"He's probably too busy selling landmines to children to make it!"
Gibson glares at her while the guys continue to shout.
"Milton!"
"Milton!
"Milton! Milton! Milton! Milton!"
The room erupts into a cacophony of chants and we all start slapping our desks while Gibson looks as though he's on the brink of having an aneurysm. When his face turns so red he begins to resemble a burn victim, he slumps down in his seat and buries his head in his hands.
Then a subtle knock comes from the door.
Everyone goes silent.
"Hello?" Gibson asks with a quivering voice.
The handle rattles for a moment before the door opens.
"Hello? Advanced mathematics with Mr. Gibson? I'm SO sorry I'm late. I got the rooms mixed up and I'm afraid I missed my big entrance."
Fredrick walks in gushing apologies and Gibson is staring up at him as though he's Jesus. Shit, he IS handsome. I feel myself blushing and press my fingers to my cheeks. Then I look at the other girls in the room and they're all shifting in their seats and smiling uncontrollably.
"Don't tell me you're falling for his boyish charms and ridiculously high cheekbones," Alex asks enraged.
"No! I'm just too hot in here with all these people."
She eyes me suspiciously for a second.
"Hmmmm..."
Fredrick Milton. I'd never heard of him until two minutes ago but now he's all I can think about. He's looking around the room at us and I can sense the eagerness coming from all the students, can practically smell all the attention seeking thoughts as they all want him to spot them. Jenny's smiling so wide it looks as though her cheeks have been stapled into place. Fredrick scans the rows and for a second he lingers on her, smiles then looks up at me. I feel his gaze burn into my face and glance away with my hair falling over my eyes.
Meanwhile, Morgana and Alex couldn't look more disinterested as they keep their heads down and their arms crossed.
I look up through my hair and watch as he leans back on Gibson’s desk and joins his hands together.
"Wow. It only seems like yesterday that I was in this room having this exact same lesson with Mr. Gibson here."
The old man smiles beatifically, closes his eyes, and nods.
"Of course, it wasn't yesterday. It was almost sixteen years ago!"
His voice is smooth and sophisticated yet clipped and curt as though he wouldn't wish to waste a single iota of airspace.
"Some of you will know me as the guy from Lion's Lair. You might think of me as a bit of a hard bastard who likes to give people a rough time."
Alex snorts and I elbow her.
"But I can assure you that side to me is just that, a side to my working life. Hopefully, at my time volunteering here at Knightswood, you'll all get to see a different side to me and maybe I'll even get to inspire a few of you to become billionaires too!"
Someone at the front whoops and Fredrick reaches over to high five them.
"Yeah! Like your enthusiasm, mate."
Someone else leans if for a high five and Fredrick turns away without noticing. The poor kid leans out the front of the class like he's trying to hitch a ride, then rests like that as though that's what he intended all along.
"So this is a fleeting visit," Fredrick explains as he looks down at his Rolex. "But I'd really like to get to know you all. How about a few of you stand up and say a little something about yourselves?"
There's total silence as everybody sits like a statue.
"Come on, anybody! He looks across the rows of people. "How about you?" he points in my direction and I assume he's pointing at someone behind me. "You, the one with the raven tattoo on your neck."
"Me?" I gasp.
"Yes! Stand up."
I feel as though my stomach is about to fall out my ass but I manage to stand up anyway and stutter:
"Wh-what do you want me to say?"
"Just introduce yourself," he smiles.
I look down at Jenny and see the jealousy in her narrowed eyes.
"Oh, okay. I'm Stephanie Blomquist and I'm twenty-one."
"Great accent!" he says. "American?"
"Kansas," I say for the hundredth time in the last twenty-four hours. "Just outside of Lawrence."
"Cool. Well, it's nice to meet you, Stephanie.” He turns to the others. “Who's next?"
He's about to point at an eager young redhead in the front row when he looks at my arm and does a double take.
"Hey! What's that?"
"This?" I look down at my bicep. "It's the equation for entropy."
His face lights up and he grins.
"Fantastic!" he claps his hands together. "Stephanie and entropy, it almost rhymes."
He moves away and begins talking to some other students but I'm not hearing anything else he's saying. My heart is hammering in my chest and my palms are sweaty. A billionaire knows my name, I think. An insanely gorgeous, smart as shit billionaire.
Chapter Five
"Are you Googling that Milton prick?"
"Maybe..."
Alex is sitting across from me watching television. Morgana is beside her on the bed rolling a cigarette and nodding her head to the song that's playing.
"Why do so many girls even find him attractive?" Alex moans.
I slam my laptop shut and shrug.
"I don’t know. He's super confident."
"And mega rich," Morgana says.
"Well, yeah, that as well but it's more like he walks around like he's a king or something," I say.
"Yeah!" Morgana grins. "He just walked into our classroom today like everybody in it adored him already."
"Jesus, Morgana. Not you as well," Alex says outraged.
"I can't help it. I'm only human."
"So was Hitler!"
"Are you comparing me to Hitler because I find Milton sexy?"
I let the two of them argue while I slip out into the hall to make a quick phone call. I'm lingering on the stairs listening to the dial tone when I overhear the sound of two girls on the floor below me. I lean over the banister and see them smoking on the landing below.
"Hey, you wanna sweet piece of gossip?" one of them asks.
"Er... obviously."
"That billionaire with the face of an angel is on campus."
"Yeah, he was in the math department earlier."
"No, I mean he's on campus right now! In the bar at the union knocking back pints with Mr. Gibson."
"No way!"
"Yep."
Suddenly the dial tone disappears and I can hear mom's voice hitting off my ear.
"Sweetheart! How's it going'?"
"Oh, great!"
"That's fantastic. We miss you so much already."
"We? You mean you miss me so much already."
She's silent for a moment and I can hear her knocking her tongue off her front teeth.
"How's London anyway?" she changes the subject. "You seen all the big sights yet?"
"Nah. Haven't really been off campus that much since I got here. Hopefully going to head into the city at the weekend, though."
There's a commotion on the other end of the line and I can hear Susan in the background shouting about something.
"Sorry, honey. I got to go now," mom says.
"That's okay. I'll call you back tomorrow."
"Ok, love you."
I hang up with a heavy heart. Somehow Susan even manages to ruin my night from the other side of the planet. I sigh and rub at my temples as a headache starts to spread across my forehead. The smell of smoke is still heavy in the air and I look over the banister again to see the girls have gone. Heading back into Alex's room, I'm suddenly hit with an idea.
"Hey," I interrupt their bickering. "I'm bored staying in. We should head over to the union and get a few drinks."
"Good idea," Morgana unfolds her legs out from under her body and stretches them out. "I'm getting cabin fever in here.”
~
&nb
sp; The three of us are staring at him. Alex is just glaring as though she's trying to kill him with her mind while Morgana is lustfully looking at his ass. I'm more fascinated with his face with its regal bone structure. His eyes are the same deep brown as his hair and his complexion is immaculate and tanned like he's just back from a luxurious vacation.
"You two make me sick," Alex moans. "I don't know what you see in him."
We ignore her.
"I mean he's a barbaric industrialist. It's been proven that his vaccinations cause cancer!"
"Ah, nonsense," Morgana scoffs. "That's just a conspiracy. Get your head out of the internet."
Alex narrows her eyes and sucks on her straw. I watch as the glass of vodka and diet coke drains away until it's empty.
"I think it's time for another," she says.
"I'll go! It's my turn anyway, isn't it?"
"Maybe," Alex shrugs.
I walk up to the bar with the empty glasses and join the queue of dewy-faced students. To my left, leaning against the bar, Milton is engrossed in conversation with Gibson and the two of them are gesticulating wildly as they discuss inflation and interest rates.
"Three vodka diet cokes," I say as I reach the bar.
The barmaid nods and proceeds to fill up the glasses.
"Hey, Dorothy!" a voice comes from beside me and I see Milton waving and making his way over.
Is he talking to me? He can't be.
"Hey!" he says.
"Dorothy?" I look bewildered.
"Yeah, sorry I can't remember your name but you said you were from Kansas, right?"
Shit, he's talking to me! What do I do? Oh, my God!
I part my lips to speak but nothing happens. I swallow and try again.
"It's Stephanie."
"Oh, right yeah. The entropy thing."
"Yeah..."
We stare at each other for a moment and I'm aware that my cheeks are burning scarlet.
Fuck, he's so hot. What is he even doing here?
I can't stop myself looking him up and down. He looks so out of place in here amongst all the scruffy students in his pristine mohair suit with his tie so gracefully pulled undone at his neck. I see the stubble that surrounds his Adam's apple and have the strongest urge to run a finger down his throat. I wonder what it would feel like to wrap my fingers around him and feel his windpipe against the palm of my hand. Maybe, he likes to be choked like me.
"Three vodka cokes!" the barmaid interrupts my thoughts and slides the glasses over to me.
I fumble in my pocket for cash but in the moment I'm so nervous and flustered that I pull out a twenty-pound note and a fistful of change comes out with it and scatters all over the floor.
"Shit."
I bend down to pick it all up and stand back up blushing even more and feeling like a total idiot.
"Don't worry about that," Milton says as he pulls a money clip out his pocket.
He pulls a wad of fifties out and hands over an indiscriminate amount of money to the barmaid. All I can do is gawp.
"Fancy joining me?" he asks. "Old man Gibson's starting to give me a headache."
He smiles and I find myself grinning like a crazy person.
"I'd love to. Just... Let me take these over to my friends."
I slam down Alex and Morgana's drinks and they look up shocked.
"Sorry, gotta go."
"What? You got a better offer?" Alex rages as she nods toward Milton.
"Yep!"
"Go for it!" Morgana says. "I would if I could."
I head back to the bar and Milton's waiting for me.
"Stephanie," he says. "I can't quite believe I forgot your name. You must forgive me. I meet so many people every day."
For a moment, I look into his eyes and feel my stomach flip. I glance away and mumble:
"It's okay."
"So... You're new here?"
"Uhuh."
"Liking London?"
"Haven't seen much of it yet," I say.
"What? That's almost a crime! I'll have to show you around."
My stomach flips again.
"So... what's it like being back at Knightswood? Weird?"
"Yeah, a little."
He runs a hand through his hair and looks effortlessly suave.
"You always buy drinks for the students?" I joke.
He smiles and sips his beer.
"Not until tonight."
"Well, don't I feel special."
He's looking at my neck, eyeing up the raven tattoo again.
"What's that about?" he points.
"The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe, it's my favorite."
"Really?" he smirks. "I prefer the Pit and the Pendulum."
"Shut up!" I laugh. "You're a Poe fan too?"
"Who isn't?"
He's getting more attractive by the second. He's gorgeous and charming, polite as well as filthy rich and has a penchant for macabre stories. I feel like I'm on the brink of exploding.
"So, your little blue haired friend over there looks thoroughly unimpressed at my presence."
"I think she hates everyone," I say.
"I bet she thinks every straight, white man in a suit is out to murder the world."
"That's the general impression I get off her," I say and we both laugh.
This is almost easy. I don't remember the last time I just hung out with a guy that wasn't Jon. There's a weird twinge in my chest as I think about him. I haven't spoken to him at all since I arrived here. He must hate me, I think. I'd hate me if I were him.
"Everything ok?" Milton asks.
"Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking."
"Feeling homesick?" he asks.
"You're very perceptive," I say.
Did he just glance at my ring finger?
"Missing someone back home?" he asks as he leans in closer.
"Just my mom," I say and feel immediately ridiculous.
His face spreads into his signature smile and he looks down at his almost empty glass.
"Another?" he asks.
"No, really I shouldn't. I should probably get back to my dorm. I have a paper I need to work on."
"Aw, really?"
"Yeah..."
What the fuck am I saying? He's into you! Don’t go anywhere!
"How about I walk you home then?" he offers.
"Well, I'm not gonna say no to that."
He grabs his jacket, says his goodbyes to a seriously drunk Mr. Gibson and we head to the door, walking past Morgana and Alex who look as though they'll need their jaws surgically removed from the floor.
This is all too easy, I think. Why are things going so well? Does he really like me that much? What would a guy like him see in a weirdo like me?
"I'm just over at Foxley," I say as I zip up my hoodie and point into the distance.
"Foxley!" he exclaims and slaps his hands together. "I remember it well."
Chapter Six
"Isn't it weird being back on campus?"
"Weird?" he asks with a frown.
"Yeah, like you're a billionaire now and could be anywhere in the world but you're here, walking some random student back to her dorm."
"Aw, you're not just some random student."
I blush again and pretend I'm looking for my keys in my handbag.
The campus is deserted. There's nothing but him, me, and the distant sound of music coming out a faraway building.
"This place is huge," I say in an attempt to make small talk. "I keep getting lost."
He laughs and shakes his head as though he's remembering something.
"During freshers week I got totally, shit-faced drunk and stumbled back to my dorm, barged through the door, pulled off my clothes and proceeded to take a shower, puking into the bath the entire time."
"Ew!"
"But you know what? I was on the wrong floor. In my drunken haze, I'd wandered into the girls' dorm downstairs!"
"No!"
"Yeah and one of them got up in the middle of the night to use th
e toilet and found me singing Rod Stewart naked into a bottle of shampoo."
"That is one of the most deeply tragic stories I have ever heard," I say.
He holds my gaze for a second and looks a little offended. Then he bursts out laughing and we're both giggling so hard we're barely making a sound. I'm just bent over slapping my thigh while a strange snort escapes my face.
"Please tell me you can hold your liquor better now?" I ask as I try to take deep breaths to calm down.
"Oh, absolutely!" he laughs. "It's safe to say I still can't hear Rod Stewart's Do you Think I'm sexy? without cringing."
"I think that goes for most of us," I say and he laughs again.
Foxley Halls is now only a few steps away and I reluctantly pull out my keys and sigh.
"That was quick. Usually takes me ages to get here."
"And it's still early too," he says with raised eyebrows.
I know the sensible thing is to say goodbye and start that paper, but something at the back of my mind is telling me not to pass up a chance.
"You wanna come upstairs?" I ask.
"Sure!"
And it's happening. He's really following me up to my room. There's the smell of cigarette smoke and cheap booze in the air and as we ascend the stairs, I kick away an empty noodle box and a tittie magazine. Suddenly, I'm kinda embarrassed to be bringing anyone back here, let alone a man as rich and sophisticated as Milton.
"Sorry. This place is a real pig sty," I say in an attempt to placate my embarrassment.
"It's a lot nicer than what I remember!"
I click open the door and see a group of girls is sat in front of the TV in the living room watching Disney movies in their onesies. There's the strong smell of butterscotch popcorn and the sound of Jenny mouthing along with the movie. As we linger outside my bedroom door, I see everyone turn to me. I freeze.
"Steph? You never said you were bringing home a date?" someone out of sight says.
Jenny pokes her head around the door and sees Milton leaning against my bedroom door. She gasps and shrinks back before the sound of frantic whispering start to drift down the hallway.
"Let's get inside," I say. "They're a bunch of gossips."
Once in my room, I'm even more embarrassed. He’s eyeing up my band posters and stepping over dirty socks. He sits down at my desk and looks over the books I've got strewn over the surface. Flicking through a notepad, he rests on a page and nods admiringly.
The Boss Me Series: Complete Billionaire Boxed Set Romance Books (1-3): (A Billioniare Steamy Romance Series) Page 3
