Page 67 of Toxic Obsession

“Wynter? This isn’t a decision without you. You’ve had a lot happen, and if you would like to drop out of Whitmore and start fresh somewhere else, I’ll write you a letter of recommendation. You have my support either way, but this needs to be your choice, not anyone else’s. Take a minute to decide what’s right foryou.”

His support nearly tipped me over backward. No one had ever told me to make the right choice for me. I had always taken care of Janine, and I thought I’d lost the right to choose for me. Working for Dimitri wouldn’t have ever happened for starters.Although it was great stress relief.I caught myself before I smiled.

“I’m in with one exception. If we can’t turn around popular opinion, can I take you up on the letter of recommendation at a later date?”

“Absolutely. I admire your desire to stay, but if you’re in danger and need to transfer, I’ll be happy to help.”

Relief saturated the room.

“Looks like we have some work to do,” Quinn said to me.

I peered at him, wondering if he really needed my help or if he was just trying to spend time alone with me.

I stood. “I should get to class.” My overworked nerves shot tingles through my fingers and toes.

Quinn stood. “Sir, thank you for your time. I’ll be in touch after I talk to the team today.”

“Let me know what else I can do.” Dean Holcomb shook Quinn’s hand, then smoothed his suit jacket. “And Quinn?”

“Yes, sir?”

“No more malicious actions or you’re out of Whitmore.”

I watched the blood drain from Quinn’s cheeks and his Adam’s apple bob. “Understood.”

Damn. If he got kicked out it would screw up graduation, which would mess up any plans if he didn’t go pro. I wasn’t sure if the video would mess up his chance to play pro football, but probably not. Regardless, he would have to figure that out. I wasn’t the one who blasted the video in order to destroy another person. He was. Now he had to pay the consequences.

Struggling to control the ebb and flow of my anger toward Quinn, I politely excused myself and collected my jacket from the coat rack near the door. I needed to put some space between Quinn and me, fast. The moment I stepped into the dean’s waiting room, Quinn grabbed my arm. My body briefly stiffened at his touch.

“About class.” He led me to the corner and spoke in a hushed tone. “Until we know the climate of the other students …” Quinn shoved his fingers through his hair, his expression sheepish.

“Tell me outside. This is weird, whispering when the dean is around.”

Quinn nodded, then opened the door for me and escorted me to the hall. I spotted a guy in black clothes near the wall but kept walking. The last thing I needed was to slip into class late and be called out by the professor.

“Wynter,” Quinn called from behind me.

I spun on my heel, glowering at him as the guy in black moved to stand next to him.

“Wynter, this is Vaughn Reddington, your new bodyguard.”

My gaze took a slow hike up and down Vaughn—short blonde hair, broad shoulders, bulges in all the right places. His black slacks molded to his muscular thighs but holy shit. Those eyes. I hadn’t ever seen someone with one blue and one brown. A flush crawled up my neck, my hormones charging full speed ahead.

Finally realizing what Quinn had said—that this guy was my bodyguard—I barked out a laugh.

“No.”

Chapter36

Quinn

Wynter stomped off, clearly pissed at me. I wasn’t sure how she’d snuck into the dean’s office and escaped the crowd, but I was pretty sure she hadn’t seen what was waiting for her outside. Luckily, Vaughn had just ended a quick assignment in Portland and Sutton sent him my way.

“Shit.” I chased after her, my long strides easily closing the distance between us, and I stepped in front of the door that led outside and to the lion’s den. “You can go out there, but Vaughn and I are going with you. This isn’t up for negotiation. In fact, I think it’s also our first opportunity.”

Confusion clouded her beautiful features.

“How did you get to the dean’s office?”

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