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I eyed him curiously, my gaze shifting from his face to the metal flask he opened. I reached into a drawer and pulled out a coffee mug.

“Looks like you could use this,” he murmured, pouring a liberal dose of what smelled like whiskey into the mug before topping it off with coffee. “Congratulations on surviving your first week at Gatlington.”

We clinked our mugs, and I drank deeply, wondering what the hell I’d gotten myself into.

Chapter 7

Whitney

I DIDN’T LET CHRISTIAN’S disgusting veiled threat of shoving a ring on my finger and dragging me off campus to deter me from enjoying my first semester of graduate school.

Screw him, honestly. If I needed a reason to break up with him, I had a very good one now. I wasn’t in the habit of people telling me what to do, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to let Christian try to run my life.

So I ignored him. Two entire weeks passed, and October came full force with a bitter chill in the air and some, fleeting flurries of snow that didn’t quite stick yet. Still, October was my favorite time to be living on campus. The campus had a spooky vibe to it anyway, but the closer it drew to Halloween, the more the little ghosts that lived in the old buildings came out to play.

Plus, Christian, busy with lacrosse and whatever else he did during the day, because it definitely wasn’t class, hadn’t been bothering me much since he’d tried to “lay down the law” two weeks ago. In fact, I’d barely heard from him or seen him since then. Thank goodness, because I had my work cut out for me this semester, and I didn’t need any more distractions.

Distractions like Professor Ellis.

Everything I saw him I felt nothing but embarrassment after my outburst in his class. In my defense, it had happened directly after Christian’s threat to force me into marriage. My head hadn’t been in the right place, and I’d been wrong.

Professor Ellis knew that. I could see it in his eyes that day and hadn’t been able to look him in the eyes since then.

Still, I found his presence on campus the most distracting of all. He was well-liked and friendly, always stopping to talk to students and faculty. Not me, though. We avoided each other, only crossing paths twice a week during his lecture in Hollis Hall.

It was better this way. Seeing him around campus made me feel... butterflies. And that wasn’t appropriate, to say the least. Still, having him on my mind was a great way to keep my intrusive thoughts about my situation with Christian and my parents off my mind, at least for the time being.

The bike trail was wet and gloomy as I made my way to the library. The sun had already set, and the overcast sky promised another night of rain and possibly wind. The seasons were shifting rapidly. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if it snowed tonight. I’d be cozy and warm inside the confines of Gatlington’s massive library tonight, though.

I walked inside, finding it nearly silent like usual. Like the rest of campus, the library was all dark stone and old brick. Dark wooden accents and shelving complemented the thousands of multicolored book spines. I walked up the spiral staircase, passing the second and third floors until I reached the top of the building, where I had a full view of the stories below.

“Whit!”

I turned with a smile to a group sitting at a cozy table near in the center of a loft-like area on the top floor. Jessica Lowry, my friend and classmate, motioned to the chair beside her. I sat down and started organizing my books.

Jessica pulled her thick red hair into a bun on the very top of her head and turned to me, resting her chin on her hand. “What’ve you been up today? Friday’s your off day, right?”

“It is,” I whispered back, smiling. “It’s been great not having multiple classes every day. I actually got a lot of work done on our term projects for Professor Ellis’ class.”

Jessica, also pursuing her masters in sociology, rolled her eyes and grumbled incoherently before saying, “His class is giving me a run for my money this semester.”

“You’re telling me,” said Chance Granger at the far end of the table. “I thought sociology would be a piece of cake like the undergrade classes, but my advisor lied.”

I grinned, glancing at Jessica, who matched my smile. Both of us wanted to go into research one day—Jessica from a modern perspective and me to untangle the mysteries of the past.

There were two other people in our study group, all of whom had Professor Ellis in some capacity. We met every Friday night in the library.

I looked forward to it every week. Studying in the sorority house felt practically impossible these days. I used to love the noise and drama, but now it grated on my nerves and made it hard to focus.

After two hours debating one of Professor Ellis’ theories, we finally closed our books and shut down our laptops for the weekend, knowing all of us would be spending our free time in the library this weekend anyway.

Jessica and I lingered at the table, however. Empty as the library was because of the late hour, we were practically alone.

“Have you talked to Christian yet?” she asked quietly.

I gave her a look, then shrugged. Jessica had been the only person I talked to about what Christian had said to me. His words echoed in my mind like a death knell.

“This is getting ridiculous, Whitney. You said after you graduated that we’d get engaged. I’m cashing in. We’re doing this, whether you like it or not. Remember what your parents said to you this summer? How are you going to keep paying for grad school if they cut you off?”

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