AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You know darn well what it is. I figured that once JJ and Kenn found each other our work here would be completed and we’d be magically transported back to the pages of our book.”
He took a deep breath, savoring the delicious cadence and natural lyrical tone of her voice.
“They’ve been together for a month now. Plenty of time to know they were made for each other. So why aren’t we home yet?”
He thought he detected a tear or two in her eyes. He couldn’t tell her that he felt frustrated, too. His ideas to get them home always fizzled. He had tried hard to get her back to where her heart lay. But it never worked out. Failure was a new experience for him. He seldom failed in the novel.I don’t like it one bloody bit.
In that moment, he felt compelled to offer her some intellectual, logical explanation of her theory. But sadly, he was at a loss. He actually thought hers was as good a thesis as any. All he could do was offer her reassurance.
“We’ll get home, love. I promise you that.” Now he just had to come up with a plan. Again.
Chapter 44
Kenn swung his car into the faculty parking lot by the history department building, got out, and listened for the beep as he locked it.
He was still smarting from his mom’s knowledge of his one-month anniversary with JJ. And highly embarrassed that she had used the first night they made love as an anniversary marker. Parents definitely shouldn’t know that type of information about their children.
At least, it’s staying within the family, he thought, it could be so much worse. He walked into the departmental office before going to his own. He retrieved documents from his mail cubicle, then turned to talk to Deb.
“Beautiful flowers. Who sent them to you?”
Deb looked up from the computer screen with the smile of a Cheshire cat.
“Your mom,” she said, raising her eyebrows.
“Why did my mother send you flowers?”
“So I could give them to you.”
“Give them to me…?”
He knew there was a story behind this. And he was afraid to find out. He sighed and finally said, “Okay, I give up. Why is my mother giving me flowers?”Beautiful red roses at that.
“If you want to truly get technical,” Deb said, as her eyes danced with glee, “they’re really not for you.”
Kenn was irritated with her coyness. He knew the secretary well and had been through similar conversations. Of course, none involving flowers from his mother. The longer she strung out the conversation, the bigger the zinger at the end. He shook his head as he rubbed the back of his neck.
Sighing, he asked, “Do I even want to know who they’re for?” But he thought he already knew the answer.
“JJ.”
Kenn knew full well he shouldn’t ask the next question, but something inside of him urged him on.
“Did she happen to tell you why I would want to give JJ flowers?”
“Oh, yeah. She sure did, Professor Cooper.”
Now her eyes gleamed with devilish delight. “She told me this was your one-month anniversary of you and Professor St. Clair making—”
“Don’t go there.” He interrupted before she could get the words out. “I’m sure she was graphic in her explanation.”
Deb nodded and grinned.
The secretary stood, picked up the vase, and handed it to him. He reluctantly accepted it, shoulders slumped, and headed for the door. He was already trying to find a way to explain all this to his girlfriend.
And wondered if she would still be his girlfriend at the end of this mess.
He knew she would explode. Hell, he wanted to. Their relationship started off badly, to say the least. And he knew she was hesitant to even give love another chance. As he walked out of the history department office, he knew that he might as well be wearing a bull’s eye target.
