“Is that seat taken?” a voice asks. When I look up, a guy is gesturing to the desk beside me.
“There are several seats open up front,” booms Professor A-hole, his loud voice startling me.
I stand there in shock, looking between my professor and the guy just trying to find a place to sit.
“Are you saving it for someone?” the guy asks.
“It’s not taken.” I finally manage to squeak out.
“Can I squeeze by you?” he asks, placing a hand on my shoulder as I move so he can shuffle by. His touch feels foreign, and I flinch, but try to play it off by dropping quickly into my chair.
“If we’re done playing musical chairs, Miss Black, can we begin?”
What the heck is his problem?
I nod quickly and spend the next few minutes hyper-fixated on a syllabus that someone hands me so I can avoid Professor A-hole’s scrutiny.
“Sorry about that,” the guy next to me says. He has a boyish smile on his face. “I’m Jeremy.”
“Emma. And it’s okay. Professor Ali’s not my biggest fan,” I say quietly.
He chuckles softly. “I can see that.”
The rest of class is uneventful, and I’m almost disappointed that Professor A-hole has given me the cold shoulder. Normally by now he’d have called on me several times. What is wrong with me? Why am I desperate for this man’s attention?
“Your first assignment is a soliloquy. I can’t wait to see what you come up with,” Professor A-hole says, folding his arms over his chest before focusing his attention on me. “Class dismissed.”
I quickly pack my things and pull on all my winter gear, hat, scarf, and gloves.
When I walk outside the theatre building, all bundled up from the bitter cold, I shove my hands in my pockets hoping to warm them up. “It’s so freaking cold,” I mutter to myself through clenched teeth.
“Now is the winter of our discontent,” a deep voice intones from behind me, startling me. When I turn, I see Professor A-hole staring at me.
“Professor,” I say, quickly turning away.
“What monologue are you thinking of performing?” he asks with a tone that almost sounds like interest.
“I don’t know yet.”
“The world is your oyster, Miss Black. I know you’ll make the right choice.” He walks past me toward the Englishbuilding.
Frozen in place, my eyes track him as he walks away from me, roaming over his broad shoulders, before moving down to his perfectly round butt. Ugh, what is it about this infuriating man? It’s not like he’d ever show any interest in me like that.
I watch as he pulls his phone out of his pocket, taps on it quickly, then puts it against his ear, when my pocket vibrates.
Pulling off my glove with my teeth, I fish out my phone and notice a text from Daddy Dom.
Batman Dom
How’d your first day of classes go?
I smile to myself, happy to shift my focus to a man that actually seems to want my attention.
It was good. Professor A-hole left me alone for the most part.
I can’t wait for this class to be done so I never have to deal with him again.
When I look up, Professor A-hole is gone so I decide to go to the caf to grab dinner, but I stop when my phone buzzes again.
