Heart of Fire (Blood of Zeus #2) - Meredith Wild Page 0,41
in no hurry to follow them. Instead, I wait for the curious lingerers to give up and leave too before walking down the stairs toward Maximus.
As I get to the main floor, he’s packing his laptop and paperwork into his messenger bag.
“Thank you for another intellectually thrilling lecture, Professor Kane,” I tease.
He traces his tongue along his lower lip the second his eyes meet mine. “Thrilling, eh?”
“Positively stimulating, if you ask me.”
He laughs. “Really? You are by far my most appreciative student. I’m afraid everyone knows it now too.”
I shrug and stop in front of him. “Well, I’m not afraid. We’re definitely not a secret anymore.”
“Honestly, that part is almost a relief.” He takes his glasses off and slides them into a side pocket in his bag.
“Why does a man who heals in seconds wear reading glasses?”
His expression freezes a moment as he contemplates my question. Then he breaks with an awkward laugh. “All right… You’ve got me.”
I lift a brow. “Busted?”
“Completely busted.” He softly laughs again. “I started wearing them at interviews when I was trying to get a teaching position. I was younger than most of the other candidates and didn’t really look the part. Still don’t, so I guess I just stuck with it.”
I hum quietly and draw my fingertips down the front of his shirt, my nails ticking along the buttons. “So you think if you wear them, people will be able to concentrate on what you’re actually saying and forget you’re only twenty-seven and built like an immortal god?”
His eyelids get heavy. His breathing quickens. “Something like that.”
“It’s very Clark Kent. I like it,” I murmur, lifting on my toes to kiss the corner of his mouth.
He turns enough to capture my lips and make it a full kiss, inciting his own breathy hum when we part. “What were you saying again, about that stimulating lecture?”
“Just quietly admiring your intellect. And figuring out how I’m going to make time for all the extra work you piled on us this week.”
“We have all night.”
I draw in a deep breath through my nose and step back on my heel to create a few inches of space between us. “About that.”
He sets his jaw. “Let me guess… Veronica is dead set on us going to this damn premiere.”
“No. She’s dead set on me going.”
He frowns. “Without me?”
“She thinks it’ll give people even more reason to talk. We’ve been inseparable all week. Stepping out to a major event like that without you will be fresh news. Everyone knows we’re together now, so pretending like maybe we’re not is even juicier.”
He works his jaw harder. “Will Arden be there?”
“I don’t think so. I didn’t ask, but it’s not really his scene.”
“It’s Kell’s scene, though. Piper Blue is the star of the film. She’s one of Kell’s best friends, right?”
“She is. But this is a lot different than a meeting alone at his office. Red carpets are chaos. No one gets a chance to socialize until the after-party, and I’ll be on my way home to you by then. It’ll be safe, I promise.”
Even safer without Maximus being there, I silently remind myself. When my mother posed the compromise, I didn’t balk for that very reason. Mainly because she never extends trade-offs like this, so appeasing her and keeping Maximus out of the limelight is a win-win.
Except that now he doesn’t seem overly thrilled. Still, I recognize a glimmer of acceptance in his eyes.
He tugs me close again, lowering his mouth to mine. “I just hate being away from you.”
“Ah, parting is such sweet sorrow.”
We pull apart as a voice from the back of the hall cuts into our romantic haze. We look up together in time to watch as Z saunters in, his voice as unhurried as his footfalls down the stairs.
Maximus joins me in shifting back by a step. His father’s dressed in beige linen pants and a short-sleeved white button-down today. His fedora is back and tilted on his head, matching his crooked grin.
“What are you doing here?” Maximus’s tone isn’t as cold as it’s been toward Z in the past, but it’s not exactly warm either. “Do you have news?”
Z doesn’t speak until he’s joined us on the lowest level of the lecture hall. “Some,” he answers lightly, shifting his focus to me. “Hello, Kara.”
I offer an awkward wave because Maximus is even more intense now.
“What news?” he presses.
“Just a meeting. One that might go a lot smoother if you joined,” Z replies coolly.