to run a decent department without one?”

“That isn’t my problem.”

“The hell it isn’t.” Jeremy glared. “You and Julianne and — and

that Christa are crippling my department in one fell swoop. Even if I could get permission to replace you, who is going to want to work for me when news of Christa’s lawsuit gets out? Not to mention your affair with Julianne!”

“It wasn’t an affair,” Gabriel whispered, stubbornly. “The Dean

promised complete confidentiality. That’s why I agreed to speak on the record.”

Jeremy shook his head in disbelief. “You just don’t get it, do you?

I’m your friend. And you made me look like an imbecile in front of my boss. It’s quite possible they’re going to investigate me in order to discover what I knew and when. I’ll have to appear before God

knows how many committees and possibly in court!”

“I’m sorry,” said Gabriel stiffly.

“You should be. I look like an idiot who allowed a predatory

professor to wreak havoc on two female grad students. You’re lucky Tara is on the committee and not the Chair of Women’s Studies. She would have strung you up by your balls in the middle of campus.”

Gabriel straightened his shoulders. “I’ll tell them you knew noth-

ing and take the consequences.”

Jeremy took a step closer, staring his younger colleague straight

in the eye. “Don’t give me that martyrdom bullshit. You’re hurting a lot of people in your quest to protect your conquest. Now my ass is on the line. What do you think is going to happen to her if they fire you?”

“If they try to fire me, I’ll sue them.”

Jeremy put his hands on his waist. “It will be too late. As soon

as you’re dismissed, the people at Harvard will hear about it and

Julianne’s MA will be tainted. You’ll ruin her and my reputation

and the reputation of all the other professors and students in my

department. We’ll all be tarred with your brush.” Jeremy shook his head. “How could you do this to us?”

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Sylvain Reynard

Gabriel was silent, slowly clenching and unclenching his fists.

Jeremy swore loudly and was about to turn away when Gabriel

caught his arm. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s too late for apologies.”

“I didn’t realize this would have implications for you and everyone else. I wasn’t thinking.” Gabriel paused, a tortured look on his face.

“Help us. Please.”

Jeremy stared in disbelief. Professor Emerson looked panicked

and desperate, which was an expression he’d never seen before. “You’ve done a tremendous amount of damage trying to protect her. You

should have denied everything.”

“Then the Dean would have punished her or dragged the inves-

tigation out.”

“She could have re-applied next year.”

“And been turned down outright. The longer the investigation

continued, the more likely that details would be leaked. It’s a small academic community and you know it.”

“Of course I know it.” Jeremy shook his head. “And you knew

better than to fuck a student.”

Gabriel’s face reddened and he took a menacing step forward.

“I didn’t fuck her.”

“The hell you didn’t. Now we’re all fucked,” Jeremy snapped.

Gabriel’s nostrils flared as he held back an angry retort.

Jeremy gave his friend a long, searching look. “My first priority

is to my department. But I don’t want to see you or Julianne ruined.

Enough young women have suffered at the hands of their professors, don’t you agree?”

Gabriel was silent, his lips pressed together.

“I’ll help you, but we’re doing this my way. Do you understand?

I’m not risking everything so you can turn around and fuck it up

again.”

Gabriel paused. Then he nodded his agreement.

“Now all I have to do is convince the Dean to be satisfied with

an ounce of your flesh rather than a pound.”

With barely an acknowledgement, Jeremy walked to the front

of the room and joined the hearing officers in their deliberations.

Gabriel hung his head, breathing a restrained sigh of relief.

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Chapter 25

By the time Meagan ushered the ladies back into the room,

Julia’s fingernails had been chewed to the quick and Soraya’s

adrenaline was at an all-time high.

Julia’s eyes were drawn immediately to Gabriel, and what she saw

upset her. His shoulders were hunched, and he was leaning forward

in his chair, hands clasped between his knees tensely, head lowered.

She stared at him, willing him to look at her.

But he wouldn’t.

Professor Martin sat next to Gabriel, arms crossed against his

chest. He didn’t appear happy.

“Miss Mitchell, allow me to come straight to the point. In light of Professor Emerson’s testimony, you are excused. We will be informing the Registrar’s Office that the grade assigned to you in Professor Emerson’s seminar should be allowed to stand.”

Julia’s mouth opened in shock at the Dean’s pronouncement.

“We will do our utmost to ensure that you are not victimized

further.” The Dean glared in Gabriel’s direction. “If Professor Emerson troubles you in any way, or if you have concerns about the

repercussions of your former involvement with him, please inform

Professor Martin immediately.

“You are free to pursue a harassment complaint against Professor

Emerson, but you must do so within sixty days of the submission of your final academic work in your program.”

The Dean nodded at Soraya. “I’m sure your lawyer will explain

the particulars of the harassment policy to you. I know you’ve filed a complaint against Miss Peterson, but we’re hopeful that you and

Sylvain Reynard

she can drop your complaints against each other, given the outcome of this hearing. You’re free to go.”

He began shuffling his paperwork.

“Thank you, Dr. Aras.” Soraya smiled widely and exchanged a

nod and a meaningful look with Tara.

“I’m not a victim,” said Julia, stubbornly.

“Pardon?” said the Dean, peering over the rims of his glasses.

“I said, I’m not a victim. Our relationship is consensual.” She turned to look at Gabriel. “What’s going on?”

Gabriel kept his eyes fixed on the floor.

“Miss Mitchell, the committee has ensured that Professor Emerson

was given due consideration.” Professor Mwangi spoke to her gently.

“But in light of his confession, we are holding him accountable for his actions. And that includes seeing to your welfare.”

“My welfare is tied to him. If he’s going to be punished, then

punish me too.” She took a step closer to the table behind which

the committee sat.

Gabriel’s head shot up, and he gave Julia a furious look.

“Miss Mitchell, the university has a duty to protect students from being preyed upon by their supervisors. Please, let us do our job.”

Professor Chakravartty’s tone was not unsympathetic.

“We did this together. If he’s guilty, so am I.”

“Not necessarily.”

“Then tell me what he said! Give me a chance to respond.” Julia

looked desperately at the faces of the hearing officers, one after the other, hoping that someone, anyone would relent.

“Professor Emerson has admitted to engaging in an inappropriate

relationship with you while you were his student. Professor Picton has confirmed that she marked your work in his seminar and supervised your thesis. So we are inclined to be lenient with him. Unless you insist otherwise.”

“Of course I insist otherwise! I want you to let him go.”

The hearing officers shook their heads.

“Why do you believe him instead of me? I’m the student. You

should weigh my testimony more heavily. He didn’t hurt me. You

have to believe me!” Julia grew desperate, on the verge of tears.

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Gabriel’s Rapture

“Miss Harandi, control your client.” The Dean’s voice rose with

irritation.

“Please,” said Julia, taking a step closer to the hearing officers.

“You have to believe me. Let him go!”

“We will ask you and all other parties to sign a confidentiality

agreement that is as much for your protection as for the integrity of these proceedings. Once again, if you have further difficulties, you are to inform Professor Martin.” The Dean nodded at Soraya.

“Come on, Julia.” Soraya tugged on her arm, in vain. “Let’s go

before they change their mind.”

“Gabriel, what happened?”

Julia took a step in his direction, but the pointed toe of her boot got caught in the carpet and she tumbled to her knees.

Finally her eyes connected with Gabriel’s as he looked down on

her. She inhaled slowly as she realized that his dark blue eyes were cold and empty. He lowered his head.

In an instant, the fire in her veins turned to ice.

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Chapter 26

“S omething is rotten in the state of Denmark.” Soraya leaned back against the vanity in the ladies’ washroom while her client sat

crying softly in a chair. She pulled her BlackBerry out of her briefcase, scrolling through her emails before returning the cursed device to its former resting place.

“I know John. His plan would have been to say nothing, then

file a lawsuit. He would have tried to show that everything was your fault, setting the groundwork for Gabriel’s defense. He never would have agreed to this kind of outcome.”