Page 202 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 1
I laughed as we exited the parking garage. As soon as his car emerged, cameras started flashing. I held my hand up in front of my face. "So are they here because you're a rich, eligible bachelor or would this really normally be that big of a deal?"
"I don't know. I'm sure my name doesn't help the situation." He sped off down Main Street. It was early and there was barely anyone out. "I want you to let me do the talking, okay? I'm going to fix this for you. That's my top priority." He pulled into aspot outside a building I had never been in before. Luckily there weren't any news vans outside.
"I wish you had just been a student."
He laughed. "I think you love that you're dating your professor."
My stomach was in knots. "I do. Let's get this over with." I reached for the door handle.
"Hey." He grabbed my chin in his hand. "We got this, okay?" He leaned toward me and kissed me. When he began to pull away I grabbed a fistful of his hair and deepened the kiss. I needed reassurance. I wanted to believe that I wasn't throwing away my education for nothing. He was my future. This was real. It had to be.
I heard the familiar groan in his throat. "We need to stop or I won't be able to go in there. Having an erection during our meeting with the dean would probably be frowned upon."
I laughed and kissed his cheek. "I love you."
"I love you." He opened up his car door and walked around to my side. He put his hand out for me and I grabbed it. We continued to hold hands as we went into the building. It was the first time we had done something like this in public. And I was grateful for his touch, because I was so nervous.
We entered through the side door and made our way through the lobby and down the hallway. He dropped my hand when he opened a door and I walked in before him. There was a young, blonde receptionist. She immediately smiled when she saw James, but her face fell slightly when he grabbed my hand again.
"Hi, Becca. We have a meeting with Joe."
"Yes. Joe is expecting you." She picked up a phone on the desk and punched in a few numbers. "Your 7 a.m. is here." She looked over at me. "Yes, she's here too." She paused again. "Okay," she said and hung up the receiver. "He'll be right out." She looked once more at James and then her eyes drifted back to her computer screen.
James escorted me to some chairs and we sat down. It felt like time was standing still. He leaned toward me and whispered in my ear, "Penny, you're hurting me."
"Oh, geez, sorry." I stopped gripping his hand so tightly. He rubbed his thumb against my palm. The small gesture helped calm me.
He leaned toward me. "Don't worry. The dean likes me. I think everything's going to be fine," he whispered.
"Why didn't you tell me that in the first place?"
"Because I didn't want you to get your hopes up."
"And now?"
"And now I need to believe it's true too." He squeezed my hand.
An older man with salt and pepper hair came out of a room behind the front desk. He took one look at us holding hands and shook his head. He turned and walked back into his office.
James sighed and stood up. He kept his fingers intertwined with mine. We walked together into the dean's office.
The dean was sitting behind his desk. He looked up at us. "Close the door, James." He sounded tired.
James closed the door and we both sat down across the desk from the dean.
The dean sighed deeply and leaned forward in his chair. "Excuse my bluntness, but this is a fucking mess."
"Joe, it was never my intention for this to happen."
"What, you didn't intend to sleep with your students when you accepted this position? Or you didn't intend for anyone to ever find out?"
"I never intended to sleep with a student. Singular, not plural. And I was going to tell you. I didn't want you to find out this way."
"And we met before I knew he was my professor." I couldn't sit there and say nothing. "And he made it clear that we couldn't fraternize. I refused to listen. It was my fault."
James squeezed my hand hard. He was pissed at me for speaking.
"I take full responsibility for this, Joe," he said calmly.
