Reason to Believe (White Lace) Read Online Free PDF Page B

curious about this meeting.
    The moment I’d walked into the small waiting area surrounded by a grouping of offices on the third floor of Shaw College, an immediate sense of terror had washed over me. This room reminded me of the principal’s office and the many times I had been summoned over the PA system to confess to a crime I’d probably committed.
    “Mr. Lockwood. Thank you for stopping by.”
    I looked up, not expecting an attractive women in her fifties to greet me. Not because I was sexist, but because I never would’ve guessed that a woman would go out of her way to get a porn company on the list of approved internships.
    “Professor Hughes?”
    She nodded.
    I stood and walked toward her, holding out my hand in greeting. She gave me a sweet smile. A genuine smile. Not one laced with judgment or disgust like I was accustomed to.
    This meeting had just gotten even more interesting.
    I followed her inside and sat on the dark wood chair across from her desk. She settled into a brown leather one.
    “I assume Cory gave you the short version of why you’re here?”
    I nodded, even though I still really didn’t believe it. There was no way Cory had successfully gotten this approved. I was sure I was here to get a talking-to, to be told that only a fiend would think a respectable college would allow their students to intern in porn. Why else would I have to meet the head of the film studies department?
    Without even looking at me, Professor Hughes said, “Although he’s only in his first year, Cory has already proven more experienced than the rest of the pack.” She slapped a stack of papers on her desk, letting them sift through her fingers to even them out. She placed them in a pile on the edge of her desk and finally looked at me. “Cory is eager. Hardworking and has real vision. His entrance film was light-years ahead of the other first year students so I had him enroll in a few third year courses to keep him engaged.”
    “Your idea of keeping him engaged is with porn?” I scoffed. “There’s a first for everything.”
    “I’ve worked really hard to get this program to the top. It’s close to becoming the best in the country.” She sat back in her chair, like a queen sitting on her throne addressing her subjects, and I had to stop myself from squirming under her stare. I was the VP of a multimillion-dollar company, for Christ’s sake.
    Professor Hughes was all business, and her office was just as uptight—white walls, no pictures or decoration, and a couch that looked like it’d been rescued from a war zone and offered asylum in her office.
    “Part of the reason why there is a list of hundreds of students waiting to get into my program is because I’ve made the effort for flexibility, tailoring a student’s education plan, making it their own.”
    My teachers in high school had been eager to get rid of me. And my instructors during the one and only semester I’d attended college had been mediocre at best.
    “While I think the decision might raise some eyebrows with our alumni, I’m ready to take the heat.” There was no flinch. Her hands were clasped on her desk so there was no way she was crossing her fingers behind her back.
    “You do realize he’ll be watching people have sex. Auditioning people to have sex for money. Viewing film where people…have sex.”
    She nodded.
    I blew out a hard breath and ran my hand through my hair. “I really don’t know what to say.” This woman was too good to be true, and so was her outlook. “I’m a little shocked. We’ve had interns, but never have they been affiliated with any type of school curriculum. Most people frown upon what we do.”
    “I’m not most people, Mr. Lockwood.” She sat forward, letting her forearms rest on the desk. Her blond hair fell over her shoulders and hung limply. “I’m willing to sanction Cory’s placement as long as you can agree to a few conditions.”
    Here we go. I was wondering when the “conditions”