She didn’t really want to be alone with Dr. Pasternak for any length of time. The door to his classroom was locked, which meant there was a high chance he was gone for the day.
Perfect.
She just needed to get the papers onto Dr. Pasternak’s desk before three o’clock, in case he wasn’t gone for the day. From there she could head home to overthink and obsess about the hot guy across the street. She could re-run the scenario from when she’d kissed Rurik through her head again and again—much like she’d been doing since it happened, feeling mortified every time.
If she had a time machine, she’d play it cool and aloof, like she had something that could even masquerade as self-control around him.
She snorted. I’d totally kiss him again. I’m not fooling anyone, least of all myself.
Never before had a man reduced her to this—a worried, embarrassed, sex-starved fool—but Rurik had checked all those boxes and more for her. If only the walk to campus had helped to burn off some of the nervous energy she had from her impromptu make-out session with the Russian.
A smile tugged at her face.
Rurik.
The man was an enigma, wrapped in a snug-fitting T-shirt, dunked in jeans that fit just right. Her lips began to tingle as she thought back to the kiss. That feeling quickly gave way to her neck and cheeks warming from embarrassment. She’d laid one on a perfect stranger and then had the audacity to steal the man’s birthday present.
Her fingers eased over the toy bear in her bag. She’d had every intention of placing the bear on Rurik’s porch and running away before heading to the campus but didn’t like the idea of parting with the item or facing him. Strangely, the bear was fast becoming as important to her as the one she’d been carting around for as long as she could remember.
Too bad she’d have to part with it.
With a long groan, she continued digging through her bag for her keys, needing them to access Dr. Pasternak’s classroom and office. Just then, the handle of the door jiggled but it wasn’t her doing. She’d not made contact with it.
Wonderful, Pasternak is not gone for the day.
Stepping back, Liberty watched as the door flung open, revealing the reporter who had interviewed her, Isobel, and Daisy about the missing scientists.
The woman’s blonde hair was disheveled as she buttoned her pink blouse. She smoothed down the sides of her skirt before noticing Liberty standing there. Her lips curved into something close to a smile but landed in more of a sneer, which was odd.
The same disconcerting vibe that Liberty had gotten around the woman the last time they’d met returned.
Liberty stared past her into the classroom, wondering why it was the woman was there at all let alone with the door locked. “Uh, Professor, are you in there?”
The woman blinked, the smile taking more shape but lacking warmth. “He’s in his office. I was just, um, interviewing him.”
“For the story that still hasn’t run?” asked Liberty, wanting to step back though she wasn’t sure why. Space seemed to be in order. She towered over the woman and there was no reason to be put off by her—yet the need to distance herself was great.
“I’m still fact-checking. Everyone should verify everything they’re told, if they’re smart,” returned the woman, before walking off down the hall. Her hips swayed as her heels clicked in the hallway.
Liberty watched as the woman disappeared around the corner.
“Higher learning my ass!” shouted a familiar voice from the other direction. “The entire system is run by soul-sucking demons. They’re bleeding you young folks dry all to send you out into the world unprepared. Want to know what will really get you ready for adulting? The military! Join up. Fight for your country. Explore exotic locations. Ride mechanical elephants.”
Ride what?
Liberty twisted around to find Bill and Gus strolling down the hallway, right toward her. Gus was still dressed like Abraham Lincoln—minus the helmet and mannequin head. Bill appeared to be freshly showered and was wearing a T-shirt with a huge American flag on it. It was not flattering on Bill’s body, yet still managed to be better than the Uncle Sam outfit with the questionable stains on the backside.
Bill spotted her and beamed. “Liberty Bell!”
And just like that, she’d gone from worried about the low number of people in the hallway that time of day to wishing the place was totally empty. The few students who were there all whipped out their phones, no doubt trying to capture the moment on video for social media later. Laughter bubbled up from several of them, irking Liberty instantly.
Bill and Gus were odd, yes, and rather eccentric, but they were nice. They didn’t deserve to be the butt of someone’s online video joke or a meme. Not that anyone ever really deserved such treatment. People were cruel and tended to get a lot of enjoyment out of another’s pain—right up until they found themselves on the receiving end. Then miraculous changes of heart always seemed to follow.
The students whispered to one another, laughing as they continued to record. Gus was oblivious but Bill smiled and waved at a few. Did he know they were mocking him? Did he care?
She did.
Narrowing her gaze on the people with phones out, Liberty focused and instantly felt a tingling deep inside. As she registered what that sensation was and what it meant, she considered pulling back, keeping her power locked down. Seeing the others snicker at Bill and Gus did something to her. It made her not care if she let out the darkness that lived in her. A tiny piece of her hoped she tossed one or two of the entitled douchebags around.
In the blink
