Yikes!
I quickly jump back under the portico and stare incredulously as an afternoon rainstorm turns the skies overcast.
Note to self: You're not in sunny Cali anymore, Dorothy, so start acting like it.
Everyone but me seems to have their school-issued umbrellas with them, and seeing me stranded outside Anise Building has the other girls making a show of snapping their umbrellas open before flouncing off.
Whatever.
Were they eighteen or eight? Did they really think I'd feel like a loser just because they had umbrellas and I didn't? It's not like I couldn't make a run for it if I wanted—-
"Forgot your umbrella, Ms. Mariposa?"
Holy Greek heavens!
Hearing his voice suddenly purr into my ear makes me start, and I see the professor's lips curve into a smirk.
"Am I making you nervous?"
I lift my chin and don't hesitate to lie through my teeth. "Nope."
"Glad to hear that," the professor says just before suddenly clicking his umbrella open above our heads. "Shall we?"
Hell no!
But because I've already told him he doesn't make me nervous, I keep my chin up and say brightly, "We shall."
The professor places a hand on the small of my back as we descend the steps, and I nearly trip over my own feet in shock.
"The steps are slippery," he says silkily.
Riiiight.
"But I can take my hand away if you're feeling nervous—-"
"I am not nervous," I practically growl.
"Good girl."
"Shut up—-" I remember too late who I'm talking to, and I add lamely, "Professor."
But he only chuckles, and the sound is just too sexy that it makes me wonder if Rosethorne has somehow managed to turn me into a slut. I've never even dated before coming to this place, but here I am now, having wet dreams with a god while crushing on the professor during the day.
"You have no need to fear any kind of repercussions from me, Ms. Mariposa."
It's not something I expected to hear at all, and I can't help looking at him suspiciously. "Are you saying that because of what I saw last night?"
"What did you see last night?" he asks blandly.
'You and Isabella getting your freak on' is what I'm dying to snarl out, but because that would only make me sound like a jealous cat, I force myself to shrug and say just as blandly, "I have no idea."
The professor's lips curve into another smirk. "You can just ask me, you know."
I know I can, but if I do, that's only going to make me seem like I care, so...
"It's your business to do whatever you want—-"
"But what if I want it to be your business?"
My heart skips a beat even as his words have me choking back an incredulous laugh. "Have you forgotten you're a professor?"
"If you ever bothered to read the handbook—-"
"No one ever bothers reading the handbook!"
"—-then you would've known from the start that Rosethorne allows relationships between professors and students."
I start to laugh, but when he only gazes at me, my laughter fades. "You're not serious, are you?"
"Rosethorne is under divine protection," he says with a shrug.
And in Post-3rd, that basically translates to Rosethorne being outside the jurisdiction of all human laws.
"Will you admit it now?"
"Admit what?" I ask flippantly.
The professor's steps come to an abrupt halt and he grabs my wrist when I attempt to keep walking. "Why do you bother hiding what's obvious?"
He sounds genuinely curious, and it would've made me laugh if I weren't so infuriated. "You're seriously asking that?"
"Yes."
"You said you'll eventually get bored of me," I hiss under my breath.
"So?"
"So?" I nearly yell the word out, and I probably would've if we weren't still out on the streets and students all around us weren't dying to eavesdrop on our conversation. "You really are a jerk, aren't you?"
"Yes. I am." The professor's tone was sardonic. "But you still like me in spite of it, don't you?" He starts to reach for me, but this time I finally have enough sense to jump back.
"Don't touch me!"
Dark eyes gleam at me in cold amusement. "Or what?"
"Or the god I belong to," I hear myself say, "will make you pay for it."
Chapter Eleven
Eww. Eww. EWW!
I start gagging the moment I shut the door to our suite behind me, and the sounds I make has Nia glancing at me curiously from her bed.
"Are you alright?"
I try to answer, but self-disgust still has me wanting to throw up, and my skin hasn't stopped crawling ever since I've uttered what I uttered.
Seriously, Halyna Ziel Mariposa!
How gross can you get?
The professor had been maddeningly cocky, yes, but I could've said so many other things! Any other thing but-—
The god I belong to will make you pay for it.
The sickening memory proves too much this time, and I find myself crouching on the floor as my hands cover the heated cheeks of my face.
I hear Nia's bed squeak followed by the sound of her padding barefoot towards me. "What's wrong?"