42. Theo #2
We are satisfied with the professional conduct of both parties, and trust that all future behavior will reflect the school’s values and workplace expectations.
Your commitment to Wetherly Cove Preparatory School is greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Helen March, Board Chair
With a smile, I press print. It’s not only the board who’ve given their approval.
My father called last night to congratulate me on the success of the fundraiser, sharing his support for Safe Harbor.
I hesitated to take the call, wondering how much the board had shared with him, then found myself disappointed when he failed to mention Eleanor.
Instead, I told him I’d fallen in love, and when I shared the unconventional way we’d met, bracing for criticism, he surprised me with an invitation for us to visit him in Florida during spring break next year. Eleanor was thrilled when I told her.
The printer whirs to life, while she watches me from beside the fire, yellow light dancing in her eyes as she rises and crosses to me. I pull the paper from the printer and hand it to her, settling into my desk chair.
“This is what I wanted to show you,” I say softly, and she leans against my desk as she reads.
“Theo,” she whispers, her wide gaze coming to mine when she’s done.
“This is real, sweetheart. We have the board’s support in black and white.”
She clutches the paper to her chest, eyes shining. “I’m going to frame this.”
I smile, watching as she sets the paper aside, eyes moving over me in the low light.
The faint strains of Billie Holiday’s The Very Thought of You drift from the record player, snow falling beyond the window, the fire crackling warm in the fireplace.
I can’t believe I’m here, with Eleanor, legitimately. This moment could not be more perfect.
Well, there is one thing that would make it better, but we swore not to do that anymore.
Even if it’s late at night. On a holiday weekend. Without a single soul on campus.
As if reading my thoughts, Eleanor’s mouth tilts into a sexy smile. She pushes off the desk to straddle me in my chair.
“I’m not sure this behavior reflects the school’s values,” I quote teasingly from the letter, voice rough at the closeness of her. At her brazenly flaunting the rules, the absurdity of trying to stay in control when I want her to break them.
But Eleanor shakes her head. “I disagree, sir.” She rocks her hips, gaze fiery and determined. It makes my blood heat, makes my cock ache for her.
“Go on,” I say thickly, despite myself.
“Well, this school values self-expression.” She lowers her head to drag her lips over my neck. “And I have some very naughty feelings to express.”
I chuckle deeply, hands coming to her back. “Is that right?”
She nods, threading her fingers into my hair. “And this school values honesty,” she continues, grinding against me harder now.
My dick throbs from the friction, knowing there’s no way I can stop her. This is exactly what we said we wouldn’t do, but then she gazes at me with dark, smoldering eyes.
“Honestly, Theo?” she says breathlessly. “I need you.”
And all my good intentions go up in smoke.
Fuck it. We’ve earned this. One moment together, alone in my office, after hours.
“You’re a very bad girl,” I say, voice like gravel as my fingers flex on her back. “Breaking the rules.”
She considers this. “I’ll follow the school’s rules during work hours,” she says carefully. Then she leans in to whisper in a low, husky voice, “But outside of that, the only rules I intend to follow are yours.”
Mine.
My breath catches at her words, the way she gives herself to me so readily. Not just her body. Her trust. Her future. Her heart.
And I can’t stop the next words from leaving my mouth.
“Move in with me.”
She stills, eyes wide, lips parted in surprise. I curse myself for blurting it out so carelessly, wanting to explain.
“Not my house,” I say quickly. “I want us to find our own place near the beach.”
Her chest rises and falls with her rapid breath, gaze searching my face, and I brace for a letdown. This is too much, too soon, too fast. I knew that.
“If… if that’s what you want,” I add, feeling less certain with each passing second.
Then her mouth is hard on mine, hands everywhere, hips searching.
“Yes,” she rasps, fingers tugging at my belt, my zipper. She leaps off me to discard her tights and underwear, then straddles me again. “I want that so badly, Theo.”
Fuck.
She’s warm and slick when I slide into her, hands tight on her waist as stars dance across my vision. Her fingers tunnel into my hair as she works herself on my dick, eyes fastened to mine. Like she’s afraid I’m going to vanish if she doesn’t watch me.
“I want to wake up next to you every morning,” she rasps. “Drive to school with you. Cook with you. Be with you.”
I press my eyes shut against the onslaught of emotion as we clutch each other, making love in my chair. This isn’t desperate or forbidden like it was before. It’s safe. It’s real. It’s the start of our lives together.
For so long I thought control was paramount, that I couldn’t risk being vulnerable, couldn’t let my guard down, at work and personally. I built walls so high, thinking I was protecting everyone, when what I really needed was to soften.
To let love in.
And Eleanor broke them down. Her patience, her compassion, her love broke them down and freed me. Not only to love her, but to find meaning in my work again. To believe in the possibility of change.
As we fall apart in each other’s arms, I’ve never felt more optimistic.
I can see us together in a house on the bay, Eleanor at the kitchen counter in her over-sized sweater, planning Safe Harbor activities, while I cook us dinner.
A life I could never have dreamed of before, and now can’t imagine living without.
I kiss her forehead, holding her close, our hearts drumming together. The snow falls outside, but we’re warm in my office with the crackling fire.
And I know I have everything I need, right here in my arms.