Temptation (The Hunted Series Book 1)

by Ivy Smoak

  He groaned softly and pulled out of me, leaving an empty feeling between my thighs. I heard him zip his pants and I rose from his desk and turned around.

  He knelt down in front of me and kissed each of my hip bones. There were red lines on my flesh from the pressure of being fucked hard against his desk. I swallowed hard and watched him as he pulled my thong and pants back up. He placed another kiss on each of my hip bones.

  "I'll be by your place at eight."

  "What?" I couldn't think clearly. I had no idea what he was talking about. But I wasn't going to protest, I wanted to see him as much as possible.

  "To meet Melissa, remember?" He stood and placed his hand gently on my cheek. "That's tonight, right? I'll bring dessert."

  "Oh."

  "Brownies or something, Penny." He traced my lips with his thumb. "Not me this time."

  I smiled. "Sorry, I'm having a hard time thinking straight."

  Professor Hunter smiled back at me. "I don't think I'll ever get enough of you," he whispered.

  I looked longingly into his eyes. "I know that I'll never get enough of you." I loved him. There was no doubt in my mind. I loved him so much.

  Chapter 50

  Wednesday

  Last time Professor Hunter had been here I hadn't known he was coming. So I wanted to make sure my dorm room looked better this time. I grabbed the last piece of clothing on the ground and tossed it in my hamper.

  "Geez, hasn't he been here before?" Melissa was watching me.

  "Yeah, but I don't want him to think I'm messy."

  "But you are messy."

  I put the bottle of Windex down on my bureau. "I guess you're right."

  "Is there anything else I should know?"

  "About Pro...I mean, James?"

  "Ew, do you call him Professor Hunter?"

  "No," I lied. I could feel my face turning crimson.

  "You're so weird."

  "Melissa, please don't embarrass me."

  "I promise that I'm not on a mission to embarrass you. But I do have some questions for him. If I happen to mortify you along the way..."

  "Melissa."

  "I'll be on my best behavior." She lifted her hands in the air, pretending to surrender.

  I didn't believe her for a second. My phone buzzed and my stomach rose to my chest. I grabbed it and read his text. "He's here."

  "So go let him in." Melissa crossed her legs on her bed.

  I gave her one last pleading look and went to go let Professor Hunter in. I opened the back door to our building. He was standing there in a leather jacket, jeans, and a t-shirt. He truly looked like a college student, the most handsome college student in existence. It had started to rain, which made his hair glisten. He stepped inside and kissed me.

  "Penny," he whispered.

  "James," I said breathlessly. My knees felt like jelly.

  "Is she excited to meet me?"

  "I think so."

  "You don't seem very confident." He had a playful grin on his face.

  "It's just that she can be kind of intense. Please just remember how much I like you."

  "I'm sure it won't be that bad. I brought brownies." He held up a pan covered with aluminum foil. Brownies were second only to condoms on my list of favorite things that come in foil.

  "I'd rather have you." I was feeling bold, a feeling I knew would disappear as soon as we walked into my dorm room.

  "Maybe later. Right now, I promised to meet your friend." He pulled back and put his hand out for me. I let him lead the way up the stairs to my room. I took a deep breath as I opened the door.

  "So you're the elusive Professor Hunter?" Melissa asked.

  I closed the door behind us, hoping that no one on our floor had heard her.

  Professor Hunter gave Melissa a charming smile. "Please, call me James. And you must be Melissa." Professor Hunter put out his hand for Melissa to shake.

  Melissa hesitated a moment too long and then shook his hand. She was being awful on purpose. Letting them meet was looking like a terrible idea already.

  "I brought brownies." Professor Hunter lifted the pan in the air.

  "Yum! Did you bake them yourself?" Melissa asked.

  Professor Hunter paused. "No. I doubt they'd be edible if I had."

  "You don't cook?"

  "Not very often." Professor Hunter scratched the back of his neck. He looked so uncomfortable. I wound my arm around his.

  "He has a personal chef," I offered. Could this be any more awkward? Melissa was going to spend the whole night rapid firing questions at him.

  "Very fancy," Melissa said. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "It's strange, I never pictured a professor in our dorm room."

  "I never pictured myself in a student's room either. It just happened."

  Melissa smiled. "So, tell me about yourself."

  "Well, I grew up in New York. I lived there my whole life until I moved here last year. I'm sorry, what is it that you want to know exactly? Something specific?"

  "Where did you go to school?"

  "Can I sit down?" He gave me a smile. He was handling himself well, despite Melissa's onslaught.

  "Yes," I said. But I was curious to know where he went to school too. I had never asked him about that before. I pulled out my desk chair for him. Professor Hunter took off his jacket, put it on the back of the chair, and sat down. I jumped onto my bed and sat Indian style.

  "I went to Harvard." Harvard, wow.

  "Your parents are wealthy then?" Melissa asked.

  "My parents are wealthy, but I had a scholarship to Harvard."

  "Impressive."

  "Thank you."

  "But even so, you're very handsome and your parents are wealthy. Most things in your life must have been handed to you."

  A flash of anger crossed Professor Hunter's face. He took a deep breath. "In some regards, yes. Many things that were handed to me I didn't want though. I owe my success to myself, not my family. Do you have another question for me?"

  "Well there's one main one. Why is it that you want to date students?" Melissa wasn't backing down.

  "I don't want to date students." He emphasized the plural. "You seem to have gotten the wrong idea about me. I just want to date Penny."

  "So you have never dated any students besides Penny?"

  "No, I have not."

  "Can you really even date someone if you're married?"

  Professor Hunter looked at me. He was surprised that Melissa knew that. Was he mad at me for telling her? I couldn't tell from his expression. Maybe he looked a little hurt. I didn't realize telling Melissa would betray his confidence. My stomach churned uneasily. He turned back to Melissa. "I'm getting divorced."

  "But you're technically still married."

  "Melissa, my soon to be ex-wife has been cheating on me for almost as long as we were together. As far as I'm concerned, we are no longer married."

  Melissa was quiet for a moment. "I'm sorry about your wife. But you are still married. How much longer will your divorce take?"

  I was silently thanking Melissa. She was asking him questions that I didn't have the confidence to. And for some reason, Professor Hunter was answering her questions without hesitation.

  "I honestly don't know. I thought she would have signed the papers by now. I've given her everything she wants."

  "It seems wrong to pursue a relationship in that situation."

  "I have to disagree. There hasn't been anything that's felt so right in my life."

  "It may feel right, but there are consequences. Won't you get fired if someone finds out about you and Penny?"

  "Not necessarily."

  Watching Melissa and him talk was like watching a ping pong tournament.

  "But aren't you thinking about Penny too? If this gets out, no one will believe the grades you've given her. No one will see her as just another student. Even other professors will question her grades. I know that she's just with you, but people may think she's been with other professo
rs too. Her whole college career will be in jeopardy. You may be fine with getting fired, but she still has to go to school here."

  I hadn't really thought of that. Will I really be seen differently?

  "I think that Penny can make her own choices." He looked over at me. "I've thought about all the possibilities. And I'm willing to risk it as long as she is."

  "I am." I smiled at Professor Hunter. I was all in. The future didn't matter right now. For the first time I wasn't worried about what might happen. I was enjoying right now. But I'd be lying if I didn't see a future between us. I couldn't imagine my life without him.

  "And you aren't at all concerned about your age difference?" Melissa continued.

  Shit. I had been so caught up in everything that I had somehow forgotten about my own secret. Would Professor Hunter even want to be with me after I told him the truth? I bit my lip.

  "No, it doesn't concern me." He paused. "How about we have those brownies?" Professor Hunter suggested.

  "Why, because chocolate makes all women's problems go away?" Melissa scoffed.

  "I'm just hungry." Professor Hunter shifted in his chair. "What are you majoring in anyway, criminal justice?"

  "I'll get plates." I hopped off the bed and found some paper plates from the closet. I pulled the tinfoil off the pan.

  Melissa stared at him. "No, political science."

  "Do you want to be a lawyer?"

  "This isn't really about me, James, it's about you."

  "I was under the impression that we were supposed to get to know each other tonight."

  "Yes, I want to be a lawyer. Now back to you. I find it hard to believe that you can't find someone to date that's your own age." Melissa was being relentless.

  "The only person I want to date is Penny. I don't know what else I can say to make you believe me."

  Melissa sighed. "Okay."

  "Okay?"

  "I believe you. I'm sorry about all the questions. I'm just looking out for Penny. Dating a professor just isn't like her."

  I froze as I was cutting the brownies. Please don't say I'm a future cat lady!

  "I would hope not," Professor Hunter said.

  "That's a little hypocritical."

  "Then I guess I'm a hypocrite." He smiled at me.

  My body relaxed. It always did when his gaze was on me. I finished cutting the brownies and handed them out.

  "These are really good," Melissa said sweetly. I relaxed even more. Maybe her onslaught was finally done.

  "I'll pass on your compliments." Professor Hunter put his half eaten brownie down on the plate. "So, if Penny isn't the type of girl who dates a professor, what type of girl is she exactly?"

  Melissa laughed. "The type of girl who likes to stay in on a Saturday night. She doesn't break the rules. I mean, I thought she was joking when she told me she was dating you."

  "I break the rules sometimes." It was weird just sitting there watching them talk about me.

  "No you don't. You're ridiculously straight laced. I basically have to drag you out of the dorm on weekends."

  Professor Hunter laughed. He put down his plate, stood up, and sat down on the bed next to me. The tension in the room seemed to completely evaporate once he put his arm around me. He wasn't a professor in our room anymore; he was my boyfriend. I was the luckiest girl in the world.

  Melissa smiled at us. "Going from taking no risks to dating a professor is a huge leap. I didn't really understand it. But seeing you two together..." Melissa shrugged. "I get it."

  "Well I'm glad we have your approval. Your opinion seems to be very important to Penny, and therefore important to me."

  "And I promise not to tell anyone. Your secret is safe with me."

  "Thank you, Melissa."

  "And let me officially invite you to our birthday party. I'm sure Penny has already told you about it."

  "Actually, she hasn't invited me yet." Professor Hunter smiled at me. "Or mentioned it at all."

  Melissa laughed. "Well, normally I guess you couldn't come. But since it's going to be close to Halloween we're having a costume party. So as long as you wear a good costume, I think it'll be okay."

  Professor Hunter flashed me a smile. "I wouldn't miss it."

  My stomach was in knots. I needed to tell him that I was only 19. Now I was afraid that I had waited too long. The lie seemed worse and worse the longer I waited.

  "Can I come over to your place for a bit?" I asked Professor Hunter. I would tell him tonight, no matter what.

  He rubbed my back. "Of course."

  "I'm sorry, I just have one more thing to say before you go."

  "Melissa," I pleaded.

  "No, it's okay," Professor Hunter interjected. "What is it?"

  "You better not hurt her."

  "I won't."

  "Well, you already have. So your word is hard to believe. I've never seen Penny act the way she did this past week. And you two may have forgotten about that, but I haven't."

  "That was just a misunderstanding."

  "Maybe if you're more upfront about your baggage, things like that won't happen."

  "I won't hurt her," Professor Hunter repeated. For the first time he looked truly angry. I held my breath.

  "That's all I can ask." Melissa finished her brownie. "You two are cute together."

  Professor Hunter looked down at me. "It's getting late. If you wanted to come over for awhile, we better get going." He got off my bed and put on his jacket.

  I slid off the bed and put our plates in the trash.

  "Penny, can I talk to you for a second?" Melissa asked.

  "I'll pull the car around," James said. He extended his hand to Melissa. "It was...interesting to meet you, Melissa."

  "Good choice of words. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." Melissa shook his hand.

  "Looking out for your friends is a good quality to have. I hope to see you again soon. You're going to make a good lawyer."

  It looked like his words made Melissa blush. So his charm did extend to everyone. Professor Hunter walked out the door, leaving the two of us alone.

  As soon as the door closed I turned to Melissa. "You promised you'd be on your best behavior. What the hell was that?"

  "I'm sorry, Penny. I didn't mean to lie. I just had so many questions for him."

  I sighed. "So, what did you think?"

  "He's very handsome. So handsome. And he seems nice."

  "Stop being vague. Tell me what you really think."

  "Penny, I don't know what it is exactly, but I don't trust him."

  "He answered all your millions of questions. What else could you possibly need to know?"

  "It just seems like he's hiding something. I don't know how to explain it. Penny, I want you to be happy."

  "I am."

  "Just be careful, okay?" She reached over and squeezed my hand. Her concern made me slightly uneasy. Maybe he was hiding something else.

  Chapter 51

  Wednesday

  Professor Hunter's was waiting for me when I walked out of my dorm. He was leaning against the car with his arms crossed. It was still drizzling, but he didn't seem to notice. He looked angry. But when I reached him, he smiled and opened up the door for me. I climbed in and he shut the door behind me. I buckled my seat belt as I watched him walk around the car to the driver's side. He got in and we immediately sped off. His silence was unnerving.

  "I'm sorry about all of Melissa's questions."

  "It's okay."

  He looked straight ahead at the road. He was gripping the wheel so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.

  "It doesn't seem like it's okay."

  "When I told you to tell her about me, I thought you were just going to say that I was your professor."

  "I thought I was allowed to tell her everything? She would have asked questions if I didn't tell her what our fight was about."

  "You should have asked me if it was okay."

  "I'm sorry."

  "I like to keep my
personal life private, Penny."

  "I know. Even from me." I folded my arms across my chest and looked out the window. We were pulling up to his apartment building. I was already suspicious that he was hiding things from me. And now Melissa's words haunted me too. The car circled the garage and Professor Hunter parked it with ease between his assortment of other cars. He cut the ignition and got out of the car. I pushed my door open without waiting for him.

  He grabbed my hand and walked quickly toward the elevator, pulling me with him. Why did I find him so sexy when he was angry and demanding? He slid his access card in the reader and the doors opened. He pulled me inside.

  "I said that I was sorry. I should have asked you."

  "It's not just that."

  "Then what is it?"

  "Your friend hates me. She didn't even give me a chance. I think that maybe it's because she has someone else in mind for you."

  "She doesn't."

  "So, she dislikes Tyler too?"

  "This has nothing to do with Tyler. She's just looking out for me."

  "I don't think that's true."

  "Stop!" I lightly pushed his chest.

  He grabbed my hand. His eyes were ablaze as he stared down at me. He pushed my back against the elevator wall and lifted my hands above my head. Desire exploded through my body. His kiss was possessive and intense, leaving my whole body wanting. Every inch of me felt alive. His erection pressed against my thigh, growing with every second. When the door dinged open, he pulled away.

  "Oh God."

  He smiled at me. I blushed. I hadn't meant to say that out loud.

  Professor Hunter tossed his jacket on the floor and pulled off his t-shirt. "You have a way of crawling under my skin."

  "I don't mean to."

  "Yes, you do."

  "Professor Hunter, I need to talk to you."

  "I don't want to talk." He walked over to me and pushed my shirt up the sides of my torso. There was only one thing on his mind. And I wanted it too.

  But I needed to be strong. If I didn't tell him now, it would just get worse and worse. "But I have something important to tell you."

  He pulled my shirt the rest of the way off. "It can wait." His lips were on mine and the rest of my resolve dissolved with his kiss. It had the same intensity as our kiss in the elevator.