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American servicemen were losing their lives, and there were a number of demonstrations being held across the country protesting the war.
    â€œAll I’m asking is that we get to know each other better by spending some time together. And just how much time we spend together will be your call.”
    Panic rushed through her with what he was saying. The only time he would share with her was what she allowed him. “Why?” she whispered, wanting to know why he was letting her set the conditions, the rules, the guidelines.
    â€œBecause I care.”
    â€œAnd why do you care, Randolph?”
    For the longest moment he didn’t answer. He just continued to look at her. Then suddenly he slowly reached out and took her hand in his and then she knew. She felt the same thing he did. The current. The electricity. The charge. The passion.
    It flowed from his body to hers then back to his again. The feelings he experienced from touching her were gut-wrenchingly deep. Then there was the heat that flowed between them.
    â€œThat night when I first saw you at the party, Jenna, the moment I
looked at you, a part of me knew there was something going on between us that I couldn’t explain. I’m not crazy about it any more than you are, but I’m not going to deny that it’s there.”
    Jenna let out a shaky sigh. A part of her couldn’t deny it either. But then, she didn’t want to become involved with anything or anyone who could make her lose sight of her whole purpose for coming to college. Her parents depended on her to do the right thing. Her brothers depended on her to help make sure their dreams came true. There were others she had to think about more so than herself.
    She met Randolph’s gaze again. His stare was unnerving. It made whatever it was between them, that neither of them understood, bigger than life. She had gone to bed each night since meeting him with thoughts of him on her mind. And tonight, at the library, a part of her had responded to him, against her will, against her desire and best intentions. The plain fact was that what they were experiencing couldn’t be normal. No attraction could be that deep. That intense. That volatile.
    She closed her eyes briefly against all the emotions she was feeling. They were the same emotions he was feeling too. And he was right. They owed it to themselves and to each other to find out where all this would lead.
    She opened her eyes and met a gaze that was holding hers with such intensity that for a split second she thought everything around them was at a standstill, except for the beating of their hearts. She finally dragged her gaze from his and took another sip of her milkshake. The cold substance felt thick, refreshing as it flowed down her hot throat.
    â€œAll right,” she finally said, softly. “I prefer that we don’t see each other during the week but I’m okay with us going out occasionally on the weekends.”
    He nodded. “That’s fine with me but I can call during the week, right?”
    â€œYes, if you’d like.”
    The slow smile on his lips indicated he would like. They finished eating the rest of their food. They had discussed what was happening
on campus: the Vietnam War and how it was becoming more and more on everyone’s mind, and the civil rights movement and how some of the leaders working with Dr. King were getting impatient, annoyed and intolerant of the growing amount of racism they faced each day. They had begun questioning whether or not his approach of nonviolence was the way. And if it was, why was it taking so long for results?
    Randolph walked Jenna home while holding her hand. When they reached her dorm building, he said softly, “If there’s ever anything you want to know about me, just ask me. Please don’t believe everything that you hear.” Pulling her out of the light from the building to a dark, secluded spot on the building’s steps, he