His Love Lesson (13 page)

Chapter 23

B
y the time Hunter reached his office, Kenya was leaning against his door.

“Hungry?”

“Sure.” It was obvious that he wouldn't be eating with Chey this evening. He hadn't eaten since lunch and was famished. “Let me get my things.” Hunter went into the room to retrieve his bags and then walked with Kenya to her office.”

“How's class going?”

“Good so far. The students seem engaged.”

“That's because they have an engaging professor. I've been hearing great things. The administration seems pleased.”

Hunter smiled. Chey's behavior had left him confounded, but Kenya's comment was the catalyst he needed to shift his mood. He'd call Chey later to find out how she was doing. Something had to be wrong.

Kenya and Hunter headed to a nearby bistro and were fortunate enough to be seated almost immediately. They talked about their classes until their meals arrived.

“How long have you known Chey Rodgers?”

Hunter stopped chewing the piece of Chilean sea bass he'd just tossed in his mouth. What was up with the sudden shift in the conversation?

“Just a few weeks.”

“Oh!” Kenya sipped her wine. “How did you meet?”

Hunter stuffed a forkful of fish and risotto in his mouth and chewed slowly. “By happenstance.”

“Oh!”

Both the conversation and dinner had been going well until Kenya started asking probing questions. Chey was the last thing he wanted to discuss with Kenya. He felt protective of Chey. It was obvious that Kenya wasn't fond of her.

“How are your classes going?” he asked Kenya, taking in another forkful.

“Well.” Kenya cut her chicken, but her eyes stayed on Hunter. “So it looks like one of the classmates has a thing for Chey.” She averted her eyes. “She's a pretty girl...in a simple kind of way. It seems that a few students have had their eyes on her. She's become rather friendly with one of them in particular. They seem to have made a connection.”

Hunter wasn't going there with Kenya. “So I had a meeting with the head of the department. Like you said, he shared that the feedback from students has been great.” Hunter sipped his water and wiped the moisture from his hands on the napkin in his lap. “That was good to hear. He said he'll check in with me again toward the end of the semester.”

“Wonderful!” Kenya fingered the rim of her glass. “So far, they truly like what they see. I would just be careful about how you interact with your students on campus. Otherwise, I'd say things are looking good for you.”

“Really.” Hunter raised his brow.

Kenya smiled. “Did you know Professor Silverstein is being honored by some organization in a few weeks?” Kenya pushed the food around on her plate. “The department is holding a reception for him. You should come. It would be a good opportunity for you to network. In addition to the department head, a few board members will be in attendance.”

“Let me check my calendar. If I don't have any prior commitments, I'll be there.”

“Good.”

Hunter's appetite wasn't as robust as when he first arrived. He waved the waiter over. “I'd like to take this to go.”

The young man nodded politely and took his plate.

“You didn't finish,” Kenya said.

“I'll eat the rest later. I need to head out.”

“Oh...okay.” Kenya looked disappointed. She led the conversation further with trivial small talk until the waiter returned with Hunter's doggie bag and the bill.

Hunter pulled out his credit card and handed it to the waiter.

“Wait!” Kenya twisted to retrieve her wallet.

Hunter held up his hand. “That won't be necessary.”

“Oh, thanks, Hunter. You didn't have to do that.”

“It was my pleasure.” The smile that spread across Kenya's lips made Hunter think he should have chosen different words.

Kenya and Hunter said their goodbyes and he headed for the train back to Brooklyn. The moment he ascended the steps at his stop, he called Chey. No answer. He wondered who the student was whom Chey apparently connected with. That might have been the reason she'd acted so distant earlier. The jealous pang hadn't surprised him. He didn't bother denying this affection for Chey. Technically, Hunter couldn't seriously date her without jeopardizing the opportunities in front of him, but he hadn't thought about the possibility of her dating someone else. Suddenly, he felt possessive. Pulling out his phone, he dialed Chey again.
Damn.
Still no answer. He shoved the phone back in his pocket. Maybe her strange behavior wasn't about a fellow student at all. At least he hoped it wasn't. Maybe something was wrong and she wasn't able to talk about it at school. Besides, had she picked up the phone, he couldn't promise that he wouldn't have asked her about the fellow classmate Kenya spoke of, despite knowing it wasn't his place.

Hunter's cell phone rang. He couldn't get it out of his pocket quick enough. His enthusiasm deflated when he saw that it was his brother calling.

“What's up, little bro? Are you in town?” Hunter was happy to hear from his youngest brother. It had been at least a week since their last conversation. They communicated frequently on the brothers' instant-messaging group chat, but it was always nice to hear his voice.

“I'll be there in a couple of weeks. I wanted to get on your calendar now. I know how busy you can be. Plus Blake said you had a new honey.”

“Ha!” Hunter chose not to address the “new honey” comment. “It doesn't matter. I can always make time for my bigheaded little brother.”

“Yeah. Whatever.” Drew chuckled. “I'm going to stay at Mom and Dad's.”

“Really. No lucky woman has the good fortune to have you warm her bed during your visit?”

“I didn't say all of that, now. I'll just be at Mom and Dad's for the weekend.”

“Ha! Now, that's the Drew I know! Have I met this one?”

“I doubt it.”

“Will I meet her?”

“Probably not!”

“Ha! Cool. I look forward to meeting the one that claims your heart.” Hunter chuckled at Drew's rambunctious laugh. “Have you spoken to Blake yet?”

“I started in age order. He's my next call.”

“Okay. We'll catch up when I get there.” Hunter turned onto his block.

“All right. See you soon, big bro.”

“Be safe.”

Hunter's mind turned back to Chey as he ended the call and trotted up the few steps to his brownstone. He had shared Chey's interest in working for Estelle London with Blake, who knew a woman who worked there. They had a competitive apprenticeship opportunity for recent grads that Chey would be excited to hear about. That was what he'd wanted to tell her earlier. Also, a client had given him a pair of tickets to the Broadway show
The Phantom of the Opera
for this weekend. All day Hunter had anticipated Chey's excitement when he shared the news with her.

Hunter showered, threw on a fresh pair of boxers and flopped on his bed with his remote in hand. Deciding to give it one last try, he dialed Chey's number. This time it went straight to voice mail. The message he left detailed all that she needed to do to apply for the apprenticeship program with Estelle London before sharing the news about the tickets to the show.

Hunter sat with his back against the plush leather headboard, flipping through the channels. A while later, his phone dinged, indicating that he'd received an email. Chey responded to his voice message with a cordial email thanking him for the information about the opportunity at Estelle London and politely declining his offer of the show tickets. Hunter was puzzled. He went to bed wondering what he had done to warrant this uncharacteristic behavior from Chey. Then he thought about Kenya's not-so-subtle warning about being careful with his interactions with students. Maybe it was best that he left things between Chey and him the way they were. He didn't like that idea but what other choice did he have?

Chapter 24

I
nadvertently, Chey had thought keeping her distance from Hunter would get easier. Instead, she missed him immensely—his smile, the way he thoughtfully considered her and his fun nature. Spring had made an appearance and her feelings for Hunter hadn't diminished at all. Seeing him twice a week was torturous. Kenya added to this torture by parading her chumminess with Hunter in front of Chey. She cringed inwardly every time she saw her touch his arm as they spoke or throw her head back and laugh as if his words tickled every one of her fancies. She never failed to glance Chey's way to make sure she was taking it all in.

Chey found herself wondering if Hunter missed her, too. Her insides were filled with nervous energy as she fretted over the midsemester meeting that was scheduled after today's class. This would be the first time in weeks that she and Hunter would share the same space—privately. These advisory meetings, which he'd already held with half the class, were designed to assess where the students were in respect to where they needed to be by the end of the semester.

The nervous energy had reached a nauseating high by the time class was over. Hunter had one student to see before meeting with her, which gave her an additional half hour to agonize. Her time had come and the trek to Hunter's office felt like a trudge down the green mile. It was no surprise that Kenya stood leaning against her doorway with her arms folded across her chest and her eyes glued to Chey.

Chey had already endured her mid-semester meeting with Kenya, who'd not-so-subtly reminded her to keep her distance when it came to Hunter.

When Chey reached Hunter's door, she looked back and Kenya was still watching her. Turning, she rolled her eyes as she knocked. Out walked a fellow classmate. Chey stepped aside to let him pass and Hunter invited her in.

The air in his office seemed so much thicker than the last time she was in there.

“Ms. Rodgers.” He smiled and nodded cordially, motioning for her to take a seat before taking one himself.

“So,” Hunter began.

“So,” Chey repeated, wringing her hands.

Hunter watched her for a moment and cleared his throat. He opened an agenda and flipped to a page with her name at the top.

“You're on track for ending the semester with an A. You did very well on the midterm.” Chey watched Hunter's eyes as they scanned the paper. “What are your plans from here, Ms. Rodgers?”

Chey wanted to tell him to stop addressing her as Ms. Rodgers. It sounded too impersonal.

“To continue on this path. I'd like to end the semester with a four-point-oh across the board.”

“Really! How's that looking for you?”

“Good so far.” Chey returned her attention to her fingers as she picked her nails.

Hunters gaze was penetrating. When Chey looked up, she focused on the shelf of books behind him so she wouldn't get lost in his probing dark eyes.

“There's not much more to review regarding your work. Do you have any questions for me?”

Do you miss me?
Of course, that would be deemed inappropriate.
Do you like Kenya?
Chey assumed that wouldn't fly either. She'd never been the jealous type and didn't enjoy feeling that way now. “I don't think so.”

Hunter stood, walked toward her. Chey's breath caught. Why was he getting so close? He continued past Chey and stood silently by the door for a moment. After another beat, he opened the door slightly and closed it again. Chey almost expected Kenya to fall in when he did that.

Hunter sat back in his chair and after another brief moment went by, he leaned forward.

“So how is everything else? Are you still exploring the Big Apple?”

“Honestly, not as much.”
Especially without my personal tour guide.

“That's too bad. Did you ever pursue that program with Estelle London?”

“Oh! Yeah. Thanks again for that information. I submitted my application, but I haven't heard anything back.”

“When do you anticipate hearing from them?”

“Hopefully, before the end of the semester. If not, I'll be headed back to Virginia.”

“You're going back home?” Hunter sat erect. His brows knitted.

“Yes. I really only came for school and hoped to land a job with one of the cosmetic companies by the time school ended. So far that hasn't happened and New York is quite an expensive city. At least at home, I have somewhat of a clientele. I'll continue to work on my line and maybe start my own company. I just thought it would be ideal to work with one of the industry giants for a while. That way I could learn the other aspects of the business.”

“Hmm. I hope something comes through.”

“Me, too.” Neither of them spoke for a while. Chey tried to avoid staring at the way his muscular arms strained against his dress shirt. Hunter, on the other hand, hadn't bothered hiding his hunger and lapped her up with his sparkling brown orbs. Chey would have considered this kind of study from any other man inappropriate. It was not only welcome but a pleasing confirmation that it was possible that he'd missed her, too.

“What about you? How are things going? Will you be coming back as a permanent professor next semester?”

“Things are looking good, but I don't want to speak too soon. I won't know for sure until my review in May.”

“How's the legal business treating you?”

“All is well.”

“That's good to hear.” Chey cast her eyes toward her lap.

Weighted silence filled the space once again with things desired but left unsaid.

“If there's nothing else, I guess I'll be going.” She dared to meet his eyes once again.

“Yeah. I think we're good.” Hunter licked his lips, then sighed. “Oh. Have you taken in a Broadway show yet?”

“Unfortunately, no! Also, thanks again for offering me your tickets for
Phantom of the Opera
. I wish I could have taken you up on that.”

Chey wondered if he had taken anyone else to see it after she declined. “Did you see it?”

“No.”

Chey was relieved. Maybe that was something they could do together before she headed back home. It would be her treat. She sighed at the thought of leaving Hunter behind in New York, but without a decent full-time job, she'd have to return to Virginia, and so far she hadn't received any callbacks from the many companies she'd applied to. Her savings would eventually run out and she wouldn't be able to afford New York living.

“Well.” Hunter glanced at his watch and then stood. Chey took that as a sign that their meeting was over.”

Chey stood, too, and faced the door, turning her back to Hunter. She felt his hand on her arm and it sent a sensual volt through her. Slowly, she turned to meet Hunter face-to-face.

“I miss...” Hunter paused. Chey held her breath. She longed to hear him say he missed her. “...talking to you.”

Chey was offended. He missed talking to her, but apparently, he hadn't missed
her
in the same way that she'd been missing him. Obviously, the distance affected them differently.

“Yeah. Take care, Professor.” She couldn't help the sting that showed up in her words.

Hunter's door swung open. That was when Chey noticed that his hand was still on her arm. He released her abruptly, but not before Kenya saw it. Her eyes followed Hunter's hand from Chey's arm back to his side.

“Oh, sorry! I thought you were done. I was wondering if we were going to grab a bite before heading home.”

Liar!
Kenya's audacity irked Chey. She held her tongue but kept her eyes pinned on Kenya. “We're done.” She turned back toward Hunter. “Thanks, Professor. I'll see you in class next week. Have a great weekend.”

Striding around Kenya, Chey speed-walked down the hall and continued her quick pace until she reached her train station. The jealousy stung. By the time she made it home, she was wound tight. Taking her steps two at a time, she reached her floor in seconds. Inside her apartment, she dropped her bag on the couch and paced back and forth. Somehow strong feelings for Hunter had rooted themselves deep within her system. Now it seemed as though there was even less of a chance they'd end up together, even after the semester was done. She'd have to work on forgetting about him—somehow.