CHAPTER 39 #2
Eyes narrowed, he did that annoying studying thing, where I couldn’t read what the hell was going on in his head. Maybe he wanted to throttle me for saying that aloud. Or throw knives at my skull.
“Make me your assistant, and I won’t speak a word,” I quickly added.
“No. I told you before, I don’t take assistants.” Arms crossed again, he ran his thumb over his bottom lip in a way I found mesmerizing, unintentionally seductive. “I can offer you money. A significant amount.”
“No.” The answer came out faster than I’d have expected at the prospect of money, especially when I desperately needed to catch up on Bee’s tuition.
But I desperately needed to know more about the worms, too—and faster than I was learning in Nocticadia.
“I’ll leave. I’ll take off for a few days, and you won’t have me here to clear your name.
” I didn’t even know who was talking at that point.
Maybe I had been infected and the parasite was steering the ship, because no way in hell was Lilia Vespertine that bold.
His dark chuckle tickled the back of my neck, and his eyes held a ruthless glint that slid through my bones. “My, you are a wicked little moth.”
I hated the way my stomach fluttered when he said that.
“I want to work in your lab. Not the midnight lab, not some lame duck lab, where I’m assigned to washing dishes and making agar.
I want to work on the toxin with you. And I want to be paid in cash for my time.
” I swallowed a gulp. While, on the outside, I might’ve looked cool and calm, my insides were screaming right then.
He tipped his head, and I caught a flicker of intrigue in that coppery gaze. “Look at you. Such a bold moth. Far bolder than I gave you credit for.”
“Make me your assistant, and I’ll make you the hero this time.”
“Or I can lock you in this cell and toss the key. No one would find you. And after a while, no one would care.”
I’d forgotten the part where I hadn’t yet confirmed whether, or not, he was a psycho killer. Damn the fog still thick on my brain.
My gaze flicked to the cracked cell door and back to him.
In a pathetic effort to beat him to it, I scrambled over annoying tulle and satin, getting caught up in the skirt of my dress for a moment, and dashed toward my only exit.
The moment I reached the barred door, the world tilted on its axis, and the iron spindles crashed into my spine.
His gloved hand pressed into my throat, sealing off the oxygen.
A rush of adrenaline pounded through me, colliding with an inexplicable titillation that had my nerves flaring like livewires.
“You will take the money that I’m offering. And you will not say a word about this. Do you understand?” Eyes trained on my lips, he leaned into his grip, his tongue sweeping over the edge of his teeth.
Mouth gaped for air, I stared back at him, studying the flicker of fascination that slipped over his otherwise stern expression.
Chaos exploded inside my head, as I tried to make sense of the fact that my professor had his hand to my throat, had just threatened to lock me in a cell and toss the key, and that I still had no intentions of accepting his offer.
Perhaps I was the psycho. After all, I could’ve negotiated the answers I was looking for about my mother and maybe he would’ve told me.
But maybe he’d have lied, too.
Or subjected me to some three questions only rule.
I only just managed to shake my head. “Imprisoning me … doesn’t … cover your … ass.”
His hand squeezed harder with his frustration. “Fucking hell, why do you have to be stubborn!” Jaw flexing with his rage, he released me on a growl.
I threw my hands to my neck, rubbing the spot where he’d choked me, and bent forward as a cough sputtered out of me. “It’s a curse. But I promise not to annoy you, and to be helpful. And I won’t say a word to anyone about it. No one has to know that I’m working for you.”
Another frustrated growl told me I was whittling him down. “I knew the moment you arrived at this school that you were going to be a major fucking headache for me.”
I straightened, ignoring the annoying blossom of hope that warmed my chest. “That’s a yes, then?”
He ran his hands through his hair, ruffling the ordinarily thick and smoothed strands into a disheveled mess that I found painfully attractive.
“Fine. You’ll work as my assistant. You’ll do as I say.
You will not touch anything, or venture where you’re not wanted.
You use the cadaver entrance only. And should you decide to break any of my rules or speak of this arrangement to anyone, I will make you regret the moment you tried to blackmail me. ”
“Did you just threaten me? Like, with death that time?”
He didn’t flinch beneath the accusation. “Don’t fuck with me, Miss Vespertine. You want to play hardball? Know that mine are made of steel.”
“That sounds painful.”
His lips twitched as if he were trying to hold back a smile. “Leave through the back entrance. And don’t return until tomorrow at eight in the evening.”
“Can I ask one more question before I go?”
He let out an almost pained groan. “What?”
“Are there any buildings on this campus that don’t have cameras?”