slapped her pen down and glared at me. “When you mouthed off last night, the other cop went around checking IDs—”
My stomach plummeted. The thought of Shelby being thrown in jail because of me nearly made me barf right there on the table. “You’re underage? Shit, why didn’t you run ou—”
“I’m not underage. I’m twenty-one. But my ID was downstairs in my apartment.”
The tension released from my shoulders. “That’s it? That’s not a problem. Even if they had taken you in, you would have just shown your ID and—”
“That’s not the point,” she interrupted. “You’re reckless. And careless, with yourself and with others—”
“Whoa.” I held out two hands. “Jesus, I’m sorry. I didn’t see you come in, Mom.” If looks could kill, I would have dropped dead right there at that conference table as Shelby’s expression iced over into a frozen tundra. “So, if you’re not here for community service, why are you here?”
Her glare hardened even more. “Some of us work here—and volunteer here because we like helping out. It’s not always to get something out of it, you know.”
“So which is it…do you volunteer here or do you work here?”
“I’m the assistant program director. Yeah, I get paid, but believe me when I say I’m not here for the money.”
I kind of loved that she worked here when she didn’t have to. And I loved that she was pissed and didn’t let my smile thaw that anger. I nodded as her brown eyes glittered, challenging me to mock her for this job. I didn’t. I couldn’t. Damn, if it didn’t make her even hotter. Clearly, if she was living on Congress Ave, she didn’t need the money. So she was doing this…why? The answer was obvious—because she loved helping. “Wow,” I finally managed through my cotton mouth. “Good for you. That’s awesome.”
Her eyes widened a fraction of an inch before she regained her composure. “Thanks.” She paused. “It is awesome.”
“So…I guess this means we’ll be working together for the next couple of months.” I gestured at my paperwork and dropped my feet from the table. “Does that make you my boss?” A smile turned up my lips. Shelby responded just as I’d hoped—with a tiny twitch of her own lips. Not a full on smile, but I’d take it.
“In a way, yeah.” She dove into the paperwork, whistling. “Two hundred hours? Wow.” She looked up, eyes wide, and I shrugged it off. She’s so eager to help these kids, how would that look if I seemed bothered by it?
“I’m sure they’re making an example out of me. What else would I do with that time, anyway?” There were at least a dozen things I could do with that time, half of which involved Shelby in my bed with her legs straddling my face.
She exhaled a puff of air. “Well, let’s get you started, then. You seemed to get along well with Sophia. She doesn’t have a mentor yet and could really use someone who will be stable in her life for a few months while she gets a handle on long division.”
Nerves clenched in my chest. “She’s a little…young. I thought I’d get one of the older kids. A guy, preferably.”
Shelby’s fierce eyes shot up like she saw right through me—saw that by hanging with a teenage boy, it’d be more like I was hanging out with friends in my living room than at a tutoring center. She cleared her throat. “Unfortunately for you, all the older guys have mentors already. You’ll be with Sophia.”
Ugh. “Great,” I lied. “How often am I expected to come in?”
“As often as you can, but the kids do a lot better when there’s a set schedule. Monday through Friday after school would be ideal. Sophia’s mom doesn’t get home from work typically until seven, so she’s here every day.”
I pulled out my phone, scrolling through the calendar. “Hmm, can’t do Tuesdays. Basketball. Thursdays are tough, too… Thank God it’s not the weekends, right?” I looked up to find that hardened glare back, and I grinned at it. I couldn’t help it. “The schoolteacher glare is pretty damn cute on you.”
“Cute?” Her eyes widened to epic proportions.
Oops. Did I say that one aloud? I leaned back in the chair and folded my hands across my abs. “All I meant was you pull off the ‘boss’ thing well. I like it.” I winked and wiggled my eyebrows once.
With a sigh, she rolled her eyes, making a note. “Do you think that a little wiggle