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„Go,” he says, before he retreats and disappears inside the men’s bathroom, just moments before a group of girls comes marching down the hallway.
They barely acknowledge me as I walk past them, my heart hammering and my core throbbing with excitement. It’s going to happen.
It’s finally going to happen tonight.
Chapter 24
Aston
Do the scary thing.
I’m the one who likes to give out this advice to other people, but right now I’m doubting my decision to do just that. Hooking up with one of my students is not only scary, but potentially the most stupid thing to do.
And hooking up with someone like Claire is scary on a whole new level. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before, not even with Anya. The girl who almost destroyed my life. I trusted her and it almost dismantled everything that’s important to me.
But why am I so certain that it won’t happen again with Claire? I trust her, but I don’t know why. There’s something about her that makes me feel…safe. I never allowed myself to admit it, but it feels right to have her close to me. It didn’t even feel wrong to have her in my house, not really. It just feltforbidden, a prohibition that’s laid on us by external factors.
I leave the campus without returning to the winter formal, almost certain that no one will even notice that I’m gone—except maybe for Maddy. But she and I are not close and I don’t owe her an apology. It was safer this way, especially since I told Claire to go back and say goodbye to her friends. People might have seen us leave together, so I chose to leave in the opposite direction, before I called Alexander to drive me home.
I ordered a cab for Claire, and I can see on the app that it’s still parked in front of the science center, which means that she hasn’t left the winter formal yet. I knew she would need some time, so I try not to worry as I unlock the door to my house.
Zeta and Alpha greet me at the door, and I have to be careful they don’t slip out as I hurry inside.
„You guys must be hungry,” I say, unable to stop myself from laughing, when Alpha makes a move to climb up my pants. His tiny claws have the potential to ruin the fabric within moments, but I can’t find it in myself to care about that. I have given up on trying to protect any material possessions from this little gang after I saw what they have done to my couch. If I decide to keep them, I’ll just make sure not to buy leather furniture again.
A choir of meows accompanies me into the kitchen as Pi comes crawling out from under the couch and Omega wakes up from a nap in my armchair.
I feed the furry family, which distracts me from my phone for a while, before I can check the location of the cab again.
It’s no longer standing in front of the science center. The car is moving toward my house, which means that she must have gotten in.
She’s mine, and she’s on her way here.
I use what little time I have left for a few last-minute preparations while my mind is overrun with an array of wild ideas about what to do with her. There’s so much that has been going through my head ever since I met her, so much I want to try, so much I want to explore with her beautiful soul. But I can’t get ahead of myself. She’s inexperienced. We have to take things slow.
The doorbell rings and my heart hiccups with excitement. I’m nervous as I make my way to the front door, a novel feeling for me.
I pause with my hand resting on the doorknob as I take a deep breath to gather myself. She’s here, but that doesn’t mean things will go as I have planned.
They certainly didn’t the last time we tried this.
I open the door and I’m met with her dark eyes, her lashes fluttering nervously, while her whole body tenses at the sight of me. She has pulled up the hood of her thick winter coat, hiding her blond locks and parts of her face.
„Come in,” I say, as I step aside. „Quick, before Alpha runs out.”
She casts me a coy smile, and scurries inside before I close the door right behind her. The audible noise of me locking the door makes her flinch before she turns around to me.
„I thought it would be safer to hide my face,” she says as she pulls down the hood. „But now my hair is all messed up.”
She laughs nervously, and her shoulders tense, rising all the way up to her ears.
„Relax,” I say, as I close in on her to help her out of her coat. „You look absolutely stunning. You always do.”
She blushes and I can tell that she’s suppressing another nervous chuckle as she averts her eyes from me. I take off her coat and hang it on one of the coat racks next to the door before I return and place my hands on her shoulders.
„Besides, you have no idea what truly messed up looks like,” I add in an ominous whisper, as I lean down to her ear. „But you will, after tonight.”
There’s a shiver running through her body, and her breathing accelerates. Her reaction brings me back to our night at The Velvet Rooms, when she would tremble at everything I did and said, and beautifully so.
