My cheeks felt hot. I wanted to respond to him.
In the seat to my left, another professor pulled out his phone and discreetly began checking basketball scores. The billionaire donor was now up at the podium, droning on about community obligation and higher education. He seemed like the kind of man who assumed that everyone loved hearing him talk.
Slowly, I crossed one leg over the other, then hid my phone behind my knee and responded to Jace.
Me: Creep.
Jace: Is it creepy to give a professor an innocent comment?
Me: You know what you’re doing.
Jace: You look good in red. It would be criminal not to point that out. You’re the professor, can you check my work on that?
Me: Your compliment isn’t happening in a vacuum. There’s a lot of context behind it.
Jace: There sure is ;-)
Me: You should be paying attention to this speech.
Jace: I can’t focus while you’re up there.
Me: I’m behind Professor Mathers. You can only see me from the neck up.
Jace: That’s all it takes. Besides, I know what’s hidden. Hey quick question: what kind of panties are you wearing under those jeans?
I paused to glance around and make sure nobody cared that I was on my phone. Now I was certain I was blushing.
But I couldn’t stop myself from texting back.
Me: I’m not telling you that.
Jace: Then I’m going to have to guess. Red thong. The kind that disappears between your beautiful cheeks.
Me: Wrong. I’m wearing granny panties. They’re the color of Vienna Sausages.
Jace: I don’t believe that for a second. A woman like you only wears granny panties when it’s laundry day. And you seem like you have a routine. I’m guessing you do laundry on Sundays, so you should have a fresh drawer to choose from.
Me: That’s… shockingly close to true.
Jace: I’m good at reading people. So, a red thong?
Me: Black. With a little pink lace.
Jace: Oh my God. You’re killing me right now.
Me: I didn’t plan on telling you, so it’s only second degree murder.
Out in the crowd, someone barked a laugh that made everyone turn. There he was, over on the left side of the room. Jace covered his mouth and coughed a few times, raising a hand in apology.
“As I was saying… I have a long history at this school,” the donor continued. “In fact, my grandfather…”
I smiled to myself now. It was good to know I could get a reaction out of Jace.
And even though I shouldn’t have been texting him at all, there was something sofunabout doing it here in front of everyone. It excited me to a shocking degree.
So I decided to push things a little bit.
Jace: That was funny. Well done.
