21
It’s the first day of my last year of college. The summer was amazing and went by much too fast.
Once Blaire and I reconnected completely, I knew then my dreams were going to come true. Those nights we spent together in Orlando were magical for both of us. She became mine again and I’m never letting her go.
This last year with her as my instructor, and my secret lover, will be challenging for me. I must keep my composure and act like we’re not lovers. I don’t want her to lose her job because of me. She’s the best culinary instructor at this college. She’s Miss Turner and not Blaire while I’m on campus. Even when I see her in the corridors or in one of the many common areas, I can’t call her Blaire. And especially if any of my fellow students are with me, mainly Candace.
Tossing my backpack on the table I share with Candace; I hop up onto the stool-like chair and wait for Blaire to begin class. She sits behind her desk; her golden blonde hair lies in ringlets on her shoulders. The very shoulders I’ve kissed tenderly many times and will kiss again soon.
I hold my notebook in my hands, pretending to make some notes as I catch glimpses of her as she stands to start our morning.
“Good morning, class.” Blaire taps on her desk to get our attention.
“Good morning, Miss Turner,” we reply.
“How was everyone’s summer?” she asks, looking around the room.
My cock twitches when her eyes meet mine. I know she can’t show any kind of affection toward me in class or on campus.
She breaks eye contact and returns her attention to the class.
“Does anyone want to tell us about their summer experience?” she asks.
“Oh, oh. Miss Turner. May I?” Bob’s arm waves like one of those air-filled tall balloons.
“Sure, Bob. Tell us all about your summer.” She leans against her desk, nodding for him to begin.
I do my best to listen to Bob’s story, but my mind wants to think about Blaire and our secret rendezvous we took.
“…The Hotel Imagine in the kitchen during the dinner hours.” My eyes dart to Bob when he says the name of the hotel where she and I had one of our weekends.
I swallow hard and blink rapidly. I search my memory of the times we went there and can’t recall seeing Bob there. I don’t look at Blaire. I can feel her worry when she clears her throat and coughs. My pulse throbs hard in my neck. My body tenses.
“That’s quite impressive, Bob. How was your experience at the hotel? I’ve been told it’s a beautiful place and quite fancy.” I watch as Blaire walks toward his table he shares with Samantha.
“It was fantastic. Chef Martin was the best to shadow. He was very patient and helpful. I also worked closely with his sous-chef Adam.” He smiles confidently.
“I’m so happy for you. When did you say you were at the hotel?” Blaire asks.
I sit tall in my chair and stare at Bob, listening intently to every word he says now.
“Oh. I was there on Monday thru Thursday evenings. Between that and the volunteering at the hospital, I kept the weekends open to spend time with my wife.”
I slowly let out a long-held breath, realizing Bob wasn’t at the hotel when Blaire and I were.
Candace turns to face me and asks, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, why?” I open my notepad and scribble some gibberish on the paper.
“Well, you seem very interested in Bob’s story once he mentioned that hotel. Have you been there?” She knits her brow.
“I’ve heard of it and of Chef Martin. That’s what got my attention.” I force a thin smile and pretend to write more notes.
“Ah, okay. Um… so, how about coffee later today? We can catch up.” Candace pats my shoulder.
I don’t want to lead her on, but I can’t tell her no either. She’ll ask too many questions if I say no to her invitation.
“Sure. I think I can meet you around three for an hour. I have a shift at The Oasis tonight.”
“That’ll work for me. Thanks.” She turns and faces Blaire, who’s standing in the center of the room again.
Samantha fills us in on her summer, then Angela follows her. I zone out and watch Blaire move about the room. She kindly skips asking me about my summer.
“Okay, class. Let’s use the rest of class time to review what we learned last year and from the summer experiences. Follow me.” Blaire waves her arm, and we all follow her toward the prep stations.
“Let’s begin with reviewing your knife skills.” She stands in the center of the tables to get the best view of all of us. Twenty minutes later, everyone has completed the review.
We all return to our tables located in the front of the room. Blaire taps on her desk to get our attention. She pulls out a handful of papers from the folder she holds.
Waving them in the air, she says, “Pop quiz time.”
Groans fill the room, and she says, “It’s just a quick ten question pop quiz. You all should ace this with no problem.”
She walks across the room and begins passing out the quizzes, ending at my table. When she hands me the paper, I overreach and touch her hand. Our eyes meet for a moment, but I don’t show any other emotions as I notice Candace watching us closely from my peripheral vision. Blaire pulls her hand free and moves to the center of the room.
“Okay. You have until class is over to finish.” She nods and leaves us to answer the pop quiz.
When I finish, I wait for all the other students to hand in their papers.
Of course, Candace waits for me to finish. She walks ahead of me and to Blaire.
“This was easy, Miss Turner.” She smiles and stands by Blaire’s desk, waiting for me.
I look at Candace and say, “I’ll meet you later. I have a couple of things to go over with Miss Turner from last year.”
“Okay. See you at the coffee shop.” She turns and leaves the classroom.
I watch as Blaire stands and walks over to the door. She opens it, peers out into the hall, then closes it, turns, beginning to walk back to her desk. She stops when our eyes meet.
I stand by her desk, smiling from ear to ear. She shakes her head and walks toward me.
“I finished the quiz, Miss Turner.” I hold the paper in my hand. “Where do you want me to put it?” My lips tug upward, then I lick my lips and she grabs the desk to keep from stumbling into me.
“You’re going to get me in trouble, J.” She holds her hand for me to place the test in.
“No, I won’t. I have plenty of reasons to explain why I’m always the last one out of your class. Trust me.” I lean closer to her, caressing her cheek.
“Blaire.” My lips graze hers, and she pushes me back.
“Jaden,” she scolds me and wiggles her index finger at me.
“Not here. Please. We can’t get caught.”
I hang my head and softly say, “Sorry. You’re so sexy and irresistible.” I shove my hands into my pants pockets.
“I know how hard this is, but we can do this. It’s only nine months. And we have winter and spring breaks to sneak away on. We’ll make it work.” She touches my bicep and squeezes. I look at her again. Her blue eyes soften.
I nod.
“Okay. I’ll behave. But… only for now.” I smile mischievously, then check my watch.
“I need to go. My next class is in five minutes.”
“Go. Please don’t be late. I’ll text you tonight.” She walks behind her desk and sits in the chair. Before I leave, I see her open the laptop and grab a pen. She looks my way again and shoos me out the door with a wiggle of her fingers.