I couldn’t believe that it was happening.
I parked outside his house and wasted no time getting to him. I knocked twice on the door before I pushed it open and darted inside.
“Hello?”
“What the hell is going on?” He appeared from the kitchen, and as I took in his shirtless form, I smelled pasta.
“You’re gonna wanna stop whatever you’re doing and come talk to me.” I ran my fingers through my hair and walked into the front room.
“Jesus,” he muttered. He joined me in the front room, wiping his hands on a towel. “Okay, now can you tell me?”
“Remember how I said you e-mailed me?”
When he nodded, I exhaled heavily.
“Yeah, it wasn’t you.”
“I told you that. Are you sure it was a new e-mail?”
“Yes!” I was getting exasperated with today. “It was Carly Banks.”
Jordan stilled. “I was afraid of that.”
“She knows. About u—wait, what do you mean you were afraid of that? Did you know that she knows?”
He took a deep breath and let it out on a pained sigh. “I found out an hour ago. She caught me before I left campus.”
“And you didn’t think it was important to tell me?” I was kind of shrieking now.
He tossed the towel to the side and crossed the room to me. “Listen to me, sweet thing,” he said firmly, cupping my face. “Let me deal with this. I have a plan.”
“Can I know the plan? Because, if I’m gonna get my ass hauled into the university boss man’s office tomorrow, then I need to know what the hell is going on so I don’t fuck myself!”#p#分页标题#e#
“Darcy. Breathe. Your having a panic attack isn’t going to get this situation solved.”
“Situation solved? Situation solved? Nothing will solve this situation short of getting a time machine! So, unless you know the Doctor and he can hop over here with his fucking TARDIS, I’m going to panic!”
“Darcy!” he snapped, making me stop and stare at him. “I have this under control. I’ve had this planned since the first time I kissed you. I’ll protect you. Do you understand that?”
My lungs were still begging me for oxygen, and my heart was still aching, but somehow, I nodded. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Do you trust me?”
“Of course I trust you,” I whispered, and I realized I did. Wholeheartedly.
How funny.
Jordan softly kissed me. “Now, please calm down.”
“Easy for you to say,” I whispered to myself as he walked back into his kitchen.
He wasn’t the one who was facing their future being ripped away from them. Sure, he’d never teach again, but he’d still have his work as a historian.
I’d have nothing.
Dear Professor, we’ve got this, right? Right. Xoxo, Darcy.
My summons had come early. The e-mail had been glaring back at me from the top corner of my phone screen when I’d killed my alarm this morning.
Now, I was standing outside the university director’s office with my heart in my throat, my stomach hurting, and my hands trembling.
I was terrified.
Although I had always known that my life choices since coming to Chicago could have ended up in this way, I hadn’t thought they actually would.
How naïve of me.
The door opened, and Dr. Lewellyn appeared in the space.
“Miss Hamilton?”
“Yes, sir.” I took his offered hand.
“Please come in and take a seat.”
Blood thundered through my body, and my heart beat so hard that it was painful. I walked into his large office and perched on the edge of a leather chair. I couldn’t describe how I was feeling, except for sick. I was just sick.
The door closed, and I briefly shut my eyes as the finality of that sound seeped into my skin. Dr. Lewellyn took his sweet-ass time walking around his desk and sitting down. When he finally did, he removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Help me out here, Miss Hamilton,” he said in a gravelly tone. “I’ve been over and over your records for the past two hours, and I can’t find a single thing that enlightens me as to how you managed to get yourself into this situation.”
“Well. I…um…” I sighed heavily and looked at my hands. “I have a somewhat…unorthodox, but entirely legal, way of funding myself through college. Sir.”
“I think I can imagine without any further details.” He set his glasses down and peered at me with steely, gray eyes. “But that doesn’t explain to me how you got into a relationship with Dr. Keaton. It is, of course, against university policy, not least the law.”