Page 90 of After Hours Lectures
“I still don’t like it,” my dad grumbled, his arms crossed over his chest.
“They’re consenting adults,” Jamie reasoned. “I’m sure if you give it some time, you’ll realize how lucky Tyler is to have found someone who obviously cares about him. It’s what we want for all our kids.”
“I’m the lucky one,” Hayden replied.
Before anyone else could say anything, our server came in. Hayden and I looked over the menus as he took everyone else’s order first. When he left, Hayden turned his attention to my dad again.
“Mr. Statler, I’m going to order a drink at the bar. Want to join me?”
I tilted my head. “What are you doing? You could have ordered a drink here.”
Hayden shrugged. “I think a private chat with your dad might be good.”
My pulse raced as I waited for my father to answer.
“Sure, I could use another drink,” Dad replied.
Once they stepped away, Jase barked out a laugh. “Dude, this has been entertaining.”
“Jase, knock it off,” Chase admonished.
Thankfully, conversations about topics other than my love life picked up around the table. In all fairness, my dad’s reaction hadn’t been unexpected. He was protective of all of us, and as a teacher himself, a professor having a relationship with a student went against his code of conduct. However, as Jamie pointed out, we were adults capable of making our own decisions, unlike the high school students my father taught. Hayden and I knew the truth about our relationship. We knew he didn’t take advantage of his power or show me any sort of favoritism—well, except for the after hours lectures I loved so much.
Hayden and Dad returned from the bar at the same time as our server brought out our food. They both appeared a bit more relaxed than they had been when they left, which eased some of the tension coiled tightly inside me.
“Everything okay?” I asked under my breath.
Hayden draped his arm across the back of my chair. “Yeah. I just thought your dad might be a little understanding if I explained a few things.”
“Like what?”
“We can talk about that later.”
I wanted to push for more information, but I could wait until we were alone. Instead, I took a bite of my chicken piccata, savoring the lemony flavor as it burst across my tongue. Hayden nudged me with his foot when I let out a small moan of appreciation.
“Behave yourself,” he whispered.
I gave him a wide grin. “What? It’s delicious.”
He shook his head, and I laughed.
“So, are you two going to do the long-distance thing while you’re on tour with Flirting with Fire?” Chase asked, drawing us out of our playful moment.
That topic was another thing I’d been anxious to discuss, but I couldn’t avoid it. I wiped my mouth with my napkin and replied, “About that. I turned their offer down.”
“Seriously?” Dylan questioned. “You’ve been a fan of theirs for years. I thought you’d drop everything to hit the road with them.”
“I know, but I’ve thought long and hard about it, and I really like living here. I can see making the East Coast my home.”
“What are you going to do for a job?” Dad inquired.
“It turns out there’s a couple of openings at the media company that Hayden’s family owns, so I think I’ll give that a try.”
“It sounds like you have a plan, and as long as you’re happy, we’ll support you,” Chase said, and my father nodded.
“Does that mean we don’t have to help you pack tomorrow?” Jase asked hopefully.
“No.” I rolled my eyes. “I still have to move out of the frat house, but Fallon has an extra bedroom at his new condo in Boston, and he offered to let me stay there.”
