“It won’t take long. A half-hour should be sufficient.”
Megs closed her mouth and nodded. “Okay, then. After my meeting, I’ll meet you in the atrium.”
“Excellent.” Erik’s lips twisted again. Megs didn’t need to worry. Erik was harmless despite his lack of perception when it came to social cues.
Gideon picked up his bag and followed as Megs walked to the back of the class. Since he’d heard her say she was going to the admin building, he turned right and walked down the same hall. As soon as they passed through the doors to the walkway and it was less likely anyone from class would witness him talking to her, he sped up.
“I’m sorry,” he said as he fell into step next to her. Her head snapped up, but she didn’t respond. “I was putting in grades and—”
“You don’t owe me an explanation. I get that I missed the deadlines.”
Gideon worked to calm his breathing.Was she walking faster?“I didn’t mean to blindside you.”
Megs tucked her curls behind her ear. “It’s fine.”
Gideon looked toward the parking lot as they reached the fork in the sidewalk, but he didn’t turn left. Instead, he continued on with Megs toward the doors of the main building.
“What are you doing?” she asked, not looking over at him.
“Walking.”
“Your car is parked over there.”
Gideon’s pulse flared. She’d noticed his car? Or had she only remembered he’d parked there the other night? “Maybe I have business to take care of in the admin building as well.”
“What kind of business?”
His mouth went dry. “A question. For one of the counselors.”
Megs raised an eyebrow, but thankfully she didn’t dig deeper. She pulled on the door he’d swiped her through on Friday night when she’d missed her class and strode toward the front desk.
What was he doing? He didn’t have business here, but his feet kept pushing forward alongside her. She’d mentioned to Erik that she was trying to talk to someone about another course she was enrolled in, and his curiosity got the better of him. “You’re talking to someone about the certification course?”
Megs sighed. “I’m going to try to. I figure the worst they can do is echo what the professor already told me.”
Even that tiny tidbit settled him. He didn’t want to talk to Megs like a typical student—like he didn’t know anything about her life. That should’ve set off warning bells in his head, but instead, it did the opposite.
When Megs asked the secretary at the desk which office she should go to, Gideon slowed next to her, then continued on in the same direction.
“Are you going to try and convince me the counselor you’re talking to is in the office next door?”
“No, I have new business to take care of.”
Megs’ brow furrowed as she scanned the room numbers of the offices in the hall. She stopped in front of one-twelve, then finally met his eyes as she raised her closed hand to knock. “Professor, while I appreciate the extremely odd escort—”
“I’m coming with you.”
The office door opened, and Megs’fist still hovered in the air.
“Can I help you?”
Megs spun, still reeling from the fact that Gideon had followed her to the community outreach coordinator’s office. “Uh, yes. I was hoping to meet with you about the coding certification course.”
The woman pulled the door wider and motioned for Megs to take a seat. She looked up in surprise as Gideon followed her into the room. “I’m Ms. Martinez, and you are?”
“Megs.”
“Professor Adams, from audio engineering.”
