Just One Orgasm!

The woman remained composed. "We are listening."

"No." Emilia shook her head. "You aren’t." Her eyes burned. "You’ve already decided what happened."

"We are trying to establish whether you were manipulated."

"He didn’t manipulate me."

"You are twenty-one." Another board member chimed in. "You are young."

"I’m an adult."

"You were emotionally vulnerable."

Emilia’s jaw tightened.

"You were involved with a man in a position of authority."

"And I knew that."

"Did you?"

Emilia stared at her.

The woman continued. "Or did you simply become emotionally dependent on him?"

Emilia’s eyes narrowed. "I wasn’t dependent on him."

"You spent time alone with him."

"Yes."

"You became physically involved with him."

Emilia’s cheeks flushed. The questions seem to be attacking her, rather than needing an answer.

"You hid the relationship." The woman leaned forward. "And you still insist you weren’t manipulated?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Emilia stared at her. "Because I wasn’t." She blurted out. That was all she could say.

The woman sighed. "Miss Hayes, there is a difference between believing something and understanding it."

Emilia’s hands trembled. "I wasn’t being manipulated. Why don’t you believe me?"

"You are defending a man who admitted that you were naive."

Emilia froze. The room seemed to tilt in her vision. "What?"

The woman looked at her. "Mr. Ashford acknowledged your naivety."

Emilia’s eyes slowly moved toward Adrian. He was staring at the table now. She looked back at the woman.

"What did you say?"

The woman didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she reached for a small remote on the table.

Adrian’s head lifted. For the first time, something close to alarm crossed his face.

The woman’s finger hovered over the button.

Emilia looked at him.

Adrian’s eyes met hers.

The woman pressed the button, and a recording began. It was static at first, then Adrian’s calm, controlled, and familiar voice followed.

Emilia’s entire body went still.

"The student became entangled with me due to naive feelings."

Her blood ran cold when she heard those words. She stared at the speaker. The recording continued.

"She is young. And inexperienced."

Emilia’s lips parted.

She looked at Adrian. He didn’t move. Her eyes returned to the speaker.

"Whatever feelings she developed, I should have recognized them sooner, and stopped it."

Emilia couldn’t breathe.

The room disappeared again.

Only Adrian’s voice remained.

"She may not have understood what she was getting herself into."

Her chest tightened.

She stared at him.

He was still sitting there, as if they weren’t his voice.

As if he hadn’t just taken every beautiful memory she’d carried into that room and placed a knife through the middle of it.

The recording continued.

"She may believe she’s protecting me."

Emilia’s eyes widened.

"She’s young. She’s emotionally involved."

Her hands began shaking.

"She may not fully understand the professional consequences of this."

Emilia looked down.

Her vision blurred. A tear slipped down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly.

The recording went on.

"Don’t mistake her willingness to defend me for an understanding of the situation."

Emilia stopped breathing. She looked at Adrian again. He finally looked at her.

Their eyes met.

His face was slightly pale.

Emilia searched his expression for an explanation, or anything. He said nothing.

The recording ended.

Nobody spoke.

Emilia stared at Adrian. Her lips trembled. "So that’s what you think of me?"

Adrian’s jaw tightened. He knew he shouldn’t, but his lips parted. "Emilia—"

Her voice cracked. She looked at the board. Then back at him. "You called me naive."

Adrian opened his mouth.

She nodded to herself. "You called me inexperienced."

"Emilia."

"You said I didn’t understand what I was doing."

His eyes hardened with pain. Adrian stood. "Emilia, listen to me!" his voice came out really tight and filled with warning.

She flinched.

"Sit down, Mr. Ashford." The board member’s voice was firm.

Adrian remained standing for a moment. Then he slowly sat.

Emilia stared at him.

Her tears were falling freely now. She hated that. She hated crying in front of him. She hated that he was seeing her like this.

She hated that the one person she’d expected to understand her had reduced her to a word.

Naive.

The woman closed the folder.

"Miss Hayes, we have considered your testimony and Mr. Ashford’s."

Emilia barely heard her.

"Given your cooperation and the circumstances, the board has decided that your scholarship will remain intact."

Emilia blinked.

The words took several seconds to register.

"You will remain enrolled at Blackwood University."

She swallowed.

"Your academic record will not be altered."

Emilia stared at the woman.

The relief should have been overwhelming. It wasn’t.

"However," the woman continued, "Mr. Ashford’s position at the university will be terminated effective immediately."

Emilia’s eyes moved to Adrian.

He didn’t react. He simply nodded.

The woman closed the file. "This hearing is concluded."

The chairs moved, and the papers were gathered. Everyone began standing.

Emilia remained seated. Her body felt numb. Her scholarship was safe. Her future was safe.

Everything she had been terrified of losing was still hers. So why did it feel like she’d lost something anyway?

Adrian stood.

He buttoned his jacket.

For a moment, Emilia thought he might look at her.

He didn’t. He coldly walked toward the door. Her heart snapped. What the fuck was wrong with him?

She stood. "Adrian!" She yelled at him.

He stopped. His back remained toward her.

Slowly, he turned.

Emilia walked toward him.

Everyone in the room seemed to become still.

She stopped directly in front of him.

Adrian looked down at her. His expression softened.

Before anyone would try to ask her to walk away, she lifted her hand, and gave him a hard slap across his cheek with the back of her hand.

The slap cracked through the room.

His head turned sharply to the side.

Adrian slowly brought his face back. He held her gaze. A red mark was already beginning to form across his cheek.

Emilia’s hand trembled.

Tears continued sliding down her face.

She stared directly into his eyes. Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Thank you."

Adrian said nothing.

Emilia swallowed. "Thank you for letting me know how naive I am."

His expression broke.