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Or bring Miles back.
That thought is enough to bring a burst of agony to my heart, and my hand unconsciously rises to rub the scar that lies beneath my shirt.
As soon as the professor dismisses us for the day, my phone rings, cutting through the chaos unfolding around me. My heart hitches when an unknown number flashes across the screen. I glance at the students flooding the corridor as I step into the swiftly moving stream and get swept away by the current.
“Hello?”
“Ms. DiMarco?”
“Yes. Who is this?”
There’s a slight chuckle from the other end of the line. “Oh, sorry about that. It’s Sharon from student services.”
“Oh.” My belly dips as my feet falter. “Hi.”
“When we spoke yesterday, you talked about applying for a private loan at one of the local banks to pay your tuition. I was hoping you could give me an update.”
I chew my lower lip. “Actually, I did talk to a few places. They said it would take a couple of weeks to get the funds.” And that’s if I qualified in the first place. Which is doubtful since I’ve never held a job.
There’s an uncomfortable pause.
“I’m afraid our hands are tied at this end. If you’re not able to pay your bill by the cutoff date, we’ll have to drop you from your courses.”
Icy fingers wrap around my heart, squeezing until it becomes impossible to breathe and I blurt, “I’m, ah, working on another potential solution. Can I call you back later this afternoon?”
“Of course. I hate to say this, but our deadline is strict. There isn’t any wiggle room.”
“I understand. Just…give me a bit more time to figure something out.”
Her voice gentles. “Let’s talk tomorrow morning. Hopefully, you’ll have some good news to share.”
By the time I end the conversation, my knees are weak.
Not more than thirty seconds later, my phone rings for a second time. Everything inside me nosedives when Chloe’s name flashes across the screen.
It’s tempting to ignore it.
After the money I demanded, I’m pretty sure she’s going to tell me the guy is no longer interested.
And I certainly can’t blame him for that.
“Hey,” I say.
“I just spoke with the client, and he’s agreeable to the amount.”
My mouth tumbles open as I nearly stumble to a halt until the person walking behind me jostles me back into motion again, grumbling something under his breath. Normally, I’d swing around and give him a quick apology, but all I can think about is the fact that some man agreed to the outrageous amount of money I threw out in a fit of anger.
“He did set a few conditions of his own,” she says cautiously.
Unwilling to have this conversation around so many people, I duck into an empty classroom and close the door. “What kind of conditions?”
“You agree to meet three times and get ten grand after each one.”
That’s all it takes for my heart to spasm under my chest.
I was hoping this would be a one-and-done kind of thing.
“After each visit, the money will be directly deposited into an account of your choosing. And if you want to cut things off at any time, you can do it, no questions asked.”
