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I slowly nod my head. “It’s not like I don’t know the right answer. I’m not happy about it, but I know what to do.”
“Then woman up and take care of it.”
* * *
The next dayI send Brody a text to meet me after class in his office. He texts back that he’s available.
As soon as I close the door to his office, he’s on me. He pushes me up against the door and kisses me. I love the way he kisses me. It’s so passionate.
I go to push him away, but instead, I find myself grabbing his shirt pulling him to me. I lift my leg and grind against him. It’s like he has a giant rod in his pants. Everything about his body on mine feels so right.
No. What am I doing? I pull my head away and push his chest. I’m out of breath from his kiss. “Stop. I didn’t come here for this.”
He looks disappointed. We both take a moment to catch our breath. “Sorry, I just assumed. Why did you want to see me then?”
“Why? Because we almost made another catastrophic mistake on Saturday. It can’t ever happen again.”
“In three weeks, I won’t be your professor anymore. Then we can be together.”
I sigh. “No, we can’t. You’ll have always been my professor. My grades can never be questioned. The integrity of what I’m doing here means everything to me. There’s nothingand noonethat’s worth compromising that. I can’t risk it. I won’t risk it.”
He moves back and falls into his chair in frustration. He looks like he’s been shot. “Well, what if I resign my position as a professor? It would be easy enough to make excuses about it interfering with my surgical practice.”
“That makes no difference, Brody.”
He tilts his head to the side as he looks at me in the eyes. “Harley, I’ve completely fallen for you. I can’t control this feeling. It’s like I physically need you. I know you feel it too.”
I close my eyes and lean my head back against the door. Tears are streaming down my cheeks. “Brody, I understand. Believe me, I understand. I’ve fallen for you too, but it changes nothing. It can never happen between us. I’m sorry.”
CHAPTERSIX
THE PRESENT
HARLEY
It’s early in the morning on the day before Thanksgiving. Mom and her boyfriend Jackson are in some kind of fight. She’s been back in bed crying for the past two weeks. I can’t go through this nightmare again. We’ve had the most blissful few months since they started dating, but now we’re almost back to where we started.
My sisters and I have a text group chat with his three sons, Payton, Hayden, and Trevor. Payton is thirty years old and married. Hayden is a twenty-three-year-old medical student. His crazy twin Trevor is in business school.
It sounds like Jackson is in the same shape as Mom. I don’t know what happened between them, but I can’t watch her slip back into a depression again.
I have a little over an hour before my shift at the hospital begins. I stop at Jackson’s house and ring the doorbell. He answers the door. He looks like hell. He’s in boxers and a T-shirt, with his hair sticking up all over the place. He clearly hasn’t shaved in the two weeks they’ve been apart.
I look him up and down while shaking my head. “Jackson, throw on some clothes. We’re going for a ride.” He doesn’t speak. He just turns and does as he’s told.
We get in the car and pull out of his driveway. “What happened?”
He looks down. “I fucked up.”
“Did you cheat on her?”
He looks up at me. “No. Why does everyone assume that when people have a fight it’s always about that?”
“Because it usually is. If you cheated on her, I’ll take you right back up your driveway to your house.”
He shakes his head. “Well, it’s not that. I love her. Not only would I never cheat on her, but I genuinely have no interest in other women. She’s all I see. Harley, I miss her.” He’s practically in tears.
I like that answer. I know he really does love her. I’ve seen him with her. I’m pretty sure she loves him too. “Well then, what the hell happened between you two?”
