Chapter 6
LACHLAN
My cock’s still twitching, the aftershocks of release pulsing through me, but the anger’s already clawing at my chest. I lost control. Again. I fucked her right here on my desk, where anyone could’ve walked in, where I’m supposed to be the professional, not some animal giving in to every base urge.
“Leave,” I say, trying to put distance between us. “You can’t do this. You can’t come here again.”
She blinks, her lips swollen from my kisses, her hair a mess from my hands. “What?”
“You heard me, Tessa.” I turn away, running a hand through my hair. “This was a mistake. I don’t want you, okay? I don’t want this.”
I force the lie out, needing to push her away and rebuild the walls she’s been tearing down since Halloween night.
“Really?” she snaps, her voice rising. “You send some interesting mixed signals, Professor. You fuck me like you’re starving for it, and now you’re acting like I’m some annoying girl who won’t leave you alone? Grow up.”
I flinch at her words. She’s pulling her clothes on, grabbing her bag.
“I’m not going to beg you. I’m done.”
She storms toward the door, and something sharp coils in my gut. I’m a liar. A bastard. And I deserve every second of her walking away.
“Tessa…” I start, but she’s already gone, the door slamming shut behind her.
I’m left standing there, my hands clenched into fists. I’m a fucking idiot. I let her get too close, let her see too much, and now she’s walking away, and it feels like I’m losing something I never even had the right to want.
Five years. Five years since Raven’s Creek and swearing off anything that could drag me back into the mess of my own head.
And now Tessa’s here, breaking through every defense I’ve built.
But I can’t let her walk away like this.
I grab my jacket and keys and head out after her. The campus is quiet, the parking lot empty under the streetlights. I spot her halfway to her car.
“Tessa!” I call out.
“No,” she says, her voice carrying over her shoulder. “I got the message loud and clear. It’s fine. I shouldn’t have come here.”
She reaches for her car door, and I’m there before I can stop myself, my hand closing over hers before she can open it.
“Wait. Just wait.”
“Let me go,” she snaps, yanking her hand free. “You said what you needed to say.”
I step closer, crowding her against the car.
“Look, Tessa, I’m fucked up. I haven’t been with anyone in years. I swore it all off after… after everything. I don’t want you inside my darkness.”
“You can’t know what I want. You don’t get to decide that for me. I’m not some fragile little girl who needs protecting. But I’m not begging you, either. So let me go.”
The campus is empty, the night pressing in around us, and I can’t let her leave like this.
“Come with me,” I say, grabbing her wrist, pulling her toward the wooded path behind the lot.
“Lachlan, what the hell?” she protests, trying to pull free.
My grip stays firm as I lead her into the trees, away from the lights, away from anyone who might see. I stop in a small clearing and turn to her, and before I can think, I kiss her, hard and desperate. She pushes me back, her hands shoving at my chest.
“Stop it,” she says, but her voice wavers.
I kiss her again, and this time she slaps me, the sting sharp across my cheek. I freeze, stepping back as my hand touches my face. But before I can say anything, she lunges forward, kissing me now—our frustration and desire colliding in a way that feels like it could break us both.
I back her up against a tree. “Go ahead. Take it out on me. I deserve it.”
She shoves me hard, her hands fisting in my jacket, but I don’t budge. I grab her pants, unbuttoning them with rough, impatient movements. She pushes me back again, her eyes flashing with rage.
“You’re such an asshole,” she says, but she’s not pulling away.
I lean in, letting my lips brush her ear. “I lied back there. I want you, Tessa. Obviously, I fucking want you. I’m fighting myself every second I’m near you, and I’m losing. But we can’t keep doing this. You know I’m right.”
My hands slide into her pants, finding her wet and ready again, and I groan, pressing my fingers against her. She gasps, her hips bucking against my hand, but she’s still angry.
“You’re still acting like I’m some fragile girl. Why do you think I went to that club? Why do you think I fucked you? It’s a rebound. That’s all.”
I can see the lie in her eyes, the way she’s trying to play it off. But it does something to me, twists the knife deeper.
“Oh yeah?” I say, circling her clit. “Just a rebound, huh? You came here for me to fuck you, to come inside your pussy over and over. Just sex, Tessa? No feelings?”
“Yeah,” she says, her hands gripping my arms. “That’s right.”
“Bullshit,” I growl, spinning her around so she’s facing the tree, her hands braced against the bark. I yank her pants down, exposing her ass. “Say it again.”
“It’s just sex,” she says.
I bring my hand down, a sharp smack against her ass, and she gasps, her body jerking.
“Say it again,” I demand.
“It’s just sex,” she repeats, her tone mocking, and I spank her again, harder this time.
“You’re lying,” I say, spanking her again, watching the way her body responds, the way she pushes back against me, wanting more. “You researched me. You cared enough to dig into my past. Why, Tessa? Why would you do that if this was just sex?”
“Just curiosity,” she says, testing me.
It drives me fucking insane. I spank her again, and she whimpers, her hands gripping the tree tighter.
I can’t take it anymore. I grab her hips, pulling her down to the ground. She’s on her hands and knees, and I’m behind her, my hands shaking as I undo my pants again.
“You want just sex? Fine. How about I fuck you again? But this is more than that for me. You’re more than that. That’s why I keep pushing you away.”
My hands grip her hips as I lean down against her ear. “You feel this, Tessa. You feel me. Don’t fucking lie to me and say this is just sex.”
“It’s just sex, Lachlan. That’s all I want.”
Her words hit me like a punch, fueling the fire in my chest.
“You’re a fucking liar,” I growl, my thrusts growing harder. “You want more than this. You’re not fooling anyone, Tessa.”
“No,” she gasps, her hands clawing at the dirt. “I don’t. I told you, it’s just a rebound. Just sex.”
The lie makes my blood boil, and I grab her hair, pulling her head back.
“Say that again. Tell me you don’t feel this, that you don’t want me. Go on, Tessa, lie to me again.”
“It’s just sex,” she chokes out.
“Bullshit,” I growl.
She’s so wet, so responsive, and it drives me fucking insane that she’s trying to pretend this means nothing.
“You’re dripping for me, Tessa. You came here for this, for me, because you can’t stay away. You want me just as much as I want you, and I’m gonna fuck the truth out of you.”
She whimpers, her body shaking, so close to the edge, but I’m not letting her have it yet. Not until she admits it. I slow my thrusts, denying her the release she’s desperate for.
“Admit it. Tell me you want more. Tell me I’m not just a fucking rebound.”
“Just… let me come.”
“Not until you stop lying. You don’t get to come until you admit you feel this, that you want me. Say it, Tessa.”
She shakes her head, stubborn, defiant, and it only makes me want to break her down until she’s as raw and exposed as I am.
“Fine,” I growl, pulling out almost completely before slamming back into her, hard enough to make her scream.
“You wanna play it like that? I’ll fuck you until you can’t lie anymore, until you’re begging for me, for all of me.”
I set a brutal pace, each thrust deeper, harder, the sound of our bodies colliding mixing with her moans and my ragged breaths.
“You feel that? That’s not just sex, Tessa. That’s you and me, and you fucking know it.”
“It’s… just… sex,” she says, clinging to the lie, and I lose it.
“You’re mine,” I say, my chest aching with the truth of it. “You can lie all you want, but your body doesn’t. You’re mine, Tessa, and I’m not letting you pretend this is nothing.”
Finally, she breaks.
“Okay, Lachlan, okay. It’s more. I want you. I want more.”
The admission rips through me, and I groan, my control shattering.
“Come for me. Show me how much you want this, how much you want me.”
She shatters around me, and it’s fucking beautiful. Her body clenches, trembling beneath mine, and I feel the exact moment she lets go and gives in completely.
It’s enough to rip me apart.
I follow, coming hard as her release pulls me under. My hips stutter, and I spill inside her.
I groan against her skin, holding her as if I could somehow fuse us together, ride out every aftershock with her still wrapped around me.
For a moment, we’re still, the world quiet except for the rustle of leaves and our ragged breathing. Then she pulls away, standing on shaky legs, brushing dirt from her knees as she yanks her pants back up. She starts walking, heading back toward the parking lot, and panic claws at my chest.
“Tessa, where are you going?”
“Home,” she says without looking back. “I got what I wanted.”
I watch her walk away, her silhouette swallowed by shadows, and I know she’s lying. She’s terrified. And too damn stubborn to admit the truth.
Something in me snaps.
She wants to pretend this was just sex. That it didn’t mean anything.
But it’s everything to me. And I can’t let her rewrite it just because she’s scared.
I storm to my truck, throw the door open, and start the engine. It growls to life, loud and angry. Exactly how I feel.
Her taillights flicker in the distance. I gun it.
I don’t know what I’ll say when I catch up to her. I don’t have a plan. I just know I can’t let her go.
She’s in me now. And I’m not letting her run from that.