Page 67 of Private Tutoring
Fuck that. No way I’d let her fall on the knife for this. It wasn’t a mistake, and I wouldn’t apologize or treat it like one.
33
MATTHEW
“No.” I lurched to my feet, too intent on stopping Harmony to care how it looked to Dean Carpenter. “You’re not at fault. We are.” I pointed at all three of us.
Roberto and Stephen had stood as well, and they backed me up with the loyalty that had made us friends for so long.
“Matthew’s right. Harmony’s not to be punished for what we did.” Stephen fisted his hands. “We used our positions as her professors to our advantage.”
“Stop.” Harmony’s voice whipped out with the force of a lightning strike.
I’d never heard that tone from her, but it showed her strength and range…and her tenacity. That was what made her perfect on stage. She kept her distance, even backing up a step. Probably to stay out of arm’s reach.
“Harmony.” The pleading note in Stephen’s voice caused her to flinch, but she kept her focus on Dean Carpenter. “Don’t do this.” Stephen’s defeat was hard to hear, and even harder to watch.
Harmony gulped even as she locked her stance. “Don’t make this any harder than it has to be.” Tears sheened her eyes, but there was no reluctance in the look she gave us. “I refuse to be responsible for the destruction of your careers.”
“This isn’t right.” I faced Dean Carpenter. “Punish us. Hell, I’ll quit on the spot.”
“No.” Dean Carpenter’s weathered face fell. He steepled his fingers and tapped them against his chin. “You’re withdrawing from school?”
Harmony’s clipped nod brought a ragged gasp from Stephen.
“I agree to your terms. You leave school and they keep their jobs.” He stood and held out a hand toward Harmony. “I’m truly sorry.”
“I’m not.” She shook his hand. “This has been the best year of my life, and I’m leaving with good memories. It’s worth it for you to be able to keep them.”
I hated the way she inclined her head toward us but refused to meet our eyes. Was she afraid to? Afraid she wouldn’t have the strength to give up her dreams if she had to see our reactions?
Roberto touched her elbow with nothing more than a fingertip. “We need to talk about this.”
“There’s nothing left to talk about.” She turned on her heel and left the room. No goodbye. Nothing.
I started to follow.
“Sit, Matthew. I’m not finished with you three.” The dean talked down to us like we were kindergarten students in trouble for breaking a rule.
My chin jutted forward, and I very nearly ignored the demand.
Stephen grabbed my arm and yanked me down. “Give her a minute.” He hissed into my ear, too low for the dean to hear.
He might have known what Stephen said anyway, just from the way we all reacted to her leaving.
But I sat, and I managed not to curse the dean for accepting Harmony’s deal.
“I better not hear anything else about you three.” He sat forward with his hands in his lap. It wasn’t quite a power move, but it was meant to remind us of our place. Rumors could ruin us. And if we left here on bad terms, we might never teach again. I understood the threat, and the implications.
And I was willing to give it all up if it meant we had Harmony in our lives.
I wrapped both hands around my knee to keep from slamming them down on the chair arms. “It wasn’t our intention to have this become a problem.”
“Meaning you thought you wouldn’t get caught.” Dean Carpenter huffed. “But you did, and you will if you ever do anything like this again. I’m going to make this absolutely clear. Do not mingle unprofessionally with any of your students. You are outstanding in your fields, so I would rather not fire you.”
I snorted without remorse. “You don’t have to worry about it happening again.” Harmony was the only woman for us.
“Good to hear. Because Iwillfire you, even if I don’t want to.” He halfway stood and reached over the desk to shake our hands. “Get out of here.”
