Page 12 of Brighter Shades of Light
But underneath that icy layer was a hint of someone who had a sense of humor. Someone observant, intelligent, and maybe even a little quirky. He remembered my name after meeting me only once prior to class. If he was bigheaded and standoffish like I’d pegged him to be, why had he tried to make conversation? He could’ve easily told me to fuck off and gone about his business.
I opened my mouth to call out to him but faltered at the last second. Instead, I watched his tall, slender frame as he walked down the sidewalk toward the math and science building. The wind ruffled his blond hair, giving him that messy, sexy-as-fuck look, and I would’ve killed to see his eyes again as the sun shone on them.
Dr. Sebastian Vale was a man unlike any other. He didn’t even realize how appealing he was. Girls turned their heads to look at him as he passed them on the sidewalk. Hell, a few guys did, too. Some of the female instructors checked him out, speaking to each other in animated whispers. All the while, he kept walking, oblivious.
My stomach grumbled, reminding me why I was in such a rush to begin with. I ducked into the building and went toward the cafeteria. I grabbed a sausage pizza and a Gatorade before paying and heading back to the dorm room. I didn’t have any more classes for the day, so I planned to hang out in the dorm for a while. Maybe go to the library later to look at their selection of military non-fiction books.
When I walked through the door, Tristen was on the couch, hovered over some guy and making out as if his life depended on it. He gripped the guy’s neck as he devoured his mouth. The dude moaned as Tristen moved from his lips, down his neck, and to his nipples, flicking one with his tongue before sucking on it.
I cleared my throat.
Tristen snapped his head up in surprise before falling off the couch and fumbling to button his pants.
“Did I interrupt something?” I asked. It took everything I had not to bust a gut.
My best friend looked mortified. Meanwhile, the other guy chuckled and lowered his shirt.
“I need to go, anyway,” Mystery Guy said, getting off the couch and winking at me. “Call me later, Tris.”
I opened the door for him and closed it once he left.
“Ah, sorry I cock-blocked you,Tris.”
“Don’t call me that, you asshole.” He threw a couch pillow at my head, which I dodged. He was smiling, though. “Fuck you. That ass was calling my name.”
“Well, you won’t be able to answer its call right now.” I placed the pizza on the counter.
“What kind is that?” he asked, walking over.
“Sausage.”
He opened the lid and stole a slice. Looked like pizza was higher than sex on the priority list. Good thing I thought ahead and bought a large.
“Anything exciting happen to you today?” Tristen asked through a mouthful of food.
I thought of Dr. Vale—of his serious attitude, strong jaw, and perceptive eyes. My time with him wouldn’t exactly beexciting.Enlightening, maybe.
“Not really.” I grabbed a slice and bit into it. As meat, sauce, and cheese exploded on my taste buds, everything else faded away.
“Did you fanboy in class this morning?”
I snorted and almost choked. “Um, I don’tthinkso. I think I played it pretty cool.”
Of course, I had told Tristen about my admiration of Dr. Vale’s work. His research had been used in a lot of my pre-requisite classes earlier on for my degree. To have the man I’d already learned so much about be the one to teach me? It was like a dream come true.
As we finished off the box of pizza, we talked about our classes and complained about a few of the professors. Tristen was a history major, and he planned to go into teaching after fulfilling his active duty commitment to the Marine Corps.
“My world history professor is freaking weird,” Tristen said. “He’s nice and all. But he’s, like, this short little old man with long hair that he keeps in a low ponytail, and he says weird things.”
“Like what?”
“Like when he tells us something, he’ll go, ‘Know what I mean, jellybean?’ I have a feeling his class will be interesting.” Tristen’s blue eyes closed, and he sighed dramatically. “Very interesting for sure. Know what I mean…jellybean?”
Laughing, I stood from the table with my near-empty Gatorade in hand. He was such a character.
“So, that guy who was here. Do you think you’ll see him again?”
“Maybe. Just met him today.” Tristen shrugged. “He’s hot, but I don’t know. Now that my dick isn’t doing my thinking, some red flags are popping up. On the way here, he asked crazy questions like what’s my blood type and zodiac sign. I’m kinda afraid he’ll put a hex on me.”
