Colton sends me a flat stare, continuing his new practice of communicating solely with his eyes.
“I’m digging this new mute you,” I whisper.
He pokes me in the side, and I let out a little yelp.
“We’ll leave this pool to you,” Colton says, tilting his head toward the stairs. “It’s time for us to move on to the next one.”
“Have fun, guys. We’ll probably see you around,” I say as I swim over to the exit. This day’s going to be a lot less interesting with our students swarming the place.
Colton stands with our clothes, which he holds in a strategically placed bundle.
“I’m going to the cold pool,” he grumbles, and the loud laugh that explodes out of me draws curious stares from the students.
“See you in the hot tub when you’re done,” I call after him.
The hot water soothes me, washing away the lingering effects of last night. Colton slides in across from me a few minutes later, looking less grumpy but still not thrilled. “I can’t believe you told them about this place.”
I hold my hands up. “Inez and I made that list a month ago. I completely forgot!”
He grabs my foot under the water, kneading the muscles even as he continues shaking his head. “How’s the mission to get Dr. Keck on board?”
I lean my head back on the tile and let the scene above draw me in—the blue sky, dotted by green palms and white birds. A moment of peace before Colt starts giving me a hard time.
“I haven’t made much progress in the past couple weeks.”
He pinches my toe, and I yelp and glare at him. “Becauseyou’ve been avoiding me or because you’ve been avoiding your dad?”
“Why not both?” I spread my arms wide, a manic smile on my face.
He shakes his head, a scowl on his handsome face. “You’re not as cute as you think you are.”
I lean forward, lifting an eyebrow. “Liar.”
He chuckles and pushes his thumb more firmly into the arch of my foot. “Fair. But you can’t keep hiding.”
“I know,” I say softly, then sigh. “I have a plan. Or a plan to make a plan. My friend—the one who comes up from Orlando every year for that internship program—is in Italy with her fiancé and their kids. We’re getting together next week to catch up and brainstorm. We’ll figure something out. We have to.”
“Would it be the end of the world if the initiative passes in August?” he asks, no judgment in his tone. It’s one of the things I love best about him. If something I say doesn’t make sense to him, he doesn’t placate me and move on to the next topic. He asks questions—thoughtful, sometimes difficult questions—because he wants to get me.
“When I started at Billings, they sold me on a small, collaborative campus. Passionate, respectful people from all departments working together to help the students. I don’t think they werelying, per se. More like they were hopeful that the culture was shifting when it wasn’t.”
He nods, his hands switching to my other foot. “But can you still do the work without working with the professors?”
I nod, trying to work out the best way to describe it to him. “Remember the situation your freshman year?”
He levels me with a flat stare. “Yeah, I remember when I almost flunked out of school. Thanks, Chaos.”
I wince, but push on. “You were lucky that I grew up in this world and could coach you through that. I knew what resources were available. But what would have happened to you if someoneelse had taken that seat before me? Someone who didn’t know higher ed like I do?”
“I’d have been fucked. Trust me, I think about that all the time.”
“There are students—thousands of students—who have no idea I’m on campus. Students who need my help and guidance. This initiative will make it harder for me to reach them for no reason other than stupid workplace drama. It’s unfair. And unacceptable.”
He runs his tongue over his teeth, nodding thoughtfully. “Fair enough.”
“And then there’s the Inez of it all. I can’t let her be scared off. She loves Billings.”
His brow furrows. “Didn’t you say two days ago that you wanted whatever was best for her?”
