The Partnership (Extra Credit Book 1)

by Charlotte Penn Clark

“What else?” His voice is low and his hands sift through my hair.

  “Teach my yoga class out in the quad. The students ask every spring and I always say no because I don’t want anyone watching us. On the next nice Saturday, though, I’ll do it.” I nod emphatically to convince myself.

  “Okay, but those are both weeks away and they’re for professional you. The dancer and teacher. What can you do now for private you?”

  I duck my head. “Ugh. You mean social stuff? Like parties and karaoke?” I invest the words with as much scorn as I can and Kyle laughs.

  “What’s wrong with parties?”

  I try to explain. “The thing is—as a girl. As a young woman,” I correct myself. “You kind of can’t win at parties. Either you go as yourself in your usual clothes with your usual manner and you get no attention. Or you go as some tarted-up male fantasy and you get too much attention.” I consider this. “Getting the right amount of attention is really hard to pull off.”

  Kyle smiles. “I get that. But there’s nothing like…dressed-up you?”

  “Maybe,” I admit reluctantly. “I’d need new clothes for that.”

  “You need new clothes, period.”

  I swat at him, but he ignores me. “And are you implying you already have tarted-up male fantasy outfits?” He sounds so hopeful I crack up.

  “Nah.” I mimic his shrug. “Ow!” He pinched my butt! I glare at him and he grins back. He’s insufferable.

  “So you’ll dress up and come with me to a party sometime. I’ll give you the right amount of attention.” He winks at me then. “Go shopping first!” Yep, insufferable!

  There’s a queasy moment when I wonder again if all this attention is just part of the partnership, that maybe I’m just a project to him. I shut that thought down.

  “But you need something else….” He studies me thoughtfully, which means I get to stare back at him. Which is why I’m kind of distracted when he says, “Publish something.”

  “Hmm?” My eyes are still locked on his mouth and my hands trail down his shoulders over the bunched muscles of his arms. He gives me a little shake.

  “Submit some writing to a contest or a magazine… you know, some English major thing.“

  “Wait, no! I don’t do creative writing, Kyle!” I straighten up and grip the reins again.

  “Then publish un-creative writing. Whatever the other thing is called. You do so write!”

  “Papers. Diaries,” I explain, dubiously.

  “Write for the fucking school paper! We’re an hour from New York City. There’s tons of stuff to review. There must be a ballet company here, right?”

  I nod slowly. There are great ballet companies and visiting performers I can never afford to see. I nod again, decisively.

  “Okay. Deal. But if I get comp tickets to review a ballet you’re coming with me.”

  “To a ballet?” He looks aghast, but I’m not amused.

  “Damn right! What? You’re too macho for ballet?” I shove at his chest. “Let me tell you those guys have to be strong to do those lifts. And they’re not all gay either.”

  He scowls. “You know ignorance is bliss, right?”

  I’m enjoying this, but instead of more teasing Kyle just glances at his watch. “Goddammit, I’m on call tonight. But you look so fucking sexy indignant like that—“ He glares when I burst out laughing.

  “My time is running out.” Again that uneasy feeling creeps back. “And it’s been at least fifteen minutes since I’ve kissed you,“ he growls. Then I’m not laughing any more because his face is so close and his mouth is temptation itself.

  “Kiss me, Lani,” he breathes against my lips, holding back.

  “You’ll go to a ballet with me?” I murmur, aching for him. My hands clench and unclench on his forearms.

  “Yes!”

  With a whimper I close the tiny gap between us and his mouth is heaven, hot and desperate and demanding all over again. We stay out longer than we should, until we finally notice the dark and the cold, then I stumble back to my room, shaking.

  9

  Kyle

  It isn’t til the morning after my uneventful shift, when I wake up dazed and tense and frustrated as hell, that I realize I’m getting obsessed with that girl, my partner, and this thing is running me ragged.

  Also, the end of senior year of high school was a free ride. No one assigned us shit. But here in college they don’t seem to have gotten that memo and my last two months of school are riddled with deadlines. I’ve got presentations to finish and papers to write…. Even though I always avoid classes with writing, I can’t get out of them all. In addition to the college comp class I’ve got several lab reports to finish—and I still need to put my plans for next year in motion.

  The next week runs by in a haze of sleepless nights and stressed out days. My brain is churning about graduation and my body is screaming for Lani. She’s like the soundtrack that follows me around the movie of my life. Always there in the background, behind everything. We haven’t talked about what this is. We haven’t named it but we text constantly and run into each other everywhere. It’s a small campus but it’s also hard not to assume that the universe is moving inexorably to push us together. Inexorably: that’s Lani rubbing off on me (ha! insert dirty joke here).

  When the weather is mild enough we spend evenings in the quad, but our paths cross during the day too. Her dance studio is near the gym and we’ve taken to lingering on the way in and out of the buildings, waiting for each other. I ran into her once accidentally in the library and ten minutes later a librarian was scolding us for “inappropriate behavior.” I looked down at Lani’s flushed face, worried that she’d be embarrassed but she looked as completely out of it as I felt. I’d be crowing about that except that when she’s so into it I get more into it and then she gets more into it—and there we go. Swept a-fucking-way.

  The worst, really, is that class we have together. Wednesdays roll around and we have to sit side by side, without touching, for—wait for it—an hour and fifteen minutes! I try to keep my eyes off her, but I seem to know whenever she’s biting her lip or squirming in her chair. I imagine her wet and wanting me and I get hard and it’s agony. And super hot. I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever had sex as good as the sex I’m not having with Lani.

  I try to explain that to her one night. We are in the quad and we’re going at it hot and heavy when she rubs up against me, all soft and…slinky. I may still not have seen her body, but she feels fantastic.

  “Isn’t this a problem?” she asks, her voice all husky. “All this foreplay?”

  “In the very best way,” I groan against her neck. She’s standing between my legs and pressed up against me as I lean back against a tree. We were heading for our bench, but then…we got sidetracked.

  “Are blue balls really a thing?”

  I snort-laugh. “Yeah, they’re really a thing.” She’s hilarious sometimes.

  She leans back, chewing her lip now and looking anxious. “But…you’re okay?”

  “What do you mean? Are you afraid I’m going to spontaneously combust or something?” I’m really laughing now.

  She smiles too then. “It’s occurred to me.” She pauses. “I mean. I don’t know….It’s intense, isn’t it? I’ve never been so turned on like this, all the time. So if it’s tough for me, isn’t it worse for you?”

  I brush some dark hair away from her upturned face, stalling because I don’t know where to start. I’m turned on that she’s so turned on. I’m moved that she’s worried about me. I want to reassure her. I want to fuck her.

  “It’s intense,” I agree slowly. “But it’s good intense. Amazing intense. Not bad intense. Yes, I’m always fucking frustrated and jerking off doesn’t even help. But it’s the weirdest thing,” I say awkwardly because I don’t understand it and I really don’t want to jinx it. “It’s still better than any sex I’ve ever had.”

  She stares at me without saying a word and I start to have an uneasy sense
that maybe I said too much. Was that too sincere? Are we still pretending we’re just partners? Maybe she’ll laugh--I open my mouth to scramble backward when she puts a finger on my lips.

  “Me too,” she whispers.

  I exhale, sagging in relief. That was fucking close! “Wait—“ I straighten again. “Me too which part? Me too jerking off doesn’t help? Because you gotta tell me if you’re jerking off, Lani. That would give me something to work with.” I watch her, expecting a blush, but she surprises me. As usual.

  “Of course I jerk off! You know exactly what this feels like, Kyle! I’m like a ticking time bomb.”

  I’d tease her but I’m too turned on. “Tell. Me. Everything,” I command, waiting hungrily for her next sentence.

  She laughs and pulls away. “Not here. Not now. Not when we can’t do anything about it.” She shoots me a flirtatious look through her lashes. “Sometime I’ll show you.”

  Jesus Christ! This girl!

  “Who are you?” I say, in awe. “And when?” I add quickly.

  She lights up with laughter and it’s fucking beautiful. She’s fucking beautiful. Her face is tilted up to mine in the dark and those golden eyes seem to glow. My brains are scrambled. What are we waiting for again? I realize I have no idea what her experience with guys has been like. She’s never mentioned any. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad.

  “You’re not…uh…a virgin, are you?” I wince at the words as I say them.

  She shakes her head solemnly, a small smile on her face like she’s keeping a secret from me.

  “Are you?” she asks, still with that solemn expression.

  “Wha? No….” She’s fucking with me.

  She nods, still serious. “Good to know I won’t have to teach you anything.”

  “Oh, screw you!” I drop a quick kiss on her sweet mouth and she draws me back in.

  “Kyle,” she says softly, as we’re trying to disentangle ourselves to go home. “Do you think sex will be disappointing after all this build up?” She looks at me earnestly.

  “You’re not a dude under all those skirts, are you?”

  “Don’t say that. It’s transphobic.”

  And that’s another thing I like about Lani. She teaches me stuff. Huh.

  “I didn’t mean to be. I just meant to say that I think we’re good.” Then we both break into goofy smiles.

  I wake up the next morning and it’s Saturday and the sun is shining and I’m in love with…the world. I’ve got nowhere to be and nothing pressing to do and the day stretches out ahead of me, naked on a bed. Okay, I’m always thinking about sex, but I’m content too. I’m hung up on Lani, but it feels manageable because whatever this is we’re in it together and the suspense is—pleasurable. I roll out of bed and throw on some sweatpants and a tee shirt, eager to go for a run because it’s finally feeling like spring. Outside the birds are chirping and the air is deliciously mild and I wonder what Lani is doing right now….

  Holy shit! I sprint over to the quad and skid to a halt when I see the yoga class out on the lawn. Then I move forward more cautiously, unable to believe my eyes. Some fifteen students have their butts in the air and I’d be snickering except I’m too focused on Lani, who is wandering among the mats stretched out on the lawn, making comments and counting slowly out loud. She’s pulled her hair into a high ponytail that swishes as she moves and she’s wearing these stretchy cropped pants that show off her long toned legs and her perfect ass. She moves to the front of the group, folding over and then rolling up to demonstrate something, but all I can see are her tits, which are high and perky and clearly defined in a tight cropped top. She raises her arms over her head and her tits shift and her long neck lengthens and I have to stifle a groan.

  I keep my distance and watch her greedily as she turns and twists, stretches and bends. My mouth hangs open. She has a fucking belly ring and a tattoo on her lower back…. Really?

  Her movements are slow and graceful and confident. I’d never know she wasn’t perfectly comfortable teaching this class in front of…oh hell, no! I tear my eyes from Lani and there are in fact lots of people standing around, crossing the quad, or talking on benches—and checking out her body.

  I grit my teeth and curse myself for a fool that I didn’t see how it was going to play out when she stepped into a spotlight. Everyone would see how beautiful she is. Everyone would want to sleep with her. Everyone would know how cool and funny and smart she is. She wouldn’t be my secret any more. Not now. Not after this display of tantalizing golden skin and irresistible curves….

  My good mood is fading fast and frustration is spreading in its place. When Lani scans her group and sees me she smiles brightly, but I scowl back. She hesitates before resuming her directions to the class. I catch her glancing at me occasionally as she finishes up, but I just steep in my misery while I watch her bend and straighten, exuding calm and grace. When the students start dispersing I head toward her, feeling out of control. I realize then how (relatively) calm I’ve been since the semester began—I’ve had fewer struggles with my usual tidal furies. Maybe that’s been Lani’s influence, but now the tide has shifted again and I feel helpless against the current.

  “What’s the matter, Kyle?” She says as soon as I’m near. She swipes a cloth over her neck and my eyes are drawn downward. I scan her perfect fucking body before I answer and feel her response like a kick to the groin. Her breathing hitches. Her nipples tighten and I can see them.

  I drag in a deep breath. “You’ve been hiding all this,” I grind out impatiently, waving a hand over her, “under a bushel all this time? What the fuck, Lani?”

  She looks bewildered and takes a step back, grabbing a tunic-y thing to pull over her top. “What are you talking about? I’m proud of myself for doing this class outdoors. You know it was a challenge for me. And now you’re acting like a jerk.”

  I know I am, but I can’t stop myself. I lean in, but I’m careful not to touch her. Her nearness and near-nakedness is already torturing me. I’m filled with caveman impulses like dragging her by the ponytail off to the nearest bed so I can explore this newly-revealed body in all its newly-revealed perfection and then bury myself inside her.

  I shake my head at her. “I can’t do this any more. I’ve officially crossed over into the red zone. I can’t keep just kissing you when I know all this is under those wraps!”

  Her eyes blaze up. “What the fuck, Kyle,” she mimics me. “If you’re talking about my body it’s not something I hid from you! Not everything is about you, asshole. Teaching this class today, in fact, was about me and you’re twisting it—“

  She’s shouting at me now and if I weren’t so overrun by these feelings—frustration, jealousy, fear, desire,…frustration—I might be impressed that she is standing up to me in the middle of the quad with a growing audience. I can’t really hear what she’s saying though because my brain can only process her heaving chest and those fiery eyes and the little voice that says, “She’ll have choices now. Why would she choose you?”

  “We….” I make a circle between us with one finger. “…can’t just be partners any more.” I pull off my shirt in one swift move because I’m a guy and I can.

  “Wha…what are you doing?” Her voice sounds strangled and I can feel her eyes on my body.

  “Going for a run. Such mild weather! Who needs clothes?” I smirk at her because I can see her desire for me too. I’ve spent many nights kissing this girl into delirium and I know when she’s turned on.

  “No more pretending, Lani,” I say quietly. “You come to me when you’re ready. You know where to find me.” With that I turn away and jog off.

  “Fuck you!” she shouts after me. In front of the whole quad! I want to gloat, but I’m practically shaking with tension. And I’m starting to wonder if I didn’t make everything a hell of a lot worse.

  10

  Lani

  Yoga is great for stress management, lowering blood pressure, releasing endorphins…but after that sce
ne with Kyle any physical benefits I got from class have entirely evaporated. I’m seething and tear-my-hair-out wild. I practically rip my mat in half trying to roll it up and then I storm over to the coffee house. After yoga and dancing, tea is my most reliable go-to for calm. I catch a few startled glances and give them all stink-eye back. Fuck them!

  “What was that all about?” Annika asks me when I’m looking around for a table. She’s already seated with coffee and gestures toward a chair.

  “You saw?” I sink into the chair, deflating.

  “And heard. As did everyone else within half a kilometer, I think. It didn’t make much sense though.” She sips her coffee, eyeing me thoughtfully. I re-run the scene in my head and I can’t really make sense of it either.

  “I don’t know,” I start, feeling miserable all of a sudden. I gulp some tea, hoping it will help, but I keep churning inside.

  “You should just sleep with him, Lani,” she says in a low, confidential voice. My eyes dart to hers in surprise, but she looks sympathetic. “You two are spinned up too high.” She shakes her head and I’m too spun up even to correct her English.

  “I know! The red zone, Kyle called it.” I gaze into my mug, remembering the desperation in his voice, the heat in his eyes. And all those beautiful muscles….

  “I guess I knew that’s where we were headed—but now he’s thrown down a gauntlet and I don’t want him to win.” That’s really my bind. I understand that he threw a stupid tantrum, and I want him desperately so I want to forgive him, but I don’t want to give in to him when he’s being a jackass. And I don’t know what this is anyway! I want to wail.

  “Yeah, well…. Good luck with that,” Annika sighs. She gives me a small smile and I realize we’re kind of friends now. I relax a little.

  “Any advice?” I ask hopefully.

  She laughs and shakes her head. “No clue! I’m the last person to give relationship advice.” She sounds a little forlorn so I reach out to squeeze her hand. She looks around the room and whispers. “Everyone’s curious about you, Lani!”