Page 28 of When Hearts Collide
He always knows what I am thinking.
Maxwell slaps his hand across my back. “You don’t need to tell me anything until you’re ready,” he murmurs.
I stare at our reflections on the glass windows, silhouettes almost identical, but with distinct differences—he’s taller than me by two inches, slightly leaner, his hair longer, the jawline a little more refined and aristocratic and a tall, Roman nose instead of my curved one.
“I just want you to be happy, Ryland. Don’t feel guilty. The curse is random luck. I’m not jealous of you.”
He clears his throat. “I’m glad you can be free to live and fall in love. I’ve accepted my place in life and made the best out of it. I only wish you’d release yourself from whatever’s holding you back. I want you to be happy, and so would Mom.”
Wetness prickles my vision as the pendant weighs heavily on my chest and the light leather bracelet suddenly feels like a fiery brand around my wrist.
What have I done to deserve this unconditional love? I’m a selfish man deep inside. Secretly resentful of everything that was given to me, the good fortune Maxwell would probably die to have. The good fortune most people in the world would cry tears of joy for.
Ugly. Dark. Corrupted.
Ungrateful.
“Let it go, Ryland,” Maxwell whispers as we stare into the night. “Let it go.”
Chapter 12
“You like it, don’t you, baby girl, when I give it to you hard and rough, you little sl—” the low, raspy voice of Theo Andrews, my favorite audiobook narrator, erupts from the speakers of my laptop and cold sweat breaks across my skin.
Shit! Someone kill me now before I die from mortification.
The classroom erupts into laughter as my fingers fly to the mute button on my laptop. My heart clogs my throat, my face surely turning as red as a tomato, and I want the building to collapse and bury me alive.
Damn these social media websites for automatically playing when you open the browser. Last night, I was watching the latest audio teaser clip of a spicy dark romance novel and obviously forgot to close out of the tab.
The snickers continue and I bury my face in my hands, not wanting to face the world.
“Shut it guys. It’s just an audio book clip online. Don’t pretend you guys don’t watch them too,” Jocelyn says from next to me and I peek out from between my fingers and flash her a grateful smile.
Despite the dark circles rimming her eyes, which seem to have gotten worse in the last few weeks, she looks fierce, unkempt hair and all.
Jocelyn has become a good friend to me and just last night, she cooked me dinner when she heard my stomach grumbling at ten p.m. because I was so buried in my studies, I had forgotten to eat.
She gives me a wink and continues, “At least Millie reads…but if my audiobook narrators sounded like that, I think I’d give this reading thing a try too. Maybe I’d actually pass this class if I read more.” A grimace flashes over her face before her expression smooths to one of nonchalance again.
More chuckles echo around us and a few guys shoot their brows up on their foreheads, their eyes giving me the elevator glances, making me want to crawl back into the hole I desperately need to be in.
Utter mortification.
“Who’s he?” a cute redhead next to me whispers while eyeing my laptop.
I blow out a breath. Embarrassing moments happen to everyone. “He’s Theo Andrews and he—”
“Laptop working today? Nice to see you’re finally prepared for class, Ms. Callahan. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to begin,” a deep voice rumbles.
The classroom abruptly silences as our attention focuses on the imposing man standing at the threshold.
Oh. My. God. How much did he hear?
Professor Anderson’s eyes pin me in place. His scathing remarks are ropes binding my hands and feet. My body heats up again.
He’s leaning against the door frame, his posture deceptively casual, but his demeanor is anything but. His tailored gray suit and white dress shirt stretch over his body, an expertly knotted navy tie cinching his neck, but not hiding the muscles rippling in his throat.
My heart skips several beats as my breath leaves my body. God invented suits for this man.
