From Ashes of Scandal to His Embrace (Laurinda) novel Chapter 16

Every time Laurinda saw him, he felt like a completely different person.

He walked over with those long strides of his, stopping right in front of her. Then he crouched down, and his voice softened in a way he probably didn’t even notice.

“It’s freezing out here. How can you sit on this cold stone wearing so little? Aren’t you worried about catching a cold?”

Laurinda glanced down at the man squatting in front of her, completely confused by how persistent he was. If he hadn’t caused so much trouble in her dreams, she wouldn’t have overslept this morning or gotten stuck outside by that old witch of a teacher.

She shot back, “Why do you talk like someone’s dad when you’re not even old?”

Adolphus didn’t get mad. He just stood up, gently lifted Laurinda off the planter, and spoke in a low, coaxing kind of way.

“This stone’s too cold. It’s not good for you. If you aren’t going back to class, come sit in the infirmary for a while. It’s warm in there.”

Before Laurinda could protest, he had already taken her by the wrist and was leading her toward the infirmary.

Laurinda watched his side profile, feeling a little out of it. She could have pulled away if she’d wanted, but for some reason, she just let him lead her.

As soon as they walked in, Laurinda wrinkled her nose at the familiar smell. She hated the scent of disinfectant. Every time she caught a whiff of it, she’d have nightmares about her parents’ deaths.

“I think I’ll just go back to class. This place isn’t really for me.”

She tried to pull her hand away and turned to leave, but Adolphus caught her wrist again, stopping her.

“What’s wrong? Can’t handle the disinfectant smell? It’s not that strong in here.”

He led her further inside. Sure enough, there was just a faint, clean hint of pine.

“Kind of. I’m just filling in. You sure you don’t want me to take a look? I’m actually pretty good at this.”

Laurinda didn’t expect him to be so stubborn. She gave him a tight, polite smile.

“Thanks, but I’m not that desperate. I can still sleep most nights, so I don’t need any medicine.”

She fished her phone out of her pocket, opened a game, and ignored him after that. Adolphus seemed to get the hint. He just smiled to himself and started organizing medicine on the shelf nearby.

When the bell rang, Laurinda slipped her phone back into her pocket and grabbed her backpack. As she was about to leave, she glanced at Adolphus, who was still busy.

“Thanks for letting me hang out here. I’m heading to class.”

“Wait...”