When she arrived downstairs, Janet saw that the man was seated in the dining room, looking as though he had been waiting for her for some time.
“Good morning,” Janet greeted flatly, her face devoid of any expression.
Mason, on the other hand, was surprised at this unexpected interaction. A small smile played on his lips as he replied, “Good morning, Babe.”
As he said this, he shifted the bench to make room for her.
Looking at her side profile, his lips parted but just as he was about to speak, Sean strolled into the dining room.
He bowed and greeted Mason with reverence. “Mr. Lowry, the soldiers who were injured are recovering well. They shall resume training tomorrow.”
Upon hearing this, Mason nodded.
At this, Sean backed away slowly.
He cast a brief glance at Janet before leaving the room.
The two of them are still fighting, I see.
He pursed his lips in mild amusement, then turned on his heels to march out of the room.
Mason watched Sean leave, then cleared his throat and picked up from where he had left off. “Babe,” he called.
Janet did not look up at him, and instead hummed in response as she chewed on her toast.
Mason hesitated and after a pause, he said, “I’m seeing Rose at six in the evening and I’d like to know how you feel about it.”
She stopped chewing for a moment.
Mason frowned, thinking that she was jealous. However, she merely asked, “Is that so? Are you meeting her alone?”
He nodded. “I am.”
He added somberly, “I swear, there’s nothing going on between Rose and myself. If there is, I’ll chop off my—”
She listened as he swore earnestly and she couldn’t help but smile. She reached up and covered his mouth with her hand, swiftly cutting him off in a deadpan voice, “Don’t swear such silly oaths. I believe you.”
He was shocked as he took her hand in his.
Janet was finally speaking to him after giving him the cold shoulder for the past one day.
He held onto her soft hand and placed a light kiss on it, his eyes darkening with emotion. “I love you, Babe.”
She could feel the slight moisture on her palm and she drew her hand back slightly. “I know,” she answered lightly.
The chill in her voice reminded him to not push his luck.
He smiled and moved his lips away from her hand.
She finished off the last of her toast and strode over to the sofa, thereafter taking her backpack before turning to say, “I’m hanging out with a couple of friends tonight, so I won’t be back till late. You can go to bed first; you don’t have to wait up for me.”
Mason looked at her gorgeous side profile and made a noise of agreement. “Stay safe, Jan,” he murmured in a low voice.
At Woodsbury University, Janet had only just stepped into the medical science lecture hall when she heard the chatter that seemed to center on some plagiarism that took place during the examination.
“I heard that the person who got full marks during the test apparently plagiarized Lady Rose’s writing.”
“What? She copied Lady Rose’s work for her essay?”
“Yeah; I saw the exposé on Reddit!”
“The whistleblower didn’t say who it was but she did point out that it’s the same person who got full marks on the test. Who else is there in our course?”
“Do you think she means Janet?”
“Probably. I mean, she’s the only person in the entire faculty who got full marks.”
“No; it can’t be. She got full marks—what use is there for her to plagiarize someone else’s work?”
“Exactly! She got full marks on two other modules as well. She can’t have plagiarized.”
Abby was in her seat, incredulous at the gossip that was taking place around her. “Are you guys for real? It’s impossible that Janet cheated. She scored full marks on her essay for the college entrance exams as well, so why in the world would she plagiarize Lady Rose’s work in the first place?”
Sharon came to Janet’s defense as well. “Precisely! Besides, Janet has never read any of Rose’s books. You can’t go around accusing her just because she’s the only person who got full marks.”
“We’re just stating facts and we’re merely talking about whatever was posted on Reddit. If you guys have a problem with this, why don’t you take it up with the whistleblower?”
