Page 16 of The Casanova Complex

“And easy isn’t what we’re doing here, Legros. Sorry. I know you’ve probably spent the majority of your college career half-assing things, but that’s not who I am. This is literally worth half of our grade, and I’m not about to take the easy route instead of doing the actual work. Neither are you,” she spits back, her voice laced with disdain. Her annoyance is radiating off her in rolling waves, her spine straight as a board, her chest rapidly rising and falling, a flush spreading up her neck. “I’m not joking. I will not fail this because of you attempting to take the easy way out.”

I think something’s actually wrong with me, like in my brain, because the fact that she’s busting my balls like it’s a professional sport is having the opposite effect on me.

It’s turning me the fuck on.

I have to discreetly rearrange the semi in my shorts beneath the table.

Yeah, something’s definitely fucking wrong with me.

Oh well.

“Plus, how about you read the fucking room, dude. AI is literally killing our planet. And it’s people like you that would rather use it than actually do the work who are to blame for that. Just read the damn book and save some water.”

I hum. “Damn. Didn’t know that.”

“Shocker,” she deadpans. After a moment of glaring at me, she sighs, and her face softens ever so slightly, tension creeping into the space between her brows. “Why did you choose Creative Writing for a class anyway? Seems a bit off-brand for a guy like you.”

“A guy like me?” I say, reaching up to the chain around my neck and putting it between my lips, tossing it around my mouth with my tongue. My own little habit, I guess. This chain’s been my lucky charm since I was a freshman in high school. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

Merritt shifts in her chair, shrugging. “You’re a hockey player. I’m pretty sure the only one in the class. Creative Writing doesn’t seem like the easy route, so why that?”

Chuckling, I sit up straight and put my elbows onto the desk in front of me. “It was the only one that was left. I picked my classes late, so I had to go with what was left and would fit in my schedule.”

“Of course you did,” she says with an eye roll. The sound of her phone chiming has her reaching into her pocket. She pulls it out, frowning down at the screen before standing from her chair. “I have to go.”

Now?

Like right now?

“Uh, alright,” I say. “So, what’s next?”

She pauses putting her stuff into her backpack and then looks at me. “Next… you read the book. And if you don’t, then don’t bother showing up next time. You’re either serious, or you’re not, Legros. I guess we’ll find out then.”

She doesn’t say anything else, including a goodbye, as she hauls her backpack high on her shoulder and walks out of the door, leaving me alone in the dead silent study room.

I glance down at the sticky note on the table in front of me and groan.

Motherfucker.

CHAPTER FOUR

MERRITT

I am absolutely diabolical.

And I am extremely pleased about that, just to be clear.

It’s been two days since I all but ran out of the library’s study room and left Bennett Legros with his figurative dick in his mouth.

After that meeting, I am absolutely sure of two things.

One: He has no clue who I am. He doesn’t remember that night at the party. At all.

Clearly, a full-on conversation with me didn’t jog his memory.

Honestly, I’m not sure if that somehow makes it better or if it makes it even worse.

Two: He’s an even bigger pain in my ass than I imagined him to be, and I have no fucking clue how I’m going to survive two months of working with him on this project without actually losing my mind.