Getting Schooled (Craving #9)

by Anthology

  He still only told her part of the things that haunted him at night, memories from days at war. The things that kept him from sleeping. She nestled her head in the crook of his arm while he spoke, had trailed a comforting hand on his chest. When he finished talking, she leaned up and kissed him sweetly on the lips.

  “I wish I could take the pain away from you. I don’t know what to say to you to make it all better. I don’t think there is anything that can make it better. But anytime you need to talk, I will listen. I swear.”

  She had meant every word that came from her pretty mouth. She would be there for him. She wasn’t the type to leave a person hanging. To run from a problem. But he had, hadn’t he? The first small thing and he ran like a coward. And he wouldn’t swallow his pride and apologize. Instead, he blew off class the following week and hid on his tractor on the ranch. He couldn’t stand to see her, even if it was the review day for the final. Hadn’t the pop quiz actually done him a favor by showing him what he needed to work on before the final exam? Yes. Clearly. But he couldn’t acknowledge it to her. Wanted to, but wouldn’t.

  If only he had a time machine. He’d go back to the office, and instead of taking his anger out on her, he’d lock the door and tell her to take off her panties. He’d have her sit on her desk and taste her sweet dampness while he drove her to fulfillment. He’d make her beg for him to enter her. He’d take his time and torture her. They’d look into each other’s eyes and laugh while they tried to stifle their loud moans and groans. They’d climax simultaneously, and he’d kiss her deeply, passionately before they both straightened their clothes. He’d leave the office a few minutes before her with her panties in his pocket. And he’d meet her at her house where they’d order in pizza and spend the rest of the night eating, talking, and making love some more. The next week he’d have her panties with him in class. He’d surprise her by secretly giving them to her during class and watching that pretty blush sweep over her cheeks. She’d scold him after for risking someone catching that, but he’d calm her down with a passionate kiss and all would be forgotten. That’s what he should have done. Then he wouldn’t have been alone in his tractor instead of in class. Some war hero he’d been. He ran scared at the first sign of trouble.

  Only there hadn’t been any trouble. He’d just self-sabotaged himself and the budding relationship. He figured out how she’d gotten through his walls and run away when he saw his vulnerability. The realization dawned on the Sunday before his final. He needed to do whatever he could to win her back. He’d never forgive himself if he didn’t at least try to right his wrong.

  The day of the final, he tried to focus on the test before him. He’d already turned in his final paper, which accounted for half of the grade. Now he needed to finish the day strong to keep his high grade. He’d hoped she would show up in sweats looking awful so he wouldn’t be distracted, but who was he kidding? She was even prettier when she didn’t try! He’d seen her around the house in her casual, comfy clothes, and he had been almost more attracted to her. When he entered the classroom, she already sat behind her desk. Theirs eyes met. Her eyes flashed sadness before she dropped her gaze to the papers laid out in front of her. Wade slid silently into his normal desk in the back of the room. He took out his pencil and just waited for the Blue Book to be passed out. He always preferred pencil to pen. The ability to erase away mistakes and write over them like they never existed. He’d give anything to erase the hurt from Sylvie’s eyes. That killed him more than the hurt he felt in his own heart.

  He tried to push thoughts of Sylvie from his mind, tried to focus on the exam, but his traitorous brain kept going back to her. The smell of her rose perfume. The softness of her skin. Her touch, which both soothed and inflamed him. Failing the test would serve him right. She’d probably fail him even if he did everything perfectly. Not that he’d blame her, of course. He deserved a kick in the balls. An F in the class and having to repeat would be a good substitute. Sylvie didn’t strike him as the vindictive type, though. She’d treat him fairly, just as she had asked him to do with her.

  The class had two hours for the final. He only needed one and a half before he dropped the paper on her desk. He avoided her eyes as he all but ran from the room. He needed to talk to her, but class clearly was not the best place. And if he looked at her, he’d break. Throw himself at her mercy. Beg her to come back. Instead, he knew what he had to do.

  By the time Sylvie arrived at her car, the final had been over for an hour. Wade waited for her, sitting on the tailgate of his truck, which he parked next to hers. She walked with her head down, looking at her phone. Her eyes flew wide open in apparent shock when she looked up and saw Wade. She stopped five feet away from him, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “Waiting to yell at me some more?” Sylvie’s voice had a sharp tone, but she spoke to him, which seemed promising. At least she didn’t ignore him and speed out of the parking lot.

  “I’ve been yelling at myself for two weeks.”

  “Don’t stop on my account.” Sylvie held her hands up in front of her chest.

  “What if I take a break to tell you that I’m an idiot?”

  “Why would you tell me something I already know?” The corner of Sylvie’s lips curved in a slight smile. Wade wanted to kiss those lips so bad.

  “Confirmation, I guess?” Wade shrugged. “Did you also know that I’m a stubborn ass?”

  “I did.”

  “Hmm…okay. Did you know that I sabotaged a good thing because I’m scared of failing or letting people down? That I didn’t want to hurt you even though I still did?”

  Sylvie’s face softened slightly, though he didn’t say anything for several moments. “I’m listening.”

  Wade jumped off the back of his truck. He removed his tan cowboy hat, placing it on the truck before taking a couple steps toward Sylvie. She held her ground.

  “I haven’t felt an immediate connection with someone in, well, in ever. This is a really weird time in my life. I left the Marines where I had my life dictated for me. They told me what to do, where to go, when to sleep, eat, breathe. Then I was out, and I’m trying to figure out this whole civilian life. The best I can do is have everything as planned out as possible. I didn’t plan on meeting anyone. And then you crashed into my life and I felt like all I wanted to do was be around you and make you happy. And it scared me that I lost my focus. My control. That quiz literally scared the crap out of me, because someone, you, threw a curveball at me I didn’t see coming. I was so determined to be in full control of everything that I freaked out. Lashed out.”

  “You knew that I wasn’t going to cut you any favors when it came to school. You agreed to the plan. That was the only way we could be together.”

  “I know. Believe me, I know. I acted like such a little kid. I don’t blame you if you don’t want to see me anymore. And if you say go, I will leave you alone. I just hope that you’ll think about it and give me another chance.”

  Sylvie chewed on the inside of her lip. The silence tortured Wade. “So you’re saying you failed your first test?”

  “Was that a teacher joke?”

  Sylvie smiled. “Mhmmm.”

  Wade took a step closer to her as a car drove by them. “So you’re forgiving me?”

  “I mean, you’re still going to have to make it up to me. Maybe a foot rub. Maybe a home-cooked meal. I don’t know, I’m sure I can think of something.”

  “I’m probably going to mess up again.”

  “Again, tell me something I don’t know, Marine.”

  He took another step closer until they were less than a foot apart. He could reach out and touch her. Not that he would, even though he wanted to hold her, kiss her, so badly. He respected her boundaries, and right now they were on her turf. “Did you know that I want to take you out on a proper date? I don’t want to hide our relationship. I want the world to know that you’re smitten on this dumb cowboy. And then after that, I want to take you home and worship your body all
night.”

  “Why wait?” Sylvie gently grabbed his face, leaned up, and kissed him on his lips. It took a couple seconds for Wade to react. He wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her body against his own. He returned the kiss with a hungry passion before coming to his senses and pulling away.

  “Wait, someone might see us.”

  Sylvie bit her lip as she stared up at him. “So?”

  “Boundaries. Rules. All that stuff that got us into this whole mess?”

  “You’re no longer my student. I graded your exam first and turned it in before I left.” Sylvie smiled at him. A wicked gleam filled her eyes.

  “You anticipated this happening?”

  “Honestly? I wanted to be done with you and never be forced to think about you ever again.”

  Wade held his hands over his heart and stumbled backwards. “Ouch!”

  Sylvie reached for him. “But either way, I’m glad I did. Right? What do you say we raincheck that date for tomorrow and skip straight to dessert tonight? All that worshipping stuff sounds much better right now.”

  She didn’t give him time to answer as she kissed him again. Wade wanted to devour her right there in the parking lot, but again he pulled back. “Race you back to your place?”

  Without a word, Sylvie ran to her car and had it in reverse before he could even get his keys out of his pockets. Oh, it was on!

  The End

  About the Author

  A native of Los Angeles, California, Poppy Dubois now splits her time between Southern California and Wyoming with her amazingly patient husband, inquisitive and rambunctious son and two cuddly dogs. When she isn’t dreaming up beautiful romances and happily-ever-afters, she’s busy working as a lawyer. But even then, she’s usually plotting her next story. Shh, don’t tell her clients. In her free time, she’s either playing on social media with her writer friends, kicking butt in a karate dojo, taking pictures of abandon buildings, sitting on the porch with a nice glass of wine, or watching really bad reality TV.

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  Third Time Lucky

  By Chevoque

  Chapter One

  With the late afternoon sun hitting down on Cape Town, Zolyn September took the steps up to the beautiful hotel in Long Street, only to be left a little confused over why her student was living in a hotel. She was simply informed to come by around three o’clock if she didn’t want to lose the opportunity to work with Mr. Elgin’s daughter. The mystery drew her in, but now she wasn’t quite certain she wanted to proceed any further as the luxury seeped out into the street in the form of guests coming and going.

  “Uhm, are you lost?” the guard at the door enquired. He was smartly dressed, and his smile was one of the kindest she had received while in the area.

  “No, actually I was wondering if this is in fact the same building Mr. Elgin redesigned in 2010 that made him so famous.” She recalled, from her research about the family, that he had a lucky break in Long Street and shortly after became a world-renowned interior designer.

  “I get that a lot from tourists, and yes it is, but you’re no tourist, are you?” he stated, clearly knowing how to pick the two apart.

  “No. I’m actually here to teach his kid Afrikaans,” she said, hearing her own accent taking over, stretching out her Rs.

  The guard bared his teeth in disgust.

  “So you don’t like Afrikaans, or is it who I’m dealing with?” she asked, slightly concerned over the guard’s knee-jerk reaction toward the mention.

  “Let’s just say the kid is the best person you’ll meet, but the parents are…less so, especially the mum.” His face continued to show his dislike, and it began looking near comical the longer she stared.

  “It sounds like I’m not the first to take this on,” she enquired.

  He shook his head and made a grunting sound of confirmation.

  “Just great.” Her sarcastic reply had the guard reaching to open the door for her.

  “I didn’t say a thing,” he said, raising his brows but keeping his smile playful. “Good luck. I bet Mrs. Elgin hasn’t faced a Capetonian yet, so this might even be nice to watch from the sidelines.”

  She nodded her head and smiled. “I’ll get back to you on how it ends.”

  “Another warning,” he said, stopping her. “Both parents are here, so expect a fight. Good luck, and I hope you come out alive.” He gave her a more somber smile, probably having the daughter in mind.

  “Thanks, I owe you.” She took a deep breath as he closed the door behind her and left her alone in the opulent hotel’s foyer. “This was a bad idea,” she whispered to herself as the eyes began falling on her.

  “Susan, I told you that I have this under control. We’ve been over this a thousand times; when she’s with me, I have custody, and you are interrupting my time with her,” Ben Elgin said as the frustration began boiling over while he heard the doorbell ring.

  “You already planned to leave her with a damned teacher from one of the most rural schools in the city, just to teach her Afrikaans. It’s a dying language. Just let it go!” Susan spat back at him, and it once more reminded him why they were too different to have ever worked.

  “She’s my daughter as well, and she might never use my native language, but while we’re staying in this country, she’ll be learning to speak as many languages as she can handle. Besides, she asked to be taught because she wants to understand when my mother speaks to her. You can’t take that away from her,” he easily countered, knowing that Kara had always had a great affinity toward languages, and he truly wanted her to at least know how to speak and understand his mother tongue.

  “Daddy!” Kara called as she ran toward him, and he lowered himself to hug her. “Someone’s here. Can I open for them?” Her two bunny ear ponytails wiggled about as she seemed unable to stand still. She added a little hop out of the hug to show her excitement, while the most beautiful gap-tooth smile was shot in his direction.

  “I’ll be right there, princess.” He turned to Susan. “This stops now,” he warned in a louder tone than he wanted to, but Kara was already around the corner and most likely at the door. This was confirmed a second later, when the click of the door sounded, along with the alarm notification on his cell phone.

  “Hello, I’m Kara Elgin. You must be my teacher, Ms. October?” Kara sounded far more enthusiastic than he’d ever be to see a school teacher.

  He muted the security alert on his cell phone while making his way toward the door. Upon seeing the woman he could identify as the teacher his assistant had hired, he cancelled the alert on his phone and pushed it into his pocket.

  Crouched down, she was at Kara’s height with her hand stuck out. “It’s very lovely to meet you, Miss Elgin. I’m actually Ms. September, but close enough.” Her smile was infectious as she quickly looked at him with a smile and a nod of her head before turning her attention back to Kara, who eagerly shook the teacher’s hand and joyfully giggled. “My name, though, is Zolyn, so you may call me that, or Zo, if you want to,” she kindly offered.

  “Oooh, I like Zo!” Kara announced while pulling on Ms. September’s hand. “Come, let me show you my room. It’s not as nice as the one at Mummy’s house, but Daddy tries.”

  He felt the sting hit him hard, and he was certain his flinch hadn’t gone unnoticed by Ms. September. She gave him a sympathetic smile over Kara’s statement.

  Rising from her crouched position, she followed behind Kara. “Mr. Elgin,” she said as a greeting and tucked a strand of kinky hair behind her ear.

  “Daddy, look! She’s my new teacher. She’s pretty, isn’t she?” Kara threw it out into the room but was far too excited to wait for his reply as she all but dragged Ms. September towar
d her room.

  “Ms. September, it’s nice to meet you. I think we’ll talk later,” he called as she was helplessly pulled away, and her easy smile confirmed it was for the best.

  “Mummy, this is Zo! She’s my new teacher.” Kara’s announcement could be heard in the kitchen as she was clearly still heading in her room’s direction.

  “Mrs. Elgin,” he heard Ms. September say when he finally made it around the corner and entered the living area.

  “Charmed, I suppose.” Susan gave a tight-lipped response which didn’t even shake the smile off Ms. September’s lips, and he already liked her a thousand times more.

  “Come,” Kara called again as they made their way into the hallway leading toward the bedrooms.

  Standing next to Susan, while Kara could be heard announcing every corner in her room, he couldn’t help the smile from shaping his lips. “Kind woman for not calling you out for being an asshole,” he said with a pause. “Kara also seems to like her, which is what’s important.” He began walking toward Kara’s room.

  “Zo is my father’s dog’s nickname,” Susan replied with a sigh and added, “You probably only got her as a teacher to teach you some stuff as well.”

  He stopped and shook his head, closed his eyes, and tried to calm himself enough to not let this turn into the fight she clearly wanted. With himself steadied, he said, “Let me know when you leave so I can turn the alarm back on. Oh, and enjoy your week with Pieter.”