Free Stirred Up by Isabel Morin Page B

notice.”
    “Really? Do you think you could manage it?
I’m so sorry to make you do that. But I just can’t -”
    “Not to worry. I have more than enough dances
worked out, and I’m not the slightest bit tired.”
    Cheryl couldn’t help smiling at that. As a
ballet dancer Emily had put up with a far more rigorous schedule.
Now that she only worked one night a week at the club, she seemed
to never get tired.
    Cheryl changed into a new outfit and re-did
her hair and makeup so that she’d be ready to go on again if Jason
ever left.
    She waited miserably in the dressing room,
answering questions from the other girls with as little information
as she could get away with. An hour later she peaked through the
curtains that hung in back of the stage and sighed with relief.
    He was gone.
    But the relief lasted only a second. Because
whether she was allowed to transfer classes or not, she already
knew how he felt about seeing her here. He wasn’t merely surprised
or taken aback. He’d looked like a man who’d found his woman in bed
with someone else. Whatever had been growing between them was
over.
    ***
    That Monday she was sitting across from
Robin, the director of student placements.
    “So, what’s up? Everything all right with
your field hours?” Robin asked, smiling at Cheryl before glancing
back at her computer.
    Cheryl’s impromptu visit had obviously
interrupted something.
    “Yes, everything’s fine. Only I did wonder if
anyone ever changes classes in the middle of a semester. If, you
know, anything came up and someone wanted to switch.”
    Now Robin did focus her attention on her. “Is
there a problem with your placement? We’ve had only rave reports
about working with Mr. Shaw.”
    “He’s great. It’s nothing like that. Not an
actual problem or anything. I was just starting to wonder if maybe
I should visit another classroom or two to see how other teachers
work.”
    “I’m afraid that’s not an option. As you know
we take great pains to structure this program so that each student
gets a dedicated mentor. Many teachers don’t want to work with a
student teacher, or would even be good at it. Not to mention that
all of this is meticulously worked out months before the semester
actually starts.”
    “Of course,” Cheryl said, mortified to have
come in. What had she been thinking?
    “That said, if there was some problem, I
would want you to tell me about it.”
    Cheryl forced a laugh. “There’s no problem.
I’m just getting ahead of myself. I’m so anxious to be prepared for
teaching on my own next semester that I thought I could try
something different. I wasn’t thinking.”
    Robin was looking at her doubtfully, and
Cheryl decided she needed to get out now, before she got herself in
deeper.
    After thanking Robin she left her office,
convinced she’d just made things worse. Now Robin would be
wondering what was going on with her, rather than assuming all was
well.
    All day in class she was distracted and
miserable, unable to think about anything but facing Jason the next
day. Should she email him? Or maybe call? He’d given her his cell
phone number weeks ago.
    But what could she say? Hi Jason, now you
know I’m a stripper. What do you think about that? Will you be able
to look at me without seeing me naked and riding a pole?
    Calling in sick, as tempting as it was, would
only postpone the inevitable and drag her miserable doubts out
longer. So she got up Tuesday morning, after a nearly sleepless
night, put on another boring skirt and blouse, pulled her hair back
into her customary ponytail, and headed to the school.
    She used the short drive to give herself a
pep talk. She was strong and could handle anything. She’d survived
her mother’s boyfriend and living on her own since she was
eighteen, and she would get through this, too. Difficult things
often seemed impossible, but she’d survive this day. She’d been
through worse.
    The pep talked worked until she was standing
outside the