Page 111 of Love, Academically
“He said that guy, Professor Painter, wanted him. There was someone Rhys had to meet?” Dan shrugged.
Rhys had to meet someone, with Professor Painter, his Fellowship admissions sponsor. With a blue moustache on his face. Oh God.
“Didn’t you tell him about the moustache?” she asked, trying tokeep the bite out of her voice. Seriously though, Dan should have warned him.
“Oh shit, I forgot it was still there. I kind of got used to it,” he said, apologetically.
Lila pressed her hand to her forehead.
“Lila.” There was a tap to her shoulder. “This is great!”
Turning, Amanda the admissions officer was smiling widely at her, nachos on a paper plate in one hand.
“Oh hey, Amanda. Thanks for coming,” she said automatically, her mind still on Rhys and his blue moustache.
“Of course. Hey, between you and me,” Amanda leaned forward conspiratorially, “congratulations. The acceptance letters are going out tomorrow.”
Lila looked at her blankly. “Letters for what?”
“For the Master’s course, silly.” Amanda crunched a nacho.
Lila’s head was spinning with Rhys and his stupid blue moustache. Why had she done it? Presumably he’d just forgotten it was there, but now he was talking to Professor Painter and a mystery person, looking absolutely ridiculous. She shook her head and tried to concentrate on Amanda.
“The course that I missed the deadline for?”
“Mmmhmm” she said, crunching a nacho. “Well, Sue called and said it was her fault that your application was late and practically begged us to let you on the course.”
“Sue?MySue?”
That didn’t sound like the grump in the corner. Whatsoever.
“Yeah, your Sue. Anyway, congratulations!” she said with a grin, before turning away and disappearing into the crowd.
Sue. Her fault. Begged.What?
Lila pushed her way through the crowd to where Sue was perched on a tall stool, perma-scowl front and centre on her face. People were avoiding her, and frankly Lila would too if she wasn’t confused, grateful, flabbergasted.
“Sue, did you—” Lila swallowed. How was she going to put this? Oh well, just press forward. “Did you call Amanda and get me on the Linguistics course?”
Sue pursed her lips so tightly her face looked like a cat’s arse. She rolled her eyes and put her plastic cup extremely carefully down on the windowsill. Crossing her arms in front of her, Sue perused her stonily.
“What else was I supposed to do when your boyfriend threatened my job?”
“What?”
“And that’s a new development, I see. You and Rhys. I’ll have to check the staff handbook on that.”
Of course, Lila had already done that. There was no rule about dating a co-worker.
Sue stood, somehow looking down her nose at her even though she was three inches shorter. “Rhys threatened my job if I didn’t get you on that course. He threatened mylivelihood. I can’t believe you’d stoop so low, Lila. Getting yourboyfriendto do your dirty work.”
Lila shook her head. “What?”
“Rhys might like that fake innocence, but I can see right through you.”
Sue stormed past her, bashing her shoulder as she pushed past her.
What?
