Page 23 of Lodged

“Oh, they did, but not the way you’re imagining.” Penny grabs a bite of my croissant, and I frown in confusion. “Well, I had a great time, and Vicente is indeed a great host. But nothing happened between us.”

“Oh, I wasn’t thinking that.” I hurry to assure her as I feel my face growing hot.

She chuckles. “Don’t sweat it, Gio. I’m not going to lie—I think Vicente is attractive, but the moment we got to Ecstasy( that’s the name of the place we went to), he couldn't take his eyes off a woman there. I think there’s something going on between them, but I didn’t feel it was my place to pry.”

I bite my nail as I search my brain for anything Vicente might have mentioned about him seeing a woman, but I can’t recall anything.

“So if he was preoccupied, what did you do?” I ask honestly, but the look Penny gives me is comical as hell. She raises a brow in question as if saying,Have we met yet?“ Well, I did what I always do. I had a great time. It turns out, Ecstasy is a private club for the one percent, and most of the men there were wonderful to talk to. Some of them even kept up with me on the dance floor.” My eyebrows shoot to the sky. That’s actually impressive—Penny is a great dancer.

“I’m glad you had a great time, and I’m sorry again I didn’t go out with you. But as it turns out, I got a message from this girl…”I trail off, not wanting to say Ruin’s name in case someone can hear us.

“Oh. The redhead?” Penny’s eyes light up, and I can’t help the grin that forms on my lips.

“Yeah. We went out over the weekend. It was amazing.” Penny shrieks and jumps up and down in her seat. I chuckle at her excitement.

“Are you going out again?” she whispers, and I nod as I take another sip of my coffee. She shrieks again and I shake my head as I smile. “What? Can’t I be happy for my bestie?” She smacks my arm the way she always does when she’s happy about something. “Gio, this is fantastic. A nice girl is what you were missing in your life.” My heart warms at my friend’s words.

“It was just one time, I don’t want to get ahead of myself.” I close my eyes, trying to carve these words in my heart: I cannot fall for my student. I need to at least wait until after the semester is over.

“Gio. Look at me.” Penny places her hand on my forearm, and I open my eyes. “Don’t close yourself off to the possibility of something special because of your duties. Yes, you’re in a position of power, but I know you, and I know you would never take advantage of that.” I know what Penny is saying is true, I would never abuse my authority. But going against the code of conduct makes me ache in places I didn’t even know existed. I pride myself on being a righteous man. And this behavior is definitely the opposite.

“Speak of the devil,” Penny murmurs, and that’s when I see her—Ruin, standing in line to order. My body lights up like a firecracker on the fourth of July. I adjust in my seat, feeling my jeans tightening. I try to act normal, but I’m the worst actor on Earth. Penny is trying hard not to laugh at my miserable failure to play it cool.

When Ruin spots me on her way out, she smiles and gives me a little wave but doesn’t come to where I’m sitting with Penny. A part of me is disappointed that she didn’t come over, or that I can’t go and give her a hug, but I know it’s the smart thing to do.

“And that face right there tells me you have to pursue this, Gio.” I glance over at Penny, who’s watching me intently. I release a sigh. Ruin will be my demise.

“Now onto the not-so-fun part.” I groan at Penny’s words.

“I’ll try to make it as painless as possible. Your fortune has increased by three hundred and seventy million in the past quarter.”

“Jesus Christ, Penny. What on Earth did you invest in?” I ask her, bewildered.

“Nothing illegal, of course.” She waves me off like it’s not a big deal.

“Is there a way to hold off investing more for the rest of the year? I need to figure out where to donate more, and right now I’m completely focused on finishing my PhD.” Penny gives me a knowing smirk, and I shake my head. I know I’m lying, I’m also thinking about the red hair goddess who has captured my every waking thought.

“You’re the boss, boss. If you want, I can set up a document with some potential charities that you’d be interested in supporting.”

“You’re the best.”

“I know.”

I couldn’t really talk to Ruin during the lab today, always trying to avoid being caught ogling her. Damn, it’s never been this hard to act professionally. I’m curious to see if we’re still up for ournon-date this Saturday, so I decide to text her after taking a shower and having a bite to eat.

Gio: So about this weekend.

Ruin: What about it?

Gio: Are we still up for it?

Ruin: I can’t wait to totally randomly meet you at the museum.

Gio: Same. Have you ever been before?

Ruin: No.

Gio: Oh fun, then I get to show you all my favorite exhibits. Do you like rocks? Gems?

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