Single in Sitka
Page 23
He sits down in the chair behind his desk, and I take a seat in one of the two guest chairs, peeking at it first to see if there are any leftovers from its previous occupant.
“So,” I say, letting my backpack hit the floor with a dull thud. “You and Candace.”
“Me and Candace...what?”
“You just totally fucked in here.”
He grins at me like he’s cute. “A gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell.”
“Is there a gentleman here?”
“That’s good.” He chuckles. “I like that about you, Juliet.”
“My knack for stating the obvious?”
“Your sense of humor. You’re sharp. Funny.”
“I’m glad I amuse you.”
“Come on.” He cocks his head to the side. “Don’t be mad at me, baby.”
“Why would I be mad?” I ask.
“I never said we were getting married,” he points out, his eyes lazy under heavy, dark lashes.
“And I never said I wanted to catch an STD,” I say, “but I guess I’ll get tested after this.”
“I use condoms,” he tells me, his smile fading a touch.
“Then I guess breeding isn’t your favorite.”
“Okay,” he says, leaning forward in his desk chair as he tents his hands on his desk. “You’re pissed.”
“No,” I say, “I’m not pissed.” Yes, I am. “I’m just surprised.”
“Baby,” he says, “last I heard, you were leaving town for the next three and a half months. Was I just supposed to wait for you?”
Yes, I want to say. Yes, you were supposed to wait for me, because we like each other, and I don’t just screw anyone. In fact, five minutes ago, before I walked into your office smelling of Eau d’Fuck, I would have called what we were doing over the last few weeks “making love.”
Now, the thought of those two words makes me want to heave. We weren’t making love. He was fucking me. And I wasn’t the only one.
“You’re a real class act, Glenn.”
He shrugs. Then, sighs. Then, leans back in his chair, his smile gone, his expression long-suffering. “We weren’t in love, Juliet. We just got together a few weeks ago. I thought you knew it was casual.”
“I do now,” I say, but foolish me, I didn’t then. I actually thought that Glenn and I were building something real, something meaningful.
He stares at me for a second, as though waiting for me to say more. When I don’t, takes another deep breath, then lets it go. “I guess we should talk about your fellowship.”
I want to leave. I really do. I want to walk out of Glenn’s office, go back to my dorm, eat a pint of Cherry Garcia and have a quick and dirty pity cry. The last thing I want to do is talk about how something else in my life isn’t working out the way I wanted it to. I’m embarrassed that I so mis-read the relationship between us. But Glenn is listed as my official faculty advisor on the grant forms, so he’s right; we need to talk.
“I’m sorry your proposed project fell through,” he says, picking up small nerf basketball and bouncing it against the wall of his office.
What a douche.
“Yeah, but technically, I still have the fellowship,” I say. “I haven’t contacted them yet.”
“You need to do that,” he says, pausing in his game of catch to look at me. “If you’re unable to use the money, they’ll need to call their second-choice applicant and let that person know they get the grant.”
Not so fast, swift-dick.
Without Glenn’s and my romance in play, I find I’m not as eager to stay in Minnesota as I was a couple of hours ago. In fact, I’m downright eager to get the hell out of here. If I never see Professor Steinfuck’s cocky face again, it’ll be too soon.
“I think there might be another way,” I say.
“Your e-mail yesterday said that none of the mushers in Montana would mentor you.”
“Yeah,” I say. “But I found someone in Alaska that will.”
“Alaska.”
“Yep. In Nome.”
“I didn’t realize you knew anyone up there.”
I don’t, but I’ll be damned if I have to show up in Glenn’s class twice a week for the rest of the semester. No, thanks.
“I found a guy in Nome willing to work with me.”
“A guy? Really?” Glenn leans forward. “You found someone who’ll let you live at their place? Be involved with dog care and training? Until January?”
I think about the ad. Nome-o said he was looking for a woman to race with him and that training was available. I assume that he has somewhere for that woman to stay, but if not, I’ll use some of my grant stipend to pay for local accommodations.
“Yep.”
“What’s his name?” asks Glenn, who’s been an official Iditarod veterinary volunteer several times, and fancies himself popular among the mushers. “Maybe I know him.”
“I doubt it,” I say. Plus, I have no idea what Nome-o’s real name is...yet. “I’ll write an amendment to the grant proposal and cc you on the copy when I email it to the board at the Doc Staunton Foundation.”
“You don’t want to tell me his name, Juliet?”
“Nope. Not really,” I say, reaching down for my backpack and slinging it over my shoulder. “And I should probably let you know that I’ll be requisitioning a new faculty advisor asap.”
He tenses. “Are you going to tell them why?”
“Am I going to tell them that you’re fucking at least two of your students?” I ask, standing up and pushing the guest chair back under the lip of his desk. “No. I have no interest in being associated with you on that level...or on any level, frankly.”
His shoulders relax. “Thanks, Juliet.” He leans forward and holds out his hand. Friends?”
“Fuck you, Glenn,” I say, ignoring his hand and closing the door to his office behind me.
PRE-ORDER NOME-O SEEKS JULIET NOW!
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More Odds-Are-Good Stand-Alone Romances are coming this fall!
SINGLE IN SITKA (October 7, 2019) – Thank you for reading!
When Seattle journalist Amanda heads north to Sitka to research a story, she answers the Odds Are Good personal ad of single dad Luke, hoping for some no-strings-attached fun. But could the sweet, widowed father of three—who just happens to be a smokin’-hot state trooper—turn out to be the man of her dreams?
NOME-O SEEKS JULIET (November 4, 2019) – Preorder on Amazon, Apple, B&N, Kobo
Upon learning that the Qimmiq Dog Race will be canceled without a female contestant, Cody places an ad in the Odds Are Good magazine, desperately searching for a woman in the Lower Forty-Eight to enter the competition. He rues this decision later, however, when his ad recruits Montana-born Juliet, a strong contender with an agenda of her own.
A FAIRBANKS AFFAIR (December 2, 2019) – Preorder on Amazon, Apple, B&N, Kobo
Tired of being treated like a freak when men discover that Faye is a thirty-year-old virgin, she answers an ad in the Odds Are Good magazine, hoping to trek up to Fairbanks over New Year’s and turn over her v-card to a sexy Alaskan. But when her chemistry with businessman Trevor turns out to be stronger than she ever could have imagined, what started out as a one-and-done mission becomes much more complicated.
MY VALDEZ VALENTINE (February 10, 2020) – Preorder on Amazon, Apple, B&N, Kobo
When Los Angeles lawyer Addison receives a desperate voice mail from her adventure-seeking brother, she hires Alaskan helicopter pilot Dakota (whom she finds via an ad in the Odds Are Good) to take her to her brother’s last-known location. As the two venture farther into the harsh Alaskan wilderness on a dangerous rescue mission, they quickly discover they’ll have to safeguard their lives...and their hearts.
KODIAK LUMBERJACK (April 20, 2020) – Preorder on Amazon, Apple, B&N, Kobo
Activist Casey has never met a cause she won’t champion,
and that includes a new antiforestry initiative by the nonprofit group Trees-Are-Friends. Hired to write a smear piece about Alaskan logging operations, she answers a personal ad in the Odds Are Good, seeking an inside contact, not romance. Once she meets hot lumberjack Soren, however, she discovers that people, like causes, are often more layered than they originally appear.
ALSO AVAILABLE
from Katy Regnery
a m o d e r n f a i r y t a l e
(A collection)
The Vixen and the Vet
Never Let You Go
Ginger’s Heart
Dark Sexy Knight
Don’t Speak
Shear Heaven
Fragments of Ash
THE BLUEBERRY LANE SERIES
THE ENGLISH BROTHERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #1–7)
Breaking Up with Barrett
Falling for Fitz
Anyone but Alex
Seduced by Stratton
Wild about Weston
Kiss Me Kate
Marrying Mr. English
THE WINSLOW BROTHERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #8–11)
Bidding on Brooks
Proposing to Preston
Crazy about Cameron
Campaigning for Christopher
THE ROUSSEAUS
(Blueberry Lane Books #12–14)
Jonquils for Jax
Marry Me Mad
J.C. and the Bijoux Jolis
THE STORY SISTERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #15–17)
The Bohemian and the Businessman
The Director and Don Juan
Countdown to Midnight
THE SUMMERHAVEN SERIES
Fighting Irish
Smiling Irish
Loving Irish
Catching Irish
THE ARRANGED DUO
Arrange Me
Arrange Us
ODDS ARE GOOD SERIES
COMING FALL 2019 – SPRING 2020
Single in Sitka
Nome-o Seeks Juliet
A Fairbanks Affair
My Valdez Valentine
Kodiak Lumberjack
STAND-ALONE BOOKS:
After We Break
(a stand-alone second-chance romance)
Frosted
(a stand-alone romance novella for mature readers)
Unloved, a love story
(a stand-alone suspenseful romance)
Under the sweet-romance pen name
Katy Paige
THE LINDSTROMS
COMING FALL 2019 – WINTER 2020
Proxy Bride
Missy’s Wish
Sweet Hearts
Choose Me
Virtually Mine
Unforgettable You
My Treasure – all new!
Summer’s Winter – all new!
Under the paranormal pen name
K. P. Kelley
It’s You, Book 1
It’s You, Book 2
Under the YA pen name
Callie Henry
A Date for Hannah
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Katy Regnery started her writing career by enrolling in a short story class in January 2012. One year later, she signed her first contract, and Katy’s first novel was published in September 2013.
More than forty books and three RITA® nominations later, Katy claims authorship of the multititled Blueberry Lane series, the A Modern Fairytale collection, the Summerhaven series, the Arranged duo, and several other stand-alone romances, including the critically acclaimed mainstream fiction novel Unloved, a love story.
Katy’s books are available in English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Turkish.
Check out Katy’s Website here: http://www.katyregnery.com
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