Chapter 23
~
June
I felt like I was on cloud nine.
My friends had noticed the second they saw me show up to class, but no amount of badgering on their part was going to get the truth out of me. Not when I finally felt more at ease in my skin than ever before.
Things seemed to be coming together, both in and out of the classroom.
And if I wasn’t mistaken, I could’ve sworn that Lucas looked a little more cheery than usual, too.
Unlike Ronan, he found it harder to fully mask his emotions.
He wasn’t so obviously deviating from his normal script that anyone else might’ve noticed, but I caught the sparkle in his eye when he entered the lecture hall, and the way his smile never quite left his mouth even when there was nothing to actually smile at.
Well, nothing for public consumption, anyway.
Seeing him like that lit a fire inside me, and amplified my own sense of gratification. In the immediate aftermath of what we did together, he’d gone silent and I’d been worried that he didn’t enjoy himself. But looking at him today, I was pretty sure that wasn’t the case.
“If you turn your attention to the slide, you’ll see the next problem.
The site plan in front of you has perimeter fencing and a single gated entrance.
If you had to take on the perspective of a pedestrian attempting to navigate their way toward the transit hub, what would the primary structural flaw be here? ” he said, gaze sweeping over the room.
A few hands went up but mine was the fastest. He nodded at me. “Yes, Miss Price?”
“Total lack of permeability,” I answered simply. A wicked thought suddenly occurred to me, and I smiled at him innocently. “I think it’s important to have as many points of entry as possible into the urban fabric. You know, to keep things… flowing.”
Lucas’s ears turned bright red but to his credit, he didn’t miss a beat. He crossed his arms, a look on his face that told me he almost wanted to give into the challenge.
“As much as I can appreciate your concern for “access”, you need to remember that high-density permeability usually requires a Special Use Permit. Let’s keep it to the public side of the property line for now, shall we?” he answered.
A surge of adrenaline shot through me at his response.
It was professional and authoritative, sure, but that bite on the promise of “for now” was all I needed to hear.
Lucas was in fact taking up the challenge and even if his voice held steady, the blush that dusted his ears and neck told a different story.
Knowing I could fluster him during class was such a rush.
It laid the groundwork for what I had planned after class.
“You’re not coming with us? We’re going off campus for lunch,” Chloe said as we packed up and readied to leave. James slung an arm over her shoulders and leaned in, and I couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow in amusement. When did that latest development happen?
“I have something I need to talk to Professor Blackwell about first,” I told them. “But I’ll join you next time.”
She shrugged. “Alright. See you later.”
“Seeya,” I said, giving them a casual wave before waiting for everyone to leave. When the room was clear, I made my way down the stairs. Lucas was arranging the papers on his desk, and while he wasn’t looking at me, I knew that he could sense I was there. The static between us was almost tangible.
“Have a question you want answered, Miss Price?” he asked, finally sitting back in his seat and meeting my eyes. The heat I saw there made me wish there weren't security cameras nested throughout the room. So much was said in just that look.
“I wanted to invite you to dinner tonight. To talk about… the arrangement.” I shifted on my feet.
“Should I expect additional company?” he asked.
“Well, yes. Oren and Ronan will be there too,” I replied.
“Ah.” His body language stiffened, his hand twitched on the table as though he was fighting against the impulse to clench his fist. “Look, June. I know what happened the other night might’ve given you a different idea but the truth is that I’m still unsure about this whole thing.”
“And that’s okay,” I said quickly, trying to sound reassuring. “You said that you’d try. That’s all I’d ever ask of you, Lucas. I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to.”
He gave a terse nod but the silence that followed felt heavy with the unspoken. We’d crossed so many boundaries the other night. It was understandable that he’d be confused, even if he looked happy before I reminded him that there was more to this than just the fun stuff.
“In the meantime, I’m willing to feel things out,” he said finally.
It felt like an acquiescence on his part, a reluctant acknowledgment that yes, there was enough he’d enjoyed for him to seriously consider this.
I wanted to tell him that I understood the hesitation.
That months ago, that had been me, fighting against my desires whenever I was directly confronted with the implications.
But instead, I let him breathe. “I appreciate that.”
He could take his time to feel things out all he wanted. The more feeling, the better. I readjusted the bag on my shoulder. “I’ll text you the time and place.” My eyes gave the hall a cursory glance. I really, really hated those freaking cameras.
“I’ll see you then,” he said, pausing before adding, “All of you.”
*
“In the alumni center?” Oren blinked at the rest of us, looking perplexed. “How classy.”
Ronan took a sip of his wine, smirking over the rim. “Classier than a library.”
“In which you also participated, I’ll remind you,” I pointed out. “Ronan Locke, Tenured Professor—always at the scene of the crime.”
“Not an accurate assessment," he said. “Untenured.”
“Tenure-track professor,” I corrected. “It’s only a matter of time.”
“How idealistic of you.” He smiled into his glass. “I think someone’s taken after her mentor rather well.”
“You’re one to mention idealism,” Lucas said.
His arms were crossed just as they’d been during the lecture, but his shoulders were more relaxed now.
And I wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol again, or maybe just the company or hell, why not both; but there was something different about Lucas.
Something tentatively curious. “You were the one that brought supplies to the mixer.”
Ronan held his hands out in surrender. “That is true, but let’s not act as though you didn’t directly benefit from my foresight. Optimism is a virtue.”
“In your case, perhaps more of a vice,” Oren muttered under his breath.
As the three of them continued their banter, I took a moment to appreciate watching them interact. It felt like that first dinner we had together, before everything happened to complicate what had been so simple. This was what I longed for, even more than just the physical side of things.
The hint of competitiveness in their jabs weren’t born from bad blood.
It was less a point of conflict than it was a shared secret.
And now, being able to speak openly about our experiences together—to be able to joke about it—it felt like all the tension I’d been collecting in my body was slowly being released.
“Well, we can plan big next time. Take things to a rooftop somewhere or rent a jumbotron,” Ronan said breezily.
“I’d laugh but I’m genuinely not sure if you’re joking,” I said, taking a sip of my own drink.
It was the same pale pink concoction he’d ordered for me last time.
His gaze always landed on my lips whenever I lifted the glass to my mouth, his smirk widening as though this was an exclusive secret between us two.
“What happened to your ambition, Miss Price?” he murmured.
“It’s tempered by common sense,” I replied.
Oren reached across the table and placed his hand over mine. “Well, I’m grateful that you don’t always let the latter eclipse the former.”
That almost-innocent touch was like a high-powered magnet. Looking at Oren, flashbacks flitted through my mind, and when Ronan chuckled, I knew that I must’ve been blushing.
“This one’s feeling bold,” Ronan commented to Lucas. “Very unexpected but interesting, nonetheless, don’t you think?”
My attention immediately snapped back to Lucas.
He didn’t look amused like his friend. He looked…
conflicted. I saw a few of those walls he’d let drop earlier suddenly be reconstructed right in front of me, a protective mechanism that actually pained me to witness even if I understood it.
It was that realization that had me clear my throat and redirect the topic of conversation back to the original reason for this meeting.
“I’m happy that all of you agreed to see me tonight,” I started.
I tried not to focus too much on any individual face, sharing my feeble smile with each of them.
They all watched me intently, completely focused on me as though I were the only thing in existence and it was that understanding that drove out the last of my uncertainty. “I’ve come to a decision.”
Lucas' shoulders tensed, a subtle sign of his discomfort. Ronan remained poker-faced but by now, I knew him well enough to know that it didn’t mean much. Oren frowned, his knee bouncing under the table. He was nervous.
“I want to date you.”
The three of them stared at me.
“Are you missing half a sentence there, or…?” Ronan pressed.
I rolled my eyes. “You, Ronan. I want to date you. And Oren. And Lucas. I want to date all three of you together, at the same time. Either that or none of you at all.”
There was a beat of pure, shocked silence. I refuse to break eye contact with them, not allowing myself to feel shame or embarrassment. Ronan was the only one who, after too long, gave me the ghost of a smile. Like a teacher acknowledging their student has passed a test.
“We need time to decide.” It was Lucas’ voice that broke the quiet. He didn’t sound upset or angry, just pensive. “Can you give us that?”
“As long as you need,” I said. “This isn’t something I want to force on anyone.”
“Unless you’re hiding a weapon somewhere in that dress, I can assure you that won’t be the case,” Oren said.
“Well, I suppose we can put off talks of serious business for the rest of the evening,” Ronan said, calling over the waitress. “We do have more to catch up on besides our carnal endeavors.”
He skillfully rerouted the conversation to more casual waters, yet I couldn’t help but notice that even though the atmosphere wasn’t awkward, it was tense. I refused to overthink again though, letting myself fall into the familiar pattern of exchange between the four of us.
I’d said my piece, gave them the choice, and I wasn’t going to apologize for finally deciding on what I wanted. Not anymore.