Chapter 37
Dakota
As I sat in class watching Dr. Killshaw lecture, I called him Micah in my head dozens of times, just memorizing the shape of the word.
I thought about his hand gripping my arm, his low voice in the front seat of his truck.
His eyes caught on mine several times, and each connection felt like another injection of shameful lust into my bloodstream.
If I wasn’t in class and surrounded by so many of my peers…
Fuck. Enough.
I forced myself to look out the window despite the wetness between my thighs.
By the time class ended, I was convinced that I’d been possessed by something because the only thing I was capable of doing was staring at his rolled-up shirtsleeves and imagining how his voice would sound much lower and much closer to my ear. Unfortunately, I still had to go talk to him.
So I waited in my seat until the room was empty, like I always did, and he waited for me to come down to his desk once that happened, like he always did.
“Do you want to work Saturday?” he asked, leaning back against his desk.
“For how long?”
“Whole day. But we’re going to have to start a little later since I’m busy in the morning, and that means we’ll be ending later, too.”
“That’s fine with me.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek.
“Alright. I’ll see you then.”
“Bye, Micah,” I said as fast as I could, then turned and speed-walked towards the door.
“Masters,” he called. “Quit getting so nervous. I gave you permission.”
“I’ll try.” I looked at him over my shoulder, watching him smirk.
“Good.”
I pushed out the door without another glance, the promise of Saturday glowing like a horny beacon in my mind. Late at night, probably alone with him, trying not to be nervous…
You’re delusional. Actually delusional.
━━━━━
Dr. Killshaw’s lab had quickly become one of the places where I was spending the most time.
I’d learned his routines, and the sound of the distillation column was as familiar to me as anything.
Nick had joined us in the lab for most of the day today, and it was honestly nice to have the extra help, though I mourned the loss of alone time with my professor.
And since Nick was here, I wasn’t supposed to call him Micah.
Every time his eyes slid across the room and hooked on mine, boring into me like he could see straight through my skin, heat sparked low in my belly.
Every word layered with double meaning, every almost-touch, the silent dance of us avoiding each other because of the third person in the room.
It felt the way it had in the library, as if his distance was an extension of him, and I sensed it like fingertips on my skin.
“I think I’m going to head out now, do you guys need anything else?” Nick asked, shutting his laptop.
“We’ll probably be wrapping up here soon as well,” Dr. Killshaw said, his lips briefly pressing together. “Today’s values look promising.”
“Do you anticipate being back in here tomorrow?”
“It depends on how the end of this run goes. But most likely not until Monday.”
“Sounds good. Have a nice evening.” Nick looked over at me. “You too, Dakota.”
“Thanks,” I said, nodding shallowly and hoping my embarrassment wasn’t visible.
I still felt awkward around him, though he didn’t know I’d overheard him talking about how I never spoke. And I didn’t hold it against him—everyone thought the same about me.
Nick left, the door swinging shut behind him.
Dr. Killshaw didn’t move for a minute and I remained where I was standing at the benchtop, purposefully keeping my focus on the temperature log I was updating. My pencil scratched over the paper as I heard his footsteps cross the room, my heart rate ratcheting up.
“How are those logs going?” he asked from right behind me.
He didn’t need to check in with me on this, though. He trusted me to do them correctly at this point. His trust made me more confident.
“Fine,” I breathed.
Micah planted his hand flat on the table next to mine, fingers splayed on the black surface. He was so close now that the fabric of our clothes was practically touching.
“And how are you today?”
“I’m okay.”
I inched my palm to the side, daring to brush my pinkie finger on his thumb.
He didn’t move an inch, though his hand flexed with restraint.
I carefully hooked my finger over his thumb, hardly breathing.
My hips were trapped against the counter and I knew if I moved back a mere inch or two, I’d feel the entire length of Micah Killshaw’s body on mine.
His breathing was growing ragged, and it made me bold. I moved my hand more, touching his more, wanting to press back, wondering if he’d let me—
Dr. Killshaw stumbled back across the room, slamming himself down at the stool in front of the computer table one second before the door opened. Nick burst in, thankfully distracted enough by his haste not to suspect anything.
“Hey,” he said, out of breath, eyes darting around the room. “I forgot my…There it is.” He grabbed his calculator from a table, held it up with a little shake, then left again.
I was shaking slightly, trembling with how close Micah and I had just been to doing something we’d never be able to come back from…
But he didn’t come to stand behind me again, nor did he say anything about me touching him. We fell back into our work-routine.