Her Lifelong Dream by Judy Kouzel Read Free Book Online Page A

see you there. I'm
the class instructor."

     

The classroom was crowded and noisy when Leedy arrived. The room was buzzing with lively conversation from
far more students than she had expected would be there.
She found an empty desk in the third row, close enough to
keep an eye on the attractive instructor, but not too close
as to appear overly enthusiastic. She spotted Terry as soon
as he arrived in the classroom. He had been blessed with
a charisma that allowed him to walk into any room at any
time and have everyone's eyes turn to him. He had a way
of making his presence known with minimal effort, even
in a crowded and noisy classroom. He set his briefcase
down on the desk in the front of the room and looked at
his watch.
    The sight of him took her breath away.
    Terry spoke amicably to the pupils hovering about his
desk. His blue eyes were alive with enthusiasm, his brown
curly hair was tousled in a boyish disarray and he was, at
least from Leedy's point-of-view, incredibly handsome. "Rats," she thought to herself. "Why does he have to be so
gosh darn good-looking?"

    As if he could read her mind, Terry looked up and
glanced in her direction. He moved his eyebrows up and
down in a greeting and beamed. He was pleased to see her.
    "All right everyone," Terry said, standing up and facing
the students. "We've a lot of material to cover tonight, so
let's get started." The classroom quieted to a murmur of
shuffling papers and shifting chairs as everyone settled
down and took their seat. "My name is Terry Foster," he
continued, flashing his gorgeous smile. "And I'll be your
instructor for the next six weeks."
    He wore a pair of faded blue jeans and a blue buttondown oxford shirt. Leedy liked how he looked in his casual
clothes. Like a college boy, only sexier. She scanned the
room. There seemed to be an unusually high ratio of young
women in the classroom, most of whom were watching
Terry with ardent interest. One woman in particular caught
Leedy's eye. She was sitting in the front row, directly in
front of Terry's desk. She was attractive, with perfectly
coifed blond hair and dark sultry eyes. She wore an expensive brown suede skirt and a plum-colored silk blouse.
Leedy wished she had worn something more flattering than
the faded blue jeans and navy blue turtleneck she had chosen. Suddenly she felt out of place, as if she had shown up
to a ladies' tea party wearing army boots. She watched as
the blond woman shook her long shiny hair and fluttered
her eyelashes at Terry, all the while smiling at him seductively.
    "As I'm sure you all know, this is a class in Small Business Management," he said, returning the blond woman's
smile with one of his own. "I've spoken with many of you and I know you're here for different reasons. By way of
introduction, I would like to go around the room and have
each student introduce him or herself, and tell everyone
why you're taking the class." Terry nodded to the woman
sitting on the farthest corner of the first row. "Betty?"

    "I'm Betty Fulbright," said a soft-spoken woman. "I'm
hoping to start up a custom-made quilting business on the
internet."
    "Joyce Clay," said the woman seated next to her. "And
I'm just here to expand my professional horizons."
    "A noble ambition," Terry noted. "Next?"
    "I'm Krissy Montgomery," cooed the blond woman in
front of him. "I'm a financial planner in town and I run my
own office. I'm here to learn more about my customers'
small business needs so that I can better serve them." Leedy
fought the urge to roll her eyes. Krissy Montgomery's voice
and manner, like the rest of her, was perfect. Even her name
was adorable.
    "I'm Brad Mercer," said the man seated at the desk next
to Krissy. "I want to get a better handle on my homeimprovement business."
    "Charlotte Renner, and I'm opening a day care center."
    "Mike Lawrence. I have a small accounting firm in town
and I'm here to better serve my customers. Just like Miss