“Just be careful who you say that to,” she grumped, then remembered Tom. “You’re never going to guess what else happened. It was the best part of the afternoon.”
They went to the kitchen and made tea while she caught Yvonne up on Tom’s antics that day. They were both laughing when they came back into the living room. “Serves him right, that guy is a huge jerk. I’ve had a couple of classes with him,” Yvonne said, sinking back into her spot on the couch. “I guess I’m lucky my class all gets along.”
“I’m not that worried about Tom. Today should have shut him down hard, and if he comes at me, I’ll be more than happy to remind him what it sounded like when he hit the floor,” she said, an evil grin on her face. “I’m more worried about Jackson, I have to work with him in the dissection lab three days a week. I don’t know how I’m going to deal with him for that long.”
“Just ignore him as much as you can, and don’t talk to him unless you have to,” Yvonne said, shrugging her shoulders. “If you don’t engage with him, he can’t piss you off, it’s that simple.”
“That’s easy for you to say, but Jackson is a bit hard to ignore,” she grumbled, plopping down in a chair. “There’s something about him, something that makes me let my guard down every time I’m around him. I’ve never had this problem before. I never let these kinds of distractions mess up my focus.”
Yvonne was silent for so long that she looked over at her. “I think you like him,” her friend said, a little smile on her face. “I think you’re attracted to him.”
“I am not,” she shot back instantly. “That would be crazy. He’s not my type. Well, I don’t think he’s my type. I don’t really date. I don’t have time for romance and the drama that comes with it.”
“All the signs are there,” Yvonne insisted. “You said it yourself. No one ever distracts you, but somehow Jackson has managed to do just that. Maybe you should just go with it and have a wild fling. He’s a good-looking guy, you could do a lot worse.”
“I wouldn’t mind having a fling, but it’s not going to be with one of my classmates,” she said, shaking her head. “I already have to work twice as hard as the men; the last thing I need is a reputation. I just can’t do it.”
“So, you do like him?” Yvonne asked, grinning at her. “I knew it.”
“Even if I do, and I’m not admitting anything, nothing is going to happen,” she said stubbornly. “I’m still a long way from my goal. I can’t afford to have anything get in the way, and Jackson Howe would definitely get in the way.”
CHAPTER 6
***JACKSON***
Jackson woke to the sun shining through his window and panicked for a second, sure that he was late to class. Then, he remembered that it was Saturday. With a happy sigh, he pillowed his arms beneath his head and savored the feeling of lounging in bed, but the pleasure didn’t last long. The hurt look on Abby’s face the afternoon before popped into his mind, and guilt stampeded all over his good mood, leaving him scowling at the ceiling.
The smell of cinnamon and coffee wafted up to him from the kitchen down below, and he let out a long sigh. He’d done what had been necessary, he couldn’t get tangled up with Abby. Watching her as they walked out of the lab, he’d known instinctively that’s what would happen if he didn’t push her away, and a little panicked, he’d spit out the first thing that came to his mind. The truth was her enthusiasm, her intelligence, and not just her blue eyes captivated him, and the closer he got to her, the worse it would be.
It didn’t feel great hurting her feelings the way he had, but it would guarantee him some space to get through thesemester. His stomach growling loudly overruled the last traces of guilt and he threw back the covers, got out of bed, threw on his pajamas telling himself the entire time that it was for the best. He was surprised to see everyone gathered at the table in the kitchen, filling the room with excited conversation, and he groaned, wishing he could just have a quiet breakfast.
After filling his cup, he sat down at the table, surprised when Hattie slammed a plate down in front of him with an unhappy grunt and then stomped off. He looked around the table, searching his brain for what he could have done to make her mad, but then the conversation around him began to filter into his brain.
“I heard they broke every window on the first floor,” Cooper said. “There’s glass everywhere, but they can’t clean it up until the police are done.”
“There’s thousands of dollars’ worth of damage, according to my calculations,” Aaron said. “And that doesn’t include the paint they sprayed all over the building. It’s going to have to be sandblasted off, and might even damage the old stone if they’re not careful.”
“Whoever was trying to get out a message sure did a good job of it,” Gabe said. “That building was one of the original structures on the property. It’s over two hundred years old and a perfect example of the architecture of that time period. It will be a tragedy if it can’t be saved.”
“I’m just glad they didn’t get the football field,” Walker said, then saw him gaping at them all. “I don’t think Jackson has heard what happened.”
His friends all looked around at each other, but no one said anything for a second, then Taylor cleared his throat. “Someone vandalized the science building last night. They broke windows, spray painted some vile things on the building, and tore up all the grass with their tires.”
He sat back in his chair, shocked. “That’s horrible,” he said. “Who would have done something like this?”
“No one is saying much of anything. I don’t think they know for sure,” Malcom said, then looked around the table. “But some of us think it’s really an attack on Dean Proctor, a way to get rid of him or something.”
“That’s a bit farfetched,” he said, shaking his head. “He doesn’t have anything to do with the science program. He teaches literature. The connection doesn’t fit.”
“We may not know why, but I think I know the who,” Ryan said. “I bet the Kappas had something to do with this. They’ve been angry ever since they appointed Dean Proctor, probably because he shut down their parties.”
“Now that I can believe,” he said. “But I still don’t see why they targeted the science building. It doesn’t make sense, but I think I’ll go see Dean Proctor after breakfast.”
“Now, Jackson, don’t go messing around where you’re not welcome,” Hattie said. “Stick to your business and let the Dean handle this. It has nothing to do with you.”
“It has everything to do with me,” he said. “That’s my home. That building has been a part of my life on this campus since the first day I arrived, and I’m not going to let anyone desecrate it without doing something.”
Hattie let out an exasperated sigh. “I know that tone of voice. There’s nothing that will change your mind,” she said. “Just promise me that you’ll be careful. Those Kappas are dangerous, they don’t play by the rules. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
