She was absorbed in her second task, pulling the notes together for the progress report, when she heard a knock at the door. She looked up. How many hours had she been at it? She glanced over at the desk clock. Three-thirty in the afternoon already. Where had the past couple of hours gone? It seemed like less than half an hour since she'd sat down at the desk.
She got up and stretched then strode to the door. It was probably Kirk coming back for more of Jenna’s stuff. She didn’t mind. Although he seemed shy she might just strike up a conversation with him, maybe ask him a few things about the region.
She pulled the door open, a welcoming smile already on her face. But it wasn’t Kirk who filled her doorway. It was Stone.
“Hey,” he said, smiling down at her. “Overwhelmed yet?”
Indie laughed. “Not yet.” Her heart feeling light with the pleasant surprise of his visit, she stepped back to let him in.
“Brave girl,” he said as he ducked his head to step through the doorway. Then he turned to her. “But don’t worry. You do have a second in command. A vice principal of sorts. Anita is her name. A competent woman. In fact, before Jenna came on board she held the fort for a good two months.”
“That’s good to know. I was wondering why Jenna departed so suddenly, like she was leaving me to sink or swim.” Indie waved a hand, directing Stone over to the couch. “Good to know I have somebody here who knows the ropes.”
“Of course.” He sank into the chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him. “You need time to get your feet wet. Anita will pick up the slack while you’re in learning mode. In fact,” he crossed his ankles then rested an arm on the back of the chair, “you have a top class crew. All this ship needs is a good captain to keep her pointed in the right direction.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” she said, and she meant it. “I already have some ideas I’d like to implement in the home and even in the school.” Warming to her subject, she sat in the armchair across from Stone and leaned forward. “What do you think about adding vocational subjects to the curriculum for the older boys? I remember in school I used to love tinkering with old cars. What if we offered introductory courses in auto mechanics, building construction and agriculture? The way I see it, it could only complement the academic curriculum. It certainly wouldn’t hurt.” She tilted her head. “What do you think?”
He shrugged. “I’m not an educator but from my layman’s perspective I don’t see why not. Why don’t you lay out your proposal and I’ll have someone from the ministry of education have a look at it? It might be worth getting the opinion of an expert.”
“Consider it done,” she said, relieved that he was taking her suggestion seriously. “It will be in your hands before this week is out.”
“Sounds good to me. Anything that will prepare the boys for high school and for life, I’ll support one hundred percent.”
That made her pause and shake her head. “You’re so dedicated to those boys. It’s such a pleasure to find a wealthy man who cares enough to give to others.”
That made him frown, but he looked more thoughtful than angry. “You find that strange? Most of my business associates have charities that they support wholeheartedly. Some of them give away millions every year.”
Now it was Indie’s turn to frown. “Really?”
Stone nodded. “Really.” He pulled in his legs then sat forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “You know, rich people tend to get a bad rap but you’d be surprised at how many of them actually do a lot for the disadvantaged. The majority, I should guess.”
Slowly, Indie nodded. “I think you may be right. All my adult life I’ve been dashing from country to country, working for various non-profit organizations, feeling good about myself for helping others. I never really gave enough thought to those people behind the scenes who may not have participated directly but were critical to the success of the projects through their financial contributions.” She gave Stone a crooked smile. “I stand suitably chastised.”
“You do, do you?” He gave her a suspiciously mischievous grin.
“I do.”
“Well, I know one way you can make things up to us rich folks.”
She chuckled. “How?”
“You can have dinner with me tonight.”
Had she heard right? “Did you just ask me out?” she demanded playfully.
“I did.”
“So where are we going to have this dinner? At Café Out-in-the-Middle-of-Nowhere? We’re practically in the wilderness.”
“I’m inviting you to dinner at my house.”
“At…your house.” Now that was different and sort of…intriguing.
“It’s just a cottage, really, no bigger than yours. Behind the main school building. My home away from home. So…are we on for dinner?”
Indie nodded. “I’d love to, just as long as you don’t poison me with your cooking.”
He laughed out loud. “Don’t you worry about that. My meals come fully catered, complements of the home’s resident chef.”
“Oh.” She pouted, feigning disappointment. “And there I was, thinking you were going to make a special effort just for me.”
“Maybe next time.” Stone got up and gave a leisurely stretch. “I’d better get going so I can tidy up before you come. So you’ll be over around six?”
“Six is fine with me.”
“Want me to come get you?”
“I’m sure I’ll find it.” Indie got up, too. “The compound is big but not that big that I can’t find you.”
“Great. I’ll see you at six then.”
He headed for the front door with Indie right behind him. As he let himself out she couldn’t help but admire his broad shoulders. It must be because he was standing in the narrow doorway. It made him look big and strong, every bit the macho man.