Better (Too Good series) (8 page)

“Stop.”

Cadence closed her mouth.

“You give me no credit for making my own decisions. You know that? Is it, like, your goal in life to convince me that being with you is a terrible mistake? I’m totally loving my life, and you just refuse to accept that. Giving you money for school gave me a high.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah. A high. Why? Because I was doing something for you that I chose to do. I choose to take care of you, Cadence. And I love doing it. I love making you dinner. I love paying for your classes. I love making sure our electric bills are paid up so we can watch movies together. I love all of it. I love my life with you, so stop shitting all over it!”

Mark watched as she struggled with the need to argue. She chewed her lower lip. He waited. Her mouth parted, and it was all over.

“But you need to go to college! You need to be a professor!”

“There’s a big difference between needing something and wanting it. I need to make love to you all the time. That’s a need.”

She blushed.

“I want to get my Ph.D. That’s a want. And it’ll happen. I can’t start this semester. Okay. That’s cool. I’ll start next semester. No big deal.”

“Do you really need to make love to me?” she asked.

Mark burst out laughing. “You didn’t hear anything I said after that, did you?”

She shook her head. Well, at least she was honest.

“I need your body all the time,” Mark said. “You wanna talk about being a leech? I feed off your love. I can’t get enough of it.”

“So we’re just a couple of leeches, huh?”

“Yep.”

“Will you promise me you’ll start school next semester?”

“If I can,” Mark replied.

“What does that mean?”

“It means that Ph.D. programs start during specific semesters. I’m not sure if I can go next semester. I may need to wait the following year. And it’s all right,” he said quickly when he saw her mouth open to object.

Cadence growled.

“Really? Did you just do that?” Mark asked, chuckling.

She laughed too, and then she growled again.

“That’s weird, right? To growl?” she asked.

“Completely. But I kinda like it. Growl for me again.”

“You just wanna turn it sexual,” Cadence said.

“You’re damn right.”

“And I still need to pray.”

“Aww shucks. I forgot about that,” Mark said. “
All right. Go be absolved. I’ll meet you in the dining room for dinner.”

Right before he closed the door, he caught a glimpse of her sitting on the bed with her head bowed. He wondered what kinds of conversations she had with God. He wondered if she had conversations li
ke the ones she shared with him. Well, aside from the sexual banter. He imagined it was an interesting relationship—hers and God’s—and he wouldn’t ignore the tiniest bit of jealousy over it. Mostly because he wanted her all to himself. Mostly. But there was a little part of him that missed his own conversations, his own meditations with a God he used to love.

***

North Atlanta University. So it wasn’t a Division I school. It was still huge, and it had a reputation for one really aggressive business program. Cadence decided over the summer that she would major in business. She became obsessed with the idea of owning her own flower shop, and she planned to study to become the savviest businesswoman on the planet.

The university was t
he exact opposite of high school. Cadence relished in walking the campus in relative anonymity, just one of thousands of ordinary students. No one knew her story, and if they did, they didn’t care. Nobody cared about anybody, she observed, as she was nearly run over by a skateboarder on her way to composition class.

“Move,” he spat. She blew him a kiss.

She made sure to look as inconspicuous as possible for her first day of classes: jean shorts, tank top, flip flops. She kept her hair down but pulled it off her face with a headband. She wore a tad bit of makeup. Nothing showy, but she thought first day classes warranted mascara and lip gloss, at the least.

She slid into a seat in the row closest to the windows. She didn’t bother to look for Michael. Or save him a seat. She still wasn’t sure about that guy. She felt guilty for not telling Mark about Michael’s kissing comment. She wanted a friend, but she was unsure if he was a good one
. She scanned the room for somebody better. She needed a girlfriend. And there was one sitting directly behind her.

“Hi,” Cadence said tentatively.

“Hi,” the girl replied.

Cadence wasn’t sure what else to say. Neither was the girl. That was until she recognized Cadence.

“You went to Crestview High.”

Cadence’s face fell. “Yeah.”

“My friend went there. She graduated with you.”

Cadence nodded.

The girl leaned in and whispered, “Did you really have an affair with your math teacher?”

Cadence shrugged and turned around. So much f
or being inconspicuous. She almost moved to another seat, but she didn’t want to come across as a bitch. Michael walked in, and she actually felt relief. He sat in the desk in front of her.

“I’m assuming you saved this for me even though I don’t see a pen or n
otebook or anything else on the desk,” he said.

She smiled nervously
.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing. I’ll tell you later,” she mumbled.

“Tell me now.”

She glared at him. “I can’t.”

He nodded. “Okay. When are you free?” he asked.

“Noon.”

“Wanna get lunch?”

“It’ll have to be quick. I work today.”

“Isn’t it fun being a grown-up and having responsibilities?” Michael joked.

“The best,” Cadence replied.

Conversation ended once the professor walked into the classroom. Dr. Callahan. Cadence thought he was nice. He was an o
ld one—grandfatherly. He didn’t teach, just explained the syllabus and his classroom expectations. She thought he was one of those “understanding” professors. She could miss a deadline for a paper and he would “understand.” He had the demeanor. It was really in his eyes. They were kind and soft. She realized she spent all fifty minutes of class time developing a character sketch of him in her mind instead of listening to him. And then it hit her! She was subconsciously looking for a companion for Fanny! She burst out laughing as students exited the room at the end of class.

“What the hell?” Michael asked.

“Nothing,” she giggled.

“Meet me at the union at noon
, dork.”

“Whatever.”

***

“So, why are you so weird?” Michael asked, pushing out the chair for her with his foot. She crinkled her nose and wiped the seat with a napkin.

“A multitude of reasons,” she replied, plopping in the chair and tearing open her Chick-fil-A sandwich.

“What couldn’t you tell me in class?” Michael asked. “We’ll start with that one.”

Cadence took a deep breath. “Well, I was all excited about starting college and running away from my complicated past until it was pointed out to me by the girl sitting behind me.”

“You have a complicated past?”

“Hard to believe, but yes,” Cadence said.

“And what is it?”

“I had an affair with my math teacher,” she said airily. “My current boyfriend.”

Michael’s mouth dropped open. “Um, a million questions starting now.”

Cadence checked the clock hanging above them. “You better hurry,” she said with her mouth full.

“How old is he?”

“Twenty-eight.”

“How old were you?”

“Seventeen.”

“Fucking. Awesome.”

Cadence stared at him.

“Did he change
your grades?”

“No.”

“Is he in jail?”

“No. He didn’t commit a crime.”

“No?”

“No.”

“Whatever. Were you found out?”

“Yes.”

“Did he go to jail?”

“Seriously?”

“Did he lose his job?”

“Yes.”

“What did your parents say?”

“Stuff
.”

“What did they do?”

“Punched me in the eye.”

“What the fuck?”

“Tell me about it.” Cadence took another huge bite of her sandwich.

“Both of them punched you in the eye?”

“You’re an idiot.”

“So what happened after that?” Michael asked. He’d abandoned his food in favor
of gawking and drilling her.

“I ran away.”

“Seriously. What happened next?”

“I’m telling you the truth. I ran away. I live with my boyfriend now.”

They were quiet for a time. Cadence finished off her sandwich and licked her fingers.

“What did your parents do?”
Michael asked.

“Disowned me.”

Michael sat back in his chair. “Are you telling me the truth?” he said quietly.

Cadence nodded and gathered her things.

Michael whispered, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” she replied. “You didn’t disown me.” She smiled and stood up.

“Going so soon?”

“I told you I had to be quick,” she said.

“Does your boyfriend know we’re friends?”

“Yes. And his name’s Mark.”

“Is he okay with that?”

“Yes. He’s not possessive.”

Michael nodded. “Cool.”

“Are you done interrogating me now?”

He smiled. “‘Til next time, yeah.”

“Nope. Next time it’s my turn,” Cadence said.

“Fine.”

“Are you gonna tell the whole campus what I just revealed?” Cadence asked.

“Uh, I have, like, three friends,” Michael replied.

“Are you gonna tell those three friends?”

Michael smirked. “You can trust me.”

Cadence considered him. “I sure hope so.”

He nodded reassuringly.

“Later.” Cadence waved as she walked out of the student union towards the west parking deck. Flower deliveries all afterno
on and then homework later that evening. And maybe hot sex before bed.

Hmm, I should think about
birth control pills
, she thought as she unlocked her car.

Her life was calming down, turning ordinary, and
she was happy for it.

***

It wasn’t on the level of a four-year university teaching position, but Mark would take what he could get. The pay wasn’t absolutely horrible, but that was only because he managed to land a full-time position. With benefits. And he could put Cadence on his medical insurance. Even though she had the university, it was a good backup plan. He was always thinking of the ways in which he needed and wanted to provide for her. He already looked at her as his wife. But she wasn’t ready for marriage yet, and he knew it. He’d treat her like a wife now and make it official later.

“Hey there,” a woman said, poking her head in his classroom.

He’d just finished his final math class of the day and was packing his bag.

“Hi,” he replied.

“I’m Drew Blakely,” she said, walking up to him and extending her hand. He shook it. “I teach across the hall from you. English and communications courses.”

“Nice to meet you.
I’m Mark Connelly.” He pointed to the board he hadn’t yet cleaned.

She smiled and nodded. “I hate math. With a passion. I can’t balance my checkbook.”

She placed her hands on her narrow hips and studied the board. He waited patiently for her to leave. He had a special dinner in store for Cadence, and he needed to pop by the grocery store first.

“What do you think of this place so far?”
Drew asked. It was evident she had no special dinner planned and was content to sit around and chat for a while. He wanted to be rude, but that wasn’t his nature. Well, usually it wasn’t his nature.

“I like it. Students seem to care about their work
, which is different from high school.”

“You taught high school before this? Ugh.” She brushed her shoulder-length brunette hair off her face. She was pretty. Emerald green eyes and a few freckles on her nose. She didn’t look old enough to teach anything, let alone community college.

“It wasn’t so bad,” he replied, grinning. Cadence’s naked body flashed in his brain, and he cleared his throat.

“Why’d you make the move then?” she asked.

He smiled patiently. “Needed a change.”

That conversation was absolutely hideous. He decided to be completely forthright with the dean and explain his entire situation with Cadence
during the interview. He could have very well said that he didn’t want the dean to contact his former employer, but that would have sent up red flags. He believed he sealed his fate after that discussion, but the dean obviously didn’t care. He called him the next day to offer him the position. It may have helped that Mark told him he and Cadence were to be married the following year.