by Audra North
He’d never seen her look like that. She’d always been so cheerful that it threw him for a minute. He opened his mouth to apologize, even though he wasn’t sure for what, but in the next moment, that look was gone, along with whatever version of Julie he’d been dancing with all evening. Whereas before she was sociable and warm, now she rivaled the polar ice caps with her brittle chill.
“Given your deep insight into human behavior, Professor Harkness, I find myself agreeing that it’s for the best that you don’t continue with this course.” Somehow, she managed to look down her nose at him, even though she was at least half a foot shorter.
He should have been relieved. But instead, he found himself wanting to justify himself to her, to make up for that look that had just crossed her face. He hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings.
“Listen…it doesn’t matter what I think of anyone in the class. The truth is that I simply can’t afford to spend time taking these lessons. I have a deadline coming up for my book. The only way I can get that done is by sticking to a consistent schedule of edits and writing.”
The music was slowing down, coming to a finish. This was the last dance before class ended.
She raised a brow at him as they began one more slow loop around the room. “What happens if you don’t finish the book?”
He huffed. “I always finish what I start.”
“Oh?” Her mouth twisted in a saccharine smile. “Like you’re doing with this class?”
The music stopped, leaving him gaping at her in silence. He didn’t ignore his commitments. But this class wasn’t anything he had promised to do.
“Look. I’m sorry you won’t have a partner, but I can’t risk falling behind on this book. I need to stay on track with my publications if I want tenure and that’s not going to happen if I keep shirking my duties.”
She snorted. “An hour a week is shirking your duties?”
Part of him wanted to relax and smile and laugh along with her, to say that she was right, it was nothing, and of course he could come back next week. Another part of him was disappointed, though. He wasn’t sure why he’d hoped that she, of all people, could understand that he couldn’t rest until his position was secure. How could she understand? She’d always been too bubbly and optimistic to have experienced anything like his past. She’d probably never suffered any hardship more grueling than a B on a test or a boring date. But before he could tell her no, once and for all, her face softened and she slumped a bit.
“I’m sorry. I know you’re really into your work. I mean, you were like that before, anyway. I know you’re not that kind of guy.”
What kind of guy? The way she said it made that weird feeling come back—the one he’d had when he’d been telling her about taking the job. He didn’t like the way he came across to a woman like Julie.
No. Not a woman like Julie. To Julie herself.
Damn it.
Maybe he would be coming back next week.
Chapter Four
“Frannie, you will never guess who was in my tango class last night!” Julie was trying not to shout into the phone, but she was still thrown off by what had happened between her and Adam. He’d gone from politely reserved to bumping her with his erection to acting all superior and cold again. And then, at the end of class, he’d surprised her by agreeing to come again.
She didn’t think she was making up the way he ran hot and cold. And despite his odd behavior, she was still impossibly attracted to him. More, in fact, than she had been when she was in college.
Her best friend’s voice crackled through the receiver. “You’re right. I’ll never guess. So just tell me.”
Julie smiled. Adam and Frannie had remarkably similar tendencies toward being too serious. “Adam Hotness!”
On the other end, Frannie screeched, “What? He teaches tango, too? He seemed way too uptight for that. I can’t believe he changed so much. Or maybe he just puts on a really good show for his students.”
Julie laughed. “Sometimes I can’t believe you graduated with a perfect GPA. He was taking the class, not teaching it. And he is still uptight, which is why his being there at all was completely weird.”
“Did he remember you?”
If it had been anyone else, Julie would have said yes, of course. He’d recognized her. Remembered her name. But this was Frannie asking. Frannie, who was the only person who knew about that afternoon when Julie and Adam had almost been, well, something. Frannie was wondering whether Adam had remembered that.
“I think so.” She closed her eyes for a second, picturing the way he’d looked when she talked about opportunity being laid out in front of him. Damn, that man was sexy. “In fact, I’m sure he did. But it’s not like we talked about it.”
“Huh. Too bad.” There was a beat of silence, and then Frannie laughed. “He’s still completely hot, though, right?”
Julie thought about the way his body had felt when he had bumped into her for that fraction of a second last night. Long legs sliding against hers. The firmness of his chest and shoulders even through his clothes. His thick, hard cock pressing into her belly, just above the juncture of her thighs.
She still couldn’t believe that part.
“Hotter,” she sighed, then snapped out of her lust-induced daydream. “But even though he’s a shockingly great dancer, he’s even more of a stick-in-the-mud now that he’s a professor.”
Frannie huffed. “Oh, you poor thing. Your first step toward putting fun back into your life and you ended up having to deal with that.”
Julie knew she’d pretty much implied that, but that wasn’t what she’d meant. If she thought about it, she’d really enjoyed herself during that hour she’d spent with Adam. Just not the way she’d been expecting.
“Well, actually…”
“What?”
“I had a really good time with him. Like even though he’s kind of uptight still, we had—I don’t know. A connection, maybe.” She paused for a minute, thinking about the end of the class. “And I think he felt it, too, because one minute, he was telling me that he wasn’t going to come to any more classes and then the next minute, he said he would come to one more and that he’d see me next week.”
“And what did you say between those minutes to make him change his mind?”
Julie blushed. Frannie knew her too well. “I miiiiight have implied that he wasn’t following through on a commitment.”
Her friend practically wailed, “How is it that men practically flock to you in droves, and yet you have almost no knowledge of how to handle them?”
“Why do you and Lily both insist on comparing my interaction with men to groupings of animals? And your collective nouns are mismatched. Flock is for birds and drove is for beasts.”
“And you’re calling Professor Hotness uptight.”
Julie laughed. “I never said I wasn’t. But to be fair, there’s something about Adam that makes me think he could really enjoy the class with just a little persuading.”
“What kind of persuading are you talking about, exactly?”
Julie blushed, thankful that Frannie couldn’t see her through the phone. Unlike her older sister, Lily, who had their mother’s honey-colored skin tone, Julie had inherited their father’s pale, sensitive skin. It showed every flush, blush, and day in the sun in the same hue—bright pink.
“It’s not like that, Frannie. He wasn’t interested in me three years ago and he’s not interested now.” Even though parts of his body had seemed to be, his mind didn’t seem to agree.
The thought was more than a little depressing.
“Uh-huh. But you say his name like it’s a magical incantation, you danced together, and he didn’t plan to come back to the class until you goaded him into doing it. Did I get that right?”
“Well, not quite like—”
“You realize the poor guy probably wants you, right?”
“No, he doesn’t.” But maybe he does. Except she couldn’t tell Frannie about that. It didn’t
feel right, exposing him in that way.
Frannie snorted. “Well, do you want him?”
Did she?
Sure, he was a bit standoffish, but she’d never been as turned on by another man as she had by Adam.
“Yes. I definitely want him.”
“Well, you’ve already said that you think he would loosen up a bit with just a little effort. Why don’t you go for it? For all your smarts and your fancy job, you’ve never had a problem letting loose and playing a little. Of course, you’ve also never done anything like this before.”
Julie shook her head, even though she knew Frannie couldn’t see her. “Adam is not a ‘this.’ And how did this go from a conversation about how he is in my class to me attempting to seduce him?”
“What happened to getting back to fun? I know your high school years were rough, and for all that you give me grief about my good grades, you graduated with highest honors. It’s not like you were out partying it up every weekend. You knew how to have a good time, but you kept things balanced. What makes you worried that you can’t handle yourself with Adam Hotness?”
Julie closed her eyes for a moment, fighting the pain in her stomach every time she thought of how she had been bullied so much in her sophomore year of high school—the year after her dad died—that she’d had to transfer to a private academy to finish her degree. That year before the transfer had been awful, but now that she was on the other side of it, she actually felt grateful for how much she had grown as a person because of her experience.
Dork. Loser. She sometimes still thought about those names that shouldn’t have been so hurtful, thrown at her by girls who’d hated her back in high school. They had usually been accompanied by shoves or some other kind of humiliation. Those memories had kept her down for too long.
By the time she entered college, she had made a promise to herself that she wouldn’t allow anyone to take away her right to enjoy everything that life had to offer. She vowed to stay happy and positive and not let others get her down. She hadn’t given anyone have that kind of power over her again.
Still, she’d struggled to make friends in college. Saying she was going to open up and live freely was different from actually doing it. Being happy—putting herself out there and making an effort to have fun—took work.
But she’d met Frannie, and the two had become best friends. They’d gone to parties together, bitched about difficult classes to each other, and cried into each other’s arms over breakups. And Frannie had helped Julie fulfill her promise to herself.
Last month, though, when Julie had been told that she was not only being retained, but promoted to senior analyst, she realized she’d lost track of that promise. After graduation, instead of putting herself out there and meeting people, trying new things, and having fun, she’d gotten so wrapped up in her demanding job that she’d forgotten that having a good time took at least some effort. So she’d signed up for the tango class.
Still… “I don’t know, Frannie. I’m supposed to be having fun. It’s one thing to flirt and maybe hook up with someone I don’t have any history with. Adam would be—I don’t know—different, somehow.”
“Okay, sure. I can see that. Besides, it would be awkward if he’s really bad at it.”
Something in her balked, and Julie found herself protesting. “I don’t think he’d be bad. I think he’d be incredible.” She felt her body heat just thinking about it.
She had been with a couple other guys before, and they had been a disappointment in both size and skill. At least she knew Adam had an advantage in one of those areas. She’d felt it against her body.
Was it really out of the question? Adam seemed pretty opposed to doing anything that was too—in his words—frivolous. And the idea of falling into bed with him felt pretty serious. But maybe she needed to reevaluate the way she thought about him, as part of her resolution to have a little more fun in life, in general.
Frannie whistled. “Listen to you, already defending his sexual prowess. But go ahead, pretend all you like that you haven’t already made up your mind. Just remember to wear sexy underwear next Thursday. You know, in case all your clothes just happen to fall off at some point in the evening.”
“You’re ridiculous.” Julie tried to sound casual, but she made a mental note to dig through her lingerie for something cute that she could wear to class. His body was into her, after all. Maybe, with a temporary adjustment to both their mind-sets, she might end up getting her fling after all.
“I’ve been called worse. I have to run, though. Lunch break is almost over.”
Frannie had moved home to Georgia immediately after college to work in the governor’s office. Julie sometimes missed her friend so much, she joked about moving to Atlanta just so they could be near each other again. But they made do with calls and the occasional long weekend visit.
“Well, thanks for talking. I’ll call you soon. Bye, Frannie.”
“By, Jules. Good luck with His Royal Hotness. And wear the blue set!” she shouted, before disconnecting the line.
Julie laughed. She did rather like that navy-blue demi-bra with white polka dots and the matching sheer panties.
Maybe Frannie was right. What was the harm in seeing just how far Adam was willing to open up? In finding out for sure? She’d thought about him often enough since she’d graduated, even tracked his career through her sister-in-law Meredith, who also knew Adam through the small world of finance.
Most importantly, he had already agreed to come to another class. She’d already faced his rejection once before. If she asked him whether he wanted to see her outside of class and he said no, it wouldn’t be the worst thing that had ever happened to her. She’d look on the bright side and be glad to finally put that attraction to rest.
And if he said yes…well. She’d definitely wear the blue set next week.
…
“How was your first class?” Naomi wandered into Adam’s office and plopped into one of the vintage sixties chairs next to his desk. When Adam had started working at Columbia, the department chairman had offered to refurbish his office, but Adam refused. It seemed so wasteful to spend money on new things when the old ones were still perfectly functional. Besides, it was still newer than what his mother had at home.
“And when are you going to get rid of these ugly chairs?”
She never missed a chance to give him grief for that decision.
But he just smiled. When he’d first met her, he’d been more than a little intimidated. Not because she tall and long-legged, with skin the color of espresso and killer looks that turned any guy’s head. Mostly, it had been because Naomi Franklin happened to be one of the most brilliant economists in the world.
A couple years after their first meeting, she was one of his best friends.
“They’re comfortable enough.” He shrugged, avoiding her other question.
She pulled a face at him. “You are really the most uptight person I know. I mean, I can identify…” Naomi had grown up in the Baltimore projects and, like him, understood the importance of working hard. But unlike him, she actually enjoyed doing things like dancing. “But this mustard-yellow vinyl upholstery is bordering on masochism.”
He snorted. Victor, Naomi’s husband, was one of Manhattan’s most sought-after interior designers. They lived with their two daughters in a lovely large home in New Jersey that had once been featured in Architectural Digest. Of course she would make a comparison like that.
“Show me the math that proves that throwing out something perfectly functional in favor of something pretty is a net positive.”
She pffed and deflected. “You never answered my question.”
He feigned ignorance. “And which question would that be?”
“Oh, Adam.” She gave an exasperated sigh, then sat up straight and leaned forward, pinning him with a no-nonsense look. “You really don’t want to play that game with me, honey. I have two teenage daughters, remember?” She arched a brow. “I could mak
e you cry for mercy if I tried even a little.”
He didn’t dare laugh. Instead, he looked down at the papers on his desk. “It was nice. Thanks again to you and Victor for thinking of me.”
She made a sound of disgust and cocked her head to the side, studying him. “You’re lying.”
“What? No, I’m not. It was nice. And I really do appreciate it!”
She shook her head. “No, I mean, you’re hiding something. There’s something different about you.” She was silent for a moment. “You’ve lost a little of your intensity.”
He debated whether he could slide under his desk and hide from those uncannily perceptive eyes. He’d been feeling it all day. Exactly what he’d dreaded. Thoughts of Julie Stanton were making him lose focus.
Suddenly, Naomi gasped. “You met a woman, didn’t you?!”
What the hell? He did not envy her daughters one bit.
He crossed his arms, feeling way too vulnerable. There was no use denying it, though. Naomi would flay him alive. “She’s not a woman.” She’s too young. Too…frivolous. And she’s wreaking havoc on my work.
Naomi grinned like the Cheshire Cat. “So you met a lovely android. That’s cool. I don’t care who loosens you up as long as it happens. You’re gonna kill yourself working so hard otherwise.”
He scowled and dropped his arms. So much for his defense mechanisms. They’d had this conversation before. Naomi had earned her stripes and was sitting in a full professorship now. She didn’t have to struggle like he did. “Forget I said anything. Can we please talk about something else?”
She was silent for a moment, watching him for a long time, and just as he started to wonder if she was going to end up making him cry, after all, she turned her attention to the open books and stacks of paper on his desk. “How is the editing going? Are you on track to meet your deadline?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I haven’t made any progress today. I gave my lecture this morning and came back here to work, but I can’t concentrate. I think I’m just too nervous about this book. Nailing this one will mean my contract will get renewed next year and the prospect…it’s distracting.”