Yet, if he had submitted his recommendation for Jackson, his opinion must not have mattered as much as they thought. Or maybe the board simply loved my idea so much, that it didn’t matter. Either way, the deal fell through. Which means whatever leverage Jackson had over Zach is now out in the open.
“Where is all this coming from?” I probe into the heart of the issue. We can’t all be sitting here having our futures determined off the word of a sore loser.
Dean Dawson shuffles the mouse on his desk, landing on the intended target and opening whatever file he has as proof. He twists the computer around for both of us to see.
Playboy Billionaire Caught on a Wild Night Out with Student, the headline reads. There are clearly three of us in the photo, but Lyndsey is not mentioned anywhere in the article. Her face is turned in the opposite direction, and I cling to the hope that this spares her some humiliation of suffering as a result of my mistakes.
Zach grumbles beside me.
I don’t want to read any more of this article. The one that paints me as some loose-moral woman who gets sloppy drunk every weekend and seduces my professor to get ahead in my career. Who would write something like this without having all the facts? I don’t even remember this night. I don’t remember the moment this photo might have been taken. Everything about that was a blur, all because some jackass wanted to get into my pants on his terms alone.
Now, we’re all suffering the consequences.
“This is insane,” Zach says. “Miss McKenzie was drugged. I went there to help her and her friend. These papers will print anything they think sells a story.”
“It’s enough, Hawthorne. The article wasn’t as important as getting you two here.” Dean Dawson’s gaze shifts from Zach to me, then back again. “I’m not an idiot. I was young and in love once, too. I can tell there’s something going on between the two of you. What I can’t tell is how far out of hand this has gone.”
A low growl struggles through Zach’s clenched teeth. He presses his fingertips into his forehead, massaging the wrinkles growing there and the scar at his temple.
“Either way, you know the rules,” Dean Dawson continues. “And you’ve stepped way out of bounds on this one. You’re done, Hawthorne. As for you, Miss McKenzie, you’ll be placed on academic suspension until a proper ruling can be considered for you.”
“Wait.” Zach perks up, his back suddenly rigid as a stake. “You already took the apprenticeship from her. You can’t end her studies, as well. She’s not even two months away from graduating.”
I stand frozen, watching the two of them arguing like a pair of male lions over territory.
“I’m placing her on suspension.”
Dean Dawson’s gaze shifts nervously to me. “It’s likely you will be allowed to complete your final semester, Miss McKenzie, but we will withhold any honors. For now, it’s best that you continue your studies at home, instead of at school. You’ll be allowed back at the end of the semester to take any finals.”
I’m somewhat relieved by this turn of events. I didn’t want to endure the stares from my classmates for the next few weeks of school. All the things they must be saying about me now. All the assumptions they must be making based on that article alone. I can’t handle it. Something prickles at the edge of my eyelids.
Ugh. I’m not going to cry here in this office. That will only incite more rumors about how I cracked under the pressure. Poor little tramp, too weak to handle the consequences of her actions. But the emotional roller coaster I’ve been on for the last three days has done nothing to regulate my feelings.
“How am I supposed to turn in any work?” I bite down on my trembling lip.
Think of the practical things. Think about what comes next.
I’ll be able to stay with my mom for a while. I’ll be able to pick up more shifts at Home Depot to pay for these new bills, and whatever’s coming next.
“You’ll be given the assignments, the reading materials and the rubrics. That’s about all we can offer to keep you on track.” Dean Dawson leans across the table, his stare softening into something genuine and warm for the first time since I’ve been in the office. “I am sorry to hear about your mother. Maybe this is all for the best, then.”
I swallow back the lump in my throat. I am so close to tears it hurts. He means well. There wasn’t any malice in his words or ill will. Yet, I’m so overwhelmed with everything that’s happened. I can’t contain it any longer.
I stand, the chair sliding out from behind me with a long squeak.
“Aly…” Zach’s voice sounds beside me, cautious as if he expects me to suddenly bolt down the hallway.
He isn’t wrong.
All I can think about doing right now is running. Running and eating a whole carton of rocky road ice cream.
“Thank you, Dean Dawson.” My words shake. My whole body is trembling by the time I exit the office. Zach walks along beside me.
Part of me wants to reach out to him for comfort. Who cares what anyone thinks anymore? The secret is out, isn’t it? I should be able to hold his hand without fear. To kiss him and silence this aching inside me. Yet I know it would only add fuel to the fire, give the gossips one more thing to talk about.
I feel so exposed. All these people who have been wasted at one party or another, who’ve made mistakes in their lives, and slept with people they’d rather forget, are judging me as if they’ve never done anything wrong in their lives.
I was drugged. I slept with the man I love. And yet I am villainized to sell more papers.