My name is Tom James, I have been teaching high school for over ten years, and I love it. This story goes back to my very first job. After graduating, teaching jobs were not easy to come by, especially if you had no experience. I was twenty-two years old and probably looked younger. After a long, frustrating search, I was able to find employment.
Unfortunately, (I thought at the time) the job was a long way from home in a small town in Western Montanna. I needed to get experience somewhere, so I threw a suitcase in the trunk and was off to the middle of nowhere. With no savings and a job that did not pay great, I realized that I would need to rent a room. I was not excited about that prospect but accepted it as part of the adventure.
I was lucky enough to find a recently widowed woman of about forty, I would guess. Ann lived with her sixteen-year-old daughter—Jenny. She had a good job but could still use the additional income a renter would bring. Both Ann and Jenny were attractive, intelligent and loved to laugh. Jenny had a gleam in her eyes, and a magnetic smile I knew would get the attention of all the boys. From the get-go, we all hit it off very well. I arrived in mid-August so that I would have time to adjust to my new world and learn the area before beginning the school year.
Living in a small rural town was totally new, but surprisingly, I enjoyed it. The other teachers were friendly and welcoming, as well. Life in the middle of nowhere was more interesting than I had imagined. Living with Ann and Jenny could not have worked out any better. Ann appreciated having me around for Jenny, and I was happy to pitch in on the chores. Jenny was a good student, and I enjoyed our conversation, which helped me stay caught up with what high school kids were into.
In early November, Ann told me that she needed to attend a convention in Chicago and would be gone four or five nights. She wondered if that would work out for me or if it would be better to have Jenny stay at the farm with her folks. I told her that I did not see any problem at all.
"Jenny is a wonderful girl; we get along great, and I'm not going anywhere."
"Thanks, Tom, that will make it easier for both Jenny and me. I'm happy that you and Jenny get along so well. She is a great kid, just keep in mind that as good as she is, she is still a sixteen-year-old high school junior, and she may feel that she can do more just because I am not around. I'm sure that you two will do just fine, but don't let her take advantage of you."
"Understood, Ann. You just have a good trip and don't worry about a thing."
The following day, a Friday, Ann prepared a top-notch breakfast which included pancakes, bacon and fruit. We all enjoyed the meal and heard about Ann's itinerary. Just before the cab came, she said, "Now Jenny, you need to be a good girl and listen to Mr James."
"Okay, Mom, I'll be a good girl," Jenny said with a smile.
"I know you will, Jenny, but remember, I told Mr James to put you across his lap if there are any problems."
We all had a laugh at that as Ann headed out the door.
Everything went just fine. Friday night, Jenny attended her High School's football game with classmates. I was still awake when she came home. She was very excited to tell me all about the game (They won) and what a great time she had. We both slept in on Saturday morning. Jenny met up with friends later that afternoon to do whatever kids do in that part of the world. She attended a cookout event for dinner that night, and then returned home around 10 PM. She joined me to watch TV until midnight, when we both turned in.
Sunday morning, we attended church together. Jenny wore a cute white blouse and knee length skirt. She looked amazing. After church, she seemed pretty happy and kind of joking with me more than usual; I was wondering what was up but decided just to be happy that she was happy.
We sat in the living room talking for well over an hour after church. Then Jenny got a kind of curious look and said, "So Mr James (formally, as she always called me Tom), did my mom actually tell you to spank me if I was a bad girl?"
"Jenny, are you worried about that?"
"No, not worried, just curious if she really meant that. Do you think she did?"
"I haven't given it a thought, Jenny. I guess she did say that, but she was joking, I think?"
"Maybe Tom, but I was just thinking, if you did spank me, it would be pretty odd for you, don't you think?"
"What do you mean by that, Jenny."
"Well, I guess I mean that I am a sixteen-year-old high school girl; it would have to be a lot different than spanking some little kid, right?