do that to Zeke now.
Damn it, he deserved better.
“Kendall.” Her name sounded seductively melodic coming from lips that still held the imprint of hers. “Lady, that’s no way to end a kiss.”
She pressed a hand to a heart that pounded with unfulfilled desire and a shame she couldn’t ignore. “There’s a right way and a wrong way to end a kiss?”
“Absolutely.” His mouth came to hover near hers, threatening. Promising. “There’s the sweet, lingering way that leaves a vow of better things to come. That’s the right way.”
“What did I do?”
“You tore away as if you tasted something bad.”
That surprised a laugh out of her. “Trust me, you taste...”
He guided her gaze back to his when it faltered along with her words. “Yes?”
“Delicious.” Kendall could feel the heat crawling up her neck to flood her face, so she decided quick diversionary tactics were in order. “I just believe in taking things one step at a time.”
“You’ve never struck me as the overly cautious type.”
“I am when it comes to the important things in life.”
“And that’s what I am? Kendall.” A brilliant smile blazed across his face, and it made everything inside her melt into a puddle of goo. “Damned if you didn’t just say the very words to keep me at your mercy.”
* * *
“The Dean will see you now, Ms. Glynn.”
Kendall nodded her thanks as she was shown into the office of Bayside Community College’s dean, Eustace Pringle III, secretly amazed anyone thought that was a name worthy of being used three times over. Considering the stress the man had to be under since random violence had visited his campus, however, she was just happy he had agreed to meet with her.
Unfortunately, his opening statement was enough to douse her glowing sense of gratitude before she could begin to express it.
“I refuse to answer any questions directly connected to Professor Carmichael or Denise Draper, the student involved in this unfortunate incident.” Dean Pringle, a pale little man with horn-rimmed glasses and a bad comb-over, matched his whitewashed prefab office to a T. His nonexistent lips had a way of twitching at the corners, as if he’d put his mouth on wrong that morning and was now trying to make it fit. As they settled into seats with the desk between them, Kendall wondered how she was going to manage to look at it without going batty. “Though the parents of Ms. Draper haven’t filed a wrongful death lawsuit, that phrase has been bandied about often enough for our legal department to put forth an order of silence when it comes to that particular subject.”
Kendall’s heart executed a leaden swan dive into her stomach. “Then why did you agree to meet with me, Dean Pringle?”
“I’d think that would be obvious.” Mouth twitching away, Dean Pringle picked up a brass letter opener that looked like a miniature rapier and began to fiddle with it. “It’s imperative the public knows BCC is a safe campus. Our community must be assured that we meet or surpass the security standards California state law requires.”
Kendall’s gaze fell to the Barbie-sized rapier twirling in his pale fingers, and tried not to think of the equally innocuous pen Dave Beamer had used to puncture his jugular. “Yet despite that, two deaths happened right here on campus.”
“A terrible incident occurred here, yes, but it could have happened anywhere, at any time. Despite being a small community college, I can assure you we are as safe as any big campus in this country.”
Frustrated by the restrictions he’d collared her with and more distracted by the letter opener than she wanted to admit, Kendall searched Dean Pringle’s muddy-brown eyes for any hint of whitening. “Do you include regular drug screening and psych evaluations for your staff, as per state guidelines?”
“We wouldn’t have it any other way here at BCC,” came the rah-rah reply. The only things missing were the pompoms and the cute
Damn it, he deserved better.
“Kendall.” Her name sounded seductively melodic coming from lips that still held the imprint of hers. “Lady, that’s no way to end a kiss.”
She pressed a hand to a heart that pounded with unfulfilled desire and a shame she couldn’t ignore. “There’s a right way and a wrong way to end a kiss?”
“Absolutely.” His mouth came to hover near hers, threatening. Promising. “There’s the sweet, lingering way that leaves a vow of better things to come. That’s the right way.”
“What did I do?”
“You tore away as if you tasted something bad.”
That surprised a laugh out of her. “Trust me, you taste...”
He guided her gaze back to his when it faltered along with her words. “Yes?”
“Delicious.” Kendall could feel the heat crawling up her neck to flood her face, so she decided quick diversionary tactics were in order. “I just believe in taking things one step at a time.”
“You’ve never struck me as the overly cautious type.”
“I am when it comes to the important things in life.”
“And that’s what I am? Kendall.” A brilliant smile blazed across his face, and it made everything inside her melt into a puddle of goo. “Damned if you didn’t just say the very words to keep me at your mercy.”
* * *
“The Dean will see you now, Ms. Glynn.”
Kendall nodded her thanks as she was shown into the office of Bayside Community College’s dean, Eustace Pringle III, secretly amazed anyone thought that was a name worthy of being used three times over. Considering the stress the man had to be under since random violence had visited his campus, however, she was just happy he had agreed to meet with her.
Unfortunately, his opening statement was enough to douse her glowing sense of gratitude before she could begin to express it.
“I refuse to answer any questions directly connected to Professor Carmichael or Denise Draper, the student involved in this unfortunate incident.” Dean Pringle, a pale little man with horn-rimmed glasses and a bad comb-over, matched his whitewashed prefab office to a T. His nonexistent lips had a way of twitching at the corners, as if he’d put his mouth on wrong that morning and was now trying to make it fit. As they settled into seats with the desk between them, Kendall wondered how she was going to manage to look at it without going batty. “Though the parents of Ms. Draper haven’t filed a wrongful death lawsuit, that phrase has been bandied about often enough for our legal department to put forth an order of silence when it comes to that particular subject.”
Kendall’s heart executed a leaden swan dive into her stomach. “Then why did you agree to meet with me, Dean Pringle?”
“I’d think that would be obvious.” Mouth twitching away, Dean Pringle picked up a brass letter opener that looked like a miniature rapier and began to fiddle with it. “It’s imperative the public knows BCC is a safe campus. Our community must be assured that we meet or surpass the security standards California state law requires.”
Kendall’s gaze fell to the Barbie-sized rapier twirling in his pale fingers, and tried not to think of the equally innocuous pen Dave Beamer had used to puncture his jugular. “Yet despite that, two deaths happened right here on campus.”
“A terrible incident occurred here, yes, but it could have happened anywhere, at any time. Despite being a small community college, I can assure you we are as safe as any big campus in this country.”
Frustrated by the restrictions he’d collared her with and more distracted by the letter opener than she wanted to admit, Kendall searched Dean Pringle’s muddy-brown eyes for any hint of whitening. “Do you include regular drug screening and psych evaluations for your staff, as per state guidelines?”
“We wouldn’t have it any other way here at BCC,” came the rah-rah reply. The only things missing were the pompoms and the cute
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