Page 79 of Fundamentals of Chemistry

My heart jackhammered in my chest even as I held my breath. He wouldn’t make a scene in front of the students. Would he?

A smirk spread over his face as he closed the distance between us. When I heard him say “Good morning” like he did almost every day, I replied in kind by reflex. But I was taken aback when he added, “You look beautiful today,” in a low tone that only I could hear.

“What?” I spluttered, my eyes practically bugging out of my head.

“I brought you a coffee.”

As if controlled by strings, my hand reached out and took the to-go cup that I hadn’t noticed he was holding.

“Thanks,” I said lamely. “I’ll see you later.”

“Enjoy your free period,” he said as I scurried from the room clutching the coffee.

I didn’t stop walking until I was outside. I sucked in a deep breath to the count of four, relishing the bite of the chilly fall air. I replayed the brief and bizarre conversation in my head, and I couldn’t make sense of it. So, I did the only thing that did make sense to me.

Silvia picked up on the first ring. “What happened?” she demanded.

“I don’t know,” I replied, shaking my head.

“What do you mean ‘you don’t know?’”

“I don’t know,” I said again. I sat heavily on a bench, dropping my bag next to me.

“You didn’t accidentally go down on the abs-hole again, right?”

“No!” I hissed, sitting bolt upright and looking around as if someone might have overheard. The quad was deserted. “And don’t call him an abs-hole.”

“Why not?”

“He… I don’t get it. I was trying to avoid him after yesterday, but he cornered me after class and gave me coffee and told me I was beautiful.”

“How is the coffee?”

I had forgotten the cup was still in my hand. I took a tentative sip and hummed in caffeinated bliss. It had caramel syrup and a splash of milk, exactly how I liked it.

“It’s perfect,” I said. “That has to mean something, right?”

“Not necessarily,” Silvia said, cautiously. “Mel, you know I love you to death, so please believe me when I say that you can’t read too much into this. The guy is flaky. You said it yourself—he keeps leaving and pushing you away. If he wanted something, he’d stay. It’s that simple.”

I rolled my neck, trying to stretch out the tension. “You’re right. I know you’re right,” I said. “There’s just… something. I feel it. He’s so good. You should see him with the students. He’s so good with them—”

“Stop. Just stop, babes. He’s blinded you with science. The semester is halfway over. Finals are in… how many weeks?”

“Seven,” I said.

“Seven. Exactly. That’s not much time. You need to focus on landing that job. That’s the most important thing, right? It’s what you wanted?”

The reminder felt like a sharp slap in the face. A bucket of ice water dumped over my head. She was completely right. I wanted this job more than anything. I wanted to prove to my parents that I could get by—no, not just get by, flourish—on my own. I didn’t need a silver spoon or a division at Burke Ltd. And I didn’t need a man, even this man.

“You’re right,” I sighed. “I need to keep my eyes on the prize. It’s crunch time.”

“Attagirl! Alright, I have to run to a client meeting. I love you! Text me later!”

The line went dead before I could say goodbye.

I checked the time on my phone before slipping it into my bag. Second period would end in twenty minutes. It wasn’t really enough time for me to do anything. I took another sip of coffee. It had cooled off since I’d been sitting here, but it still tasted like a barista made it. Jack said he had worked a lot of jobs. Maybe one of them was in a coffee shop.

As much as I hated it, I knew Silvia was right. Even if Jack wasn’t a walking beacon of mixed signals, he was still my professional rival. I couldn’t let myself forget that. According to Richmond, I still stood a chance at winning this job. I needed to focus. I needed to succeed. The idea of facing my parents if I was the one let go was unthinkable. They wouldn’t be disappointed in me. No, they would be smug.