Rather than leave class quickly, I checked some emails on my laptop. And sure enough, Jace climbed the steps up to the lecture platform on his way out. I ignored him for a few moments, pretending to be immersed with whatever I was reading on my screen. Jace stood there patiently, hands in his jacket pockets, his bag slung over a shoulder and a smile on his face.
His presence was so infuriatinglymagnetic. It took all of my focus not to turn and give him my full, undivided attention.
Eventually, I closed my laptop and did turn to face him. “How can I help you… is it Strickland? Jace Strickland?”
“What do you think of the tuna?”
“It’s great! My cat will love it,” I replied.
He snorted. “You don’t have a cat.”
“How did you know that?”
“I didn’t,” he admitted. “But you’re easy to read. I can tell what you’re thinking right now, even.”
“Oh? You know I’m worrying about whether or not Professor Galloway is going to ask me to cover his Data Forensics class this summer?”
Jace’s smile deepened. “No, I’m talking about theotherthing you’re thinking. Regarding you, and me, and a distinct lack of clothes.” He made a show of squinting at me, like he could see through my skull. “Oh, we’re in a hot tub? I like that. Let’s do that.”
“AndnowI’m thinking that you should delete our Tinder conversation from your side.”
“Hmm. No, you aren’t thinking that. You’re picturing me in swim trunks. Which is inaccurate, because I like to wear a Speedo.”
“All joking aside… delete it.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Is that a command?”
I immediately realized that this line of attack was a mistake. He was already digging in, like my request was some sort of challenge.
“I just want us to cover our bases,” I said. “It would make me feel a lot more comfortable.”
“Like I said: I’ll take that into consideration. Professor.”
Ugh, he even managed to make his insubordination look sexy. That magnetic pull was still there, making me lean forward in the chair if only to be a few inches closer to him. I couldalmostcatch his scent…
“Have a great day,” he said, then left.
I had to take a minute to collect myself before packing up my own things.
He’s my student. I’m his professor. I need to stop thinking about it.
The simple interaction with him lingered in my mind for the rest of the day, and all day Tuesday. I expected a text message to pop up teasing me about Tinder some more, but Jace was strangely silent.
That afternoon, we had an all-hands meeting hosted by the head of our department. It was held in one of the larger auditorium classrooms on campus, and I was required to sit on stage with the seven other professors in our department. Students slowly trickled in and filled the seats, most of them looking bored. I watched for Jace for a bit, then pulled out my phone and started responding to emails.
“Hey, do you know what this is about?” I asked Professor Galloway next to me.
“Some big donation came in,” he replied. “They’re naming a building after a donor, but they also like to parade them in front of everyone as well. We had two of these last year.”
Sure enough, the head of the department came out a few minutes later and walked up to the podium, tapping lightly on the microphone. Another white-haired man stood behind him, smiling smugly. “Thank you all for joining me this afternoon. I know we all have busy schedules, but this truly is an exciting announcement. Parker Worthington, the gentleman standing behind me, has long been a supporter of the Criminology Department here at Smokey Mountain State, but this week he has gone above and beyond his usual generosity…”
I started zoning out while he droned on. I was in the second row of faculty, which meant I was somewhat hidden behind the very large Professor Eileen Mathers, but I didn’t want to pull out my phone and scroll. I felt like I was on display, smiling along with the speech.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I glanced at my Apple Watch to read the message.
Jace: You look good in red. Like an apple I want to sink my teeth into.
I kept my face blank, and slowly scanned the crowd of students in the auditorium. There were twenty rows of seats, each elevated higher than the last. But I couldn’t find Jace.
