Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 157308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 787(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 157308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 787(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
We made it to the English building twenty minutes before class. “All right, thanks, Wilder. Text me if you hear anything else about... you know.”
Wilder shot in front of me as I reached for the knob. “What are you doing?”
“Um, going to class?”
His frown deepened. “Is this what you always do? Skip inside every closed room? You don’t know who the hell is waiting in there for you. No wonder Saylor and her crew made an easy target of you.”
“Okay, ouch,” I replied. “No need for that last shot. And I’m not skipping into ambushes, I’m going inside my classroom.”
“Not like that you’re fucking not. From now on, you make sure the entrance is clear. Like this.” Wilder spun and kicked the door in.
Bang!
“Agh! Fuck!” A body thudded to the floor.
“See?” Wilder said to my bug-eyed horror. “What did I tell you? Some sneaky fuck was lurking in there waiting for his chance.” Wilder went in and glanced down at the sneaky fuck. “Hmm. I’d put some ice on that.
“The room is clear, Sinclair.” He blew out the door and took off. “See you in an hour and a half.”
“What the—Wilder!”
Running inside, I near tripped over Wilder’s victim flat on his back, clutching his dented head.
“Professor Anthony?” I dropped beside him, cursing handsome blond conspiracy nuts.
“What the fuck happened! Luna?” Groaning, he tried to get up and ended up half in my lap. “Did you throw the door open like that? The fuck?! Who shitting does that?!”
Adonis devolved into a string of profanity that wouldn’t get points for creativity, but would get him an A-plus and star sticker for passion. I grasped his head, keeping him still.
“Professor, it wasn’t me, I swear. Here, let me help you.” Getting an arm under his shoulder, I helped him up and guided him onto his desk chair. I hissed at the golf ball growing on his forehead. “That’s not good.”
“I’m fine, Luna.” He took hold of my wrists like he was going to push me away. “Wait. Someone else was with you. Who was it? Did they do this?”
“Uh.” I turned my back on him, riffling around in my bag. “I can neither confirm nor deny that person or persons unknown opened the door with too much force.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
I bit hard on my lip, penning in a laugh. It was hilarious listening to my serious, no-nonsense professor cursing like a drunk postgrad who just broke up with his fiancé. You didn’t have to ask me which version of him I liked more.
“Here, this will help. The nurse gave me extra for my wrist.” Cupping the back of his head, I gently tilted him back and placed the instant cold pack on his temple.
A soft sigh of relief cut into his rant, making his lids heavy. “Who was that?” he asked in a more even tone.
“He’s long gone, Prof. You’ll never catch him.”
“Don’t be so sure—” Adonis’s eyes popped open and locked on mine... over my breasts... which were in his face... as I stood between his legs... leaning so close over him I could erase the distance between our lips in an inch.
His gaze drifted down to my mouth. Beads of sweat prickled beneath my collar under his attention.
“Are you sure you’re okay, Professor?” His hair was soft against my palm. My fingers curled in his strands unthinkingly.
“I’ll be better,” he said softly, “when I give your friend a busted head to match.”
I giggled. “Schools tend to frown on professors bashing students over the head.”
“He’s a student? At least we’ve narrowed it down.”
Adonis was still looking at my lips. And I was still standing too close.
He rose, closing the distance between us.
“Did you do the reading last night?”
We sprung apart like colliding ball bearings, Adonis tripping over his chair legs, shooting away. I was on the other side of the desk as Alice and Eva walked in—the two of them threw me smirks on the way to their seats, but there was nothing else behind their looks to suggest they thought something weird was going on between Sinclair and the professor.
There is nothing weird going on! Adonis was not about to kiss me. The man has a head wound. He confused up and down, and didn’t know what he was doing.
Adonis roughly cleared his throat. “Thank you for this, Miss Sinclair.” He dropped the ice pack on his desk. “I’m fine now. That’ll be all.”
I crooked a brow at his send-off. That’ll be all? What was I? His secretary?
“All right.” I took up my ice pack. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to help? Pass out papers? Set up your lecture—?”
“No,” he said too quickly. “I mean, no. I can handle it from here, Luna. Please, take your seat.”
It was the first name that got to me. I made for my seat, ignoring the hissed insults from Alice. Victor soon arrived and dropped next to me. I quickly hid my hand and missing ring under the desk. There was no hiding my brace.