Page 27 of Crown Jewels
He was goading me, and I wasn’t going to give in.
“Maybe I will.” I sang sweetly back at him. “After all I want to smell fresh for my date.”
Both Vahn and Mitch stopped cold and said, “What date?”
“None of your business.” I lifted my chin and marched in to my room.
Let’s see how they liked that. I could have a social life. I didn’t, but I could. And it would be none of their business. If they could go around sleeping with random women, then I could do the same. I was an adult. Not a child.
“Emma.” Mitch called after I closed my door. “Get back out here.”
“Go to hell.” I yelled back at him while clicking my lock in place.
“Emma,” Mitch pounded on the door. “Get out here. I wanna know who this guy is.”
“You’ll never know.”
“Oh, I’ll find out.” Mitch growled. “Then I’m gonna kick his ass.”
Pfft, sure he would. What was he going to do, follow me?
Normally I wouldn’t go this far to piss my brother off, but I was so annoyed at how he reacted. Like the thought of me seeing someone was utterly absurd. I could get a man if I wanted. I had a successful cam show where men watched me all the time.
My appointment today wasn’t a date per say. More like a meeting with Professor Winston. He called me last night and asked if I would come in today. I assumed it was about the open TA position—he’d hinted at it a few times. But I wasn’t about to tell my brother or Vahn that.
I didn’t even feel bad about lying. I was perfectly happy to let them sit here and think I was out with some guy. Vahn wouldn’t care anyway. He was only pretending to care for my brother’s sake. And Mitch needed to stop treating me like I was a little girl. I was a grown ass woman who could make her own decisions.
God, it felt good to stand up for myself.
EMMA
Ialways found it odd coming to campus on the weekend. There were minimal classes running, and therefore minimal traffic. My first year I spent a lot of spare time here studying. The library was like a second home. I preferred spending my time there over the parties my brother dragged me to. I enjoyed quiet weekends.
Then Mitch and I got our place off campus with Vahn, and I became less used to the empty walkways and lack of activity. Something I didn’t notice until now.
Heading down to Professor Winston’s office felt almost exposing. My paranoia was in full gear. Every person I passedwho looked at me a little too long caused those do they know thoughts to pop up. It probably didn’t help that I was all dressed up.
I had my hair piled in curls on the top of my head, makeup on and was wearing my favorite navy flared skirt, white silk tank top, with black strappy heels. Not typically what one would wear for a meeting with their professor, but I couldn’t exactly hold up my going on a date lie by walking out in jeans and a t-shirt.
What possessed me to lie in the first place was beyond me. Being teased by my brother and Vahn was nothing new. They did it all the time. Pretty bird Ruby was a perfect example of that. Yet for some reason, this time Vahn’s smug face really pissed me off.
I don’t know if I wanted to show him he was wrong, or if it was something else. Whatever it was, the look on his face when I walked out the door was extremely satisfying. Now however, I wasn’t sure my brief moment of satisfaction was worth it.
Stepping to the side, I gave a couple of guys who were eyeing me from a bench a wide berth as I walked around them.
I didn’t like the way they were staring at me. Or at least the way I thought they were staring at me.
It wouldn’t be the first time I misread someone. Like the other day with Vahn. I never in a million years thought he would do that. I was starting to think I was just as naive as my brother said.
He once told me that the only way I’d know if I was being hit on, was if I was actually hit. I brushed it off as typical big brother treating me like a child crap, but now I wondered if he was right.
Although one could argue that I was like a child. I was twenty-one for Christ sake. I should have some experience with men. Most girls got that in high school. Not me. I had a temperamental brother who made sure that didn’t happen.
“Hey there.” A guy heading in the opposite direction on the path smiled at my breasts. That’s where he was looking, not my eyes.
I suddenly wished I’d brought my cardigan.
“Hey,” I said back and continued walking past him. Just because he thought I was a walking pair of boobs, didn’t mean I needed to be rude.
