Page 14 of Meeting Melody
And he—
My gaze drops to the panties I left on the floor.
They’re covered in his cum?
He fucked me andcame on me?
I flick off the bathroom light and turn on the shower. I don’t know what emotions I’m feeling, but it’s a tornado made up of more than one. Anger—so white-hot, I don’t know how it hasn’t burned through the rest of them—and shame. But floating on top of all of them is… curiosity.
Steam billows from the water, and I test it with my hand. It’s hot enough to scald. And for a moment, I consider stepping in anyway. It would serve me right, letting my guard down enough for him to… worm his way inside.
Inside my house, my head, my body.
Stop it, Mel.
I turn off the water, giving up on the idea of scalding myself. If I’m even right, it’s… fine. I’m on birth control, and I’ll just demand that he proves he doesn’t have any STIs. The last thing I need is to get an infection from the asshole.
Speaking of birth control. My medicine cabinet door squeals as it opens, and I automatically reach for it—but then my hand stalls in mid-air.
It’s not there.
I take a step back and search the other shelves, then the drawers, but I can’t find it. I splash water on my face and brush my teeth, scrubbing my tongue until I gag.
In the other room, my phone goes off.
My alarm that reminds me I have class in an hour.
I leave the dark bathroom and hurry to shut the alarm off, then get dressed. I brush my hair, which retained a few curls from last night, and pull it up into a bun on top of my head. I grab my thickest, warmest sweater. Black slacks. I take my time putting my makeup on, humming angrily under my breath. It takes me longer to hide the marks on my neck, but eventually that, too, is done.
Except the world outside my door is drastically different than the one I left last night.
There’s a good inch of snow on the ground, with more falling.
I sigh.
Winter in New England… I suppose I should’ve expected this at some point. I bought boots when I moved here, but last winter was mild. We didn’t get snow until January. Now, two weeks before Christmas, and it looks like we’re expecting a blizzard.
I exchange my shoes for winter boots in my mudroom, slinging my shoes in my bag, then continue to campus. At this rate, I’ll have a little time to set up before class starts.
The cold air is refreshing. The wind and snow seem to cleanse me with every breath I take, and I relish the tight feeling in my lungs. Still, my face is frozen by the time I get to campus, and only marginally thawed when I arrive at my classroom.
I unlock the door and set my bag down at the podium, pulling out my folder. It’s almost too quiet in this hall. Usually there’s more signs of life. But I blame the snow slowing people down, like it did to me.
“It’s a snow day.”
I jerk.
Jacob stands in the doorway, leaning against the frame. His arms are crossed over his blue hoodie. He looks… rugged. And in a mood that I don’t think I want to decipher.
“There’s no class,” he adds. He comes down the steps and stops a few feet away from me, now on even ground. He still manages to tower over me, and his gaze runs up and down my body. “Did you not see that?”
I turn away from him. “Obviously not.”
I shove my papers back in my bag, then grab my phone to double-check. Sure enough, there’s an email from the school declaring afternoon classes are canceled due to the impending storm.
“Did you have a good night?” he asks.
Fucker. Probing for a reaction, no doubt.
