Page 65 of My Forbidden Professor

“Time to pay your dues, Dean,” I murmur just loud enough for him to hear, letting the words hang heavy between us.

Something snaps behind his eyes then—that final, desperate ember of self-preservation instinct flaring to life. In one explosive movement, Marcus pivots and takes off at a dead sprint toward the opposite end of the parking lot.

Shouts and exclamations erupt from the crowd as the police officers immediately give chase, yelling commands for Marcus to stop. He ignores them. A part of me wonders how he can muster that surprising burst of speed.

But the deputies are quicker, more trained for this type of pursuit. The sheriff shouts a warning before stopping, pulling a Taser from his belt and firing. Marcus drops to the ground in a tangle of limbs with the crackling buzz of a Taser splitting the air.

I should feel something—elation, perhaps, or at least a sense of relief—but as I watch the pathetic, twitching heap that was once my tormentor get hauled into the backseat of the police cruiser, I’m just...numb.

Numb to the hoots and cheers erupting around me from the students who just witnessed a very public fall from grace. Numb to the way Marcus’s wild-eyed stare finds mine through the glass of the cruiser’s rear window as they peel from the curb.

He’s gone. Years of him holding everything over my head is gone. In the end, it’s happened so fast it’s surreal. Hard to believe.

Slowly, I turn from milling students, all of whom are shocked that their dean was arrested. It’ll be the talk of campus for years, I’m sure. My hand drifts toward my jacket’s inner pocket, fingers closing around the solid rectangle of my cell.

I round the corner and draw it from my pocket. Steph is already on the call. “Did you get that?”

“I heard everything. He got exactly what he deserved, the lying worm. You did so well,” she says, her tone a mixture of vindication and pride.

“It worked better than I thought it would.” I pause, letting it sink in. Marcus is finally gone, disgraced. One threat neutralized.

“The PR gurus at Blue Sky are coming into their element. I’m so glad we paid those people to film him. The first vids are coming through on the socials. Oh my God, look at him go down!” Steph’s laugh contains a hint of darkness. “I dare say Marcus Sotheby is a black smear at the university now.”

We share a loaded silence, both knowing there’s one final loose end to tie up. “Steph...I miss you so much. I can’t wait for this nightmare to be over.”

“I miss you too, Jacob,” she says softly. “Just stay strong for me, okay? You can do this last part. I believe in you.”

My chest aches with longing to have her back in my arms again. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Now go get that bastard.”

I slip my cell back into my pocket and draw a steadying breath. Time to return to my apartment and wait. If the plan works, Daniel should seek me out very soon, acting on pure greed. With Marcus publicly disgraced, Daniel will assume I’m vulnerable and ripe for exploitation. He already knows I’ll give him money and now with the photo of Steph and me against us, I hope he’ll reach out to me again for the thousands he knows I can access.

My footsteps slow as I round the corner to my apartment building’s entrance. Leaning casually against the brick exterior with his hands shoved in his pockets is none other than Daniel himself. Our eyes meet and he pushes off the wall, straightening his jacket.

Didn’t take him long at all.

I should be surprised.

I really should, but it speaks loud that it doesn’t.

I fight to keep the triumph off my face, shaping my features into something resembling trepidation. I’m quietly satisfied that he’s taken the bait, that smug, twisted part of me relishing getting one over on him after everything. But I’m also disgusted just looking at the man, my stomach churning with hatred for what he’s done to Steph.

“Professor Black,” he greets with a curt nod as we converge on the building’s entrance. “Quite the show earlier with the dean, eh? Can’t say I’m surprised, really.”

I force a neutral expression, hoping my revulsion doesn’t show. “Imagine that. Crazy stuff.”

“Yeah. Crazy.” Daniel’s eyes flit around briefly before settling back on me. “Look, I was hoping we could talk? Some place we can’t be overheard.”

The request is so predictable, so perfectly playing into my plan, that I very nearly smirk. Instead, I feign reluctance with a small shrug. “How about right here? What do you want, Daniel?”

A tight smile pulls at the corners of Daniel’s mouth. “I think you know what I want now I know you have access to…funds, Professor. Or do you want that photo I have of you and beautiful Stephanie Chandler to make the rounds? Tut tut, you naughty professor. I must say, you’re punching way above your weight there. Your scandal would top Marcus Sotheby’s. And a dean ripping off his university is pretty scandalous—don’t you think?”

White hot rage detonates in my chest. Before I can stop myself, my fist clenches and I draw back, ready to smash that grin right off his face. But Daniel is faster—grabbing my wrist and slamming me back against the bricks.

His eyes bore into me with an intensity that makes my skin crawl. “In case I haven’t made myself clear, I want every last cent from David Chandler’s donation,” he mutters in a low, menacing tone. “And maybe we can work out an alternative payment plan for that pretty little girlfriend of yours. You’re going to do exactly what I say from now on. Unless you want to lose everything...”

I wrench my wrist from his grip and collect myself, forcing down the simmering heat in my veins. “You’d better come in.”

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