Chapter 8
Saylor blinked her eyes open when her warm pillow shifted under her head. Looking into Max’s handsome face, she mumbled, “Is it morning already?”
“Not for you, little girl. Go back to sleep.” He leaned forward to kiss her softly before easing away from her.
Saylor tightened her arms around his neck. She didn’t want to let him go. “I’ll get up with you. Let me go get you breakfast while you shower. I can scramble eggs like a boss.”
“I’ll grab a protein bar when I get out of the shower. No cooking for little girls, remember?”
“Max, I’ve been cooking for myself for years.”
“That was before we met.” He kissed her softly again before rolling out of bed. Max tucked the covers back around her. “Go back to sleep. It’s way too early for you to be awake.”
Toasty warm, Saylor decided she’d get up when he got out of the shower. Her eyes drifted shut as the water came on in the bathroom. When she opened her eyes again, the room was brightly sunlit, and the house was quiet.
“What?” Saylor pushed herself up to sit on the mattress.
How had she fallen asleep so soundly? A few images of their lovemaking flashed through her brain.
Despite her nervousness about asking Max questions, she’d barely made it through dinner last night with her eyes open.
The combination of stimulation and worry about having the book discussion with him had sapped her energy.
Max had held her on his lap and fed her the most delicious steak along with expertly roasted veggies. She hadn’t devoured a meal like that in forever. She’d quickly relaxed in his care. Max made everything amazing and eliminated any awkwardness between them as he cared for her.
She stared up at the ceiling, bracing herself to rejoin the real world. She couldn’t simply stay at his house for the rest of time. People didn’t do that, right? Meet someone and then move in with them right away?
Besides, Saylor had a class to teach at one. She forced herself out of bed and visited the bathroom to relieve herself and take a shower. Like a goofball, she buried her face in Max’s damp towel and inhaled his scent.
If someone could bottle that yummy aroma, they’d make a million dollars. Immediately she shook her head. Saylor didn’t want anyone else getting to experience that appeal. She was already territorial about sharing him.
“I’ve got it bad,” she announced to the empty house as she pulled on her clothes.
Planning to leave Max a note, Saylor stopped at the kitchen island. A bright orange octopus stuffie sat on the island with a note propped up on its tail. She stroked her fingers over the soft fur.
“Hello! You are so soft, sweet boy. Who do you belong to?”
The stuffie continued to smile at her as he offered the sheet of paper. Grinning back, Saylor picked up Max’s message.
Good morning, baby girl!
I hope you slept well. I left a buddy for you to play with today. I found him on the doorstep early this morning, delivered especially for my favorite little girl. He’ll need lots of hugs today. I’ll see you in a few short hours.
XOXOXOX
Daddy
Saylor picked up the stuffie and hugged him close. He was the softest! She rubbed her cheek against him, instantly in love. “What should I name you?”
Extending her arms, she looked the stuffie over and considered possibilities.
An octopus. Octo was too obvious. Pussy—no way.
She looked at all his arms, or were those legs?
How about Tapper? An image of a tap-dancing octopus entertained her brain, and she held the stuffie over the island, letting it romp around the flat surface.
Happiness bubbled out of her as she giggled at the fun he had.
Maybe she should check that the stuffie would be happy with his name. Looking at her friend, she asked, “Can I call you Tapper?” He looked back at her and seemed to demand to dance again. Taking that as approval, she hugged the octopus tight against her chest. Saylor loved him already.
A thought crossed her mind. Was she supposed to leave Tapper here? He’d get lonely all by himself. Instantly, Saylor shook her head. She couldn’t abandon him.
Turning over the paper, she looked for a pen to write Max a message on the other side. When she found one in a drawer, she hurried back to the island, but hesitated. She wanted to keep Max’s note. Quickly, she decided to text instead.
Daddy,
Thank you for Tapper. He told me he’d be too lonely here by himself, so I took him with me. I hope that’s okay. I’m off to run home to change clothes for my afternoon class. Will I see you when you’re off work?
Saylor
After reading her message, she typed one more line.
PS. Can I sleep over again?
She hovered by the island for several seconds, wondering if her message was too much. She could rewrite it without that last line and throw the note away. Saylor reread his note. He’d left hugs and kisses. That meant he wanted her back, right?
Stiffening her spine, Saylor decided to leave her message as is.
Even if he were too busy for her to come back over tonight, that didn’t mean that he wasn’t interested in her.
They didn’t need to go from teacher and student to a dedicated couple spending all their free time together after two nights.
Crap! She was his teacher. That was completely frowned on by the university. They were both adults. He wasn’t eighteen, but a man who had faced so many challenges in life. Max also wasn’t an art major. This was an evening class he was taking because he enjoyed drawing.
The grading scale for these classes was fairly easy. Plus, anyone seeing his work wouldn’t question Max getting a good score. As long as he completed all the assignments, no one would question if favoritism played a role in her grading.
Saylor squeezed Tapper tight and pushed any worries from her mind. She deserved to be happy and wouldn’t fret over anything negative that might happen. Picking up her phone, she texted one more line:
PPS. XOXOXOXOXOX.
Driving back to her condo with Tapper on her lap, Saylor couldn’t believe how much had changed since she’d left her driveway to go to Max’s class.
She didn’t feel isolated and cut off from everyone.
Teaching could be a very lonely profession.
The other university professors in her department were friendly enough, but they’d lived in this community for years. She was the newcomer.
Feeling lazy, she visited a drive-thru for a quick breakfast treat.
That would have enough carbs to fuel her until after her class.
She set Tapper carefully in the passenger seat so she didn’t drop any crumbs on the stuffie’s soft fur.
One bite of the greasy sandwich made her groan with delight.
Somehow, she was going to have to share with Max that she enjoyed food he probably never ate.
They did have steak, she reminded herself. A man of Max’s size would need a lot of protein to fuel his body. Still, she couldn’t see him eating a triple bacon biscuit. He was in way too good of shape to have many of those empty calories.
Her mind drifted to his body. Damn, he was built like a Greek statue. Chiseled and powerful, Max had to be aware of how handsome he was. Saylor hadn’t noted a drop of over-inflated ego or conceit. Max was completely aware of his power and athleticism. That showed in his every move.
A jarring honk from behind her booted her out of her thoughts. With an ‘I’m sorry’ wave, Saylor steered her car forward, pushing her memories of Max’s moves from her mind. In just a few minutes, she pulled into her neighborhood. She wasn’t that far from Max’s home.
Once in her place, Saylor jumped in the shower.
She hated washing off Max’s scent, but couldn’t go to teach smelling like a brothel.
Rolling her eyes as she laughed at herself for that thought, Saylor dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt.
Even though it was warm outside this time of year, Saylor always froze in the air-conditioned building.
In her office, she had some colorful smocks that she wore over her clothing in messy classes like clay pottery.
Still in an art classroom, dressing in expensive or fancy clothes was an invitation to stain, snag, or rip her apparel.
As she brushed her hair, Saylor looked at herself in the mirror.
Was she imagining it or had the shadowed look in her eyes disappeared?
Definitely not tossing and turning all night had decreased the dark circles under her eyes.
She set the brush down and wrapped her arms around herself in a silent hug.
Please let this continue.
After experiencing Max’s caring attention, Saylor didn’t want to lose it. Her heart would never be the same. She forced herself to stop mooning over Max and get ready. In a few more minutes, she headed toward the university.