Текст книги "Undone"
Автор книги: R. E. Hunter
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Текущая страница: 19 (всего у книги 20 страниц)
35
Embry lay in bed relaxing with Luke. He was reading through legal papers for one of his cases, and he looked downright delicious doing it. He was bare-chested, the comforter covering his naked bottom half, and he wore dark-framed reading glasses. Embry laughed to herself as she pictured the girls in her class that lusted after him and how their heads would explode if they saw how Professor Brody looked while he worked at home. The man was pure sex, and he didn’t even know it. Luke glanced over catching Embry mid-stare, and a self-assured smirk lifted his lips. Maybe he did know it.
Embry shook her head, set down her book, and reached for her purse on the nightstand. She pulled out the mail she had stuffed inside and began to flip through it. She opened a few Christmas cards from random family members and skipped past credit card offers and other junk mail. She almost missed the thin envelope with her school’s crest in the upper left-hand corner. Turning it over, she was confused. She had already received all of her loan information for the following semester, and as far as she knew, grades were uploaded onto the university’s server, not sent out in paper form. “Luke?”
“Yeah, babe,” he replied, distractedly.
“Does Whitman send grades out by mail?”
He looked at her, and then his eyes traveled to the envelope. “No, they go up online only. You should get an email when your professors make them available.”
“Hmm, okay,” she said.
Luke went back to his work, and Embry slipped her finger under the flap of the envelope. She unfolded the single sheet of paper, and her entire world stopped.
She sat stock-still staring at the page in front of her, the words “Notice of Disciplinary Hearing” in big bold letters at the top. Her heart stopped dead in her chest and then kicked back in, beating at an erratic and frenzied pace. Her eyes frantically scanned the document. The words review board, investigation, and violation of university policy jumped from the page.
Oh my God. She couldn’t move, couldn’t form coherent thought. She didn’t know how long she sat there staring at the paper in her shaking hands before Luke interrupted her.
“Baby?”
She didn’t answer. Couldn’t.
“Hey,” he said, stroking his hand down her arm. “Are you all right?”
She turned to him, tears spilling from her eyes. “They know,” she whispered as she handed him the letter.
“What?”
She watched as his eyes scanned the page and grew wide. “Fuck,” he breathed out and scrubbed his hand down his face. He looked over at Embry, his eyes filled with concern. He reached for her, pulling her close and squeezing her hand. It was the only thing keeping her grounded. “We’re gonna get through this, baby,” he said reassuringly. “I promise you.”
Embry crawled into his lap and buried her head in his chest. “I don’t understand how this happened.”
His arms came around her and he held her tight. “I don’t either. But we can’t focus on that. We have to figure out how we’re going to handle this.”
“It’s in two days, Luke. What am I supposed to do?”
“How long have you had this letter?”
Embry shook her head against his chest. “At least a week. I’ve been spending so much time here, I forgot to check my mail. Why?”
“I’m surprised I haven’t been notified. But it doesn’t matter if you opened it a week ago or today, they like to handle these things expeditiously. When there’s been any kind of accusation like this, they launch an investigation immediately.”
“How do you know?” she asked.
“I know how the school procedures work. It’s just what they do.”
“How can you be so calm about all of this? Aren’t you worried?”
He stroked his hand over her hair and placed a kiss on her head. “Of course I’m worried, baby. But one of us has to be calm. I don’t want anything jeopardizing your future, including me.” Luke slipped a finger under her chin, bringing her eyes to his. “We knew this was a possibility. I thought we were in the clear with the semester being over, but apparently we’re not. So all we can do is figure out what our options are and prepare you for that meeting. Okay?”
“Okay,” she agreed.
And prepare they did. Luke pulled up copies of the university’s conduct code and disciplinary procedures online and read through them until he could practically recite them from memory. He came up with every question he thought Embry might be faced with in front of the review board, and he quizzed her until she was comfortable with each answer, repeating them automatically.
“When did we first meet?”
“When you took over for Professor Coleman.”
“Had you seen me before that?”
“If you were around campus, I didn’t notice.”
“Do you ever speak to me outside of school?”
“Yes. We communicate by phone regarding our research.”
“Have I ever been inappropriate with you?”
“Of course not. You’re my professor.”
“Did I offer you any special help with assignments?”
“No, never.”
“Did you do anything to gain favor with me in class? To persuade me to alter your grade?”
“Other than study hard and be prepared for class, I’ve done nothing that would give me an unfair advantage over the other students in my class.”
Embry lay in Luke’s bed the night before the hearing, snuggled in his arms as he breathed evenly, sound asleep. His family had already gone home, and she was left alone with her thoughts. She went over all of the possible outcomes of the hearing—expulsion, probation, failure, Luke losing his job. Each of those things worried her, but she realized that as much as she didn’t want any of those things to happen, she’d be okay as long as she didn’t lose Luke. They’d get through it. They’d be okay, as long as they had each other.
She snuggled closer, her thoughts wandering. What if she had met Luke in a different place or time? As she lay there, asking herself those questions, she realized that she wouldn’t change a thing. She would risk everything to protect what they had. She could survive without law school but not without Luke.
* * *
Embry stood in front of the bathroom mirror the next morning. She dressed business casual in a black pencil skirt, white button-down, and gray cardigan. Her hair was tamed and pulled back into a sleek ponytail and her makeup was muted.
Luke came up behind her, brought his arms around her waist and placed a light kiss on her cheek. “You look perfect. Stop worrying. It’s going to be okay.”
She turned in his arms to stare up into his eyes for some sign that he was lying, but all she saw was sincerity. “You really believe that, don’t you?”
“I do. Just do exactly what we practiced. Don’t deviate. Deny everything and get as much information from them as possible.”
Embry took a deep, calming breath. “Okay,” she agreed.
“Then come home to me. We’re going to have an amazing New Year far away from all of this.”
Embry rested her forehead on his chest, trying to compose herself. She looked at him, her eyes foggy with unshed tears. “That sounds amazing.”
“It will be. I promise.”
She pushed up onto her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. Pulling back, she looked over his business suit. “Where are you going looking so dapper? I thought you had the day off.”
“I do. Just have some running around to do and loose ends to tie up before our trip.”
“All right.” She pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “I love you. Wish me luck.”
“I know.” He gave her that gorgeous Luke smile and a smack on the ass as he walked her to the door. “I love you too, beautiful. Good luck. Give ‘em hell.”
Embry walked out the door to face the firing squad alone.
36
This can’t be happening. That thought ran on a constant loop through her head as she sat in the cold, uninviting classroom, the smell of antiseptic invading her nostrils. A shiver crept up her spine, and she couldn’t tell if it was from the temperature or her nerves. Maybe both. She sat on a hard plastic chair, hands gripped in her lap, her foot tapping furiously against the linoleum. The anticipation was killing her. She studied the three people at the front of the room, their heads bent together as they whispered amongst themselves.
Her heart thumped in her chest, the dull thud echoing in her ears as she sat silently, waiting. Her head swam, and she struggled to keep herself afloat instead of drowning in the anxiety that threatened to pull her under. She strained forward, hoping to catch even a small piece of their hushed conversation, but all she could hear was the shallow murmur of their voices. She wanted to get it over with. Like a Band-Aid, it would hurt either way. Might as well make it quick. She’d had to pick up the pieces of her broken life and move on once before. But she couldn’t do it again, not after all of her hard work. She wouldn’t accept it, she couldn’t.
How did this happen? They’d been careful. Hadn’t they been careful? She swallowed the lump in her throat and tried in vain to think of something, anything else.
The older gentleman on the end cleared his throat, pulling her from her thoughts. “Miss Jacobs?”
She looked up at the members of the university’s disciplinary committee, taking them in one at a time. She straightened her back and lifted her chin, hoping the outward display of confidence would give her some semblance of the same feeling on the inside. That was shot to hell as soon as she opened her mouth. “Y-yes, sir?” she answered, her voice trembling.
“Do you know why you’re here?” the other man asked, his eyes kind.
“No, sir.” She shook her head, but she was pretty sure she had an idea.
“Let me tell you,” the older man interjected, opening the folder in front of him. He explained the purpose of the hearing and the university’s policies regarding disciplinary sanctions.
She sat back, rubbing her palms on her pants and trying to calm down. As she listened to his words, she was hit with a rush of emotion so strong it almost bowled her over. Good. Bad. Happy. Sad. Betrayal. Rage. Shock. Relief. Relief? She fought to keep focused on the seriousness of the situation before her as a litany of memories assaulted her consciousness.
Everything she’d prepared for, all of the anguish she’d put herself and Luke through in the last forty-eight hours … none of it mattered. She was free.
That wasn’t entirely true, of course. She was still sitting in front of the review board and defending her name, but it was for an entirely different reason. The board was investigating her for plagiarizing another student’s work in her final memorandum. Tessa Vaughn, to be exact.
After all of those backward looks and the gut feelings Embry couldn’t shake, it all made sense. The girl had stolen her final memo and pawned it off as her own. Of course, she’d changed words and phrases here or there, but when their professor reviewed their memos, she had no choice but to notify the dean.
“Do you have a response, Miss Jacobs?” the older man asked.
“Yes sir.” She sat up straight, her chin held high. “This accusation is unequivocally false. The words were my own. I don’t know how Miss Vaughn gained access to my memorandum, but I can assure you that I am the original author. I printed out and saved all of my research. I can probably quote directly from the paper, that is how well I know my own work.”
“Did you have any contact with Miss Vaughn in which you discussed the final memorandum for your class?”
“Yes, I did.” Embry recounted their conversation in the library for the committee members. It was then that she realized how Tessa got her memo. “Actually, I believe I do know how Miss Vaughn accessed my work.”
“Please, enlighten us,” the woman, who had so far remained silent, said.
“I was in a study group with Miss Vaughn and Jeremy Price. We spent a lot of time in the library together. I remember a particular day when I received a phone call and had to leave the library. I had been working on my memo, and I left my computer on the desk in the library to take the call. That’s the only time that I can imagine her having any possible way to access my files.”
“We’ll have to verify all of the information you’ve given us, Miss Jacobs,” said the older gentleman. “We have yet to meet with Miss Vaughn. However, your legal writing professor, when comparing the memorandum to your earlier assignments, believed this paper fit your writing style and was far more advanced than anything Miss Vaughn had written.”
Embry wanted to jump up and down, but she kept her composure, nodding politely. “Thank you, sir.”
“You can go for now. We’ll meet with Miss Vaughn and investigate further. You will be advised of our decision shortly.”
Embry nodded, thanked the committee members once more, and left the room. She pulled her phone from her purse and sent a quick text to Luke.
Total fluke, had nothing to do with us! Jeremy’s crazy bitch of a gf stole my memo! Have to stop in to see Coleman. Talk soon. Love you!
She dropped the phone back in her purse and made her way to the faculty wing. She’d seen Professor Coleman on her way into the building and wanted to make sure her professor knew what was going on. Embry’s heels clicked against the tiled floor as she walked down the faculty hallway. Coleman’s door was ajar, and Embry knocked before pushing it open.
“Hi, Embry, what are you still doing here?” Coleman asked from her desk chair.
“I wanted to let you know about a situation that is happening between myself and another student.”
“Come in, come in.” She waved at Embry.
Professor Coleman sat patiently as Embry told her about her meeting with the review board and what Tessa had done.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Professor Coleman responded. “I know your quality of work, and I’m sure it will all be worked out.”
“I hope so. I just wanted you to hear it from me. I’m not sure how the university handles these things or if my other professors are notified.”
“Well, thank you for your candidness. I must say, I’m a bit relieved.”
“Relieved? Why?”
“Well, if I’m being honest, Embry, when we were at the holiday party, I was concerned something was going on between you and Professor Brody.”
Embry’s stomach dropped, and she felt the blood drain from her face.
“So naturally, when you mentioned the disciplinary committee, that’s exactly where my mind went.”
Embry nodded robotically. “Naturally.” She was surprised she managed to speak at all. For some reason, having that discussion with Professor Coleman was ten times harder than sitting in front of those committee members.
“He’s a colleague and a friend, and I don’t want to see him make the same mistake as last time.”
“Last time?” Embry asked quietly as bile rose up her throat. Her hands began to tremble as the words she’d overheard on Christmas swirled around her brain. Not like last time.
“Yes. Professor Brody had an inappropriate relationship with a student at his previous school. It cost him his job, and the poor girl, Sydney, well it followed her until graduation.”
Embry fought back tears as her heart all but stopped beating in her chest. She had to find a way to compose herself, but all she wanted to do was curl up into a ball and cry.
“I can see I’ve shocked you,” Professor Coleman said. “It was inappropriate of me to share that. I hope you’ll keep it to yourself, but I was concerned for the both of you.”
“No, that’s fine,” Embry said automatically. She had no idea where this functional side of her was coming from that allowed her to form sentences and speak like a normal human being, but she was grateful for it. The last thing she needed was to fall apart over Luke in front of her professor. “Thank you, Professor Coleman. I can assure you, there is nothing between myself and Luke Brody.” It nearly killed her to say those words; the weight on her chest was almost unbearable.
“I’m glad to hear that. Well, I hope your troubles get cleared up and you have a very happy New Year, Embry,” Coleman offered.
“You too, Professor,” she said flatly.
Embry stood on shaky feet and made her way out of the office. She walked down the hallway and out the front door, tears clouding her eyes as everything moved in slow motion. The pain in her chest was unlike anything she had ever felt. Her head spun, and she tried to stay upright as the weight of Luke’s betrayal threatened to pull her down. She staggered through the parking lot as suddenly all of the pieces began to fall into place.
The pain and hesitation flashing across his face when they first met in the hallway suddenly meant so much more. Forgetting to tell her about his trip home, their fight before the review session, Luke’s hushed conversation with his brother and sister-in-law—it all made sense. Of course he hadn’t wanted her to meet his family, not when they probably knew all about his past indiscretion. His family’s silence at the dinner table now spoke volumes. They’d known all along. No lie she told could have stopped them from seeing the truth. It all came together to form one conclusion in Embry’s mind: Luke had a thing for his students. That was all she was to him. The new conquest at the new school.
Stumbling to her car, she found her way inside. She screamed and cried, pounding the steering wheel until she had nothing left. Then she put the car in drive. It all felt eerily familiar. Another one of Luke’s lies was sending her driving off with a broken heart and tears in her eyes. Except this time she knew exactly where she was going. She was going to face it head-on.
It felt as if the past four months of her life had meant nothing. The man she had given her heart to—was willing to risk everything for—was nothing more than a liar. Everything they’d been through, everything they’d shared … none of it was real. She didn’t even know that Luke had taught before.
After Jack she’d sworn she’d never let someone make her question herself again. But Luke’s lies did just that. He and Jack couldn’t have been more different, but that didn’t mean his betrayal hurt any less. If anything, it hurt more. She’d trusted him, believed in him, and just when they’d built their relationship back up, she found out it was all a lie.
Embry pulled up to the townhouse a while later. Luke’s car wasn’t in the driveway. He must have still been out doing whatever it was he had to do. She parked her car, used her key to let herself into Luke’s house, grabbed a blanket, and headed out the back door. She huddled into her jacket and wrapped the blanket around herself while she sat on the dock in the freezing cold. She watched the sun sink over the horizon, casting a pink and purple glow over the water. After a while, she didn’t even feel the cold anymore. Maybe it was because she was numb already, her heart turned to ice along with any feelings she thought she had.
Headlights reflected off the bay, and Embry heard a car door slam. She turned and watched the lights go on in the house, wondering how long it would take Luke to find her out there.
“Embry!” he called, running down the dock. He was panicked. “I’ve been looking all over for you. I was worrying myself crazy. What are you doing out here? It’s freezing.”
Embry stood and turned to him, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Is it true?”
He froze, his face a mask of confusion. “Is what true, baby?”
“That you …” She struggled to get the words out. “That you’ve done this before? With another student?”
His face fell, guilt and grief washing over his features. “Embry.”
She saw the answer all over his face, but she had to hear him say it. “Is it true, Luke?” she asked, her breath floating away in small clouds on the cold air.
The look in his eyes would have broken her heart if she had any heart left to break. “It’s true.”
Those two words destroyed her. A loud sob broke free of her throat as she bent over, grief overwhelming her. She was in his arms, cradled against the warmth of his chest within seconds. She didn’t have the strength to fight him off. She cried into his jacket as he held her tight, rocking her.
Her cries quieted and she took a deep breath, breathing him in. His clean spicy smell, mixed with the cold winter wind, was intoxicating. She stood in his arms, enjoying the comfort that it gave her but she knew she couldn’t stay. She thought she could talk to him, face it head-on, but she couldn’t. One look into those sad blue eyes and she lost her resolve. It would be so easy to fall his arms and forget all the lies, but she needed time away from him to process what had happened. She couldn’t think straight around hm.
“I can’t do this, Luke,” she said, pushing him away.
He looked down at her, his eyes filled with hurt. “Embry, please. Just hear me out.”
She shook her head, fresh tears falling down her face. “I just can’t right now.” She pressed up on her toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek before she turned and walked away.
Luke called after her as she ran down the dock, around the house, and jumped into her car. She just wanted to go home, curl up in her bed, and cry until there was nothing left. Embry drove back to her apartment, her heart beating a dull thud in her chest as tears clouded her eyes. She didn’t want to run again, but she needed time, space. She pulled into her parking spot, and saw a black town car parked out front.
Jeremy stepped out of the town car and ran around to meet her. “Embry! Embry, I’m so sorry,” he said, gripping her arms. “I just found out. I had no idea that Tess did that. You have to believe me.”
Embry nodded numbly, looking up at her friend. “I know, Jer.”
His eyebrows pulled together as he examined her. She must look a mess—tear-stained face and swollen eyes.
“Are you all right?”
She looked past him to the town car, the driver sitting in the front seat. “Where are you going?” she asked, ignoring his question.
“Oh, um, my dad sent a car for me. I’m spending New Year’s in the city at the penthouse. Tessa was supposed to come, but obviously that’s not happening now.”
Luke’s Range Rover tore into the parking lot stealing Embry’s attention. He parked and was out of the car in seconds flat. Her heartbeat kicked into overdrive and tears flooded her eyes as she watched her beautiful man striding toward her, love and determination etched into his features. He wasn’t going to let her go.
“I can’t,” she whispered to no one in particular.
“Embry?” Jeremy asked as he looked between her and Luke.
She shook her head slightly, unable to speak. Luke strode right into her personal space, and his hands cupped her cheeks as he crushed his lips to hers.
“You own me, Embry,” he said, his eyes pleading. “I’m yours. I’m not letting you run.”
“I don’t want to own you, Luke,” she cried. “I don’t want any of this.”
Luke flinched as if he’d been slapped, but that wasn’t enough. She needed him to hurt like she was.
“Ever since I saw you walking down that hallway, my entire life has been turned upside down. I can’t seem to escape you. You’re everywhere I turn, and no matter how hard I try to fight it, you’re just … It’s destroying me, Luke. I can’t do this anymore,” she sobbed.
“Embry, don’t.”
She looked at Jeremy, who stood as still as a statue, his mouth hanging open. “Jer, can you get me out of here?”
“Baby, no,” Luke pleaded.
Her eyes came back to his, and she lost it. “I’m sorry. I just need time. Please, give me time.”
Jeremy came up behind her and took her hand in his. “I’ll take you anywhere you want,” he said glaring at Luke. “Let’s go.”
Her eyes locked on Luke’s as Jeremy towed her to the car. He opened the door and slid into the backseat, waiting for Embry to follow. She held the door and stared at Luke. The agony on his face ripped her apart, but she needed this. She wasn’t running; she just needed time and space.
“Luke,” she whispered.
He met her at the car door. His arms wrapped around her and he brushed his lips against hers. “I love you. I’ll let you go if that’s what you need, but I’m not giving up on us.”
Embry nodded. He let her go, and she slid into the car with Jeremy. She fell apart in her friend’s arms as she watched Luke fade away out the window.
* * *
Fireworks always had a way of making Embry feel small, bringing her back to a time when things were simpler, easier. No matter how old she was, when she heard that boom and crackle, and saw the explosion of light across the night sky, it opened up something inside of her that time had taken away. Suddenly she was young again, sitting on her father’s shoulders, completely enamored with life and filled with that wonder and curiosity that only children had. It was that feeling of knowing she was right where she was supposed to be, sharing something so special with the people she loved.
Embry felt none of that as she watched the New Year’s Eve fireworks over New York Harbor. It was a new year, and she sat on the rooftop of Jeremy’s penthouse, his arms wrapped around her as she cried more tears over Luke. The tears would stop eventually; she knew that. But the pain, that would stay with her for a while. If Jack had taught her anything, though, it was that she would survive. She’d get past it, eventually, and she’d be stronger for it.
