Page 53 of Private Tutoring
By the end of the second week without them, I had lost all my patience with my sorority sisters, but I’d managed to keep my grades up.
Leighona kept to herself but often cast snide looks and a few random comments my way.
I handled it all in silence.
Late one Friday night, a knock sounded on my door. My heart jumped into my throat, and I almost knocked my chair over when I stood so quickly my head whirled. “Who is it?”
“It’s Jessica.” There was something in her voice that sent fear skittering down my spine.
“Come on in.” I didn’t bother moving. I had nothing to hide.
The door creaked open enough for Jessica to poke her face into the crack. “You have someone here to see you.”
“What?” Her words failed to compute. Who would come here to see me? I gasped. “Is it my mom?” Oh man. That would be incredible. She’d never made the trip before, but she was always telling me that she would as soon as she had a weekend off from work.
Jessica shook her head, a brilliant smile matching the mischief in her eyes. “Nope. It’s a man.”
“Excuse me?” I moved halfway across the room in an instant. “Who?”
“Professor Rossi.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “I shit you not, he’s at the front door, and he’s asking for you.”
26
ROBERTO
Ihad no choice. I kept telling myself that even after I’d knocked on the front door and told the shocked girl on the other side that I needed to speak with Harmony.
Something was wrong between all of us. Harmony wasn’t the kind to cut ties so abruptly and without an explanation. And the avoidance. That one chapped my ass more than anything else. Harmony might have been quiet in class, but she trusted us.
My conversation with Matthew replayed in my head while I waited.
He’d stood in the middle of the living room, hands on his hips and glasses askew as he admitted that one of the girls in his theater class had accused Harmony of sleeping with Matthew to get the lead role in the musical. “I tried to talk to her. I thought maybe she just needed more time to process.” He’d shrugged in a helpless way that made my blood boil.
We were all supposed to be in this together. “Why didn’t you tell us sooner?”
Matthew had looked at me with his soulful eyes. Remorse filled them, but I was in no mood to listen to any bullshit. “Shewas upset. Rightly so. I didn’t want to make things worse or awkward. It was just a bad-tempered girl mouthing off.”
“What if it wasn’t?” Stephen had joined the conversation, his voice low and tired. “You have no right to try and manage us, Matthew. We agreed there would be no secrets.”
“I didn’t want you worrying.” He’d sounded contrite enough, but I’d stopped being able to listen.
Harmony’s distance suddenly made sense. No wonder she tried to cut all ties with us outside of the classroom.
“She brushed me off.” Matthew continued. “And now I’m not sure if she really just needed time or if she’s afraid.”
“Of course she’s afraid.” I’d exploded up from the couch where I’d been sitting and attempting to maintain my composure. I did a shit job, but I tried.
That was when I’d decided to take a huge risk and come to the sorority house. If Harmony refused to talk to me, then I’d figure out another way.
I lost track of time as I stood on the small front stoop. The curtains in the front window flicked aside, and a familiar face peeked out. I didn’t bother trying to hide. There was no reason after I’d boldly proclaimed my intentions to talk to Harmony and the girl who answered the door darted away.
I had refused to go inside the building. Some lines were uncrossable, and I’d be fired before I woke up tomorrow if word got out that I’d entered an all-female sorority house. It didn’t matter the reason.
The door opened, revealing Harmony in her always casual jeans and shirt. She looked incredible in the wide-necked shirt that hung off one shoulder, revealing smooth skin. Her eyes held the same fatigue I’d seen in my own, telling me she was bothered by the situation as much as we were.
I opened my mouth. Closed it. Tried again. “Hi.”
She gave me an exasperated look, closing the door behind her. “You came all the way here to say hi?”
