Page 60 of Let Me Love You
And what would you know? I ended up having Professor Buchanan, Troy McAdams’ friend, as a teacher at LAU a few years later.
It’s eerie how small the world feels sometimes.
Then again, I could’ve moved across the country to escape from it all. I could still move across the country to escape from it all.
But I won’t.
Because what little family I have is here in this small town, including my friends, and I doubt they’re going anywhere.
“Missing the good ol’ days, Professor?” I quip. “When you’d blend in with the rest of the students at SeaBird instead of sticking out like a sore thumb?”
Apparently, Henry Buchanan attended LAU too. Rumor has it this is the same bar where his little sister met her husband, Jake Jensen. And it’s a good thing she found such a perfect fit for her snooty-tooty family because the guy’s a software nerd who took over B-Tech Enterprises after Henry passed along the responsibilities and decided to become a professor instead.
Henry’s full lips press together as he scans the bar, barely sparing me a glance as he reminds me, “You’ve graduated. You don’t need to call me Professor anymore.”
“And what would you prefer I call you? Professor? Daddy?DoctorBuchanan?” My sultry voice hangs in the air as my mouth pulls into a shameless grin. But I can’t help it. The guy’s grumpier and more guarded than a rhinoceros. He’s always had his guard up high around me. Which is fine. My guard’s high aroundeveryone. But it does make me want to poke at him for it.
“Henry’s fine,” he grunts, refusing to give in to my teasing.
“All right,Henry,” I purr. “What can I get ya?”
The guy scans the bar again, not bothering to look at me. “Whiskey. Top shelf.”
I turn around and stand on my tiptoes, reaching for the nicest bottle SeaBird owns. I pour two fingers of the caramel-colored liquid into the freshly cleaned glass tumbler.
“So, what brings you in tonight? Looking for another chat with Theo and Colt?” I ask, setting the drink in from him.
He doesn’t answer me as he shoots the liquid back and places the glass on the counter. With a dark look, he waits for me to refill it, so I do.
“Or maybe you’re looking for your girlfriend?” I add.
His gaze narrows. “Has she been in here?”
“Yup.”
“Was she with a guy?” he grits out.
And damn. I can see why he’s such a shark in the business world. The hairs along the back of my neck raise as if he’s daring me to lie. To withhold what he wants. To push him when he’s clearly not in the mood to bepushed.
I know the look. The look telling me he already knows the truth without needing to witness it firsthand. The look showing me he’s already seen the red flags but wants proof.Moreproof. But he won’t get it here. Not when I have less faith in the opposite sex than I do in aliens or God.
“She was out with her friends,” I lie. I shouldn’t. He deserves to know the truth. But it isn’t my place, and I don’t know the full story. Hell, maybe Henry’s had someone on the side for months now, and his girlfriend found out and is looking for revenge. Maybe they already broke up, and he’s stalking her. I doubt he’d do it, but… I cock my head, examining his tight jaw and the vein throbbing in his neck. Actually, scratch that. Professor Buchanan definitely looks like someone who isn’t afraid to dirty his hands in order to get what he wants.
“So, she left?” he demands.
“Yup.”
His ever-perfect posture slumps slightly, and he turns to me fully, giving up on his search as he takes a sip of whiskey from his glass. “How’s your mother?”
My expression sours. Not because I hate my mother, but because Henry’s the one asking about her.
“She’s fine.”
“And your uncle?”
“Fine,” I repeat.
Henry Buchanan knows me too. Mia Rutherford. The girl with the murdered daddy. To be fair, most of Lockwood Heights knows me. My face was splashed all over the news for weeks after my dad’s body was found like the Buchanan name was. If I was smart, I would’ve moved away. But I didn’t want to give the assholes who took my father from me the pleasure.