by Claire Adams
She laughed. “No. I should be, and I wish I was, but I like trinkets. I mean, I don’t blow a lot of money on stuff, but I do like shopping and I do like decorating my room and house a little. When I get a full-time job and have my own place, I hope I can restrict myself to the basics. I have no desire to have collections of stuff that has to be dusted all the time, and will ultimately end up in someone’s basement or sold at a thrift store for a dollar.”
Her words reminded him of their age difference. She didn’t have a job or a house of her own, or any of the adult trappings of life. She was still so very young.
“Can I help with anything?” she asked, looking around the kitchen.
“Sure, grab a couple of plates if you would,” I said, pointing to the cupboard.
She did so and quickly searched the kitchen drawers to find silverware. We sat at the tiny table and ate our breakfast. It was odd to be eating in my house with anyone besides Jake.
“How was your visit with your mom?” I asked her.
“Great, actually. She’s been here before, but they were always rush in and rush out kind of visits. We spent all day Saturday wandering around, and it was really nice. I haven’t spent any real time with my mom like that since I was in junior high. You know, before I got too cool to go anywhere with my horrible, ogre-like mother who was so embarrassing,” she joked.
I had to laugh. “Isn’t it funny how we all go through similar stages? We love our parents and can’t be away from them, then we hate them for a while, and by the time we want them back in our lives, they are far away or gone for good.”
“Are your parents around?” she asked.
I shook my head. “No. We lost them both in a car accident about six years ago. It was pretty rough on Jake. He had just graduated high school.”
She looked sad. “I’m sorry,” she said, putting one of her hands on my own. “I can’t imagine that. You’ve really been through a lot.”
I shrugged. “I really wasn’t all that close to my parents. I mean, I loved them, and it was horrible of course, but it wasn’t life-shattering. Now, I sometimes wish I could call them up and chat or visit, but—well, it is what it is.”
“I suppose. I’m glad I have my mom,” she said, standing and clearing the table.
“I can do that. Sit down; you’re my guest,” I told her.
“Nope, you cooked breakfast, I’ll clean up.”
I looked at her, standing in my kitchen, with the sun streaming in through the window over the sink and highlighting her golden hair. How had I been so lucky to have her in my life? She was truly an angel sent to me to pull me out of those dark days.
“You keep looking at me like that and these dishes aren’t going to get done,” she said, with a coy smile.
I laughed. “Sorry, but you’re gorgeous.”
I watched the beautiful blush spread over her face and down her neck at my words. It only took a few minutes for the kitchen to be back in order.
“Stay,” I said when it looked like she would leave.
She shrugged. “Okay. I can stay for a bit.”
I grabbed her hand and led her to the couch where Dexter was sitting.
“This is the cat? You didn’t say he was half mountain lion. The thing is a beast!” she exclaimed.
Dexter thumped his tail and meowed, expressing his opinion of her assessment.
“Is he going to attack me?” she said, concern in her voice.
“Ignore him,” I told her pulling her down to sit next to me. We left Dexter to his own side of the couch where he eyed us with a great deal of suspicion.
“What were you doing when you called earlier?” she asked.
I laughed, a little embarrassed. “Running.”
“Like from a bear or on purpose?” she asked, with a slightly horrified look on her face.
“On purpose. No bears in the neighborhood that I know of. I used to run every morning, but I got out of the habit of doing it. I’m hoping to pick it up again. Turns out I actually enjoy running,” I told her. She didn’t look like she believed me.
“That’s cool, I guess, but please don’t ask me to go with you—ever. I can handle some yoga and maybe a few minutes on a treadmill, but I’m not the kind of girl you will ever see actually running,” she joked.
I pulled her into me. “Good to know and I’ll keep that in mind. You don’t need to run anyway; your body is absolutely perfect just the way it is.”
She reached up and kissed me. “Thank you.”
I sighed in contentment and leaned back on the couch, relishing the feel of her beside me. It felt right.
Chapter Thirty
Tessa
We spent the day lounging. It was deliciously sinful and lazy, and I loved every minute of it. The sex first thing this morning had started the day out right, but I wanted him again. I wanted him the minute I’d watched him cooking me breakfast in nothing but his jeans. It was the sexiest sight I’d ever seen. The man was a very fine specimen, and I wanted to crawl on him and ride him—hard. He had put his shirt on after breakfast, which had bummed me out a bit. I loved looking at him.
I’d managed to control myself, but now, he was back in the kitchen, making me more food. I was going to gain twenty pounds if I kept hanging out with him. I watched as those magical fingers kneaded the pizza dough he had made from scratch.
“You’re pretty good at that,” I said, mesmerized by the way he pulled and stretched and patted out the dough.
He smiled. It was that smile that sent lightning racing over my body. “I hope you are prepared to eat the best pizza of your life.”
“I am. Definitely, ready,” I said, not entirely referring to the pizza.
“Go sit down. I can’t have you in here watching me. There are certain secrets about my pizza that I can reveal to no one,” he joked.
I pouted. “I can help.”
“Nope. Grab one of those beers out of the fridge and go have a seat. Keep Dexter entertained.”
I wrinkled up my nose. “If you hear screaming, you better come running.”
He shook his head. “Oh no way. You’re on your own. That cat would only kill us both. No need for both of us to go down.”
I glared at him before heading into the living room. Soon I got bored and went snooping. I vaguely remembered where his room was. I paused at the door of an empty room. When I rushed out last time, I had realized this was his daughter’s room. It was empty now. I stood, staring at the empty space.
“I’m going to make it into a home gym,” he said, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind.
“You’re serious about this working out business, aren’t you?”
He nuzzled my neck. “Yes, I am. I’ll feel better when I’m all hard and muscle-bound. I’ve seen my competition on campus.”
I turned around, wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him long and hard. “You have no competition.”
He swatted my butt, grabbed my hand and led me back to the kitchen. “Pizza is done.”
It smelled delicious, and for once while I was with him, my mouth wasn’t watering because of him. It was the smell of fresh bread and an assortment of Italian spices that had me salivating.
“It smells incredible! I didn’t realize you were a cook as well as a teacher. What other talents are you hiding?” I asked.
The look he gave me nearly caused me to forget all about the pizza in favor of something else altogether.
I laughed, shaking my head. “Pizza first, mister. I’ll help you work it off later.” I winked.
He nodded. “Yes, you will.”
I grabbed the plates, officially knowing where they were now, and set the table. We dug in as if we hadn’t just eaten a few hours ago.
“This is amazing,” I mumbled. “Seriously, I need to learn how to cook like this.”
“I’ll teach you.”
We nearly devoured the entire pizza before both of us called mercy.
“I’m so full,” I said, feeling completely unsexy at the moment.
“Let’s grab a beer and let our pizza settle. Anything you like to watch on Netflix?”
I laughed. “Yes, but I doubt you’d be interested in what I binge watch. I’m game for whatever.”
We sat down, resuming the positions we’d been in earlier. With his arm around my shoulders, he flicked on the television.
“Do you do The Walking Dead?” he asked.
“Sure, I’ve seen a few episodes,” I replied, missing the enthusiasm he was looking for.
“Something less gruesome then? What do you normally watch?”
I laughed. “I’m on a Grey’s Anatomy kick right now.”
“Oh, awesome! What season?”
I was only a little surprised he would be okay with the show. “Six,” I said, “I’ve actually seen all of it, but I started over a couple months ago.”
“Cool, I just started season seven. We can go back,” he said, flipping to the show in his currently watched list.
We sat and watched a full episode, sipping our beer and relaxing in general. The next episode started, he adjusted his position on the couch, putting his empty beer bottle on the coffee table and that’s when I pounced.
I’d waited all day, but I couldn’t wait another minute. I straddled him, pushed his back into the couch and held his face with my hands. He wasn’t going anywhere.
“Tessa,” he said, in a low voice.
I shook my head before lowering my mouth to his. I started the kiss with a slow lick across his bottom lip before pushing my tongue between his lips and plunging into his mouth. His hands came up to hold my hips while I ravaged his mouth. Those hands moved to my hair, gently pulling it backward, which pulled my mouth away from his, exposing my neck. His mouth was on my neck, licking, sucking and nibbling in a way that was nearly my undoing.
My hands moved to his chest before making my way to the edge of his t-shirt where I started to tug it up and over his head. Once it was off, his hands moved back my legs that were straddling either side of him. He started to yank and pull on the skirt that was trapped under my legs, I lifted my body enough to give him access. He took advantage of the new position and his face dove between my breasts, nuzzling me through the gauzy fabric of my dress.
“I want it off,” he murmured, pulling my dress higher.
I raised my arms, allowing him to slowly move it up my body. He was taking his sweet time, heightening the anticipation. My hips moved forward, my body cupping him through the jeans. The rough jeans rubbed against me, and the crotchless panties left me bare. At first, the rough material startled me, but with his erection pressing against the seam, it was exactly what I had been craving. I moved slowly, gyrating my hips in a slow motion, savoring every sensation zipping through my body.
“Ride me, Tessa,” he said, pulling my dress off and exposing my bare breasts. His hands were massaging me before his mouth began toying with one nipple and then the other. His fingers manipulated my breasts, much like they had the pizza dough. The feeling of the pinching and sucking were a contradiction, short-circuiting my brain with a dazzling series of exploding sensations.
“Oh my, God,” I moaned. “I’m going to cum. We have to get your jeans off.”
I frantically fumbled with the button and zipper, desperate to have him inside me. My body felt empty without his touch the second he pushed my hands out of the way and did what I had been struggling with.
I stood, he stood, and I got busy pulling his jeans down. I pulled the briefs down and stared at the erection poking me, a glistening of moisture already waiting for me. I dropped to my knees, longing to taste him.
“Oh, fuck,” he groaned the moment my lips closed around him. He moaned low in his throat as I licked him up and down before sucking and licking the head with my tongue. I could feel his arousal growing, and I knew he was moments from release. My own desire was climbing higher as I sucked him in.
“Fuck!” he yelled a split second before he came. He fell onto the couch, pulled me up by my armpits and onto him.
I licked my lips, smiled at him, and shook my head. “Not yet,” repeating what he had said to me that first night.
“Now,” he growled.
I rose up and then let his dick touch the folds, but I refused to slide down. His hands were on my hips, trying to force me onto him.
“Uh-huh, not yet,” I repeated, wanting to draw it out a little more, even though I could feel myself dripping on him as I perched centimeters above his cock.
“Tessa,” he groaned. “You’re killing me. Please,” he begged.
The power was heady. I don’t know if I’d ever been so aroused before. I grabbed his wrists, pulling his hands away from hips and pushed them back, pinning them in a hands-up position. I rubbed his cock with my wet pussy and nearly came.
My back arched with pleasure, thrusting my breasts into his face. He licked, sending another sizzling sensation racing down my spine. I pushed in closer, silently demanding he use his mouth on my breasts. He greedily obliged.
I rubbed across him and then slowly slid onto him, only an inch and then back off. I was quickly losing my control. I repeated the motion, pulling him a little deeper. He went still, his head fell back and I watched the grimace on his face. The pleasure was excruciating.
I stayed right where I was, reveling in the feeling of his dick inside me. I could feel my climax, just out of reach. If I moved, I would be sailing over the edge. I wanted it, but I wanted to prolong the heavenly feeling.
“Go, Tessa. You know you want it. Ride me,” he said, looking into my eyes with so much passion I wanted to commit it to memory forever.
I obeyed, slid down the full length of him and let the climax take me up and over. I bucked and shouted out his name as I crashed down the other side of that invisible mountain. Once I could move, I began to ride him like he asked.
His hands were on my bare ass, squeezing as I pushed down on him to the point I could feel his balls against my butt. It wasn’t long before he reached his own climax. I collapsed against him, seeking respite, but he wasn’t finished.
He stood, with me still straddling him and his cock firmly planted within me and carried me to his bed where he took the lead. The movement instigated another building climax. After another round of furious lovemaking, we laid in his bed, snuggled together. I was absolutely spent.
“What are we doing?” I asked, needing to know. I needed to protect my heart from this man.
“I don’t know, but can we keep doing it?” he joked.
I chuckled. “Sure, I’d like that,” I said, not sure if that was what I really felt. “That’s good enough for me, for now,” I added.
He pulled me in close, and we basked in the afterglow of the best sex I’d ever had. I didn’t want to ruin the moment by thinking of anything else. Talk of a relationship or lack of same would ruin this glorious day. I would worry about it later. All that mattered was what I was feeling at this moment, and I wanted to cherish it for as long as I could.
“I need to get going,” I said, finally finding the strength to get up.
I quickly dressed, he walked me to the door and gave me a long, heated kiss before saying he would see me tomorrow. I knew there wouldn’t be any more awkwardness between us. It would be hard to keep the looks toned down, but we could. We had scratched the itch.
Chapter Thirty-One
Ian
“Professor Dunlap?”
I looked up to see Jennie standing in front of my desk—again. Her idea of what my favorite student would be and mine were extremely different.
“Yes?”
“Uh, I seem to be having some trouble. I can’t afford for my average to slip and if I don’t get an A on this assignment, that would be really bad. Do you have a few minutes to help me?”
“Help you with what, Jennie?” I asked, trying to hide my frustration. What we had been covering with the ecosystem and water conditions was all very basic. If she was struggling now, I was seriously wondering how she would ever make it
through finals week.
She sighed. “I don’t understand what you’re asking us to do with the assignment you gave today.”
I cleared my throat. “We’ve been talking about coral reefs and the bleaching that has been happening. Right?”
She nodded. “Yes, and I mean, I get it, but what you’re asking us to do doesn’t make sense to me.”
I watched her body language. I didn’t believe she was lost or confused. The girl was very intelligent. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the assignment, it was more that she didn’t want to put in the time and energy.
“The assignment is fairly straightforward. I want you to tell me what you think those bleached reefs are going to look like in ten years. I want you to explain what kind of ecosystem there will be. How will it differ from what we’ve known and studied over the past several decades.” I did my best to keep calm, but she was seriously pissing me off. Plus, I didn’t want to have to repeat myself. I wanted to think about Tessa.
I had already taught, so now it was my time to reminisce and fantasize about the many things I wanted to do to Tessa’s beautiful body. Jennie was interrupting my daydreaming, and I didn’t like it.
A hand went to her too-skinny hip as she narrowed her gaze at me. “I understood that, but don’t you think the assignment is vague? How can you possibly grade us on predictions?”
I looked at her, blinked. “What?”
She kept yammering. I had grown bored with her questions, and now, Tessa was front and center of my thoughts. Jennie and her bitching were like white noise, but an irritating white noise—like a mosquito buzzing near your ear.
When Tessa walked through the door, I smiled. “Hi,” I said, cutting off Jennie’s complaining.
“What’s up?” she asked, looking from me to the petulant student listing the many reasons she couldn’t possibly complete the ridiculous assignment I had given out.
I gave her a look that expressed my frustration. “Jennie here isn’t okay with the assignment. Doesn’t feel it’s gradable. Right, Jennie? Is that the gist of your problem with the assignment?” I asked, trying my best to sound reasonable.