by Tia Siren
As soon as the words came out of her mouth, it hit her. She gasped and looked at him, tilting her head. “Are you jealous of Gerald? Are you trying to compete with him?”
“What? No.” He looked away and immediately knew he looked riddled with jealousy.
“You sent this to me knowing I would think it came from him. Knowing I dislike things like this and hoping I would change my mind about him for doing so. Eddie. Why would you go to such elaborate lengths? He and I are just friends. He is helping me on my thesis. That is all.”
“It’s not all. I know his type. He brags about the things he does and pulls out all of the stops to impress you. Half of it is probably made up but even if it isn’t, he is fake, Eva. You have to see through that,” he said raising his voice.
“I’m not an idiot.”
“No, but you are taken by him. You cannot deny that.”
“We are just friends.”
“Can you honestly stand there and tell me you hadn’t thought about more than just your thesis with him?” He noticed her cheeks darken a few shades of pink and nodded. “That’s what I thought.”
She looked up at him with different eyes. She was sad, knowing he was right.
“I don’t blame you,” he continued, trying to rescue her. “Eva, he is a good-looking guy, rugged, experienced in the world, multilingual. I get all of that. But he isn’t going to make you happy.” He took her hands and pulled her into him. “Not like I can, and....” His confession was interrupted by his phone. He tried to ignore it. “I can make you….” Annoyed, he pulled it and looked at it. “Admissions office?” He answered the call, turning away from Eva. “Hello, Eddie Caldwell.”
“Mr. Caldwell. Would you please come down to the administration’s office, right away? It’s urgent,” said a woman’s voice.
“Is there something wrong?”
“The Dean will explain when you arrive.”
“Yes, of course. I’ll be right there.”
Chapter 31
“Eddie?” Eva looked concerned when he didn’t continue his conversation with her. “Is everything okay?”
“It doesn’t sound like it, no. I need to go and meet with the Dean. Can we finish this over lunch?”
“No. I’m coming with you.” She grabbed her bag and shoved the necklace into it.
“I don’t think that is a good idea.”
“I’ll stay outside. You aren’t talking me out of it. I can’t leave you after the conversation we just had.” She grabbed his hand and held on as if it meant her own life or death.
“You are stubborn.”
“I know.”
He led her out of the room, knowing he wasn’t going to change her mind. She didn’t let his hand go until there were others in visible sight then she still stayed very close to him.
When they arrived at the administration’s office, Edward walked inside and looked back at Eva as she stood on the stairway, the front glass door closing between them. Walking up to the Dean’s office, he couldn’t help but feel like he was being scolded for something he did back in college.
“Excuse me,” he said, knocking on his partially opened door. “I received a call that you wanted to see me, sir?”
“Mr. Caldwell?”
“Yes.”
“Come in, please. Have a seat.”
“Thank you. This is a bit of a surprise to me. I have an appointment with you but it isn’t until later this week.”
“I am well aware of your appointment, Mr. Caldwell.”
“Is there something wrong?”
“I’m afraid so. It has come to my attention that you have been having an affair with a student here at the university.”
“An affair?”
“Yes, and I am sure you are well aware that it is against our policy for such things to take place. Grounds for such instances is immediate termination.”
Edward knew he couldn’t lie about it. The Dean had to have known something or else he wouldn’t have brought it up. But how much did he know? He didn’t care about himself. He was planning on ending the whole charade anyway. What he was worried about was Eva and her relationship with the university.
“With all due respect, sir, what I do with my personal time and affairs has nothing to do with my professional career and unless you have proof of such accusations, I suggest you let me be on my way.”
The Dean sat there and stared at Edward, trying to read his thoughts perhaps, or trying to call his bluff, but Edward stared back with an unwavering stare he was always good at. When he thought he had won, the Dean slid a side drawer open on his desk and dropped a folder in front of Edward.
“Here is your proof, Mr. Caldwell.”
He picked it up and opened it. When he saw pictures of him and Eva together in public, he knew someone had set him up. The first person who came to mind was Gracie. He clenched his jaw tightly as he sifted through more of the pictures. There were snapshots of them together at the University Club, another one showed them together in front of the history building.
“What are these? There is nothing here that proves anything.”
“Keep going, Mr. Caldwell.”
He lifted the next picture and saw them getting quite cozy in the restaurant outside of town. Another picture showed them getting intimate at the park during their picnic and the last one showed them making love in the water.
“The white Audi.”
“Excuse me?”
“I have been sabotaged. Set up. And I think I know who is behind it.”
“Please. Enlighten me. It is obviously someone who apparently doesn’t want you teaching here.”
“Or maybe someone who is bitter about my relationship that does not include her.”
“Her?”
“How did you get these?”
“They were mailed to me, anonymously.”
“I want to file a report against Gracie Honor.”
“She has done nothing wrong.”
“She took these pictures! There are laws to protect people’s privacy!” Edward stood up and held the pictures out toward the Dean.
“No, Mr. Caldwell. As long as you are in public it is perfectly legal for someone to take your photograph. What is wrong is what you have been doing with a student at this university. There are laws against that.”
“This is bullshit!” He slammed the pictures on the desk and shook his head.
“Sit down, Mr. Caldwell,” demanded the Dean. He waited for Edward to sit before continuing. “I like you and I think you are a fine teacher. I am not going to terminate you, nor am I going to reprimand Miss Brooks. But what I am going to do is give you an option.
“An option?” Edward repeated.
“Yes. You can resign or request a transfer to another school. Either choice will be made effective immediately.”
Before Edward could admit to his plans of resigning, Eva burst through the door.
“Stop! Please don’t fire him!”
Edward turned quickly, noticing tears streaming down Eva’s face.
“Eva, don’t.”
“No. I have to.” She turned toward the Dean. “This is my fault. I fell in love with him knowing it was wrong. Please don’t fire him because of me.”
Edward knew she wouldn’t stop and instead of trying to convince her to, he quickly stood up. “Dean,” he interrupted. “With all due respect, I would like to put in my resignation, effective immediately.”
“Eddie, no,” she whispered.
He turned toward her and wrapped his arms around her.
“I have a lot to talk to you about and I think now is the time, before anything more happens.”
Eva pulled back and looked at Edward, confused and shocked.
"You are scaring me.”
“Come on,” he said, taking her hand.
“I will write up your resignation paperwork and have them delivered to you this afternoon.”
Edward nodded and led Eva out of his office.
Chapter 32
“Eddie, please. Stop. Talk to me.” Eva felt like she was being dragged along when she just wanted to find out why he was acting so strangely. She felt that it was her fault they got caught. She stopped being careful in public, she stopped caring what other people thought. She finally found a man she was truly in love with and she wanted to be free to love him the way she knew how.
She tried pulling away from him when they got to the sidewalk at the bottom of the stairs of the administration building, but he was adamant on getting her someplace private before spilling the truth all over her. He was adamant that was, until he heard the lilt in her voice and the pain in her words.
“Eddie? I can’t take much more of this. Please talk to me?”
He stopped and let her hand go. Turning toward her, he saw the tears well up in her eyes. He cupped her face and pulled her to him, feeling the tremble in her.
“Oh,” he whispered. “My dearest Eva. Don’t cry.”
“You are scaring me.”
He leaned into her and left a small kiss on her forehead, then her nose. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay. I shouldn’t have been so careless. This is all my fault.”
“No, don’t say that. It wasn’t you.”
“It was.” She put her head down. “This is going to change everything. How can you just quit without a fight? You barely make enough to support yourself.”
Just tell her.
He stepped back and looked at her. The hurt in her eyes stabbed him like a knife. He shook his head. I can’t tell her. It will crumble her. Not yet. He took a deep breath.
“I can go anywhere. I have never had a problem getting work. I will talk to the Dean. Maybe I can get transferred someplace close. There are plenty of universities close by.”
“But, it’s already mid semester. They won’t be looking for anyone, will they?”
“You never know.” He pulled her in and hugged her tightly. “You never know,” he repeated.
How was he going to tell her he didn’t need to work? How was he going to admit to her that he had his own fortune knowing that she would never have given him the time of day back in Paris if he tried introducing himself as Edward Caldwell, successful entrepreneur instead of Eddie Caldwell, struggling professor? He had her heart, but was it strong enough to endure such a truth? He held her closer.
“I got you something.” Edward watched Eva’s face for approval, knowing she didn’t like elaborate gifts. When she put another bite of her dinner into her mouth instead of acknowledging him, he knew he needed to play it down. “It isn’t much. I just thought it could come in handy for you.” He pulled a small wrapped box out of his jacket pocket and handed it to her. The light blue and white wrapping hugged the box perfectly and the small white ribbon gave it the perfect delicate touch.
Eva just looked at it, remembering the necklace still in her bag.
“It’s a cell phone,” he said before she reached for it. “A used one,” he lied.
“A cell phone?” She took the small gift and unwrapped it.
“I know you were talking about getting one eventually.”
“It looks so new.”
“Yeah. I couldn’t believe it either. Got it for a steal.”
Eva smiled. “Thank you, Eddie. It’s so nice. Now I guess I can step up into the real world.”
“You don’t mind that I got it?”
“No. It was very thoughtful. The necklace, on the other hand, is going back.”
Edward wanted to protest, but he felt it was better to agree at this point.
“So, did you talk to the Dean yet?”
“No. I sent him an email after we talked, letting him know I wanted to talk with him about my situation. I’m not sure whether he got it or not.”
“Why?”
“I received my resignation papers just before dinner.”
She looked down. “I see.”
“I haven’t even opened the envelope yet. First thing tomorrow I will go and see him. I just figured I’d give him a little time.”
“We may not have a little time, Eddie.” Her eyes pleaded with him. “I love you,” she whispered. Her eyes shone when she spoke the words and his heart swelled.
“I will make everything right,” he said taking her hand from across the table. “You just have to trust me.”
“I do trust you. I just… I walked away from you once. I don’t want to watch you have to walk away from me at least without a fight.”
He squeezed her hand in reassurance. “Don’t worry. I have a way of making things happen.”
An argument just outside the restaurant interrupted their intimate conversation.
“Well, apparently, someone doesn’t like the food here,” he said, trying to lighten the situation.
Eva smiled and looked out through the front window. “Who could be making so much commotion?”
Edward spotted the familiar white Audi hatchback and soda he just sipped got sucked down his wind pipe and blocked off his airway. He coughed uncontrollably, pushing away from the table and standing up.
“Are you okay?” Eva’s eyes grew wide.
After a few moments, he nodded and reached for Eva’s hand.
“We should go,” he said,
“Eddie? Why?” She looked, wide-eyed in the direction of the commotion that was now inside the restaurant and saw Gracie walking quickly in their direction.
“Oh, shit.”
A man in a blue apron gave every effort to stop her while trying to keep a hand on her.
“Ma’am! You cannot come in here!”
“Get the hell out of my way!” she screamed. She stopped long enough to turn toward the employee and shove him backwards causing him to trip over the leg of a chair and fall to the floor. Edward watched her scan the room and lock her eyes on his.
He sat down with a thud in his chair and braced himself for the worst.
“How could you?” Gracie sneered as she bellied up to their table.
Edward looked around the restaurant and noticed a few patrons stealing a peek in their direction but quickly turning away when caught. He looked back at Eva and silently prayed Gracie would disappear, not bothering to look up at her until he felt her slap the side of his face. His ear rang with the impact and he had all he could do not to jump out of his chair and grab her by her neck, squeezing her slowly until she dropped to the floor in a heap.
Eva, frozen in her seat, did not take her eyes off Edward.
“Do you have any idea what I went through for you?” she howled. “The dinner, the reservations, this!” she screamed as she waved a lacy garment in his face.
Most of the patrons had stopped trying to be discreet at this point and turned to watch the festivities.
“Gracie,” he whispered. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about our plans for last night.” Tears welled up in Gracie’s eyes as she started to fidget and tap her foot.
Edward looked at her, confused on how she was making herself cry over something completely fictitious. “Please, don’t do this,” he whispered again. “You are only going to end up hurting yourself.”
“Oh, am I? I’m going to hurt myself? I think you already did that, you son-of-a-bitch. I waited for you last night,” she sobbed. “Why did you stand me up? You could have at least called me to tell me I wasn’t good enough to be with you.”
Edward watched Gracie’s face and he began to believe she honestly thought they had plans to be together. Anything was possible in this woman’s warped little mind.
“Gracie, I think you have it all wrong.” He scooted back away from the table and put his hand up to stop her from making a fool out of herself. “I don’t recall having any plans with you. Believe me, I wouldn’t have stood you up if we had.”
“Bullshit! It was your idea. Tell me, Eddie. Did
you ever plan on meeting me or was ripping my heart out part of the plan all along?”
“Gracie, please.”
“Don’t touch me.” She rubbed her face with the lacy lingerie, smearing her eye makeup down her cheeks. “All you men are alike.” She looked at Eva and straightened up. “Who is this?”
Eva gasped and quickly looked down at her plate.
“Is this the reason you stood me up?” She picked up Eva’s fork and wiggled it in the air before stabbing it into her food.
“Come on,” Edward said jumping up out of his chair. “Let’s go outside and talk. I’m sure we can work this out.”
The moment he put his hands on her arms to reassure her, her face lit up before distorting into anger. She pushed his hands away and lashed out at him.
“No!” she screamed, walking up to him until her chest touched his. She looked directly in his eyes. “Don’t make me sick my big brother on you again,” she whispered. “You are treading on thin ice, buster.”
Edward’s words stuck in his throat as she stepped back away from him.
“And you can keep your cheap hooker suit!” She threw the lingerie at him and stormed out the door, knocking into the same man she pushed to the floor.
Edward looked around the restaurant again in the aftermath of Gracie Honor and attempted to smile at the others. “I apologize for her behavior,” he said aloud. “I’m not sure what brought that on, but I do hope she gets help.”
The patrons slowly turned their attention away from Edward and he turned back to Eva. She had folded her hands into her lap, the fork still protruding out of her food, her eyes looking down at her hands and a solemn look on her face.
“Eva?”
Chapter 2
Eva looked up, still frozen where she sat. Edward could not read the expression in her eyes.
“What just happened?” he asked, forcing a failed chuckle. He knew what it must have looked like to her. “She is clearly delusional.”
Eva’s stare didn’t falter and it caused Edward concern.
“Eva? Are you okay?” He studied her face wishing he could have read her thoughts. “I honestly don’t know what she is talking about. She quickly befriended me when I started here, almost too quickly but at the time, I thought she was harmless. We went to dinner once and she took it for more than what it was.”
