Page 9 of Charm on the Rocks

Now it was Brady who blushed, and yes, he looked absolutely adorable. His freckles looked more prominent on his pale skin. “Kind of,” he said and then quickly changed the subject. “Anyway, do you work?”

Oh, God. The ultimate question.

“All right, while we’re waiting for this to load, I just want you all to know,” the professor interrupted once again, “these PowerPoint notes are on Blackboard so you can print them out if you want.” Then, under his breath, “come on, come on, come on...”

While he spoke, Madison tried to think as quickly as she possibly could. She didn’t want to lie. She didn’t like lying. But she didn’t want this guy – who was so cute and so smart – to suddenly drop her because of her job. It wasn’t like a career or anything, but again, she was worried about being taken seriously. And she was sure that if Brady found out what she did to make money, he would think she was some ditzy bimbo who used her body to her advantage instead of working her ass off like he did with his two jobs. So what should she say?

“So?” he asked when the professor had finished addressing the class. “Work?”

“Oh, right, yes I do,” she said. “I work at Sea Side Ice Palace. In Newport.”

“Oh, I love that place. I used to go as a kid.” His face suddenly darkened and his eyes looked concerned. No wonder she suspected they were blue; there were flecks of the color in his light brown eyes. “Did you hear what happened to Ken Brown, the owner of the Gulls? I’m sure you know all about it. I’m not much of a hockey fan – I love basketball and the Lakers – but God, how depressing. You never would expect that in Newport Beach, of all places.”

“All right, simmer down,” the professor said. He looked up from the computer and gestured at his class in order to emphasize his words. “I’m Professor Cassens, and this” - he clicked his pointer at the overhead projector where an introduction slide with his name, the course, and the ticket number splashed across the bright orange background flashed on the giant screen “- is social psychology.”

Well, no more discussion. At least for now. Which might be a good thing. Madison really didn’t want to talk about Ken Brown’s murder. People, even those who weren’t hockey fans, were doing enough of that.