

  “According to what Scott said she only comes over to use his computer, but I certainly don’t get that vibe from her.”

  “It’s probably wishful thinking on her part.”

  “That’s what I’m hoping. I keep telling myself it’s the same kind of situation I have with Jim, but… there’s always a chance Scott is trying to play the field, and I don’t want to put myself through that again.”

  “Beth, I know your ex fiancé did a number on you, but you can’t keep running scared.”

  “I want to agree with you, except the first guy I date after Mark turns out to be a total Casanova. I have the worst luck with men.” The phone cord stretched to accommodate as I wilted to the ground. “It’s hopeless, Ang.”

  “Maybe…” she joked. “However, I told you I didn’t like Jim. I like this Scott character, even if he is a computer nerd.”

  I smiled to myself. “Scott is a strange combination, isn’t he? Not socially awkward, but still knows a lot about computers. And he was so sweet to send flowers.”

  “Guess what? I just had a brilliant idea, Miss Lynn!”

  “Lay it on me,” I replied, although I knew her brilliant ideas were never that brilliant.

  “What if we get Jim and Carrie to hook up?”

  “No.” I laughed miserably. “I couldn’t do that to Carrie.”

  “But you’ve rejoined the world of dating, my friend. It has the tendency to bring out our darker side,” she told me with an evil laugh.

  “Very funny, Ang.” I struggled to stand back up. “On that note, I think I’ll say good-night. Thanks for listening.”

  “I’m happy to listen anytime, but don’t forget to call me next time.”

  I cleared my throat loudly. “What? Me forget to call? Never happen!”

  “Yeah, right…”

  Wednesday was a typical day at school. Bobby’s baseball cards fell into a puddle during recess, Miriam scraped her knee at lunch, and Tasha lost a tooth. I went to the first committee meeting on the new budget and tried to remain optimistic, even though my chances of teaching next year looked slim to none.

  Thankfully, having the flowers in my classroom brightened my entire outlook and made everything okay. I left school with a happy heart.

  When I arrived home, I set my stack of papers to grade on the coffee table and sat down to plow through them, but I happened to glance over and noticed I had two messages on my machine. The first was from my mother who questioned if I’d been abducted by aliens. The second was from Jim.

  “Hey Beth, have you checked the board? I wrote you an email, but I haven’t heard back from you. I’m coming by after work so we can discuss it.”

  A tingling sensation coursed through my body, and my heart began palpitating at the thought of seeing Jim again. I called his work phone hoping to persuade Jim not to come, but he didn’t answer. I was te
mpted to leave my apartment and avoid him, but realized it would be foolish. I was going to have to face him eventually, so I sat down and attempted to grade papers. After the six o’clock news, I heard the doorbell.

  I gave a nervous sigh and got up from the table. I opened the door to Jim’s scowling face. Before I could invite him in, he brushed past me. It was already off to a bad start.

  “Beth, why haven’t you called?” He turned to face me and said accusingly, “I know you saw that message on the board.”

  I almost ran for it, but reason took over, and I slowly shut the door. He already had me on the defensive; however, I was determined to remain calm. “First of all, Jim, I don’t appreciate you barging into my apartment, but now that you’re here, we will discuss things in a civilized manner.”

  “It’s all I’ve wanted since Saturday night. I know if we talk this out, calmly and rationally, things can go back to the way they were.”

  Was he nuts?

  “There is nothing to work out. I don’t trust you anymore and just want to be left alone.”

  He stared at me in disbelief. I met his stare, hoping my eyes conveyed how serious I was.

  “Beth, I love you. Don’t throw that away like it’s nothing.”

  “I don’t believe you.”

  Jim threw his hands up. “Of course, the first time I say it to a girl she doesn’t believe me!”

  But I wasn’t buying it. “Actions speak louder than words, Jim. You hurt me the night of the party. Why did you do that?”

  “Look, I’m sorry, but you promised you would give me a chance and then you wanted to leave right away. I had to do something to get you to stay.”

  “That was one of the most humiliating nights of my life and you were a part of it. I can’t forget that.”

  “Okay. It was a