Chapter 20

I knew what I needed to do, but that didn’t make it any easier. A week before Thanksgiving, I emailed Lochlann as my advisor to meet with me in his office. I needed a neutral place, one where we both remembered that he was a professor and I was his student.

Not lovers. Not soon-to-be parents. What we should’ve been all along: professionals working alongside each other.

If you’re wondering if I gave Dr. Martin Lochlann’s research, the answer is: fuck no. I wasn’t about to let her win. I didn’t fully understand what she was after, but it didn’t matter. Her bitchery wasn’t going to ruin Lochlann’s life because of me.

When I arrived at Lochlann’s office, it was a few minutes earlier than our appointment. Feeling restless, I began to walk down the hallway when I heard Lochlann’s voice.

“Please don’t forget to work on your projects over holiday,” he was saying to his class. He was at the front, his shirtsleeves pushed up his arms, his hair a little wild. Clearly he’d been teaching a live