Chapter 2

The two boys immediately stopped fighting, calming down at the sound of her voice. Yosef quickly pushed James away and ran to Emerald, sobbing.

“Ms. Greene… It was Jame's fault. He hit me here…” he cried, pointing to his stomach. “Blow it off for me, Teacher.”

Emerald shook her head and sighed as she examined the scratches on Yosef's arm. She was sure both boys had injuries, and this might be the end of her career.

“Alright. Teacher will blow it off, so stop crying. I’m here,” she comforted Yosef, gently wiping his tears from his flushed cheeks.

When Emerald looked at James, she noticed the blood on the corner of his lip. His eyes were staring at her, seemingly wanting care as well, but he stood in the corner, just watching them.

“It’s alright. For now, go with Teacher Iris to change your clothes, okay? I will call your parents,” she said, signaling Iris to take Yosef and change his clothes.

As usual, Emerald was left to explain the situation to the boys' parents. She had no other choice.

Once Yosef left, she approached James. Kneeling in front of him, she gently wiped the blood from his lips.

“It must be very painful, right?" she gently asked the little boy.

James' eyes turned sharp and he looked away. “It doesn’t hurt at all,” he pouted.

Emerald took a cotton ball and some Betadine from her pocket and gently applied it to James' wound. His mouth twitched in pain.

"Still saying it doesn't hurt, huh?" she said, facing the boy. “Tell me, why were you fighting again? Didn’t we talk about not fighting?”

In the entire school, Emerald was the only one who could speak to James like that because she understood him so well. Thankfully, she had the patience to handle such delicate situations.

James lowered his head and murmured, "He said I don't have a mom."

Emerald noticed the little boy’s trembling hands, as if he was desperately trying to hold back his emotions. Her heart tightened with empathy.

"Is that why you hurt him?"

James looked up at her, his eyes filled with a serious and pained expression.

“I promised you I wouldn't bully other kids here, so I told him that I'm not like him who doesn't have a mom or a dad. If that's his situation, how is he living now? After I said that to him, he punched me, Teacher. Is it still my fault?" James explained, leaving Emerald momentarily speechless.

The boy had likely been bottling up these feelings, and only now were they surfacing, as he rarely spoke at such length. Emerald was about to respond and teach him a lesson when someone suddenly called her.

“Ms. Greene, James' dad is here.”

Dad? Emerald thought to herself. She had never seen James' parents before, as it was always his nanny who dropped him off and picked him up. Maybe his dad is here because of the incident?

“Alright. Did you hear that? Your daddy’s here. It’s fine now,” she said. She straightened James' appearance and stood up to face his father.

Without looking up, she extended her hand to the man and smiled warmly.

“Good morning, Mr. Corrigan. I’m James' teacher, Emerald Greene. There was an unexpected incident…”

Before Emerald could finish her words, she stared at the man coming in against the light. Alaricson Corrigan was dressed in a black suit and leather shoes, with sharp, defined facial features and piercing eyes, exuding a dignified and distant aura.

Alaric glanced back and forth between James and Emerald for a few seconds before accepting her soft hand. His broad and rough hands held the delicate ones he had imagined many times.

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Greene,” Alaric uttered in a deep and gravelly voice.

Emerald's eyes had grown accustomed to seeing the man in front of her shirtless, so this was the first time she had seen him in a formal suit and tie. He looked entirely different from the night he had rescued her from drowning.

Alaric was wearing a black vest, military pants, and Martin boots that day when he pulled her from the water. The tight vest was soaked and clung to his body, highlighting his defined muscles. She could still feel his firm grip on her waist, the bulging veins on his arms leading to his hands, and even the prominent bump between his thighs, even though weeks had passed since then.

That first sight of him made Emerald's decision. She had assumed he was in the army because of his attire. He was rough and forceful in bed. Every time, she felt like she was being tortured to death, but she couldn't stop herself from wanting him more. Emerald craved him, especially seeing him like that. All she wanted was to kneel before him and worship him as her god. This man was breathtakingly hot and handsome.

Alaric's rough fingertips scraped against Emerald's soft palm, jolting her back to her senses. She quickly composed herself and pulled her hand away from his grasp.

She had always suspected that he might be wealthy, given that he always took her to five-star hotels. However, the calluses on his palms made her doubt whether he was just a pampered young master or a prince. It turned out that the man in front of her was the heir to the Corrigan Group, who had just returned to the country three months ago.

She never imagined that her casual fling would turn out to be the father of one of her students. Gods, what were the odds?

Emerald tried to push those thoughts out of her head. "Mr. Corrigan, I apologize. Unfortunately, there was a physical fight between James and his classmate just now. It's my fault. I didn't supervise your son well enough," she explained to Alaric. She loved kids, which is why she was in this profession. She couldn't afford to lose her job.

"Dad, it wasn’t Ms. Greene's fault, it was Yosef, that freak," James immediately countered his teacher's statement.

Alaric stared at Emerald even more intently. She looked formal and respectable, standing upright with her hands in front of her lower abdomen and her hair in a high ponytail, which highlighted her innocence and beauty. He couldn't reconcile this image with the irresistible and intoxicating woman he embraced every night.

Emerald felt the intense heat of Alaric's gaze and the tension it brought to her heart, making her swallow nervously. She felt as if this man was undressing her with his eyes.

"Mr. Corrigan, I will take good care of James from now on, and that’s a promise. I hope you can overlook what happened today..."

"Dad!" James tugged at his father’s clothes anxiously, as if he wanted to defend her.

Alaric's stare at Emerald deepened. "Son, your Ms. Greene is indeed at fault," he muttered in a hoarse voice.

Emerald's mouth opened slightly in shock. She bowed her head again to avoid his intense gaze and to hide her nervousness. Alaric's eyes fell on her exposed snow-white neck, where the dark red mark was clearly visible. That love mark was from him. The memory of their night together flashed through Alaric's mind, prompting him to step closer to her without hesitation.

“You should stop interfering in the kids’ fights,” he whispered to her.

Emerald’s skin prickled as Alaric’s warm breath grazed her neck, almost as if deliberately. Despite the other teachers being occupied with the day's event, they were still at school, with people coming and going. What was this man doing to her?