Page 42 of Private Tutoring
I was failing that part of our agreement in spectacular fashion, but they didn’t have to know that. “I’ll see you later.” I made my way to the elevator, fully intending to walk inside without looking back.
Matthew caught me around the waist and planted one last lingering kiss on my lips. “Be careful.”
I patted his chest and forced my feet to move before I gave in. I was already of half a mind to say fuck it and crawl back in bed. The risk overruled my spontaneous desires, so I made my way to the sorority house.
I arrived at the same time as the delivery guy, so I grabbed the food from him, gave him a tip, and shouldered open the door. “Hey, food’s here.”
Delilah, Leighona, and several others jumped up from the couch and rushed me.
“About time.” Delilah took the top two boxes and carried them to the kitchen. “We didn’t know if you’d be home in time to eat, but I got you a pizza bowl.” She held the foam container aloft.
The garlic and cheese aroma teased my stomach into a loud gurgle. I set the rest of the boxes down and took the offered one from Delilah. “Thanks. I didn’t mean to be gone so late.”
“No worries. We all know you’ve beenstudying.” She wiggled her eyebrows and plopped onto a stool, dragging her container of lo mein closer.
“How are you tutoring sessions?” Jessica watched me with a narrow-eyed glare. “They sure are taking up a lot of your time.”
“I have to pass.” I shrugged despite my growing tension. “It’s not like I’m going to learn this stuff overnight. But my grades are improving.” I remembered Roberto’s excitement about me passing his last two tests, and my smile stretched wide. I popped a pepperoni into my mouth to hide the grin. “I can’t afford to slack off if I want to keep my scholarship.”
“Yeah.” Leighona rolled her eyes. “I need my understudy to pick up the slack on stage. You wouldn’t believe how crazy things have been. I’ve never sang so much in my life.” She rubbed her throat.
“Did you try any of those teas I mentioned?” I scrolled through the pictures on my phone. I’d taken a few screenshots for her when she first mentioned a sore throat last week.
Taking a bite of her plain chicken, she tipped her head toward the pantry. “One. It tasted like hot garbage.”
“Really?” None of the recipes I’d saved sounded bad. A few were a strange mixture, but the honey most of them called for should have tempered the stranger flavors. Oh well. Leighona was the kind of girl who wanted all the glory but without any of the work. She’d flat out told me in the beginning that she’d gotten the part after singing one verse. Her claims that she was made for Broadway rang true. I had no argument for her, except that I planned on making my way there too. Soon.
“How can you even study when you’re with the Dream Team?” Jessica batted her eyelashes at me and leaned across the counter to snag a bag of chips from the basket.
I laughed around the bite of cheese and pepperoni. “It’s not easy. But I don’t have a choice.”
It was completely true, and the honesty of my words rang throughout the room. The conversation shifted from my tutoring to Jessica’s plans to take summer classes to help her graduate faster. She’d been working her ass off all semester, taking more classes than any of us. I listened, commented when I could, and did my best to blend in with the girls I’d pledged to. It wasn’t hard to keep my thoughts to myself, but I worried they showed too well on my face. I scooped up another bite, enjoying the tangy deliciousness of the pizza bowl.
“How do you eat that? The best part is the crust.” Delilah knocked her elbow against mine. “Not trying to lose weight, are you?”
Every set of eyes swung my way. Diet culture wasn’t forbidden, but Leighona made it clear from the beginning that trying to lose weight showed a shallowness that often meant we were more concerned with our looks than keeping our pledge to put our careers first.
I swallowed the hot cheese and held the bowl out to Delilah. “I have a gluten intolerance. Gluten free crust tastes like ass.”
“You would know.” Jessica hooted and slapped her thigh at her joke.
Delilah plucked a pepperoni from the bowl and ate it in a single bite, watching me the entire time. She knew about my gluten problem, so why bring it up?
We wrapped up the night with laughter and crazy stories from Jessica and Leighona. I laughed until my ribs ached, actually enjoying time with my sorority sisters. Maybe I had this whole thing wrong and they really were good friends. I tended to hold people at arm’s length. They deserved more than that from me, and I vowed to myself that I’d do better.
“I’m heading upstairs.” Delilah was the first to push away from the counter. She tossed her empty container in the trash and left the room.
I closed my container and put it in the fridge, hoping to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
Leighona waited for me at the doorway between the kitchen and living room. A tiny crease marred the skin between her eyes. “Has Professor Bellington said anything about me?”
“What? No.” I shook my head a little too hard. “Leighona, I don’t see Professor Bellington except in class. The only thing he ever talks to me about is the musical.”
Almost completely true. We rarely talked when I went to their penthouse. That would be too close to allowing feelings to interfere with what we had going. I walked past her on my way to the stairs. My phone buzzed in my jeans pocket. I ignored it until I entered my room and shut the door. I still didn’t have any of their numbers in my phone, but my stupid, ridiculous heart still decided to flip and hammer.
I put my back to the door and dug my phone out, sliding my finger across the screen to unlock it. A text message from an unknown number popped open, and damn if my breath didn’t lodge in my throat. Maybe they’d found my number in my student file and decided to text me.
A smile started, and I held my breath as I opened the message.
