Chapter 2 #2
“You don’t have to look so terrified, Miss Price. I promise I don’t bite. You’re tense enough to snap, and if that’s the impact I’m making among my students then I don’t think I’ve been doing a very good job so far,” he said.
I could feel my shoulders slack. His face was open, friendly even. There was no hint of malice or condescension baked into his words. From what I could tell, it didn’t look like I was expected to stand on ceremony here. And for some reason, I trusted what he was saying—screw trying too hard.
“Sorry,” I said sheepishly. “Truth be told, I’m nervous. I was intimidated and wanted to make sure I left a good first impression.”
“You already did.” He gestured to me. “Your willingness to share your thoughts helped launch a much deeper conversation in class. I appreciated that.”
“Thank you,” I said, choosing to just accept the compliment this time instead of trying to swat it away. Coming from him, I had the feeling that he wasn’t super liberal with those, that his words held weight. “I guess I was so excited about the topic that I didn’t even think about it that way.”
“I do get where you’re coming from. I wasn’t the most confident in my own ideas and voice back in my student days,” he said.
So last year? I wanted to say to him, and the comeback was something Madison would have had the guts to throw as banter. But I didn’t. Instead I kept listening.
“It comes with experience. Time. That’s something you’ll have to work on if you want to make it in development. The type of people you’ll come across won’t waste a second on someone they think has no faith in their own ideas,” he added.
I hesitated. “I thought my portfolio would speak for itself.”
“In an ideal world, yes. But that’s not the way the industry operates, unfortunately. You need to back up your skills and ambition with arrogance sometimes and believe in yourself even when no one else does,” he replied.
“Is that what you had to do?” I asked, surprised by my own boldness. But Professor Blackwell seemed to have no problem with it.
“Yes,” he answered. “It wasn’t easy. Nothing worthwhile ever is.”
“I was curious…you’re so young. I hope I’m not stepping out of bounds by asking, but how were you able to establish yourself this early on? You speak as though you’ve had decades of experience behind you,” I ventured.
For a brief, heart-stopping moment, I thought that maybe I’d gone a bit too far. But once again, he didn’t seem offended or annoyed. He seemed to actually welcome the observation.
“I graduated early, hit the ground running,” he said, as casually as though it wasn’t half as impressive as it truly was. “Truthfully, I owe a lot of my success to my mentors. If I didn’t have a good support system, I don’t think I would’ve made it to where I am.”
I nodded.
I’d done some research throughout the course of the week. Lucas Blackwell wasn’t just a professor. He’d had the opportunity to work with some of the most prestigious companies in the country based on his own portfolio.
Yet here he was, teaching in New England University’s architecture and development department. If I was braver, I might’ve asked why.
“I just knew what I wanted from a young age,” he added. Then his eyes focused on me, questioning. “What about you? What got you interested in this field in the first place?”
I was quiet for a moment, my brain immediately going into its usual pattern of trying to guess what it is he might want to hear me say. But then I stopped myself. He obviously didn’t care for pretense. He hadn’t judged me so far. This wasn’t an exam hall.
Why did I develop such a strong passion for urban planning?
“I didn’t grow up in a very affluent area,” I began, the explanation weaving its way through my thoughts as I spoke.
“That’s actually kind of an understatement.
My mom struggled to make ends meet most days and the only place we could afford to live was an underfunded apartment block that took half a paycheck just to get anywhere.
And yet, I understand that I still got luckier than many others.
If I can make sure that less and less people have to live that way, I’d consider that a successful life. ”
He looked at me for a moment, as though we were meeting for the first time. And when he smiled again, it felt like I’d passed a test I didn’t even know I was writing.
“That’s…pretty much the same background I came from,” he said. “And a lot of why I believe urban development needs to be reformed.”
“Yeah, that’s why I loved the syllabus this semester,” I said, my voice rising with enthusiasm.
“It deals with exactly the issues I’ve been wanting to work on since even before I applied for this program—sustainability and accessibility.
It’s like you said, we’re working with people.
Actual human beings, and yet so many development companies treat local communities like a problem they need to somehow maneuver around. ”
His lips twitched. “That’s why you chose Muller & Co. It’s not just the mentorship program or the project success rate, is it?”
“No,” I admitted. “Their focus on litigation and giving back is kind of what sealed the deal for me. And the fact that one of the areas they developed for the better was the one I grew up in. I want to pay that forward…if I’m good enough to even place with them.”
He opened his mouth to reply when a new voice cut in.
“Well, this looks nice and cozy.”
My eyes darted up to see two strangers standing next to our table. I’d been so engrossed in my conversation with Professor Blackwell that I didn’t notice them approaching us.
And looking at them now, it was a miracle I hadn’t.
The man who’d spoken was older. Despite being maybe ten years their senior, he was no less handsome than the other two men.
Silver-streaked black hair and a well-trimmed beard complemented warm, golden brown eyes.
He was taller than the others as well, with a build that had to be at least somewhat decent if he was able to make a goddamn cardigan look that good.
The second stranger stood a bit behind him, and looked to be around Blackwell’s age.
He was dressed in a gray Henley shirt and slacks, a slightly smarter look that mirrored his shorter, styled brown hair.
Whereas the professor’s nose was elegantly straight, the newcomer sported a slight aquiline bump that was just noticeable enough to be attractive.
The tiny scars on Blackwell’s face hinted at a rougher past than his current profession might suggest but on this stranger, the suggestion of chaos was in the intensity of his eyes—electric blue beneath heavy dark brows.
Was there some kind of hot guy convention going on that I wasn’t aware of?
The first stranger’s mouth curled into a smirk. “Well, are you going to introduce us?”
Professor Blackwell rolled his eyes. “Miss Price, this is Ronan Locke and Oren Reed . Colleagues of mine.”
“You wound me with your detachment,” said the one I took to be Ronan, his sardonic reply almost reminding me of Mads. “We’re friends of Mr. Blackwell, here. Contrary to his aloof introduction.”
“This is June Price,” Blackwell continued, ignoring his friend. “My student.”
There was a momentary pause at the intentional way he’d stressed the word. Almost as though it was a statement in and of itself, an invisible demarcation line that the other two were supposed to acknowledge.
And in that brief pause, I realized something. If they were his colleagues, did that mean that…
“Are the two of you professors as well?” I blurted out, unable to stop myself from asking the question.
Locke nodded. “I work predominantly with PhD students and Oren teaches Engineering and Ecology.”
Oddly enough, my second major of choice. My eyes must’ve gone wide because an amused smile played on his mouth.
“We didn’t mean to interrupt. Seems like Lucas isn’t the only one who decided on getting coffee here today,” Professor Reed said.
“Miss Price chose the place,” Blackwell explained.
“She has good taste. They do make the best coffee,” Professor Locke added.
I didn’t like how the three of them were almost talking around me, like I wasn’t there to answer for myself. But I also wasn’t sure where to interject. If they’d been regular guys, I would’ve spoken up.
But these were three professors, and ones who worked at the university I was attending no less. If I thought that speaking to Professor Blackwell earlier had loosened some propriety, I wasn’t sure how to conduct myself with the addition of Oren and Ronan.
I nodded at the three men and grabbed my bag from beside me.
“I should probably leave. Thank you for meeting with me, Professor Blackwell. I appreciate that you took time out of your schedule to see me,” I said, more than a little disappointed that we’d had such a short conversation. But the awkwardness wasn’t something I was prepared to deal with.
His mouth tightened into a frown but it was Professor Locke who spoke up again.
“Well, who says you have to leave? You clearly weren’t finished with your meeting, and from the sounds of it, things were just starting to get interesting.
” He extended a hand towards another table that had four chairs around it.
“If it’s alright with you, Oren and I would be honored to join.
You may find another seating arrangement more comfortable, though. ”
He wasn’t wrong. The tiny window booth was more than fine for two people but to squeeze in two more would require a much closer physical proximity.
I hesitated, looking at Professor Blackwell.
He shrugged, but his dark eyes seemed almost hopeful.
I bit my lip, my eyes skirting around them to look at the table.
What would Mads have told me right about now?
Maybe to step outside of my comfort zone.
Three academic professionals in the field were surely better than one.
“Okay,” I said before I could think better of it.