“She’s great,” I say, unsure how much she’d want me to share with him.
The papers on his desk rustle as he moves them around, creating a static sound that muffles his words. I barely make out, “A shame she chose not to come to dinner.”
I grit my teeth. She told me about dinner, how he was planning to ambush her. He should have been begging for the chance to spend time with her, not diminishing her accomplishments from this summer and trying to force her back into the box he created.
“You should ask her about her work,” I say. “You’d be proud.”
He grunts. “Her internship class.”
I bite the inside of my cheek to slow my response. “It’s impressive what she’s accomplished.”
“Well, she was never lacking in ability. Drive and follow-through, on the other hand…”
I need to take a breath, a step back, anything to keep me from biting off his head. “With all due respect, she’s plenty driven. She convinced the faculty—who were dead set on their plan—to give her a chance to prove them wrong. And she hasn’t coasted her way through the course. She created something incredible with little guidance or support.”
He rolls his eyes, an undignified look on a man of his age. “I’m glad she’s getting her act together. Now if we can help her see that the mistakes of the past few years can be reversed, she’ll go back to school.”
“I’m not planning on convincing her of anything. Her job makes her happy. She doesn’t need to change.”
“She broke down when she didn’t get the Harrow Fellowship and threw away everything she spent her life working toward. Excuse me if I don’t praise the fact that she’s doing an okay job.”
“Who do you think you are?” The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them.
Richard’s eyebrows disappear into his hairline. “I think I’m her father. Who the fuck are you?”
“Someone who actually knows her.”Someone who loves her.
“Think long and hard before you keep talking. You have shown incredible promise, and I’d like to continue our working relationship, but I value respect more than talent.”
It’s a clear threat. A powerful, insufferable man waving his dick around to reinforce that he can treat people however he wants because no one will stop him.
Recommendations from people in the field are vital for tenure review. Dr. Cassia will always support me, but if I have the top scholar in the field bad-mouthing me, moving forward will be a lot more difficult. But stopping the next words out of my mouth is impossible, like trying to catch a wave on the beach.
“And I value loyalty over respect,” I say. “So here’s the truth. Quinn isn’t good at her job. She’s phenomenal. She has every student and almost every faculty member eating out of her hand.
“Your daughter’s brilliant. If she wanted a PhD in Roman history, she’d have one. She chose to do something else with her life. You’re choosing to miss out on a relationship with the most incredible person I’ve ever met because you think you know better for her than she does. So no, I’m not going to think before I tell you that you’re royally fucking up every day you choose not to be a part of her life.”
His face goes bright red, a trait I’ve never had cause to learn Quinn inherited from him, and I can make out beads of sweat pooling on his lip even through the grainy image of the videocall. Now that I’ve finished my tirade, a ball of anxiety settles in my gut. The fire in his eyes scares the living shit out of me.
What was I thinking?
“Thank you, Dr. Miller, for your unsolicited feedback,” he says. “Good luck on your academic journey. You’ll need it.”
He ends the call before I can respond, and I stare at the blank screen. Adrenaline courses through my limbs. I need to move, to do something to make me forget that I may have fucked up my career when both my mom and I are dependent on my salary.
I turn toward the end of my desk, swiping the books off with a yell. My body turns with the movement, and I stop short when I see Quinn standing in the doorway. My breath rushes out of my body.
She’s wearing that damn white lingerie.
I scan her body, my own responding even amid the fear and anger running through my veins. When I reach her face again, she has tears in her eyes.
“You defended me,” she says.
“Yes.”
“But you were counting on his recommendation for tenure.”
I pull in a deep breath and nod. “That was the plan.”
