Filed to story: Shhh Professor! Please Don’t Tell! Novel Free
“Come talk to me,” I said, tugging her over toward the bed. I sat down on it and she sat next to me.
“I know you have a crush on Professor Steele, Ellie,” Annie said. “I know this must be really weird for you. I’m sorry.”
“It’s more than that,” I said, biting my lip. “Annie, I have more than a crush on him. We’ve been sleeping together.” I inhaled. “We’re in love.”
Annie stared at me, her eyes wide. For one terrible moment, I thought she was horrified.
“Ellie,” she said, starting to smile. “Why do you think that’s a problem?”
My jaw dropped.
“Annie,” I said. “He’s your dad.”
“Yeah, but not like that
,” Annie said. “It’s not like he’s the person who tucked me in every night and taught me how to ride my bike. Yes, he’s my dad genetically and I’m so, so happy I found him, but it’s not like you slept with my dad
.”
I realized what she meant.
“But…”
Annie threw her head back laughing. “Oh, my God,” she said. “This explains so many things. He was so weird about it. Like, I was getting completely mixed signals. He seems legitimately so happy he’s my dad, but he also has all these moments of looking so nervous, or sad even. Both of you have been freaking out about this, haven’t you?”
I blinked.
“Well, yeah,” I said. My head was spinning. “I mean, don’t you think it’s weird?”
“No!” Annie said. Her smile flickered back and forth between a smirk and a grin. “I mean, yes, technically it’s weird. It’s weird that you might be my kind of stepmom someday.”
I blinked.
“Wow,” I said. Her stepmom. I wanted to laugh. “Yeah…I guess that’s it in a nutshell.”
“It’s okay, Ellie,” Annie said, putting an arm around my shoulder and squeezing me. “I can understand how you’re feeling, but I promise it’s not like that for me. I’m really excited Professor Steele is my dad, and I love you and am glad you’re in my life. I’m glad that you’ve found love in somebody. The fact that that person also happens to be my biological father doesn’t really take away from any of that, at least for me.”
“Everyone is going to think it’s so weird,” I said, leaning my head back and staring at the ceiling. I was flooded with relief but still anxious about the whole thing. This would make things worse for Jackson’s reputation. I could just imagine the headlines: Billionaire Playboy Dates Daughter’s Best Friend.
“Who cares what everyone thinks?” Annie asked.
“But Annie,” I said, “I mean like everyone
. Jackson is famous. A story like this could become national news.”
Annie scoffed. “In the tabloids,” she said. “Just let the storm pass and then publish a biography of Jackson’s life telling the real story.”
I laughed.
“I mean it,” she said. “I’ll write it. The devil is in the details. Or in this case, the angel is in the details. I think people will look at you and Jackson and think all kinds of weird things, but they’ll be wrong. Like, he didn’t meet you through me. You’re older than I am. He actually loves you, and it’s not like he has a history of dating younger women. If we tell people the details of your story, they’ll be on your side.”
Her words passed through me like a warm breeze. I held still for one moment and then scrambled off the bed.
“Annie,” I said, “thank you. You’ve just given me an idea.”
“You’re so welcome,” Annie said, smiling at me. “What idea did I give you?”
“I’ll tell you later,” I said.
I’d been avoiding Professor Spaulding ever since he’d asked to talk to me in his office. He’d sent me one more email, urging me to make the time to see him, but I hadn’t replied to it. I had been considering breaking up with Jackson. To protect him and run away from the confused feelings I’d had as soon as I’d found out he was Annie’s dad. I felt I couldn’t talk with Professor Spaulding about Jackson if I didn’t even know what I was going to do.
Now I was marching across campus, my shoes crunching through the thin layer of snow on the grass. My coat was unbuttoned, and it flapped a little in the cold breeze. I knew Professor Spaulding had open office hours right now. He’d be there. If there was someone else with him, I would sit in the hallway and wait.
I reached the history building and walked upstairs. Most classes were over for the day, and the building was quiet. I reached the top floor. I could see Professor Spaulding’s door at the end of the hallway. It was ajar.
I walked down the hallway, my footsteps echoing slightly. It was cold up here, poorly heated. My skin tingled with adrenaline and anxiety.
I paused outside the door and knocked.
“Come in,” Professor Spaulding said. His tone sounded alert. I knew he’d been able to hear the sound of my footsteps; I wondered if he’d guessed that the approaching student was me.
I pushed open the door and stepped inside.
“Ellie,” he said, his eyes on me and his tone brisk. Uncomfortable. He gestured to the chair in front of him. “Please sit down.”
I sat down in the chair and spoke before he had the chance to say anything else.
“Professor Spaulding, I’m in love with Jackson Steele.”
Professor Spaulding’s lips parted. His eyes widened slightly, causing him to look a little like a fish out of water.
“Ellie,” he said. “I know this is a difficult situation…”
“No,” I said. “You think it is. You think he’s predatory, taking advantage of a younger woman. You think he’ll do it again.”
Professor Spaulding pressed his lips together. I could tell he thought I was being foolish, acting exactly like the blind young person he considered me to be. Smitten. Irrational. Passionate.
“Professor Spaulding,” I said. “Jackson and I have been in love with each other all semester. We didn’t do anything sexual together until Egypt.”
When I said the word “sexual,” Professor Spaulding’s face flushed suddenly. For a moment, I felt bad for him. He was clearly so uncomfortable. He could have handled this differently not tried to talk to me about it and just gone behind Jackson’s back to get him fired. I was grateful he was facing his discomfort to try to protect me and in a way, Jackson.