attempted to derail my dreams of becoming a ship designer. “Mr. Holland,” he said, his lip curling in disgust.
“Will you sit, please?” Evie pleaded with me.
I realized the people at the other tables were taking notice. I sat down, making a big show of jerking my chair away from him. “Marsh,” I said his name.
Evie sat down. I looked at her and could see the confusion on her face. “Do you two know each other?” she nervously asked.
I looked at Professor Marsh. “Do we, professor?” I sneered.
Marsh looked at his daughter. I could see the irritation in his eyes. I would not let him make her feel bad for this encounter. “I know this punk, yes.”
“Dad!” she exclaimed. “Stop it.”
“This is one of the worst students I have ever had the displeasure of having in one of my classes. He is the kid I measure all the other horrible students against. I have yet to meet a student that is as arrogant, rude, and antagonistic as him. This is your friend? Evie, we need to have a very long talk. You must choose better people to call friends.”
“It’s funny you say all that about me because that is exactly how I feel about you. Although I think I would add stubborn and archaic to my description of you.”
Evie held up her hands. “What the hell is going on? You were in his class?”
The question was directed at me. “I was. It was the worst four months of my life. I hated the class and I found every reason to avoid going.”
“Yes, because you were a spoiled, entitled brat who thought you knew better than anyone else,” he snapped.
I sneered at him. “My billions of dollars sitting in my bank account would say I did know better than anyone else, most especially you.”
“Bullshit,” he seethed, spittle forming in the corners of his mouth.
I slowly shook my head. “It isn’t bullshit. I made it, despite your attempts to hold me back. You did everything in your power to hold me down. I rose anyway. The cream always rises.”
He smirked, shaking his head and looking at Evie. “See? Arrogant. This kid thinks he is the smartest person in the room. He thinks he knows so much more than the guy with the PhD.”
“I do,” I quipped.
He looked at me with pure disgust. “You aren’t good enough to know my daughter’s name. You are not good enough to be in her presence.”
“Fuck you, old man,” I seethed.
“Wait, hold on,” Evie said, clearly very confused. “Please stop. Both of you. I’m so confused right now.”
“Get rid of this punk before he drags you down,” her father warned.
I scoffed. “Oh yeah, because I’m wallowing in the gutter. Think again, Dr. Marsh. You don’t know shit. You didn’t know shit then and you don’t know shit now.”
“Xander, please,” Evie begged. “You were in his class?”
“Yes. My senior year. Like I said, it was some of the worst days of my life.”
Marsh looked at me. His scornful gaze would have made a lesser man squirm. I didn’t flinch. I glared right back at him. “Did you go after my daughter to get back at me?” he asked.
I rolled my eyes. “Why would I waste a minute of my time doing anything to get back at you? I don’t have to get back at you. I’m more successful than you will ever dream of being. That’s my revenge.”
He scoffed. “Everyone gets lucky once in their lives.”
I shook my head. There was no way I could sit down and have a meal with the man that had tried to destroy my life. I looked to Evie. I could see the shock and despair in her eyes. I hated that she was his. I hated that because of my past relationship with her father, she and I would never be friends. I had listened to her talk about her father and I knew they were close. There was no way I was getting in the middle of that.
“I’m sorry,” I said to her. “This isn’t going to work. I don’t want to ruin your dinner.”
“Xander, wait,” she said.
“I have to go.”
I got up from the table and walked out without looking back. The valet looked very surprised to see me. “I’m leaving. I need my car.”
He nodded. “Yes, sir.”
I stood on the sidewalk and waited. If my car didn’t appear within the next few minutes, I was going to fucking walk home. Secretly, I was hoping she would come out and