NICOLE
I was literally a nervous wreck ever since leaving Senior Lit class. I hadn’t known the professor’s first name when I registered, nor had I ever thought to ask Callum his last name. I’d assumed he was a college student, and he never said anything to make me think otherwise. I was wrong though, and nearly panicked when I looked into his face. The only comforting factor was that he seemed as genuinely surprised to see me. Well, surprised might not have been the right word. He looked almost stricken, or was that me projecting my feelings onto him? It didn’t matter. I now had no idea what I was going to do.
My thoughts were preoccupied all the way to my marketing class, and pretty much all the way through it. I was now wracked with the same indecent thoughts I had been the night before when in the tub. His voice throughout class made me shiver on more than one occasion, especially when all I could think about was his voice in my ear as he pushed inside of me. Callum was hands down the best lover I’d ever had, and while I’d hoped to put the sex we had in Costa Rica behind me and possibly meet someone else here in Chicago, that well-laid plan was now shot to hell.
I might not be able to have sex with him again, but it didn’t mean those memories would disappear so easily. I had a feeling I’d be getting much use out of my toys at home once I found the box I’d stashed them in.
God, he was so hot!
I knew deep down that it was wrong to have the hots for my teacher. It didn’t matter though because the forbidden nature made him even sexier to me, and he hadn’t even needed the additional help. He was sex on a stick, and unfortunately, one I would never get to have again.
“I’m so cursed,” I mumbled under my breath. A classmate nearby looked over at me with concern and I smiled at the girl. “My pencil broke,” I lied, and she offered me hers which I declined.
She gave me a slight shrug, then turned her attention back to the teacher who was now issuing his assignment for us. “And I expect it to be turned in on Friday.”
Friday? It was Wednesday, and I wasn’t even paying attention so I had no idea what I needed to do. I almost felt like breaking out into tears. This morning was supposed to have been a great one. I was finally out of my father’s shadow, and even though I was living in my uncle’s penthouse, he was in New York City so I was essentially out of his, too. I was supposed to be embarking on this new adventure, but so far it was turning out to be a nightmare.
This morning, I’d been rushing to get ready when I’d gotten a call from California. I just knew it had been the one I’d been dreading since hearing the news about my mother’s cancer. Something had to have happened for them to be calling so early. It was about four thirty in the morning in Los Angeles. I answered my mother’s number and nearly fell over in relief when it was just her and the silly photo taking. She’d made me take about twenty pictures and send them all to her, before also imparting her first day of school advice. While her soliloquy was long and poetic, my father’s had been simple.
“Kick some ass, Nicole,” he’d told me, and now the only ass I wanted to kick was my own.
I was jolted out of my period of self-loathing when the bell rang signaling the end of this class. I was about to ask the girl next to me about the assignment, but she seemed to be in a hurry. I had to figure out what I missed, and glancing over at the teacher, his stern expression let me know that he wasn’t the right one to ask. I grabbed my things, and when I saw another student lingering, I plastered on a smile and walked over to him.
“Hello, My name’s Nicole and I—”
“Nicole Courtland?” the guy asked as he turned around.
“How did you know my name?” My own curiosity was piqued at this point.
“I’m Travis Harrison. We have Senior Lit together. I—”
I thought back to my previous class and I did remember him sitting a few seats down from me. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry. It’s been one of those mornings for me.”
“I’m sure the day will get better,” he assured me before hefting his book bag over his shoulder. “Do you happen to have Trig with Professor Baldwin next?”
“Trig?” I asked, then quickly shook my head. “No, I have study hall.”
“That’s a shame,” he replied.
“Why?”
“We had the first two classes together, and I’ve always heard the third of anything is the charm. ”
I smiled at his boyish grin. “I think I might’ve heard that a time or two before. Umm...” I didn’t know how to come out and tell him that I’d been daydreaming over our other professor, and that I didn’t know what the assignment we needed to do was, so I just stuck to this class. “I didn’t catch everything Professor Jones was saying. Would you happen to have the details on what we need to have done by Friday?”
“Yes, of course. Let me see your phone.”
“Pardon—”
“I can put your number in mine so I can send you a link.”
I felt like such a moron in that moment. I was misreading everything and making a complete fool out of myself. I was on edge because of Callum, especially knowing he’d be expecting me any minute. I was anxious about being alone with him and for good reason. All I had to do was think back to what had happened the one and only time that I’d been alone with him. I walked away with an undeniable ache between my thighs and an overwhelming sense of satiation I had never gotten from anyone else.
“Here,” I thrust my cellphone toward him after unlocking the screen.
He quickly fired off a text which I heard come through on his end. “I have to get to class, but I have study hall right afterward. I’ll send you the information then.”
“Thank you so much,” I told him, then retrieved my phone and stuck it in my book bag. “I truly appreciate it.”
“Not a problem. I’m glad to have been able to help.” I smiled one last time, then turned to leave. “It was nice meeting you, Nicole.”
I looked at him over my shoulder. “It’s nice meeting you, too.”
I left the classroom and exited the building. A slight frisson of dread washed over me as I headed back toward Callum’s classroom. At first, I thought having back to back classes in neighboring buildings was a great thing, but as my steps slowed to a near crawl, I realized it might not have been so great after all.
“ I need to see you in my office, Miss Courtland ,” he ‘d said, and now the low tone he used had a total body shiver wracking my spine.
He’d called me a few things that night, but never Miss Courtland. It sounded so professional, and it let me know immediately where the two of us stood. He would likely ask me to keep our one night stand to myself, and possibly even ask me to transfer to avoid any potential conflict of interest down the road. It was for the best that I do both, but even knowing that filled me with a small amount of hurt.
I reentered the building and walked down to his classroom. When I stepped inside, no one was there. I wasn’t sure if he had stepped out for a minute, so I decided to go inside and wait for him. My palms were slightly sweaty as a fine sheen of perspiration now covered me. I was incredibly nervous. I set my bag down on top of the table and held onto the back of the chair to steady myself. I stood there for several minutes before grabbing my bag to leave. Before I even made it to the door, I heard his voice and winced.
“Miss Courtland, come with me.”
He’d asked me to come for him, and more than once, but never to the back that one night in Costa Rica. Well, maybe he had asked me to go upstairs with him. I shook that silly memory away because he was certainly not calling me back to his office so we could repeat what we’d already done. While in my other class, I’d figured out what he needed to see me about, so I was prepared.
I followed him into the back and once inside the confines of his office, I saw his degree from Yale, as well as one from the University of Chicago where we currently were. There were also pictures of him, and other men who were just as hot as he was. God, I was so screwed. I forced my gaze to leave those and I turned fully to him. I dropped my bag onto the floor and when I looked up, his piercing blue eyes were focused on me. I hadn’t even realized what color they were that night, but now I couldn’t unsee them.
“Y-you wanted to see me?” I stammered.
“You told me that you went to school in California. Was that a deliberate lie?”
I was taken aback immediately. I hadn’t really expected him to suggest that we pick up where we’d left off, but I had expected some civility from him. Maybe, I had even expected some niceties, but he cut straight to the chase and offended me in the process.
“Lie? I had no reason to do that.” I squared my shoulders. There was something off with his energy, and it was putting me on guard. The accusatory glare he kept flashing at me was beginning to make me angry.
“Let me guess, you recognized me from the society pages back during ayahuasca, and maybe even saw me on campus last year. You decided Costa Rica was the perfect place to trap me—”
“Why would I do that?” I interrupted. If I had recalled correctly, Callum had come on to me first.
“You recognized me as a Titan, and—”
“You’re a Titan?” I asked. I knew exactly what one was, especially when mentioned in the same breath as high society. Hell, I was a belle of high society in Los Angeles.
“So you do know what one is which leads me back to my original question. Was the talk about you going to college in California all a lie?”
I didn’t owe anyone an explanation, especially not him, but I muttered my response anyway. “No, I just transferred from Stanford. ”
“I don’t believe you,” he responded, and it sent my ire rising.
“I don’t give a damn what you believe. I—”
“What do you know about the Titans?”
I looked at him as if he even needed to ask. If he was what he claimed to be, he had to know the Courtland name. As he stood there in a defensive stance, his impatience was shining bright and clear.
“My father’s one in Los Angeles, and my uncle is one in Man—”
“Manhattan?” he said, then actually looked stricken once more. “Jonas Courtland is your uncle?”
Okay, so maybe he was well aware now of my familial heritage. “Yes, and I’m here to finish my degree. I didn’t even know you were a teacher. I assumed you were a student like me.”
It was still hard to believe because he didn’t look much older than me at all. He also didn’t strike me as the type of man my father and uncle were, but a quick glance over at some of the pictures on the wall, it all was crystal clear now. In most, he was at some black tie event wearing a tuxedo, and I had to admit, he looked even hotter in one. I shook my head at my own stupidity. This man had been rude and called me a liar, yet here I was practically drooling over pictures of him.
“We can’t do what we did in Costa Rica again. In fact, we can’t speak about it, either. Continuing on with it would be highly unprofessional, and I have a career to think about.”
My mouth dropped open slightly before I closed it. He thought I was in his class so we could end up in bed together again. While the thought wasn’t so unappealing a few seconds ago, it was now.
“I didn’t even know your last name. We, ahh, didn’t exchange too much information about one another because we were busy doing other things. ”
I saw something flare in his eyes, and another shiver overtook me. “I’m going to need you to transfer out of my class. I don’t want to see you every morning, and—"
“I was lucky to get into this class, which is a requirement of graduation, so no I will not just drop it and risk the possibility of not completing my degree.” I was still standing tall. I might not be a Titan myself, but I was raised to back down to no one, including men who shared the same power as my father and uncle.
“In light of what happened between us, this is wholly inappropriate to remain in my class. I’m sorry, but if you won’t remove yourself voluntarily, I’ll have you taken out of here myself.”
I knew what he said was no idle threat either. Titans were used to getting what they wanted, when they wanted it. I knew he didn’t want me in his bed, but I would be damned if I let him remove me from his class because he couldn’t forget me any more than I could forget about him.
“If you can’t keep things professional, then that sounds like a personal problem, and not one I wish to concern myself with. You’re the one with the issues. Not me, and certainly not this non-existent ‘us.’ I’m not removing myself, and if you dare to try, I’ll bring the wrath of the entire Courtland family down on you and this University.” I was practically shaking, but I stayed resolute.
He growled, and even it made me feel a certain sort of way. I waited for him to say something, and when he just stood there scowling, I reached down for my bag. “This isn’t over by a long shot,” he finally said.
I smiled at him. “It was over after the seventh orgasm in Costa Rica. It was over when I did the walk of shame to the taxicab from your beach house. And, I can positively guarantee you that if there was ever any doubt about how final it was, there is no more. The moment I realized you were my teacher, it was not only over, but dead and buried. You have nothing to worry about with me. I simply want to be treated fairly compared to the other students, and get the credits needed to graduate.”
“I still think you should—”
“No,” I said, raising my voice a few octaves. “I’m staying in this class and that’s final.”
After storming out of his office, I realized how badly I was still shaking once I got out into the hallway. I didn’t linger in case he decided to come after me, and I hurried out of the building and across campus to where my next class was located.