TWO
DAKOTA
Every student present in class the day of the heart attack had been given a week off.
The school decided that it was too much of a traumatizing event to force schooling upon us—to an extent—so they settled for online learning for the time being.
The week passed by in a blur, and we were finally back.
“So, are you going to tell me what happened between you and Asher?” I asked Solace as we exited the campus library.
“There’s nothing to tell,” she merely shrugged, feigning nonchalance and I scoffed.
“Solace, I’m your best friend. I know when you’re lying—”
“Oh, would you look at the time? We’re going to be late again,” she interrupted me, and I checked the time on my wristwatch as she dragged me with her.
“Fine, you can tell me when you’re ready,” I lowered my tone to a teasing whisper as we stepped into class.
“Don’t start with me,” she narrowed her eyes and we headed towards our seats.
“You’re late.”
She and I both froze, turning to the front of the class. Oh, shit.
My jaw nearly dropped—eyes bulging out of my head—when my gaze landed on the man standing with his hands in the pockets of his black slacks.
He was tall, and his white dress shirt was most definitely fighting for its life around those biceps and shoulders.
A few dark brown, wavy strands of hair fell over his forehead, making his hazel eyes pop.
He was attractive, don’t get me wrong, but he had a sort of boyish look to him. He looked kind and gentle. Soft-spoken even.
Solaced straightened up. “I’m sorry, sir—”
“Professor Hale,” he corrected her, and the edge in his voice settled in my lower stomach. So not gentle and soft spoken. Noted.
“I expect an apology from both of you,” he stated, making confusion fall over her face and my eyebrows shot to the goddamn ceiling.
He must have picked up on our reactions since professors rarely cared for late comers, so he spoke again. “You walked in, interrupting me mid sentence.” Right.
“Sorry sir— I mean professor,” Solace purposely corrected herself. He didn’t believe her half-assed apology but shifted his eyes to me nonetheless.
“Sorry,” I murmured before her and I headed to our seats.
I could feel his heavy stare heating the back of my legs as we walked but brushed it off.
After we sat down it was as though he was mentally gathering himself, having everyone waiting in anticipation.
“As I was saying… I will be taking over Professor Tyler’s position. You’re all aware that he suffered a terrible heart attack, and we wish him a successful recovery.”
At the mention of his recovery, one of the girls in class coughed and everyone joined in quiet laughter.
“Would you like to add anything?” Professor Hale asked, and all eyes fell on her—taken aback by the fact that he even acknowledged her reaction.
“Me?” she pointed to herself. “No, sir,” she quickly shook her head.
“Professor,” he corrected—sterner than before—and she nodded in understanding.
“My rules are simple. Return assignments on time. You miss your due date, I don’t care for any excuses.
When I talk, you’re quiet. You speak when I speak and I’ll ask you to leave, as simple as that.
Lastly, don’t be late,” he concluded, and the last one felt like a personal attack.
A couple of students smiled our way, but I ignored them. Solace repeatedly nudged my arm with her elbow, and I fought back a smile as I quietly cleared my throat.
“If you’re late, you interrupt my teaching and everyone else’s learning, so don’t bother entering after class starts. Any questions?” he glanced around, and a couple of students shook their heads while others looked around.
His broad chest rose with a deep inhale as though he was dreading his next few words. “Any personal questions?”
I watched nearly half of the students raise their hands, and Solace knowingly chuckled, shaking her head.
“No, I’m not in a relationship,” he gave his head a slight shake, and most of the girls slowly—awkwardly—lowered their hands. Of course that was the question everyone had. I mean I didn’t blame them. He was… would describing my new professor as ‘delicious’ be appropriate?
His eyes shifted to Camille and he nodded for her to go ahead. She promptly stood, smiling at him.
“Camille Henderson. How old are you?” she asked, and he crossed his arms over his chest. I didn’t miss how his shirt tightly stretched around his biceps. Wow.
“What field would you like to go into, Miss Henderson?”
“Nursing,” she proudly answered, her vibrant glow making everyone around her smile. It was like she walked on flower petals. She was adorable.
“If I were an unconscious patient heading to the emergency room in need of a last-minute surgery, what would you estimate my age to be?” he asked, and slowly, everyone turned back to her.
She slightly tilted her head to the side, running her tongue over the top row of her teeth, seemingly deep in thought. I watched her eyes dart over his entire face and body, and it was like I could see the calculations happening in her head.
Solace leaned over and whispered in my ear: “Definitely twenty-seven.” I nodded in agreement.
“Twenty…” she trailed off. “Eight,” she said, straightening her shoulders, her chin held high. “Twenty-eight. Or nine,” she quietly added.
“Twenty-nine. Good job,” he praised, and the room filled with little gasps and soft murmurs. Camille was a ray of sunshine, and it shocked people to learn that she was not just a pretty face. I know half these girls’ seats got wet with that little praise.
She thanked him before sitting back down, and a few more students asked a couple of questions.
“Professor Hale?” Solace raised her hand, taking me—and everyone else—by surprise.
“Yes?” he directed his attention to her for the first time since our late arrival.
“Solace Allard,” she smiled, showing her perfectly white teeth. Her smile was indeed a killer. “Do you exercise often?” she asked, and mentally, I shook my head at her. I know exactly what she’s doing.
“Yes, I do,” he gave her a curt nod.
“At home or the gym?”
“Both,” he vaguely answered.
Right as he was about to shift his attention to another student, I spoke up.
“Cardio?” I asked, standing up. “Dakota King,” I added my name, not breaking eye contact.
Male professors all had a natural reaction when sensing inappropriate behaviors from students towards them.
The girls on campus didn’t outright flirt, but they made little comments, the kind that hung in the air longer than necessary. They smiled a little too much, or even leaned in just a little too close when they asked a question.
It was like they knew exactly how to get under the professor’s skin without crossing any lines, and the professor, well, he’d just freeze. And that’s exactly what I wanted from Professor Hale.
“It’s part of my morning routine, so yes,” he sternly answered my question.
“Oh, so not nightly then?” Solace piped up, but his eyes didn’t dare leave mine. Goosebumps pricked up my nape, and for the first time, I broke eye contact.
“Sometimes, Miss Allard,” he met her gaze and she grinned, nodding in understanding.
I noticed the looks the girls shot each other, and we both thanked him before sitting down.
We were all thinking the exact same thing, but can you blame us? All the professors on campus were either over fifty and greying, married and looking for a piece of ass on the side, or, well gay.
And neither of them—that I had met—carried themselves the way Professor Hale did. He had an intriguing aura, and it was… tempting.
“You’re crazy,” I whispered to Solace.
“He didn’t have to embarrass us so early in the damn morning. And, it’s his first day. Shouldn’t he be nice to us to earn some brownie points?” she rhetorically asked.
“We’re not in high school. College professors are here for one thing, and one thing only,” I reminded her.
“To get paid—”
“To get laid—”
We both spoke in unison before snapping our heads to each other. “Paid, Solace. Paid,” I corrected her.
“Sure, sweet thing,” she winked at me before we turned our attention to the front of the class.
After everyone got their questions out, he proceeded with the lesson.
It was extremely hard to focus on what he was saying because my traitorous eyes only seemed to focus on his hands. His big, veiny hands.
Shiny rings decorated his pointer, middle and pinky finger, and an expensive watch wrapped around his right wrist, so he was most probably left-handed. My thoughts were confirmed when he twirled a pen between his fingers, light eyes glued to his computer screen before he jotted something down.
Every time I’d catch myself daydreaming about his stupid hands, I’d mentally knock myself back into reality.
Class was finally over, and I needed to get out to clear my head. I was officially losing it.
“Don’t make it a habit,” Professor Hale said before Solace and I could leave.
In confusion, we looked at each other, unsure whether or not he was speaking to us since he was casually typing on his computer.
“Yes, I’m speaking to you, Miss Allard and Miss King,” his voice grabbed our attention.
Solace’s face morphed into a look of disbelief as he, once again, didn’t make eye contact.
“We’ll be on time,” I assured him.
“Yeah. We will, Professor… what was it?” she whispered to me, loud enough for him to hear, and I rolled my eyes as I grabbed her arm. I pulled her out of the room, and she giggled. “Okay, I’ll stop, I’m sorry. It’s just fun to piss men off.”
“I know,” I assured her.
* * *
I found myself at my favourite nightclub with Solace singing her heart out at my side.
An unspoken rule on campus was when it was someone’s birthday, they booked out the hottest nightclub—Midnight Inferno.
Celeste, our birthday girl, jumped on the bar countertop as soon as the beat dropped. yes baby blared through the speakers, making the vibrations seep into the floor.
Everyone cheered and danced below her, admiring her body control as the strobe lights flickered everywhere. She definitely got to the DJ.
Her hips swayed seductively, and I smiled, watching her long black hair whip back and forth in the process.
Everyone gathered to watch her as she danced in the most sexual way possible. It consisted of touching her body, grinding against the countertop, and so much more that I couldn’t keep up.
Celeste’s eyes fell on Solace, who immediately shook her head, saying no with a drink in hand. She found me and I did the same but she didn’t take no for an answer. She curled her finger towards me, and I walked through the crowd, reaching her.
“Get up here!” she demanded.
Oliver, the bartender, along with some other guy gripped my arms, helping me up, and everyone cheered encouragingly. Oh God, she’s going to get me in trouble.
I followed her lead, giving my best performance. When the cheer captain spoke, you listened.
I missed the energy of this place. I missed how friendly everyone was. The management was quite strict, so thankfully, most guys behaved. One strike and you were banned from the club. That made things easier for everyone. Everyone being the women.
We danced as the song slowly came to an end, but the cheering didn’t stop for a long while, even after we hopped off.
“I’m so glad you came,” Celeste beamed, engulfing me in her warm embrace.
“Let me buy the birthday girl a drink,” I kissed her cheek.
We had a drink or two until I found myself on the dance floor, sandwiched between two smoking hot guys.
I had my back pressed against the brunette with beautifully honey-colored eyes. His hands were glued to my hips as our bodies moved in sync to the music.
The dark-haired one couldn’t keep his eyes off my chest as he held my waist, soon syncing up to the rhythm as well.
For the first time this week, I could let go and enjoy myself. I didn’t need to force a distraction. My studies had been overwhelming me, especially with the D average I was stuck at in one class.
I sighed, trailing my eyes around the room, trying to find Solace but couldn’t. She’d enjoy—and appreciate—the show.
After a while, I turned around, and the dark-haired one immediately grabbed my waist, pulling my ass to his front. He moved his hips, and I was taken by surprise at how good he was.
Our hips swayed, and I stole a glance over my shoulder, watching him. I hated to admit it, but I had the best time being in the middle of these two. Have I met them before? No. Was I going to stay here and have the time of my life regardless? Abso-fucking-lutely.
I had one arm wrapped around the brunette in front of me, and the other wrapped around the dark-haired guy’s neck.
As my head rested against his shoulder my eyes wandered around the club, landing on the VIP mezzanine above us. I noticed two guys standing side-by-side.
My eyes found the muscular one first.
He stood with his huge tattooed arms crossed over his chest. I could tell his shoulders and chest were broad. He wore black pants with a black button-down that had its sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Then, my eyes landed on his tall and lean friend.
He wore what looked like a dark grey collared shirt and some dress pants. He had both his hands in the pockets of his pants, adding to the look of seduction he already portrayed. Oh my… His hair was just as dark, only, it was combed perfectly into place.
They were deep in conversation and I couldn’t help but pull the brunette in front of me closer.
The one on the right, tall and lean, looked weirdly familiar. It was like I’d seen him somewhere, but with how dark it was and all the strobe lights, I couldn’t quite make out where.
Mr. Muscles’ eyes wandered around the club as he spoke until they landed on me. My heart leaped in my chest, having been caught staring. He spoke again and the tall and lean man’s eyes landed on me as well. Shit.
No offense to the guys I was already dancing with, but I had just found who I really wanted to be in between.
Mischief brewed in my core, my mind racing with ways to get up there. Or them down here.
And right on cue, my devious bubble popped when Professor fucking Hale approached the two of them with his eyes on me too. Fuck.
He stood beside them, saying something and I didn’t miss the grin on the tall and lean man’s face. Mr Muscle simply gave a single nod and I could feel my face heat up. Holy shit.
Professor Hale’s here? What if he saw me practically shake my ass on the bar countertop not too long ago? I wasn’t aware that he’d be here. Hopefully, he didn’t see. And even if he did. I hope he at least enjoyed the show.