Page 26 of Wet Paint

“I had to,” she said, all face concern now. “It’s unethical. He’s your professor, Ivy. There are rules about these things.”

“You actually told the Dean.” My voice came out lower than I expected. Not shaky. Just quiet.

She nodded. “Of course. You don’t have to thank me.”

A cold wave of dread washed over me. My skin went hot, then cold again.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I said finally, forcing the words out.

Eleyna shrugged, like she couldn’t believe I was upset. “You’re not the only student who admires him. The rest of us have to follow the rules.”

There it was.

Jealousy.

God.

What. A.Bitch.

My heart was pounding. “This isn’t about rules. This is about you being jealous.”

She uncrossed her arms and tilted her head to the side. “Call it whatever you want. But someone needed to say something. You crossed a line.”

I stared at her for a second, trying to decide if I should scream or cry. I did neither.

Instead, I asked her to leave.

Nicely.

But if I hadn’t the strength to keep calm, I would’ve attacked her. Thankfully, I wasn’t a violent person.

“I kinda want to feel sorry for you,” she told me as she turned around to leave. She stopped by the door and looked at me over her shoulder. “But I won’t. Because you took what I wanted. And now neither of us can have him.”

Tears finally rolled down my cheek once she was out of eyesight, and I found myself catching my breath. My throat felt tight, my heart almost exploding in my chest.

I was shaking all over as I reached into my book bag to take out my phone and send Will a text.

I need to see you.

I hit send.

Did he already get called to the Dean’s office? Maybe he was still in class, teaching.

Maybe Eleyna was bluffing. Maybe she didn’t even tell the Dean.

Either way, I needed to talk to Will.

I needed him to hold me and help me calm down.

Moments later, my phone vibrated with his reply.

Please come to the Dean’s office.

My heart sank, and everything around me crumbled.

Shit…

I didn’t even clean my brushes. I left them sitting in the water jar and walked out of the studio with my legs shaking beneath me. The walk across campus and to the admin wing of the college felt longer than usual, and while it wasn’t like that, it felt like everyone passing by was judging me.

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