North to Alaska

In just the short time Maya was gone, two different guys introduced themselves and without being rude, Lindsay fended both of them off. Maya came back with Aidan a few minutes later, bubbling happily about Denver and her previous life.

"This place isn't so bad after all!" she said to Lindsay. "I think I wanna stay!"

"I was thinking about heading back—home—to our apartment, not Denver," Lindsay said making sure Maya knew she wasn't unhappy about being there.

Maya said loudly enough for Aidan to hear, "I'm sure I can get a ride home tonight so..." She dug her keys out of her purse and handed them to her sister.

Lindsay gave her a quick hug and said quietly, "Be careful and call me if you need me, okay?"

"I'll be fine!" she said happily before dragging Aidan back out onto the floor.

Lindsay spent the rest of the evening in her apartment cutting tags off her new clothes washing them, ironing what needed ironing, and carefully folding or hanging the rest. She half-heartedly watched a movie while she took care of her housekeeping duties and also put together a list of things she wanted for her new place. It really was rather spartan, but with the right kind of decorating could be very cozy indeed.

It was after ten the following morning when Lindsay finally knocked on Maya's door. She had to knock twice but eventually her sister stumbled to the front and peeked out. Her eyes were bloodshot and her hair was a mess.

"Long night?" Lindsay said quietly.

"Um...yeah. What time is it anyway?"

"It's 10:15. You feel like eating?"

Maya made a face then said, "Maybe just some coffee." Lindsay used Maya's pot to brew a pot then sat and talked with her.

"So...how did things go last night with cutie-pie?"

She made another face then said, "Let's just say after he's had a dozen or beers he's not so cute."

"Did he try to..."

"No, nothing like that," she said. "Well, kind of. I mean, he just kept pawing at me."

"I thought you enjoyed being pawed," Lindsay couldn't help saying now that she knew her sister was okay.

"Not like that," she said with a snark. "What an ass!"

"So how'd you get home?"

"I called a cab about 1am," Maya said. "I think I want to go home."

Lindsay wasn't certain, but she thought Maya was only kidding.

"How about we chill out until we see how things look at the school before doing anything quite so drastic?"

"I'm only kidding," Maya said taking a large sip. "Well, I think I'm only kidding. But if Aidan's the kind of guy I can expect to find in this...shit hole..."

"Hey, come on. Give this place a chance. You never know who you'll meet or when. You might find some really nice guy who's just as cute Mr. Pushy Face."

Maya laughed at her sister's silliness then grabbed her head. "Don't make me laugh again, okay?"

The two of them took it easy the rest of the day and on Sunday. They went back out and hit a few more shops and picked some of the things they found that would turn their apartments into a home and spent the rest of the day decorating them.

"What are you wearing tomorrow?" Maya asked before going back to her place.

"Definitely a dress," Lindsay said. "First impressions and all, right? Something nice but appropriate."

"Appropriate. Right. In other words...bor-ring!"

"Maya, even though we've already been hired, it's like an interview—not a date. Wear that cute mint-green dress you bought. It'll be perfect."

"Yeah, okay. I guess that'll work. I don't expect to run into any cute guys anyway. Not after what you said about men and elementary schools."

"Keep the faith, girl. You never know what tomorrow may bring."

"Easy for you to say. You probably don't even want to go out yet."

"I'm in no hurry," Lindsay told her. "But if the right guy were to come along, I would definitely be open to going out with him."

"Hey! When is open house again? There could be single dads and as long as they're not too old..."

Lindsay smiled and said, "Right. Your upper limit is what? Twenty-five? I don't think you're gonna find too many single dads at that age with kids in 3rd grade."

"I'd go out with an older guy," Maya said defensively before admitting 'older' meant maybe as old as twenty-seven. "I'm not like you, Lindsay. Guys over 30 are...old. Guys over 35 are...creepy. You know, like Richard."

"I'd go out with a guy my age. I'm just not afraid to date men who are older than me. They tend to be a lot more laid back and they seem to be very appreciative. Guys our age are all about themselves and hooking up."

"What's wrong with hooking up?" Maya said again sounding defensive.

"Nothing, if that's your thing. It's not like I've never hooked up. It's just not what I want. I'd like to find that one special guy who thinks I hung the moon, you know?"

"Yeah, I know. Mr. Bor-ring!" Lindsay couldn't help but laugh which made Maya laugh.

"I'm so glad you came with me, Maya," Lindsay said hugging her goodnight.

"Me, too," Maya admitted. "Even if I end up hating it here, you're here, and that's all that matters. Hey, if I haven't said it in a while, you know I love you too, right?"

"Ah! I love you back!" Lindsay told her. "See you bright and early?"

"Ugh! I hate mornings!" Maya said before promising she'd be ready at 7:30am knowing they were meeting with their new principal at 8am.

Lindsay drove and Maya was unusually quiet on the very short drive. "Wow. The school really is close," she said as she pulled in and found a parking spot. "You ready?" she asked Maya who looked very professional in the green dress with a pair of white sandals.

"Sure. Let's do this!" she said giving her sister a high five. "You look great, by the way," she told Lindsay who was wearing a dress that was a kind of dusty-rose color along with a pair of black sandals.

"Thanks. You, too. Okay, let's get this party started, shall we?"

They met the school secretary, a matronly-looking woman with black glasses who introduced herself as Ruth Kingman. "Mr. Phillips will be with you shortly, ladies. You can have a seat right over there and I'll call you when he's ready."

The 'twins' barely set down before the man whose picture Maya had seen on line came out and introduced himself. He really was a good-looking man who appeared to be maybe 40 or possibly even 45. He smiled and enthusiastically said, "Ladies! It's so good to finally meet you. I'm Gerry Phillips. Why don't you come on in and we'll get started. Would you like some coffee?"

Lindsay took a cup while Maya declined.

"Do you mind not having separate meetings?" was his first question.

"Not at all," Lindsay answered as Maya nodded in agreement.

For the next forty-five minutes or so, he gave them the rundown on the school. Academics, behavior, discipline, interacting with parents, emergency procedures, textbooks, supplies, and all of the other standard stuff teachers got from pretty much any principal. The last thing he talked about was the weather.

"You're from Denver so you're used to the cold, but the cold up here is severe enough to kill a child in minutes. I can't stress enough how critical it is to know where every child is at all times." He paused then said, "That means every second of every day. One wrong turn where a new student goes outside instead of where you sent them can be catastrophic. So no child ever, ever goes anywhere alone. Ever. Always two or more and you need to make sure they got where you sent them. We had a near miss two years ago and you can imagine what it would be like knowing it was one of your kids who couldn't be found."

The 'girls' had no questions so he let them know he'd look forward to seeing them the next day when they'd have four days of preparation to get ready for the first day of classes the following Tuesday right after the Labor Day weekend.

"Friday night is open house and I hope I don't have to say this but attendance is mandatory." He smiled, stood, shook their hands, and welcomed them aboard.

"So?" Maya said on their way home.

"So...what?" Lindsay asked.

"He's your type, right? That on-line pic is really dated, but for an old guy—a really old guy—he's not too bad looking and I didn't see a wedding ring, so..."

"He's our principal, Maya. Sheesh."

"Soooo?" she repeated. "If I were into older men..."

"Give it a rest, would you?" Lindsay said. "We've got a hundred things to take care of before classes start. Dating is not one of them."

"Speak for yourself," Maya said with a flip of her head. "Hey, how about lunch? You drive and...you pay."

"Gee, with friends like you," Lindsay said as both of them laughed.

After being seated, a rather cute young guy came over to take their order and when he asked Maya what she wanted she said, "For you to be at least 18?"

Their server smiled and said, "You're in luck."

"Oh, then...let me give you my number."

After taking their order and Maya's number Lindsay said, "Are you crazy? He's a kid!"

"Um, excuse me, but I believe he just said he was 18."

"Exactly!" Lindsay replied.

"In case you'd forgotten, 18 is legally an adult and he's cute. You may be into older guys, but I like them young."

"Yeah, but...children?"

"He's no child. Trust me on that."

She had a point. He was a very good-looking, very well-built young man and Lindsay couldn't argue that so she didn't even try. She just smiled politely as her sister openly flirted with her newest lust-interest whose first name was Shawn.

Just before they left, Maya told Shawn, "So if you've always wanted to find out what it's like with a teacher, give me a call, okay?"

"You're shameless!" Lindsay told her.

"No, I'm...aggressive. I see what I want and I go get it." Maya waited until they got in the car before asking her sister, "How long has it been since you got laid anyway?"

"What? Maya, that's none of your business!" Lindsay told her with more than a hint of aggravation.

"That long, huh?" she said with a wicked smile. "Well, it's been too long for me, too, but unlike you, I'm going to do something about that."

"With the Boy Wonder?"

"Call him what you want. He's hot!"

Lindsay just shook her head and headed back to their apartment. They spent the rest of the day together and the 'incident' with Shawn was forgotten until Lindsay saw him leaving Maya's apartment around 7 o'clock the next morning. She shook her head again then thought to herself, "Maybe I am a stick in the mud."

Maya was in a particularly good mood that morning, but Lindsay refused to admit she knew or to even play along. "Don't you want to know why I'm so happy?" she finally asked as they pulled into the school parking lot again.

"I saw him leave this morning," Lindsay reluctantly admitted.

"Oh, okay," she said with a smile. "Um...that handsome principal of ours is still single, you know." She glanced at Lindsay who was wearing capri pants and a plain blouse. "You might want to try something a little less...plain...if you want to catch his attention."

Lindsay rolled her eyes but didn't reply as they headed to work.

By the end of their first planning day, both sisters were very satisfied with the progress they'd made as well as with the many teachers who let them know they'd be happy to help with anything and everything from school-related issues to whatever.

"I really like the faculty," Lindsay said on the way home.

"Yeah, they're pretty great, huh? You were right, unfortunately, though. Not a cute guy among them."

Maya was right. The only male teacher was a 58-year man who was well, rather rotund and who had no hair from his eyebrows to the back of his head. The thick glasses he wore and the fact that he smoked heavily only added to the impression both girls couldn't help but form.

"But the principal is reasonably attractive," Maya said yet again.

Lindsay stopped at a red light and said, "I love you...like a sister." Both of them laughed before she continued. "But would you please, please STAY THE HELL OUT OF MY LOVE LIFE already?"

"Okay, okay. If you want to be eternally horny and frustrated, don't blame that on me," Maya said unwilling to admit she was pushing this way too far even for her. When Lindsay didn't speak or even smile, Maya finally said, "Hey, I'm sorry, okay? I'm just trying to look out for you, you know?"

"I know. Just let me look out for myself where men and dating are concerned, okay? And stop with the hints about the principal. He's our boss so he's totally off limits."

"Okay. No more comments. I promise."

Lindsay gave her a look that said, "Uh-huh. Sure," but otherwise let it pass.

To her great surprise, Maya didn't say another word the rest of the week to include at the open house when a handful of decent-looking men came by with their children to meet their new teachers. Of course, all of them had been married and Maya knew that was a line Lindsay would never cross. Even Maya drew that same line although based on the kinds of comments she made, Lindsay found herself less than certain of that.

"Are you nervous?" Lindsay asked Maya Tuesday morning. "This is your first day."

"A little. I just want to do a good job, you know?"

"You'll do fine. Just find your rhythm and once you do, things will flow very naturally. And I'm always around if you have any questions."

They were looking at the sky and Maya said, "Looks like summer is over."

"I know, right? It's supposed to get chilly tomorrow and it's only going to worse from there."

"This was your idea, Lindsay. Just in case you forgot," Maya said. Today, the parking lot was nearly full when they pulled in an hour before the start of school.

As they walked inside, they passed an Air Force NCO and Maya said, "Check out the Army guy! That's the first person I've seen in uniform around here since we arrived."

"He's in the Air Force, not the Army, but yeah, I haven't seen anyone else, either," Lindsay agreed.

"Wouldn't their kids go to school on the base?" Maya asked.

"Not if they live in our school district. They'd go according to the map the district draws."

A female Air Force major passed them as they entered the building and they saw a couple more people in uniform on the way to their classrooms. Maya was just across the hall even though she taught two grades higher. It seemed odd, but then that entire side of the hall was third grade while Lindsay's was first so...

"Have a great first day, Maya!" Lindsay said when she got to her room.

"You too!" she told her sister as she unlocked her room.

Lindsay had several parents and quite a few children already by her door. "Are you all waiting for me?" she asked. She recognized most of them from the open house as she opened her door.

One anxious mother wanted to remind her (for the fourth time) about her daughter's peanut allergy and show Lindsay where her Epipen was located before she could relax.

"Got it!" Lindsay told her knowing she still wouldn't relax. Another just wanted to be with her son right up to the last possible moment and Lindsay thought that was very sweet for a six-year old boy.

At about fifteen minutes before the start of school, a couple walked in and caught Lindsay's eye. The father was in uniform and the woman was not. Lindsay had initially assumed they were a couple until she noticed the man was extremely good looking while the woman was...well, not—at all.

"Hi, there!" she said. "I'm Miss Rollings." She looked at the little boy with them and said, "I don't believe we've met. What's your name?"

He didn't look and spoke so quietly she could barely hear him.

"Leif," he said.

"Oh, okay. Nice to meet you, Leif. You're not on my attendance roster." She looked at the adults for some help.

"Hi, Miss Rollings. I'm Leif's dad. I'm Grant Hendricks. This is my nanny, Ophelia Lightfoot."

Close up, Lindsay could tell she was either an Eskimo woman or possibly a Native American. "Nice to meet you both," Lindsay said with a smile.

"Could we maybe talk privately?" the father asked.

"Um, sure. I can't leave my classroom, but we can step back here into the corner."

She looked outside and saw someone else in uniform who seemed to be waiting on this Grant guy.

"That's my exec," he said. Seeing the confusion on Lindsay's face he explained. "He's my executive assistant. The Army calls them an 'adjutant.' He's sort of my right-hand man." He leaned closer and said quietly, "I'd say 'secretary' but I don't want to go there."

Lindsay found herself laughing even though she really didn't understand the relationship between them. In fact, she understood almost nothing about the military, but she did know the Air Force wore blue uniforms while the Army wore green. His was blue so...

"Listen, I wanted to let you know what's going on so you can understand why Leif is so quiet. His mother um...well, let's just say she left her at the end of the school year with someone who wasn't me and leave it at that."

"Oh, my goodness. I'm so sorry," Lindsay said sincerely.

"I wasn't sure I'd get him back, but after a nasty court battle, I got full custody. I have another year on active duty until I retire so that's why I have the nanny. But this whole thing has been really hard on my son. He cries a lot. Mostly at night but you never know. And he doesn't talk much. He used to. He used to talk all the time. Now he's just really sad and upset so I wanted you to know so you wouldn't think this is typical."

"Oh, my gosh. I don't even know what to say. I guess I'll just say thank you for letting me know." She looked over at him tucked in close to his nanny and said, "Poor thing." She looked back at this very attractive man and couldn't help but wonder what in the world would cause a woman to leave a man like that with a sweet little boy like Leif. The dad seemed pleasant and charming on top of being very good looking. Maybe there was more to the story and right now she didn't really want to know.

"I'll take good care of him, Mr..." She looked at his blue name plate then said, "Hendricks."

She saw him looking passed her so Lindsay turned and saw the younger man, also in uniform, tapping his watch. She heard him say, "Sir?" with a 'let's get going' look.

"I gotta run. Got a meeting with all of my pilots so I've gotta run. It was a pleasure meeting you...you did say 'Miss" didn't you?"

"Miss or Ms. is fine," Lindsay told him.

"Okay. Ms. Rollings."

As she walked toward the door, Lindsay couldn't believe what she was seeing. Maya had stepped out of her classroom and was shamelessly throwing herself at the younger airman.

"Oh, so you're a pilot in the Air Force?" she heard Maya saying as she smiled her best smile at the other, much-younger, also very-handsome young officer.

"Yes, ma'am. And this is my commander, Lieutenant Colonel Hendricks. Sir, this is Maya Rollings, whom I just learned is Leif's teacher's sister."

"Her younger, more attractive sister," Maya said batting her eyes at Hendricks before turning back to the younger officer.

"So let me just give you my number real quick, okay?" she told him as Lindsay stood their in shock, horror, and disbelief.

Hendricks and Lindsay had stepped just barely into the hall where she could still she her kids. Hendricks shook Maya's hand then smiled at Lindsay and said, "Oh, to be his age again."

"You don't look very old yourself," she told him truthfully.

Hendricks chuckled and said, "I'm a 40-year old lieutenant colonel and Gabe Moore here is a 24-year old first lieutenant. There's been a lifetime of experience between us. Seriously, though? I wouldn't go back if I could."

This Gabe had Maya's number, and he and Grant were getting ready to leave.

"Nice meeting you—both," Grant said.

"Likewise," Lindsay told him.

Maya did the 'call me' thing with her hand and mouthed the words as Gabe walked away.