For The Love Of History

Chapter 14

▪️O C T A V I A▪️

Sunday morning could not come fast enough.

I tried my best to stamp down the excitement that I felt while getting ready. The prospect of visiting Housesteads Crags with Professor MacAllister had me practically buzzing with anticipation.

Sure, I knew it was not a date, but the idea of spending the day exploring a historic site with him was thrilling nonetheless. The thought of discussing history, sharing insights, and learning from someone so knowledgeable made my heart race. Plus, there was an undeniable charm about him that I could not ignore. The whole experience felt like a mini-adventure, one that I had been eagerly looking forward to.

At around 6:55am, Graham messaged me to say that he was on his way. Taking a deep breath, I gave myself a once-over in the mirror, satisfied with my overall look. Looking at the two canerow braids that I chose to style my hair in, I banded the plaits halfway and allowed the rest of my curls from my neck down to flow out.

With a smile, I packed all my containers in one of my beach bags that I brought from Jamaica. I hummed to myself while adjusting my messenger bag that contained my Sony digital camera. Picking up my jacket, I headed down to the front of the dorm building.

As expected, Graham was right on time, pulling up to the Milnes Court building in his black Land Rover Discovery. I knew that he could probably spot me from a mile away, as my bright orange beach bag made me very noticeable.

Getting out of the SUV, he joked, "Good morning, Octavia, planning to feed an army?" He grinned as he took the large bag from me and placed it on the floor in the backseat.

"Good morning to you too, Graham." I smiled and quipped, "Well, you're a very big man so I thought it was better to have too much food than not enough."

I slowly took in his appearance, noticing that he was not wearing his glasses today.

Perhaps my assumption was right and they were, in fact, simply for reading. Black jeans encased his strong thighs, matching his black waterproof boots, which he paired with a grey turtleneck and black parka jacket. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from grinning too widely.

I could not help but appreciate his sense of style; he managed to look effortlessly put together. The way his clothes fit him perfectly highlighted his athletic build. There was no denying that he was a handsome man, with his auburn hair and those striking grey-blue eyes. It was easy to see why so many of the students were enamoured with him.

The sound of his deep voice pulled me from my thoughts.

"Smart woman! I confess, I do like to eat," Graham beamed as his eyes roamed over my ensemble approvingly. Though a slight frown appeared as he asked, "Why aren't you wearing a jacket?"

"Seriously? I'm wearing a turtleneck!" I rolled my eyes as I put my jacket on, the movement causing my top to tighten over my breasts.

I noticed that he did his best not to stare at my chest while he opened the passenger door for me, before getting into the vehicle himself. I appreciated his effort and thought to myself that he really was a gentleman.

After settling in behind the wheel, he said, "I just don't want you catching a cold. Plus, knowing your love for taking photos from inside moving cars, I'm sure you'll have the window down a lot of the time. Not to mention making us stop along the way, which I don't mind by the way. But I was serious when I said the winds can get chilly."

"Yes yes," I sassed playfully, placing my messenger bag at my feet before buckling up.

As we drove off, Graham handed me a familiar bakery bag that held a decent-sized croissant sandwich filled with tomato and mozzarella cheese. Two cups of Mocha coffee were resting in the SUV's cupholders.