Falling From Grace: Student-Teacher Forbidden Romance

Chapter 24

[RECAP: Leonie accidentally flashed her knickers at Father Gabriel while doing a cheerleading move. Unfortunately they weren't sexy knickers...]

Mortified, Leonie wobbled as she exited the pose to pull her skirt down, and ended up falling off the bench with a cry.

Mai and Figgy rushed to her aid, full of concern.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Leonie protested. Except she wasn't, she had twisted her ankle.

In all the confusion she realised that Father Gabriel was helping her up as well. Despite the pain of her foot, his touch burned her.

"You landed heavily on that ankle. Can you walk on it?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm fine." Leonie tried to stand on both her feet to prove it, then collapsed against him.

"We'll have to get you to the school nurse," he said. "It may be broken." He then instructed the others. "Iphigenia, if you could support Leonie on the left, I'll take the right. Mai, could you please let Sister Barbara know what's happened."

Leonie's head was swimming. Overwhelmed by embarrassment, pain and the proximity of Father Gabriel, she could hardly think straight as he and Figgy helped her hobble back to school. She could smell the cologne or aftershave balm he used, it was very subtle, but enough to remind her of that earlier occasion.

They took Leonie up to the sanatorium and got her to lie down on a bed. Father Gabriel then sent Figgy to find Matron. There were no other girls ill at present, so all six beds in the room were empty.

Gabriel gave Leonie's foot a cursory examination while they waited. "I've only done basic first aid but I suspect it's not broken. Can you still feel your toes?"

Leonie could. "I'm sure it's just a sprain. I was able to put a little weight on it."

"That's good." He lowered his voice. "I'm sorry I made you walk. I could have carried you, but I wasn't sure... given what happened. I didn't want to cross any boundaries."

"It's okay." It wasn't okay, Leonie would have given anything to have been fully in his arms. "I'm super heavy. I would probably have broken your back," she joked.

Gabriel looked at her, his eyes serious. There was something in his gaze that she couldn't read. "I doubt that. I imagine it would be pretty easy to take you in my arms."

Then he realised what he had said, just as Leonie felt her stomach dissolve. He straightened. "I mean bear your weight. Anyway, Matron should be here soon and can decide whether you need an x-ray."

Leonie really hoped it wouldn't come to that. The whole thing was so embarrassing. Particularly as it was her own idiocy and showing off that had landed her in this situation. She wasn't really looking forward to having to explain it all to Matron. "I fell off a bench" sounded remarkably stupid.

As if reading her mind, Gabriel asked: "What were you doing on that bench?"

"A scorpion." She didn't elaborate and he frowned.

"A scorpion? It looked very precarious."

Leonie explained. "It's a cheerleading position. I was trying to demonstrate to the others."

"You used to be a cheerleader?" he asked.

"Ages ago."

It really was an image Gabriel could have done without. He had enough difficulty banishing images of Leonie from his head without picturing her in cheerleading gear. The glimpse he had already got of her backside was disturbing enough.

He was both relieved and disappointed when Matron appeared with a worried-looking Figgy in tow. Matron was a brisk-looking, stout nun as well as a qualified nurse.

"Let's take a look, shall we?" Matron pulled down Leonie's sock and pressed her ankle in a couple of places, causing her to flinch. "I don't think it's broken. But we'll put some ice on it and see where we are in an hour or so."

She turned to Father Gabriel and Figgy. "You can both be getting along, she'll be fine here. Thank you for your help."

Leonie thanked them too.

Gabriel smiled at her. "It had better not be broken, because I need you for my Abigail."

He was only saying it to make her feel better, Leonie knew, but the "my Abigail" phrase made her heart leap. She smiled back at him, unaware of the effect it had on the priest.

As he walked out, Gabriel was still trying to get the image of Leonie cheerleading out of his mind. He also found he was struck by a new sense of possessiveness when he was around her. When he had said "my Abigail" he had meant quite literally his. Which was absurd.

He headed for the chapel. A couple of hours of quiet contemplation and prayer might clear his head. If only it might also quell the physical urges of his body.

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Now if only Matron would have got out of the way...

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