BriarEdge Academy: October
Page 6
She glared and pointed at the door. “Leave. Don’t make me hate you, or myself, more than I already do.”
With a wince, he nodded and walked to the door. It slammed shut behind him, and he heard the definitive sound of it locking. He moved quietly through the corridor, tiptoeing once more past Edna’s room before taking the landing upward until he reached his room. Once in his room, he was relieved to find Seth wasn’t there. He needed some time alone to decompress and process.
Part of him was glad that he’d marked her and made it clear he wanted her. It wasn’t just about getting her out of his system now, though he wasn’t sure she’d gotten that message by him dry-humping her. He should have taken the risk that she might change her mind and gone for the gamble of taking her virginity instead of settling for that pale imitation of sex.
Another part of him felt low, realizing he’d taken completely the wrong attitude with everything. He’d blown it, and worst of all, she likely still considered him cruel. Right now, she was probably wondering if he was just toying with her, and if this was another one of his ways to hurt her.
He hated that she thought that way about him. He couldn’t deny it was justified though. He’d done nothing to prove to her that he was trying to be kinder, and that he no longer harbored resentment for her crashing into his life. Instead, he was grateful for it, especially after having sort of shared her bed. But when had he made any attempt to show her his thoughts were changing? He’d ignored her instead.
It cut through him that she had told him to get out while calling the evening a mistake. As he laid there with his eyes closed, he realized he was in love with her.
“Don’t be a crazy fucker,” he said aloud. He sat up quickly, meeting his gaze in the mirror above Seth’s dresser. He shook his head at his own image. “You don’t love her. You barely know her, and she comes from…” He trailed off, realizing he was going to say she came from trash.
He didn’t believe that now, but he realized it wouldn’t matter if she had. Even if she came from the lowest scum of the earth, it was too late to change how he felt. Somewhere between his anger and resentment, an unexpected seed had blossomed, and he didn’t know how to stop loving her even if he’d wanted to.
Now he just had to figure out how to completely win and keep her. There was no way he was sharing her with Lex or Jonas, but maybe once she calmed down, they could have a more moderate discussion, where he obtained her agreement to end whatever she had going on with those losers.
He could be flexible about many things, and he’d make a much greater effort to prove he could be kind and loving. He only refused to share her. He wouldn’t lower his pride that far, even for the woman he loved.
Chapter Eight
Candace
What had she been thinking? She should have kicked him out of her room the moment she discovered him there. Never mind he hadn’t been amenable to the idea. All she’d had to do was scream, and it would have absolved her from blame for him being in her room. She shouldn’t have cared about his future or keeping him out of trouble.
She sure as hell shouldn’t have let him remove everything but her panties and rub himself against her until they both came. In the throes of her passion, she’d been tempted to take his cock out of his briefs and put it inside her. She’d been so close to doing that.
She couldn’t pretend whatever she had with Dalton was just an infatuation, or an attraction she could ignore. She couldn’t keep hiding the situation from Lex and Jonas after they’d forgiven her and were giving her another chance—a chance to be with both of them without having to choose.
As though the universe wanted to torture her, Kip sat beside her on the bench where she’d collapsed after a late-night, angst-filled walk by the lake subsequent to deciding she couldn’t stay in her room that still smelled like Dalton. And his cum. On her skin. She’d scrubbed the spot until it was raw, but she couldn’t scrub away that she’d let it happen.
“You shouldn’t be out here alone,” he said softly.
“I thought there was no curfew tonight?” She asked the question numbly, her mind not really on the conversation.
He put his hand across the back of the bench, which made his fingers brush against her shoulder. “Not officially, but the dance has ended, and people are returning to their dorms. I’m on my way to my cottage.”
“Cottage?” She turned her head to look at him. “You live on the campus?”
He nodded. “I thought you knew.”
No, of course not, or she probably would have done something foolish, like tried to visit him. She shook her head. “That’s…convenient.”
“Or inconvenient, to live so close to temptation.” His fingers brushed against the back of her neck.
She was tired of pretending that she didn’t care and didn’t want him. After the night’s revelations with Lex and Jonas, she couldn’t hold back any longer. “Do you like me, Kip?”
His fingers faltered for a moment before they continued stroking. “Far more than I should.”
“I like you too. I want to be with you as much more than your student.” As he started to turn his body toward her, she put a hand on his thigh. “But I have to tell you something first.”
He stilled. “You want to tell me that you’re dating Lex, and it’s not just because you can’t have me, right?”
She stiffened, gasping. “How did…?”
Kip smiled, looking unthreatened. “It’s obvious when you’re with him that he lights you up like I do, though maybe in different ways and for different reasons.”
She licked her lips. “Yeah, I care a lot about him. I also care about Jonas.” She wanted to tell him about Dalton, but she couldn’t find the words. How to explain the compulsion she felt with Dalton when their dynamic didn’t resemble anything like the respect and caring she had with Lex and Jonas…and maybe with Kip?
Kip let out an uneven exhalation and was quiet for a moment. “I haven’t seen you with him, but I’m not surprised. You seem to have a large capacity for love.”
She blinked. “And you aren’t bothered by the fact that I…care about other men as much as I care about you?”
He shrugged a shoulder. “Based on our previous discussion, I doubt it would shock you to learn I was once in a multi-person relationship. I cared a lot about her, and she cared about me. She cared about her other lovers too, so when I got this job after graduation, she couldn’t uproot their lives and hers to follow me to a conservative boarding school in rural Maine. It wasn’t true love we shared, but we had something special. I never felt like she cared less for me because of her other lovers.”
She swallowed, unable to imagine him being so open to the idea of sharing. “How many did she have?”
“Three, counting me. Veronica was amazing and so alive, and there was no way just one man could satisfy her. I don’t mean just sexually. She needed elements from each of us.”
Candace scowled. “She used you to make herself feel good.” There was some bitterness directed toward herself in the ugly words.
Kip scooted closer to take her hand. “No. She cared about each of us, just in different ways. It’s hard to describe, but do I really need to? You clearly care about more than one man, and I’m guessing too much to choose just one?”
She looked down, assailed by guilt. “It’s so wrong to do that to all of you.”
He shrugged. “If everyone knows and agrees, how is it wrong?”
Licking her lips, she looked up at him. “It’s wrong because I can’t handle any of you having another girlfriend besides me, but I want all of you to share me.”
“Love usually isn’t logical, Candace.” He squeezed her hand. “If that’s how you feel, and you make it clear those are your terms, then the men who accept know the way the relationship will be.” Leaning a bit closer, he whispered, “To clarify, I’m accepting the terms.”
She met his gaze, wanting so badly to kiss him. “I’m glad, but I still feel selfish.”
“So be a little selfish. I don’t think you are though. It’s not like you’re the only one getting benefit from the setup. We all get to have you too.”
She squeezed his hand. “You’re pretty amazing, Kip. I don’t feel like I’m worthy of any of you.”
He smiled. “Don’t feel that way. Please. Let’s just agree to see where this takes us…all of us.”
After a moment, she nodded. “I need to tell Lex and Jonas.” About Kip and Dalton. She should be telling Kip about Dalton too.
“Of course. Take all the time you need. It’s not like we can openly be together right now anyway.” He grimaced. “And just so you know, I’ve never once crossed this line before. I haven’t even let myself feel attracted to a previous student, but there was no letting with you. It just happened, so fast and so strong I couldn’t stop it.”
She laid her head against his forearm, since she couldn’t reach his neck. “I think I already knew that.” She looked down at their twined hands. “Can we really make this work?”
He stroked his thumb over the top of her hand. “There’s only one way to find out. Just go for it.”
She lifted her head and scooted closer, brushing her mouth against his. The kiss was gentle and all too brief before he pulled away. She frowned in confusion. “Did I do something wrong?”
He shook his head as he put distance between them. “No, but Suzanne’s cottage is near mine. Who knows where that harpy is lurking?”
“Near yours? Which one is yours?” she asked casually.
Kip gave her a knowing look without answering. “Good night, Candace. Get to your dorm, where you’ll be safe.”
She wasn’t safe in there, not from her thoughts or Dalton, but she didn’t want to tell him that. Instead, she nodded and stood up. He was clearly waiting for her to start walking, so she said, “Good night, Professor.” It was hard to turn and walk away from him.
Almost as hard as trying to figure out how to tell Lex and Jonas things had changed. Would they still be as accepting and accommodating? She dreaded finding out.
“November” is coming soon.
In the BriarEdge series:
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
About Kit Kyndall
Kit Kyndall is the pen name USA Today bestselling author Kit Tunstall uses when writing contemporary erotic romances. It’s simply a way to separate the myriad types of stories she writes so readers know what to expect with each “author.”
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