Free Trusting You by L. P. Dover, Melissa Ringsted, Eden Crane Page A

questions.”
    “It must be the suit. The ladies can’t resist me,” he joked. “So how about it?”
    I furrowed my brows and asked, “So how about what exactly?”
    “You had a speaker planned for today right?”
    “Yes … and your point?”
    He opened his arms and winked at me. “Well, here I am,” Brett insisted. “I’ll be your speaker for the day. What are you teaching them right now?”
    It just so happened that the branch of Biology I was skimming over could very easily be something Brett knew a lot about. “I am going over a little bit of environmental biology this week,” I informed him.
    His eyes lit up. “Well, it just so happens that I had to study that at Columbia.” Grabbing me by the hand, he pulled me to the door. “Come on, this should be fun.”
    I snickered. “Yeah, I can’t wait.”



Twelve
     
     
    The whole time Brett spoke, the class was enamored by him, given the exception of a few of the guys who didn’t like the reaction the girls were giving Brett. I wasn’t shocked to see that he was an amazing speaker and very charismatic. He had a vast knowledge of environmental biology and he even went into detail about his times at Columbia and what it took to study architecture. When the class was over, a couple of the guys in my class pulled Brett aside and asked him numerous questions on how they could pursue a career in architecture as well.
    I was amazed at the level of influence he had over my students. Maybe I should have him speak again, I thought to myself. When all of the students left the classroom, I took a seat back at my desk while Brett leaned against it.
    Crossing my arms over my chest, I inquired, “Honestly, what made you come by today? It couldn’t be that you missed me considering that you saw me just a few short hours ago.”
    He beamed. “Well … of course I miss you when I’m not with you, but I actually have some good news.”
    “What is it?” I asked excitedly, perking up.
    He took my hands in his and pulled me up against his body. “I just landed a huge account today and I couldn’t wait to tell you. This is going to be big, Melissa.”
    Squealing, I jumped in his arms and wrapped my arms tight around his neck. “Oh, Brett, that’s awesome news, but aren’t you doing West Coast accounts?”
    He nodded. “Yeah, it’ll be out in California.”
    My face fell just a tiny bit and I tried to hide it. If he had a big account in California I knew what that was going to mean; he was going to be spending a lot of time out there. Instead of raining on his parade I did my best to appear cheerful.
    “We should celebrate,” I told him. “Tonight will be all about you. What do you say to that?” And I will make it a good night for his sake.
    With a devilish grin, Brett said, “I say yes, baby. I look forward to it.”
     

     
    Before going home, I stopped by the store and grabbed everything I’d need to make dinner. I told Brett the night was going to be for him and I meant it, even though deep down I knew that his job was going to be taking him away from me for a while.
    After preparing our celebration feast, I sat down to enjoy a glass of wine. Brett usually arrived at my house by six every evening so I had a little time to spare. When my phone rang beside me, I should’ve known to look at the screen before answering, but I didn’t. Big mistake.
    “Hello,” I answered, taking a sip of my wine.
    “It’s about damn time you answer my calls,” Daniel scolded. “Why do you keep ignoring me?”
    Groaning, I sagged in my chair and downed my glass of wine. I was going to need it to handle him. “Daniel,” I said smoothly, trying to keep my temper in check. The last thing I wanted was to be pissed when Brett got here. “We’ve been over this before. I have no interest in getting hurt by you again. You screwed up and there’s no way you can take what you did back.”
    “I said I was sorry, Mel. Please give me a second chance. I really need to tell you