by Vivian Wood
Eve shakes her head softly. “I’d rather not. If you guys are just going to talk about me—“
My mother strolls over to a chair, dropping into it. She makes a disapproving sound. “It’s too early in the relationship for her to be talking to you with such disrespect, Carter. What would your father think?”
My head whips around. I can feel myself growing hot under the collar. “Don’t bring my dead father into this.”
She smirks. “He would not approve.”
“That’s not the damn point!” I shout.
My mother looks faintly surprised. “I think this girl has stirred up your blood too much. Sit down, have something to eat.”
My hand snakes out of its own accord, searching for Eve. She moves forward, hesitantly placing her hand in mine.
“So what if we want to date?” I keep my voice as levelheaded as possible.
My mother sneers faintly. “You are almost related by blood. It’s enough to make one squeamish.”
Gripping Eve’s hand, I tug her forward a step. “We’re not related.”
“What about your job? Hm? I doubt they will look favorably on you after they find out you’re with her.”
I square my jaw. “That’s nothing for you to be concerned about. Certainly nothing for you to pass judgment on Eve for.”
My mother sucks her teeth, looking irritated. “Carter. You can do so much better. I have so many promising young women for you to date. Women who wouldn’t further pollute your gene pool…”
“Pollute my gene pool?” I blink. “Are you saying that you don’t like Eve because she’s white?”
My mother shrugs. “I’m sure she’s a perfectly nice girl. But you can do so much better than perfectly nice. And I only want that best of the best for my only son.”
I can feel my neck heating. Before I know it, I’m yelling at my mom. “What are you talking about? My dad was white!”
She arches a brow. “Yes, but he was also insanely rich. He bought me anything and everything I wanted. Treated me like the queen I am. Not every match is a love match…”
Turning to Eve, I growl. “We’re leaving. I can’t sit here and listen to any more of my mother’s craziness.”
My mom stands up so suddenly that her chair tips over behind her. “Carter, I only want what is best for you. You can do better than I did. You can find your soulmate. Someone who is your equal in every way.”
Looking down into Eve’s wide blue-green eyes, I am more worried about her taking my mother’s insane theories to heart.
“Eve…”
She shrugs ever so slightly. “At least it’s not personal.”
I bring my lips to hers, feeling guilty. She makes a soft noise and kisses me back, her mouth moving in time with mine. I inhale, pulling a long drag of Eve’s unique orange blossom scent into my lungs. She tastes like honey, her lips the sweetest nectar I’ve ever kissed.
When I pull back, chest heaving, Eve looks at me with the most fiercely tender expression. That’s when I know.
I am stupidly, profoundly in love with Eve Moreland.
Not just that… I mean, that part I already knew. But today I realize that someday, I’m going to marry this girl. I would be a damn fool not to.
“Ready to go?” I ask her softly.
Her cheeks tinge with pink. “Almost.”
Eve takes a step away from me but never lets go of my hand. She looks at my mother, who is glowering at both of us.
“I really hope that next time we meet, we can spend some time finding out what we have in common. I think it’s important to find what brings us together, instead of what divides us.”
My mother snorts. “I should never have let you go to that boarding school, Carter. I should have kept you close, mothered you more.”
I shrug. “I’m sorry that I haven’t met your standards. I think by now, my personality is what it is. It’s about time that you figure out what you are going do about it.”
Her expression tightens. “I could cut you off. Leave you with nothing.”
I turn away. “If that’s your choice, so be it. Doing that would certainly send a message. But I would carefully consider whether I wanted to be involved in your life or not.”
My mom moves toward me, her expression growing pinched. “What does that mean? Carter? I only want what’s best for you, you know.”
“Goodbye, mother. Call me when you can be less judgmental.” I shake my head, tugging Eve toward where the cars are parked.
13
Eve
Carter leans down, cupping one breast and pulling the nipple to his mouth. I immediately groan at the sensation of his hot, wet mouth on my flesh. He rolls it around with his tongue, then bites it very carefully, almost like he’s testing me.
“Ahh!” I gasp. “God, that feels so good.”
He smirks, looking up at me. “Everything I do to your body should feel that good.”
Then he elbows me aside, lying down. I look at him a little quizzically, but in the next second he lifts me onto his body, so that I’m straddling him. He angles me so that he’s planted face first between my breasts, and my bare ass is in the air. I’m a little shocked at how easily he picked me up, but he clearly has other things on his mind.
He licks the skin between my breasts with his tongue, then pulls one nipple into his mouth. I moan as he bites it and sucks it, alternating pain and pleasure for me. His hands wander down to my hips. He runs his hands over my ass, groaning as he shapes my body.
He releases my breast with a wet pop, looking up at me. “Fuck. Do you know how turned on I am?”
I blush, slowly shaking my head. “Uh uh.”
He pushes my hips down until my pussy is pressed directly against his cock through his unbuttoned jeans. We both groan as he bucks up against me. He runs his hand through my hair, fisting it, and uses his hand on my hip to guide me just where he wants me.
I gasp silently as he lifts his hips and bears down on me, his denim-clad cock almost touching my clit. He starts kissing and licking my neck. He sucks the spot where my neck meets my shoulder, bucking his hips up, and my eyes roll back into my head.
“Fuck!” I cry. “Carter—”
He’s not satisfied with that, though. He releases me, pushing me off of his lap. I’m left breathing hard. He gets up and starts to peel his jeans off.
I’m taken aback for a moment by the image of Carter, completely naked. He’s all muscle, his cock juts proudly out… and right now, he’s looking at me like he’s going to consume me.
He climbs onto the bed, dragging me down to lie beneath him, and he starts kissing my neck again. I wrap my arms and legs around him, pulling him closer. I can feel his hardness against my thigh, long and hot and throbbing. He sucks at my neck, my breasts, and then he moves lower.
I don’t know if I can even handle his mouth on my clit, but he passionately kisses my thighs and my knees. His five o’clock shadow tickles me in the best way. I open my legs wide for him, spreading my thighs. He makes a growling sound as he kisses my clit, and my whole body is suddenly alive with electric sensation.
“Oh my god!” I cry out, my hands burying in his hair.
Already, I’m bucking my hips against his mouth, desperate for more. He closes his mouth around my clit and sucks on it in long pulls, each one sending ripples of sensation up my spine. My toes curl as he brings his hand up to my pussy and introduces one thick finger. He ever so slowly pushes his finger inside as he circles my clit with his tongue.
I come suddenly, clenching and crying out. His tongue slows, helping me ride out my orgasm. Soon though, he climbs up my body, kissing me hard. I taste the faint flavor of my own juices on his tongue and shudder.
He pulls back a little bit, grasping his cock and positioning himself just so. The blunt tip of his cock presses against my pussy, and I still for just a second. I’m busy looking at his cock, biting my lip with anticipation of how he’s about to stretch me out. He pushes inside the barest inch.
I gasp, feeling so full of his hot cock.
Carter glances down at me, biting his lip. “You’re so tight, Eve.”
I’m honestly not sure if that’s a good thing or not, judging by his face alone. He looks like he’s trying to defuse a bomb or something. I wrap my legs around his hips, pulling at him a little, urging him onward.
He closes his eyes and pushes himself inside, inch by slow inch. I feel like he’s stretching me out, little by little, filling me up and touching every single part of me. It’s uncomfortable, even though I’m wet, but I push for more. When he is finally inside me to the hilt, he opens his eyes, staring down at me with the most intense aquiline gaze I’ve ever experienced.
I look him right in the eye, remembering that I’m in love with him. I don’t care that his dick is so big that it hurts a little; I’m too busy being stupidly, dumbly in love with Carter.
I reach up to pull his mouth down to mine, tenderly kissing him. He kisses me back, starting to move his body, withdrawing his cock and then thrusting back in.
“Ahhh, that’s so good,” he mutters, raising himself up so that he can see our bodies joined together. “Fuck, Eve. God, you’re so damned beautiful.”
He grabs my wrists and pulls them up above my head, working his thick cock in and out of my pussy. I dig my heels into his upper back as he starts kissing and biting my neck again. I start to forget the discomfort, focusing instead on the pleasure of his lips on my skin, the wonderful weight of his body against mine.
I moan as he releases my hands in order to palm my breasts. It feels natural to wrap my arms around him, to lightly rake my fingernails down his back.
Carter suddenly withdraws from me, flipping me over. He guides me to my hands and knees, positioning his cock at my entrance before he plunges back inside.
“Ohhh!” I cry out, feeling my innermost muscles clench.
“Your pussy feels so good,” he grits out. He takes my hand and guides it down to my clit, rubbing it in gentle circles. “I want you to come. Show me what a good girl you are. Make yourself come for me.”
His words send a shudder of pleasure down my spine. He lets go of my hand and grabs my hips, thrusting his cock into me again and again, as hard as he can. I call out, an insensible sound, as I start to touch myself.
The way he is fucking me now is rougher, coarser than before… but for some reason I like it more. A lot more. I close my eyes, rubbing my clit, and feeling the brutal way he handles me, ramming into me over and over again.
An invisible spring tightens deep inside me with every thrust, feeding my craving. My fingers help me along, but it’s really Carter’s cock that makes little ripples of pleasure swell and burst across my body.
He’s touching some spot deep inside me, a spot that I seem to be able to angle my body just so to encourage him to hit over and over again.
“Yes,” I groan desperately. “Yes, right there… I…”
And then I’m calling out his name, screaming it, as I go over the edge, falling into a deep ocean of pleasure. He stiffens and growls, filling me with three single, brutal thrusts. I can feel him pulsing inside my pussy.
He slows at last, half-collapsing on the bed with me. He turns me over, kissing me tenderly.
I curl up against his chest, completely satisfied, and feel like a warm glove has been wrapped around my body.
14
Carter
The sunlight has slowly ebbed from my tiny office. I sit in a chair and mark the last five exam papers. But I know my mind is elsewhere.
Specifically, I keep thinking about the last time I was in bed with Eve. How she curled up on her side against my chest and made me feel…
Peaceful. Like my spirit had finally settled down to rest just because this fragile, beautiful girl laid her head on my chest and let out a breathy sigh. I’ve never felt like that before.
The question is, what do I have to do to feel like that again? The answer seems relatively straightforward.
Talk to someone at the university about what the fallout could be for dating a student. It’s better just to know so I can figure out what the best course of action will be.
I set the papers I’m grading aside with a sigh and walk to the administration building.
Despite the work day being done, Dr. Mooney is still at her desk when I knock on her door. She looks up, her eyebrows rising slightly when she sees me.
“Dr. Morgan. What can I do for you?”
I hesitate. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”
She rocks back in her chair and casts a skeptical gaze over me. “Come in and sit down, then.”
My heartbeat picks up speed. I’m probably about to throw away my entire career at this school. Is Eve worth it?
But even as I think it, I know she is.
I take a seat across the desk from Dr. Mooney. I suck in a breath, steeling myself.
“I know that it is important to you that professors that work here are honest with you.”
She squints, lowering her glasses to the desk. “That would be preferred.”
I nod. “I’m dating one of my students. Or rather, the woman I’m dating has recently become one of my students.”
I brace for Dr. Mooney to yell or even to fire me on the spot. But for several long moments, she does neither one. She just blinks owlishly.
“I see,” she says at last. “To be clear, that is definitely not allowed here.”
I bob my head, my heart in my throat. “I know.”
She folds her hands on her desk. “How do you suggest we proceed?”
“Well… that’s what I came here to find out.”
She gives a long suffering sigh. “Because you came to me first and didn’t try to hide anything from the school, you can most likely keep your job.”
My exhale of relief is immense. “Thank you, Dr. Mooney.”
‘Either you have to stop teaching her class… or she has to switch to another taking the same class with another professor. Provided that another class already exists.”
My eyebrows rise. “That’s it?”
She frowns at me. “You’ll both have to fill out some paperwork absolving the school of any liability. But yes, in general, that’s it. As long as the student is not in any way dependent on the professor for grades, it is considered fine. Frowned upon, but fine.”
My neck heats. “I understand. The relationship had already started prior to my beginning here.”
Dr. Mooney clears her throat. “So you said.”
My mouth pulls to the side. “How does this effect my chances at tenure?”
She sighs, wrinkling her nose. “I’m not sure. It’s not a decision that I make alone. There is a board that votes on all tenure decisions together. Dating a student certainly doesn’t help your chances at all. The fact that you came in here and cleared the air helps. I mean, you did let it go for a month. But you still came in… eventually.”
I release another sigh of relief. “Okay. Thanks, Dr. Mooney.”
She gives me a tight smile. “You’re welcome, Dr. Morgan. Do you want me to tell the HR department to start the paperwork now?”
I stand up. “Soon. I just want to have another chat with…” I almost say my girlfriend, then realize that Eve and I haven’t even had that conversation yet. “Um, the student in question.”
She looks at me sternly. “I’ll give you one week.”
“Thank you,” I say, bowing my head. “I’ll let you get back to your work.”
I turn and head out of her office. I can feel her eyes on my back as I make it into the hallway. All the way home, I’m busy picturing the look on Eve’s face when I tell her my decision.
So busy, in fact, that I nearly run headlong into Eve herself as she waits for me on my doorstep.
I run right into her, stumbling over her and grabbing her arms to keep from throwing her to the ground. She looks up at me, her blue-green eyes wide and her lips already parting on a laugh.
“Where are you going
, looking so serious?” she asks.
I use the momentum to dip her backward and then kiss her. She lets out a bark of laughter against my lips. Slipping her hands around my neck, she grins.
God, I feel so incredibly lucky that I’m the man she’s beaming at. I straighten with a sigh.
“Hi.”
“What was that for?” she asks.
“I just talked to my boss about our relationship, for one thing.”
Her mouth opens. For a second, she looks stunned. “Is that what we’re calling it, then?”
I chuckle, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. “If you agree, then yes.”
Eve raises up on her tiptoes and hugs me tightly. “Carter… of course. I would love to be your girlfriend.”
I hug her back, inhaling her scent as we stand pressed together in the sweltering summer heat. I glance over her shoulder and see a little hard-sided animal carrier sitting on my porch.
“Come on,” I say, pulling back and taking her hand. “Let’s go inside and get out of this heat. We can talk about things a little more. And then you can tell me why you brought Valentine with you.”
She smiles at my sly, raising her eyebrows. “That’s not Valentine. That’s one of Valentine’s siblings, I think. And I figured that since I already had one cat, you could maybe take the other. You know, a matched set.”
I let out a surprised laugh. “That’s pretty presumptive of you. What if I hate cats?”
I crouch down to peek inside the carrier. A tiny meow is all I hear, but soon I see a little orange fur ball. It meows at me again, shifting uncomfortably in its cage.
“Well, I’m hoping I can use my newfound leverage to ask you pretty, pretty please…”
I shake my head, picking up the carrier and walking to the front door. I sigh with delight when the wall of air conditioning hits me. Setting the cat on the counter, I immediately head over to the AC and turn it up.
When I turn back to Eve, she’s coaxing not-Valentine out of the carrier. Predictably, the little kitten comes easily into Eve’s hands.