Private Lessons (College Roommates #4)

Chapter 1 Zoe

ZOE

Two weeks ago…

When I entered the coffee shop, there was no one at the counter.

Seeing no customers lined up was depressingly normal, but having no barista behind the counter, well, that was new.

My employee, Mia, was sitting at a cafe table, knee-to-knee with a good-looking young man—your classic tall, dark, and handsome type.

While I could see how a man like that was far more interesting than manning the register, she did have a job to do, and I frowned. Their heads were angled together, completely oblivious of me.

Managing this place was part of my senior-year curriculum. As a hospitality major, I needed experience in every corner of the industry, not just at the kind of five-star hotel I wanted to work at after graduation. Mia was my only employee, and I tried to treat her with a firm but fair hand.

They’d never covered this in my food and beverage administration class.

There hadn’t been a single lesson on what to do when a customer was eye-fucking your employee.

My instinct was to march over and tell Mia to get back to work, but she’d seemed distracted lately.

If she quit, I wasn’t sure I could find anyone willing to take a job in this forgotten corner of campus.

While I hesitated, their conversation drifted over to me.

The guy was bragging about how rich his family was, and how he was looking to buy a bigger yacht because his only slept twenty.

At many universities, that would be a joke, but not here.

Most of the students at an elite private school like Langley were so damn wealthy that I was surprised he didn’t also have his own personal submarine.

“I’d love to see it sometime, Blaise.” Mia gave a little giggle that made my skin crawl.

Did men really like it when grown women made such a foolish, girlish sound?

And seriously, his name was Blaise? Then again, a lot of the students from powerful families had weird old family names.

I suppose it was a small price to pay for an enormous trust fund.

Still, Blaise sounded painfully pretentious, and I couldn’t imagine why Mia was so captivated. Rich, entitled assholes were as common as flies around here—even the really good-looking ones like him.

He leaned even closer, dark eyes intent on Mia, his voice dropping low but still perfectly audible. “When I get the new yacht, I’ll take you out on a moonlit cruise. Just you and me. And the captain and crew, of course.”

“Of course,” Mia echoed, her eyes wide. “I’d like that.”

“Maybe I’ll give the chef the night off, and I’ll make a meal for you. Would you like that?” he continued, and Mia nodded. “If you want, I’ll even take my shirt off, like that chef who does those cooking videos you like so much.”

Wait, what? How did he know that? It had sounded to me like they’d just met.

But even as the color rose on Mia’s cheeks, Blaise continued on.

“After dinner, we’ll go up on the deck. Just you and me, babe…

and I’ll push you against the railing and lift your dress, and…

” My jaw dropped as he detailed the filthy things he wanted to do to her.

At the same time, his hand was under her skirt, moving purposefully up her thigh.

That spurred me into action. “Get the fuck away from my employee!”

They jolted apart, Blaise casually pulling his hand back as if he hadn’t just been feeling the barista up.

Mia’s mouth was open in shock, whether at my sudden appearance or at that creep’s actions.

I marched over and glared at Blaise. “She’s working, you asshole, and she doesn’t need you harassing her. Get the hell out of here and never come back.”

Something tugged at my sleeve, and I looked down at Mia’s flushed face. “Zoe, I—”

“Go back behind the counter,” I said. “I’ll take care of this jerk.”

“No, it’s not. He wasn’t—” Her stuttering trailed off, but I didn’t blame her for being flustered.

Women deserved to feel safe in their workplace.

I hadn’t thought about how much time Mia worked alone down here, but I sure as hell would now.

Despite our low sales numbers, maybe I could ask the department to let me hire someone else so she wouldn’t have to deal with crap like this alone.

Mia pushed her chair back and tilted her head up at me. “It’s not like that,” she said. “We were… it was just pretend.”

What?

“It was just a bit of role-playing,” Blaise added, his deep voice courteous and polite, which was very different than how it had sounded when he was moving in on my employee.

“This is my roommate, Diego,” Mia finally managed to say. And now I recognized the redness on her face for what it was. Embarrassment, not fear.

Then it finally sank in. She wasn’t being harassed—far from it. “You were flirting with your roommate on company time?”

“I’m sorry—” she began, but Blaise—or, rather Diego—cut in.

“It was all me,” he said gallantly. “I asked Mia if she could take a break, and then I blindsided her, pretending to be one of those arrogant, obscenely wealthy students who frequent Langley.”

“And you think that is what stuck-up rich students sound like?”

He grinned, unbothered. “Perhaps it’s more what rich, horny students sound like. But again, that’s on me, not Mia.”

His attention flicked to the paper beverage cup in front of him. He lifted it and downed the rest of it in one gulp, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Then he tossed the cup into a trash can ten feet away.

It was an impressive shot, but not fast enough—I’d seen what he had clearly tried to hide. Mia had written the name Blaise on it. Which clearly poked a few holes in his story that this had all been on him. Apparently, it took two to role-play in the workplace.

And then something clicked. “Diego? The one who told Mia about The Fraser?”

Mia’s shoulders loosened as Diego nodded, and suddenly I saw him through a completely different lens.

I’d spent months trying to land an internship at a five-star resort for winter break.

It wasn’t just a requirement of my major; it was the first step in getting the job of my dreams. With the end of the fall semester rapidly approaching and no offers in sight, I’d finally confided in Mia during a weak moment.

Later she’d told me how her roommate Diego had essentially created a job for himself where he saw a need.

And through her, he’d even suggested that I try The Fraser, a luxury ski resort deep in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

They’d never taken a hospitality management intern before, but I pitched myself relentlessly until they offered me the position.

“I got the job,” I told him.

The smile that lit his face warmed something inside me, and I could see why Mia liked him. Now that he wasn’t role-playing a stuck-up jerk, he was even better looking.

“Congratulations,” Diego said, sounding genuinely happy for me, as if I hadn’t just accused him of being a pervert and a creep.

He was smart enough to take his leave after that. When he stood, I had to tilt my head back to look him in the eye. Mia rose too, heading guiltily back to the counter after one last lingering glance.

“Apologies again,” he said, still determined to take the heat off my employee.

Mia was a lucky young woman, judging by the long look he gave her before he left.

I returned to the little office to work on the accounts, but I could practically feel Mia’s guilt radiating through the room as she scrubbed the counter, restocked cups, and cleaned the espresso machine.

After another hour, she relaxed enough to lean against the back counter when there was absolutely nothing left for her to do. And no customers, of course. I stood, stretched, and stepped out, intending to talk to her about professionalism in the workplace.

But her words stopped me. “You stood up for me,” she said, a note of wonder in her voice.

I frowned, unsure what she meant until she clarified, “When you thought he was bothering me, you defended me.”

I nodded crisply. “I couldn’t let him treat an employee like that.” Color rose in her cheeks, and I raised an eyebrow. “Of course—that was before I knew you liked him treating you like that.”

It didn’t come out as sharply as I’d meant it to, because my voice lifted at the end like a question.

Because when I’d been back in my office, I couldn’t help wondering about the entire exchange.

Did Mia really like that sort of thing? She hadn’t struck me as the kind of woman who would want a man saying such dirty things to her…

not to mention sliding his hand up her thigh in public.

I couldn’t imagine taking that kind of risk in a workplace.

And with graduation approaching, there was no way I’d even take time away from my studies to date.

For the past four years, I’d spent every waking moment studying and preparing for my future.

I was going to get a prestigious job at a luxury resort after graduation or die trying.

I wanted to prove myself and rise to the top. Relationships could come later—if ever.

“Still, I appreciate it,” she said.

“I’m your supervisor. It’s my job to make sure you’re not harassed at work.”

Mia waited, as if expecting more, but to me that was everything. This was work, not a nightclub. We were here to do the best job we could. That was all that mattered.

After a moment, she nodded, and I returned to the office.

A few minutes later, I heard a buzzing sound.

Breaking the rules yet again, Mia slipped her phone from her smock, flicked it open, and glanced at the screen.

From the way her cheeks flushed pink, it didn’t take much guesswork to figure out who had texted.

I’d never met a man who could make me smile just from a simple message like that. And between the internship and my upcoming final-semester course load, there’d be no time for one even if I had.

But as the afternoon wore on, I couldn’t help wondering what it would be like to have a man look at me the way Diego had at Mia.