Page 9 of Cheater and the Saint
“Can I help you?” she asked with her back still toward me.
“I’m not sure,” I answered in a somewhat innocent tone. Well, as close to one as someone like me could ever get. She turned and her scrunched brow told me I’d gotten her attention at least. That close to her, I noticed her eyes were a pale green. I towered over her small frame, and yeah, I was right, she smelled incredible. Time to ramp up the flirtation. “But I was hoping you’d be able to. Maybe over lunch?”
Any concern previously on her gorgeous face faded. Yeah… she looked pissed now. “What was your name? Leonardo, correct?”
“Uh, just Leo.”
“Leo, I’d say I’m flattered, but that would stroke your—I’m assuming—already massive ego,” she said in a honeyed tone. Fuck she was like a viper and would strike any moment. “Not only is your flirtation inappropriate because I’m your professor, but I’m also a married woman.”
I hadn’t noticed her ring, but I dropped my gaze to it right then. It was simple and had an antique look to it, which fit her. Classy and elegant.
“Honestly, Mrs. Stevens, I never ask if they’re married,” I responded with a sly smile. “Just my style.”
“Well, this ismystyle,” she said, keeping a smile on her face, but the expression in her eyes was lethal. “I’m not a piece of meat you can just chase after, Leonardo. I’m your professor and you will treat me as such. If anything like this happens again, you’ll be removed from my class.”
“Sorry if I offended you,” I answered, completely taken aback but no less turned on. I knew when to back off, though, so I did. “It won’t happen again.”
“See to it that it doesn’t,” she said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a class to prepare for.”
When I exited the room, I saw the emo kid leaning against the wall, smirking. I flipped him off before going through the doors and out into the still gross summer air.
***
I stayed away from the dorm as long as I could, not wanting to deal with the awkwardness between me and Saint. Between my classes, I’d gone to the student center and hung out with some random people, made new friends.
I made friends everywhere I went, so I was hardly ever lonely.
Around dinner time, I walked back to Building A. The smells coming from the dining hall were too amazing to resist, and I went inside to get some grub. It was crowded, and even with all of the tables and booths, it was still hard to find an empty one. Not that I had any intentions on eating alone.
I’d approach a table of people and ask to sit down. Like I always did.
With a plate in hand, I went down the buffet line, piling it with whatever sounded good. There was a buffet area that served a different dish each day—that day was cheesy, scalloped potatoes and chicken along with sides like corn, green beans, and all that good stuff—and there were two other stations to choose from: one that served burgers and fries, and one that was gourmet.
Gourmet was too fancy for my blood, though. I mean, who really wanted to eat tofu chicken and veggies?
A few guys I’d met earlier that day waved me over, and after getting a soda, I went to their booth near the window.
“Leo, right?” one of them asked. With dark hair and even darker eyes, he was almost intimidatingly hot. That dimple in his cheek certainly didn’t help any. He remembered my name, but I had no clue what his was. “We were just talkin’ about going out tonight. No better way to celebrate first day of classes than getting shitfaced. You in?”
I was tempted to say yes, and maybe it was an inner desire to succeed or maybe even Saint’s judgment of my partying, but I ended up doing the opposite.
“Nah, man. I’m good,” I answered before shoving a cheesy potato in my mouth. “Some other time, though.”
A girl joined us next, sitting beside Dimples, and he put his arm around her. One of the other guys nudged my arm and asked me what I was majoring in—which spiked some anxiety. I told him I was taking the general courses for now and hadn’t decided on a major yet.
“Just don’t be like me, man,” he said. “I’ve changed my major three times already, and now I’m kinda fucked on student aid. After so many class hours, my scholarship runs dry. I didn’t know that shit when I started, ya know? So now I’m stuck with a major I hate just so I can finish a degree and graduate. ‘Cuz I can’t afford to take out loans.”
Great. No extra pressure or anything.
It was during this line of thinking that I saw Saint sitting a few booths down from us. He was alone, which didn’t surprise me, but it still made me sad for him. I didn’t know him well. At all. But the little Ididknow made it clear he didn’t socialize much.
His blond hair was perfectly styled, matching the rest of him. With his fitted, wrinkle free clothes and skinny jeans, he looked like he just walked off the set of some fashion show. One for nerdy jocks. If that was even a thing.
“Thanks for letting me sit, but I gotta go,” I told Dimples and his friends before grabbing my plate and drink and walking over to Saint.
He looked up, and upon seeing it was me, his blue eyes narrowed. “What do you want?”
“Hi to you, too,” I said, sitting across from him.
