It was a shame I was about to blow any shot I ever had with her.
3
Lila
Professors weren’t supposed to play favorites, but there were always one or two students in every class who stood out. They sat in the front row and were engaged during class. They would complete all their work on time, and jumped on every chance to earn extra credit. And they usually made a point of introducing themselves on the first day of class, to put a face to the name.
But the two students who approached me at the end of class weren’t that kind.
The first man was tall and handsome, and looked like he was in his mid-twenties rather than straight out of high school. I had never met him before, not in real life.
Because I knew him fromTinder.
Oh no.
He turned to the guy behind him and said, “Hey, do you mind? We don’t need an audience.”
“No problem,” the other guy said, but not before giving me a knowing smile.
Oh my God.
Panicked thoughts raced through my head. I was going to lose my job. The story would be on the news. I would become a pariah in the field of teaching.
“Yeah…” Jace said, grimacing. “I know what you’re thinking right now, because I’m thinking the same thing.”
“I highly doubt that,” I said. “You’re in my class.”
“Uh huh.”
Glancing at the students still shuffling out of the classroom, I lowered my voice. “Your profile said you were, like, twenty-eight.”
“Twenty-seven,” he said with a wry smirk. “But yeah. I’m getting a late start on my degree.”
Now that I had a chance to get a good look at him, he seemed rougher around the edges than in his profile photos. He was obviously handsome and in great shape, but his eyes were sunken in and his hair was a mess—and not in the sexy way. He looked like he’d only gotten a few hours of sleep on a couch before rushing to class.
“Do you want to get lunch later?” he asked. “We can talk about this, figure out what we are—”
“Wearen’t going to do anything,” I said, shouldering my bag. “I have to go.”
I left him standing there and hurried out of the room like it was on fire.
I glanced at my watch. I had thirty minutes before my next class, so I fled to my office and closed the door. I locked the deadbolt for good measure, then rested against the door.
I waited, listening for Jace to knock and demand that we talk, but the only sound was my heart pounding in my head. I felt like a heroine in a horror movie fleeing from a killer with a knife.
When I was certain he wasn’t coming, I relaxed and pulled out my laptop. It took a few minutes to find the University Code of Conduct, and even longer to find the relevant part:
Faculty-Student Personal Relationships Policy
The University strictly prohibits romantic, sexual, or intimate relationships between faculty members and students over whom they exercise academic, supervisory, evaluative, or advisory authority. Such relationships create inherent conflicts of interest, undermine the integrity of the educational environment, and may constitute an abuse of power or position.
Faculty members are responsible for maintaining appropriate professional boundaries at all times. Any relationship that may be perceived as coercive, exploitative, or otherwise compromising to the academic process is prohibited. Failure to comply with this policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
Faculty who become aware of, or who are involved in, a potential violation of this policy are required to disclose the situation to the Office of Academic Affairs. The University will take appropriate steps to eliminate conflicts of interest and protect the welfare of the student involved.
I re-read the first part:romantic, sexual, or intimate relationships. Obviously Jace and I hadn’t done anything physical yet, but the messages we had exchanged could definitely be construed as romantic.
Could I still get in trouble even if it happened before I knew he was my student?
