First Semester (Elton Hall Chronicles Book 1)

by Sarah Fischer

“Yeah, no problem.” I tried not to sound too disappointed.

  “I parked in the lot right outside so why don’t you wait here and I’ll be right back.” He pointed toward the classroom we just had the meeting in and indicated I should take a seat.

  “Okay, I guess I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

  “Thanks, you’re the best.” He leaned in and gave me a gentle peck on the cheek. I smiled as he walked away.

  I sat in the same desk I was in for the meeting and took my notebook out. I wanted to look at my statistics notes again in the hope that I could attempt to figure out my homework.

  ***

  “What are you still doing in here?” Hercules asked from the door of the classroom. He was leaning against the doorframe and watching me. I looked up at him and my breath caught in my throat. We were alone again.

  “Oh, I am meeting up with Trent for dinner. He had to run to the Greek Council office so he asked me to wait,” I said, trying to sound relaxed.

  “A real man doesn’t let a woman wait. Didn’t you say you were looking for a real man?” He walked in and sat on the table in the front of the classroom. He was about ten feet from me now.

  “A real man doesn’t shirk his responsibilities!” I stated, and then looked down at my homework. I felt a little embarrassed all of a sudden. Like he was judging me for being interested in Trent. Then I realized that was ridiculous. I would not let him hold that kind of power over me. I met his gaze with a look of defiance. Trent was a nice guy. If I wanted to go on a date with him, then I would.

  He got up from the table and walked over to my desk. “So after what almost happened in the EET office, you’re going to go out with another bloke.” He slid into the desk next to mine and leaned over onto my desk.

  “I said yes to him before the office. Besides, you made it quite clear that what almost happened in the EET office should never have happened. So why not?” I took a chance and met his gaze. We sat like that for a second and just looked into each other’s eyes. My pulse was racing. I knew something had to happen but I was not about to be the one to move. It had to be up to him. Or my phone. It buzzed and the moment was over. I looked down and saw a text from Trent.

  I’m sorry! I need to reschedule dinner.

  I picked the phone up and showed it to Hercules. “I guess the date isn’t going to happen.” He took it and I started to put my statistics notes away.

  “His loss,” Hercules said as he handed the phone back to me.

  “It’s fine. I’m sure whatever he was doing was important and he didn’t want me to wait,” I said, trying not to sound upset. Things happened and I needed to accept it. As I was grabbing my last page of notes, it slid off the desk. Hercules got up quickly and grabbed it.

  “You were working on statistics?” he asked as he handed me the page.

  “Yeah, math has always been my weak spot, and statistics doesn’t even seem like it’s math. I have some homework but I’m pretty sure my teacher is speaking a different language so I’m probably going to have to see her during office hours to figure this out,” I grumbled as I grabbed my bag and stood up.

  “Let me have a look. I had to deal with statistics for my PhD so I can probably give you a hand.” He patted the desk next to him, suggesting that I should sit back down. He took his glasses out of his pocket and slid them on. I took a deep breath. I was already nervous sitting in this room with him alone. I probably should have caught up with Annabelle in the cafeteria but I really did need the help. I shrugged and sat back down. We would just focus on homework and not what almost happened earlier.

  “So far, it seems pretty simple. You just need to determine which formula you need to use,” he said as he looked over the homework questions.

  “That would be the problem. I am not really sure which goes where.” I was trying to focus on the statistics notes and not his eyes. Hercules had many qualities that made a girl do a double take, but his eyes were my favorite. It wasn’t just the color that made them special or the small specks of gold here and there. It was the way they held your gaze and made you forget everything. You could look into his eyes and just for one second the outside world would disappear and it was just you and him. Problems like statistics just didn’t exist in his world.

  I shook my head and tried to focus on what he was explaining. I had a distinct feeling it was important but I was struggling.

  “What?” Hercules asked when it became obvious I was not paying attention to what he was saying.

  “Sorry, I just got distracted. I was thinking about something,” I stammered as I quickly looked down at my notes. Luckily, my phone went off at that moment and I had an excuse to take a break from the most unsuccessful study session ever. I got a text message and it was from Lola!

  Hey, sorry! I was out of it today. I’m fine. I had a concussion so they wanted me to stay in the hospital for observation. I’m staying at my mom’s tonight and then back to campus. I’m glad you’re okay. C ya!

  “Well, that’s good,” I exclaimed, and I put my phone away.

  “What’s up? Trent finished?” he practically growled, and I tried not to choke on the masculinity battle.

  “No, ah, it was my roommate, Lola. She said she had a concussion last night but is being released and then going to her mom’s for the night so she’s doing well.” I decided to ignore the comment about Trent instead of feeding this fight.

  “I’m glad she’s doing better,” he said, and looked down at my notes again. There was an awkward silence. I had a feeling he was thinking about what almost happened earlier. It was on my mind too. How could it not be? Lola clearly was fine but a concussion was not a small injury. Maybe I underestimated this whole thing. I probably should be grateful nothing happened.

  “You’re right. I should have taken this whole thing more seriously,” I admitted to him.

  He didn’t say anything but looked up at me. I wanted to say something to break this silence but I wasn’t sure where to go from here. He was my professor, Professor Berneli. I should start calling him that and not Hercules. Maybe that would help me think of him as a professor and not the almost Greek god I’d like to have my way with. Yes, that would be the plan. I looked up from my notes and met his gaze. My insides quickly turned to goo and I realized the problem with that plan.

  “Look, I know that what happened earlier was out of line. I could pretend that I’m not attracted to you but that would be a lie. I am your professor so this cannot happen. We just have to accept that and move on,” Berneli confessed.

  My mouth fell open. I knew he was attracted to me, obviously, he nearly kissed me, but it was a completely different thing to hear with his delicious accent.

  “I know. I didn’t think anything was going to happen between us anyway. I mean, it can’t, right? That’s why I was going out with Trent today,” I acknowledged as I grabbed my notes and put them away. I didn’t want to be in this conversation anymore.

  “Really? Trent? Talk about all brawn and no brains. It is painful to have meetings with him. You could do better,” Berneli said as he ran his hand through his hair.

  “You have no right to say that about him. You just met him! He is a really nice guy,” I insisted as I stood up. Now he was just being mean. It wasn’t right for him to say those things about Trent and I was not going to sit around and listen to it. I started to walk toward the door but Berneli quickly got up and blocked my path.

  “Violet, I feel like I know you and I just met you,” he professed as he took his glasses off and slid them back in his pocket.

  “Oh really? What do you know about me?” I asked, challenging him. I was actually curious about what he had to say.

  “You’re good at poker, obviously, but it’s more than that. You can read people. It’s very intimidating. It’s almost as if you can see into people’s soul with just one glance. I’m captivated by you whenever you cast a glance my way. You’re a good friend too. Not many people would show up to a meeting they weren’t invited to
just so they could support their friend. You’re also dedicated. While waiting for your date, you start working on homework you don’t understand. And you’re passionate. I see it in your eyes. I saw it earlier today and it’s intoxicating.” As he said this, he inched closer to me until he was right in front of me again.

  “Well, I may be able to read most people, but I think you are giving me some mixed signals,” I said as I stepped forward and closed the distance. He was now inches from my face.

  “Let’s see if I can clear that up for you, then,” he said as he grabbed my face and brought it to his. In an instant, his lips were on mine. There was an urgency to his kiss and I answered with my own need. His lips begged me to open to him and I did. I felt his tongue slide into my mouth and take over. He controlled this kiss and I was trying desperately to hold on.

  His hands slid from my face to the back of my head and my neck. I slid my hands up his back and felt the strong muscles rippling with his movements. I could have lived in this moment forever. Then it was over. Berneli ripped his lips from mine and took a couple of steps back.

  “How is that for crossing the line?” he exclaimed as he walked out of the classroom.

  I stood there for a second, unsure how to respond. On the one hand, he told me that he could not have anything to do with me. On the other hand, he kissed me with enough passion to wake the dead. Then he left! He left with me standing there trying to figure this out on my own.

  I slid my bag back up my shoulder and headed to the cafeteria to try to get some dinner.

  ***

  At this point, I wasn’t even hungry, but I needed something to do. This was probably not something I could discuss with Annabelle, or really anybody. It could mean his job if the wrong people found out, and it was possible that I could get kicked out of school. I trusted Annabelle but I decided to keep this to myself for now. What I needed now was a distraction that did not come in the form of a Y-chromosome.

  I walked into the cafeteria and saw Annabelle sitting at our usual table by the window. I walked over to drop my bag off before I got food and noticed Jason was sitting across from her. I smiled. Good for her. I was going to let her be but she saw me and waved.

  “Hey, what happened to your date?” she asked as I walked over.

  I had to think for a second. Everything with Berneli seemed to take over my brain that I almost forgot about the date.

  “Trent had a Greek emergency so he had to cancel,” I said after a second. It was crazy that Trent canceling led to the incident with Berneli. Hell, I almost forgot we were even supposed to go out. Berneli completely distracted me.

  “You had a date with Trent?” Jason probed as he took a sip of soda.

  “Yeah, why?” I put my bag down on the empty chair and sat down.

  “I just heard him talking before the meeting that he and his ex may be getting back together,” he said gently, trying to be honest. Jason actually sounded concerned for me.

  “Well, if that’s the case, then I’m happy for them. It was a first date so no real feelings had been developed yet. I’m going to get some dinner. Are you guys hanging out here for a while or heading out?” I was not a big fan of eating alone but I didn’t want to impose.

  “I’ll wait for you,” Annabelle promised, even though she looked about done with her food. Jason looked at her and then said he would wait for me too. I had a feeling, though, it was not me he was waiting on. I left the two of them and went to grab some food. It looked like pasta day and that was perfect. I always had it at home when something upset me so it would definitely help with the Berneli incident.

  I filled my plate with too much food and then grabbed a drink. I looked over at the table and Annabelle and Jason were laughing hysterically at something. They looked nice together. Jason was at least six feet tall and lean with bright blue eyes. His brown hair was tousled and messy but not too long. He was wearing a superhero t-shirt and Chucks. He basically looked like a grown child but he had a bright and enchanting smile. It lit up his face and became contagious. I headed over to the table and put my tray down between Annabelle and Jason. He had a girlfriend so maybe some cockblocking was needed.

  They talked a lot about EET and the upcoming comedienne. Both of them seemed really excited. I sat in silence and ate my food. It was comforting just to listen to them talk. They did not need me to do more than agree with what they were saying and I was able to go over the day in my mind.

  I decided to start with Trent. If he really was getting back with his ex-girlfriend, then why not say that? Why not give me the heads-up? Then again, he didn’t ask to reschedule or suggest another date, so maybe the rumor was true. On the other hand, it was not really fair of me to date him if I was feeling this way about Berneli. I knew the chance of anything happening again with Berneli were slim, but hope was a dangerous feeling, and right now I was filled with it.

  ***

  The three of us tossed our trash and headed toward the dorms. Jason went with us most of the way until he turned toward his dorm. Annabelle and I walked in silence until we saw Jason open the door.

  “So, he has a girlfriend, right?” I double checked with her.

  “Yeah, her name is Janice or something like that,” she recalled, seemingly oblivious to the effect she seemed to have on Jason.

  “Jason and Janice? They sound like twins or siblings,” I commented, giggling a little.

  “I never thought of it like that. I haven’t met her yet since she wasn’t at EET. So, Trent?” She was clearly trying to change the subject.

  “Yeah, I don’t know. I mean, he didn’t try to reschedule the date or anything and I haven’t heard from him except for the cancelation text,” I said as we both headed to my room. I had told her about Lola on the way to the dorm so she knew that my room would be empty.

  “Do you think he is going to reschedule?” she asked, and sat down on my bed. I grabbed a water bottle and joined her.

  “I don’t know. It’s possible he really was busy and couldn’t plan a new date. Or, you know, it is possible that he and his ex-girlfriend are getting back together,” I said, and took a big sip of water.

  “I guess we will just have to wait and see.”

  We spent the night watching television and doing the little bit of homework we had. Annabelle headed back to her room around ten and I climbed in the shower. As the hot water beat down on me, I imagined the stress of today rolling off of my shoulders.

  I stepped out of the shower feeling a bit lighter and went to brush my teeth. After that, I washed my face and headed to bed. The relaxed feeling stayed with me until I closed my eyes. The thought hit me like a brick and my eyes shot open. I had Berneli’s class first thing in the morning.

  Chapter 5

  I tossed and turned most of the night. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him grab my face and felt his lips on mine. I saw his eyes gazing at me and heard him calling my name. His accent wrapped around the letters and it was as if I was hearing my name for the first time. I felt his hand on the back of my head, intertwining his fingers with my hair. He gently tugged on it and a thrill started at my core and radiated through my body.

  I was awake way before my alarm went off and I grabbed a bowl of cereal and ate on my bed. I had been debating dressing up a little for class because I wanted to look nice for Berneli, but I didn’t want to look like I was trying. In the end, I decided to go big or go home.

  I straightened my hair and it fell down to my elbows. It was probably time for a haircut but the only person I would let cut my hair was back home in Maryland. It was just going to have to wait. I headed to the bathroom with my make-up bag and did it up. I was just putting my mascara on when Annabelle walked into the bathroom with her shower bag.

  “Um, hi.” She looked at me, confused, trying to suppress a yawn.

  “Good morning,” I replied, and kind of laughed. She clearly was not even close to awake yet.

  “What are you doing up so early?” she asked.

  �
��I had a rough time sleeping so I figured if my hair looked pretty, then people wouldn’t notice the bags under my eyes,” I joked. There was no way to tell her I wanted to look good for Berneli.

  “You look fine,” she insisted, and shook her hand at me.

  “I would believe you but your eyes are barely open.”

  She stuck her tongue out at me and headed to the shower.

  “I’ll see you at lunch?” I asked before I headed out the door.

  “Yeah, I’ll let you know what time I get out of class,” she responded as the water started to run.

  I headed back to my room and got dressed. This took me a little bit of time so it was good I started so early. Eventually, I decided on a pair of dark blue skinny jeans that made my butt look good and a red lace shirt. It had cap sleeves and a low neck that played up my assets. I looked in the mirror and smiled. It was going to be a good day or I was going to make it one. After one more look, I grabbed my backpack and headed out the door.

  ***

  Berneli’s class started in fifteen minutes but I didn’t want to be there too early. That would be desperate, so I went down to the basement of the castle, where the flower garden was. This time, no one was lurking around so I took my time admiring the beauty in silence.

  After walking around for about ten minutes, I decided it was time to make my way to class. I got there five minutes early. I took a seat in the second row and looked around. Berneli was not in the class yet and I instantly panicked. What if he canceled class? What if someone found out about the kiss? What if I would never see him again? Sweat started to prickle on my forehead and my pulse raced. I pulled my cell phone out and checked my email. There was no message canceling class so I’d have to just wait and see. Panicking came naturally to me but I needed to pull myself together.

  With a minute left until class started, Berneli walked in. He was carrying a black briefcase that he placed on the desk behind him. He hopped onto the desk and pulled a sheet of paper out. I watched as he walked toward me but then stopped before the girl sitting in the desk in front of me. He handed it to her and then he walked in front of me and started speaking to the class.