Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
“I had no idea you and Nola— Professor Jameson were friends with Max O’Reilly.”
Garret chuckled. “Yeah, that asshole? We go way back. He and Nolan grew up in the same house, actually. And I lived next door.”
My brows arched. “Wait, seriously?”
“Yep. He went off to Wall Street, I did my thing with the Navy, and Max went off and got famous. And now here we all are.”
“Well, I’m going to be out of the way soon,” I said quickly. “Tonight, actually.”
“Nolan told me.”
My head jerked up, my face going crimson.
He’d TOLD him?
“You know, about your living situation.”
My whole body sagged, the breath of relief whooshing out of me.
“Oh, yeah, it’s…” I shrugged. “It’s fine, I’ve got it figured out now.”
Lies, of course. But as incredible as it’d felt to sleep in a room that felt like a home, I knew I couldn’t stay. Not with what’d happened with Nolan, and now with the Max thing, it was just too complicated.
Garret eyed me. “I call bullshit.”
My face reddened as I tried to meet his stern look.
“No, really, I’m good.”
“Where are you staying?”
“A friend’s.”
“Which friend.”
I blushed. “You sound like my dad.”
“I’m old enough to be your dad.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, well, don’t worry about me, Professor Cole. I’ll be fine. And I’m not a lost kid, I’m nineteen.”
His jaw clenched, the muscles in his neck standing out for a second as his eyes flared.
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “You are.”
I took a slow sip of my coffee, feeling my face burn and a teasing sort of heart creep through me into places it really shouldn’t.
One house with three insanely good looking older men who made me feel tingling things no man had ever made me feel before. Yeah, I definitely couldn’t stay there.
“Well, I should go,” I lied. “Got some work to do at the library back on campus.”
“Want a ride?”
Because that worked out so well with your friend easier…
“No, thanks,” I mumbled quickly, my face reddening at the memory of Max’s lips searing across mine and his hands making me turn into a puddle on his lap. “I’ll just walk.”
“The house really is yours to stay in if you need, you know,” he said quietly. “I know it’s probably lame with two of your old-guy teachers cramping your style, but, it’s a bed.”
I giggled. “Uh, trust me, Professor Cole, if most of the female students at Gilman knew I slept in the same house as you and Professor Jameson last night, I’d be the most popular girl on campus.”
My mouth snapped shut the second the words left my lips, but it was too late. My face blushed furiously, and I felt my stomach drop as what I’d just said sat in the air between us.
Please stop taking, self.
But Garret just grinned as he sat back in his chair, one brow arched as his eyes moved over me.
“Well, lucky you then, I guess.”
Oh, lucky me alright…
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
Kenzie stared at me, her jaw hanging open and this mix of hurt and anger on her face. I’d finally caved and told my friend about my housing situation. Or rather, my lack of housing.
“I seriously don’t understand why the hell you’re not just staying at our house!”
Again, Kenzie lived with her two boyfriends — two much older, insanely good looking and truly incredible guys in this big sprawling castle-like mansion a little drive from campus. But again, crashing at her house, while tempting, just hadn’t been something I was ready to do. Maybe I’d been too proud to tell my friend that I was scraping by, or maybe deep down, being around three people that happy hurt more than I wanted to admit.
“I didn’t want to butt in!”
“Dude, we have ten bedrooms. Literally ten of them.”
I grinned, shaking my head. “You know I appreciate it, I just didn’t want to impose all my shit on… you know, that whole thing you’ve got going on over there.”
Kenzie grinned. “My whole thing like me and my two boyfriends?”
I blushed. “Yeah, that.”
She rolled her eyes. “C’mon, it’s not like we run all over the house naked having threesomes all the time.”
My blush deepened.
“Well, I mean, not all the time we don’t.”
“Kenzie!” My face burned as I buried it in my hands, my friend giggling as she put her arm over my shoulder.
“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. It’s really not whatever x-rated porn plot you’re imagining.”
“I imagine nothing.”
She winked. “Yes you do.”
I groaned and buried my beet-red face in my hands again.
“Okay, so you’re staying where exactly?”
“A friend.”
She arched a brow. “It better not be that Matt shit-head.”
“No, God,” I made a face.
“So?”
I eyed my friend, chewing my lip. “You— you can’t say anything, okay?”
“This sounds oddly scandalous for you.”
When I didn’t respond, her brow shot up. “Spill it!”
I took a deep breath. “Professor Jameson.”
Kenzie started chuckling.
“Oh, hilarious. C’mon, Cora, you can tell—”