Bette lifts a brow, intrigued.

“I heard the new dean was on campus,” he continues, stepping in a little further, “but if you want an appointment, you’ll need to make one once her schedule gets set up.”

Bette watches him for a beat and then smiles. “Hi. I’m Bette Porter.”

The man freezes. There’s a full second where his brain tries to catch up with what he just heard. His brows crease deeper. “As in… PhD Bette Porter? The new dean?”

Bette nods once. “That would be me.”

The shift is immediate. He straightens up so fast it’s almost mechanical. “Oh, wow. You’re not—” He stops himself, flushing slightly. “I mean… you’re not exactly what I expected.”

Bette lets out a soft laugh, glancing away for a moment. “I think that’s what Phyllis Kroll had in mind.” She looks back at him. “And you are?”

He steps fully into the office now. “James Monroe. I was old man Whitmore’s—” He pauses and smiles sheepishly. “I mean, Henry Whitmore’s assistant.”

Bette gently smiles.

James clears his throat as he continues. “I understand if you want to bring in your own assistant,” he adds quickly. “I can clear out my desk.”

Bette doesn’t answer right away. Instead, she turns, eyes drifting back to those long, heavy, aggressively brown curtains. She stares at them like they’ve personally offended her. “Nah,” she says casually. “I’m not doing all that shit.”

James blinks, relieved.

Bette turns back to him with a small smile. “What color do you think I should paint in here?”

James’s brows shoot up. “I—paint?” he repeats. “The new semester starts in less than a week. You’ve got a lot to handle before then, you know?”

Bette shrugs, completely unbothered. “I know.” She gestures toward the walls. “But there’s no way I’m living with these butt-ugly walls.” She then points directly at the curtains. “And that shit needs to be taken down, taken out back… and set on fire.”

James can’t contain his laughter. “Got it,” he says, nodding. “I’ll get right on that.”

Bette turns again, slowly walking the perimeter of her office, already envisioning something else.

James watches her for a moment, recalibrating everything he thought this job was going to be under the new dean. “Anything else you need?” he asks.