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12
Shaye
“So you think it’s because he’s having a rough time at the club? Is business slow?” Sloane blows on her steaming hot coffee before raising her cup. We’re sitting at a table tucked away in a quiet corner of the food court, away from the countless kids tearing through the place. “I mean, it’s a dance club in one of the hottest areas of Manhattan. How hard could it be to get people to go?”
If Sloane has any clue about what really goes on at Culaccino, she’s never hinted to it. I watch my best friend sip her coffee and a tiny spark of jealousy ignites. Ignorance really is bliss, and I make sure to keep things about my family quiet for Sloane’s benefit. I always have. She’s my bridge to sanity, and the less she knows, the safer she is. I think that’s one of the things that originally drew Max to her. He could be himself and not worry about keeping up appearances.
I’d like to meet that guy. I think he has a lot to offer, apart from his ability to do severe damage with a Louisville Slugger.
“He’s just been…stressed about work.” I press a hand to my forehead. “This business—it’s his baby, you know? He’s done so much to get it to this point, and I guess…” I shrug. “…he’s trying to figure out how to stay on top.”
Understatement of the century.
“Well, I’m sure you can come up with plenty of ways to relieve his stress,” Sloane waggles her eyebrows.
I force a smile. If only. Looming doom and gloom overshadows the intimacy. It’s always on his mind, no matter what we’re doing. And there isn’t a damn thing I can do to bring him some peace.
But Sloane can’t know about any of that. I have to protect her from it all, the way Nico tries to protect me.
“I have a few ideas.” I pick up my cup and sip my hot chocolate. It’s not Swiss Miss, but it’ll do for now. I pull off the lid and frown at the whipped cream peaks at the top of the cup. I bet there aren’t any marshmallows swimming underneath. If only that could be my biggest problem in life.
“Shaye.” A deep voice startles me, and hot chocolate sloshes out of the side of the mug as I twist around.
“Professor Gary?” My eyes widen, and I can see Sloane’s jaw drop out of the corner of my eye. It’s hard not to gawk at an insanely sexy man whose bulging biceps and muscular chest are on display for the world to enjoy. I’ve never seen him dressed in anything other than one of his signature blazers. And I never could have guessed what lay underneath all of that tweed.
He grins at me, his blue eyes even bluer against the tight t-shirt clinging to his body. Good Lord, if the girls at school could see him now. “Funny meeting you here. I just finished reading your paper last night.”
A nervous laugh escapes me. “Oh, well, I hope you enjoyed it.” Dumb, dumb, dumb!
“I was actually hoping to catch you at school, but since you’re here…” His voice trails off and Sloane finally finds her voice.
“You know, I think I’ll just grab a napkin to clean up all of this hot chocolate. I’ll be right back.” She practically jumps out of her chair and trips over her own feet in her haste to escape, even though I know she’s dying to hear every word.
He sinks into the chair across from me, folding his massive forearms over the top of the table. “Listen, if I made you uncomfortable the other day, I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention to send you mixed signals.”
“It’s really okay. I didn’t mean to flake out on you. I’m just not used to talking about the, um, issues my friend is having.”
“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m really impressed with your insights, and I think you’ll find a lot of success in this field. You’re a very bright girl, Shaye. You have a promising future ahead of you.”
“Really? Wow, thank you so much.” I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. “That means a lot to me.”
“I look forward to reading your thesis in a few years.” His grin widens, exposing a dimple in his left cheek. He looks at his watch. “Listen, I’ve got to run. My girlfriend is waiting for me downstairs.”
Girlfriend? Duh! How could Adonis not have one?
“By the way, this must have fallen out of your backpack in my office the other day. I was going to bring it to you next week, but I’m sure you were missing it.” He opens his laptop bag and pulls out a notebook. My throat tightens as he hands it to me with a knowing look. “I’d imagine you have a lot to catch up on with your writing.” Holy fuck. It’s my journal! Did he read any of the entries? Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!
“Who the fuck is this guy?”
I gasp, jumping at my brother’s angry voice bellowing behind me, still fighting a near panic attack that my professor has read all of the sordid details about my mafia prince boyfriend, his sex den, and a mess of other crap I can’t even begin to recall writing about. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“Maybe I should ask you the same question, sis. You screwing around on Nico?”
“Who’s Nico?” Professor Gary furrows his brow.
My knuckles are white from clutching the edge of the table so tightly, and the breath I’ve been holding slowly expels from my mouth even though Max looks ready to pummel Professor Gary. I must have referred to Nico by name in the journal. Is it possible he didn’t read it after all? Am I just being unrealistically paranoid?
“Who the fuck are you? I think I asked that already, and I don’t like to ask things more than once, douchebag.” Max edges closer to the table with clenched fists, and my eyes dart around the food court. A nearby security guard eyes our table, and the need to diffuse this spiraling situation is pretty much immediate.
