Between the slightly irritated clicks of her heels, his heart pounded with military grade pride. His lady was being harassed by a loser and he had all the training in the world to handle this. He was also not on school ground. There was no policy about coming to the aide of a lady trying to deflect unwanted attention.

This is it

Slowly rising up from his chair, while keeping his head down, James got up and started towards the register. Using the sound of the increasingly more impatient heel click of an annoyed woman as fuel, James channeled his inner warrior and mentally placed his battle armor on in slow motion as he tried his best glide towards Elsie.

A solid open hand landed on his chest with a thud as the gym teacher had stepped to block his approach. Finally, slowly looking up, James leveled his eyes and smirked at his nemesis. The mental musical sound track of an Old Western dueling cowboys raised his testosterone levels.

Ms Clarke, looking puzzled, watched these two men standing face to face. Poor James. He stood no chance. There was a clear physical disadvantage working against the security guard friend of hers. She had to step in and do something. Save him from himself. This was not the time or place to impress.

The gym teacher pushed hard on James who just seemed to lean back Matrix style and rebound right back as if nothing happened. The look of iron willed determination etched across a mean beastly looking face that stirred deep seated heat that started to wet her woman hood.

James seemed oblivious to the warning of physical harm. The second push didn’t budge him one bit. Elsie stood back. The cashier stepped back too as the waitress hastily when for her bat. She was used to rowdy kids and having to chase them out. These two would be no different.

James was staring through his nemesis. He was seeing already the victorious kiss he was planning to plant on Elsie. There was no loss in his vision. With one smooth sweep of the leg, James moved around his nemesis as he winked at Elsie. Lined up next to the guy now quickly moving to counter, James changed course and shifted his weight aggressively hard towards his nemesis.

The shoulder shove caught the gym teacher unprepared as the wind was knocked out of him. He lost his balance and tipped over. Scrambling to regain his balance, he tumbled sideways towards the door. Crashing right through, he fell hard on the sidewalk. The door slammed back shut as if nothing had happened.

James kept moving steadily and confidently towards Elsie as the waitress picked up on the change in vibe in the room. His hand found the small of Elsie’s back as he lifted her up onto her toes and twirled her around victoriously.

Elsie, surprised by the bravado, braced herself to push her friend back if he attempted to kiss her. Instead, he released her and turned to go back to his seat. Silently.

James sat. Heart crushing his lungs with each beat. The room was on the verge of spinning out of control. He had Elsie’s undivided attention.

His nemesis angrily tumbled back into the shop looking for blood. Looking for a fight. Elsie moved in and before he could get a run towards James, she had his arm twisted behind his back and directing all of his energy towards the counter. His head met the solid counter top with a resounding slam. Knees gave out. He slumped down and struggled to maintain focus on reality. The waitress placed her knee on his back and kept him pinned to the base of the counter.

A few stiff warnings from both the women, the gym teacher found himself crawling out with his ego tucked between his legs as the principal walked in. Not saying much, he assessed the situation and gave Elsie a nod of approval. She had stood her ground. There was an element of pride tucked in that not, she observed.

Walking over to James’ table, Elsie made herself comfortable. She had a few questions that needed answering. And she had some unexpected wetness that seemed to eager to flow.

As they spoke, words flowed, emotions opened up, connection built, and the principal sat on his side of the room happy that his two genuine authentic people were finally clearing the air.

Several cups of coffee later, by themselves in the coffee shop, James slipped a move. Elsie caught the move and blushed. He had feelings for her after all. Her attempt to cover her rosy cheek mesmerized James and awakened his burning desires.

Pride filled his heart with renewed hope. The night grew long and their closeness intensified. They agreed that they needed to explore this set of feelings a bit more. They needed to help each other understand how much they admired and respected each other while giving room for more to blossom.

While James resisted the urge to be his corny self, he did take the helm of leadership and assured Elsie that he would not show any more signs of his affection in school to preserve her honor. The fact that she had given him part of her night, he found the means to be more polite and gentlemanly at work. Their new found connection would blossom carefully and protectedly outside of work.

Her laugh made him blush. She shifted in her seat and his wood grew. As she cleared her throat trying to hide her blushing, he was keenly aware to every sound of her movement. Especially every click and slide her heels made. He would soon need to rush to the bathroom.

In her timidity, she pressed the matter slightly. She needed to know if this was real or just a dream that would rudely end once she got up to leave. As he leaned in slowly, drawing her closer to himself as she mirrored his lean, he whispered that he had no intentions of ever disturbing this dream. The flash of her complete utter redness made him feel very warm and fuzzy as he looked and drank in her beauty. He had finally found that place he wanted. A sweet place in her heart.

Epilogue

As the principal reviewed the letter of complaint, he was not moved to act. Unlike before, where he had always catered to the whims of it’s author, this one required a different approach.

Game respects game. But honor and respect always trumps game. James had honor and respect and had found grace and elegance in Elsie. How could he get in the way of that? How could he mess with a perfect combination?

What was hardest to defend, after what he had witnessed in the coffee shop, James not only pulled himself together, but was back in top form of focus. No more moonstruck madness. Elsie was back to her usual devoted cheerful teaching self.

The small hints of flirting was gone. The hair flips were no longer. Sometimes, flats came out to work in place of her well-heeled mannerism. While most missed that, he made a note to talk to her about that. She was happily in love and it was not the time to start and slack on her A-Game of beauty. James needed to know why he had fought so hard for. He needed his click on the marble floor of the lobby main security post.

However, his hands were tied. There was not much he really could do to address the flats. It was out of line for his post, role, and relationship as a principal. He was hopeful that James would address that. Even if he had no proof that things had worked out for them, the air of confidence that flowed out of James was all the proof he needed.

He couldn’t wait for the next dance. That mid year dance would be interesting. The principal made sure to check the schedule. James would be off that night. Someone had to make sure the gym teacher did not go out of his face to win Elsie back, not that he ever had her at all, but still, for the sake of the kids. Junior officer would do just fine to keep the peace.

As his reflections ended, he smiled as her heard the famed click of marble. Elsie was in the building. Looking through his security’s feed, he saw that small nearly imperceptible smirk cross James’ face. They were on a great path together. She carried a slight extra sway in her step as she crossed the main booth… that disappeared as soon as she rounded the corner towards her class. His smirk vanished too.

They had mastered the art of subtle body language. He wiped his forehead. Those two somehow managed to raise the heat in his office. And no one else knew or caught on. He had gotten his lady finally. Smooth. James smooth.

He was James. James James. The secret agent with a double name, always on his A-game!