AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Nine
Naomi
I wiped down my kitchen counter for the tenth time and forced myself to put the cleaning supplies away.
“What if you’re like, his mistress?” V asked. I had her on speaker phone, my phone sat on the breakfast bar.
“Don’t say that,” I groaned, imagining the horror. Then it occurred to me that he could very well have a wife, as gorgeous as he was, it was almost impossible that he wasn’t snatched up by someone.
“Just make sure you ask all the hard questions. How many students has he slept with, if he’s married, has kids, that sort of thing. You never know with older guys,” she said.
“Yeah—” knocking on the door made me look over so fast that I tweaked my neck. “He’s here, gotta go,” I said.
“Make sure you get those answers before you sleep with him again!” V said. I leaned over the counter to hang up the phone and quickly stashed the cleaning supplies under the kitchen counter. I ran my fingers through my hair a few times and then hurried to open the door. Josh stood in the hall wearing a grey t-shirt and jeans. His hair was roughly parted on the side, making it wave into his face a bit. He looked young in general but then, in street clothes, he looked my age.
“Hey,” I said.
“Gorgeous,” he smiled. I couldn’t help the girlish flutter of butterflies in my stomach. I stepped aside and he walked in. He didn’t glance around or anything, his eyes were glued to me. As soon as the door closed behind him, he put his hand around my waist and kissed me. His lips were soft and insistent. My body reacted to him almost immediately. I swayed towards him and put my hand on his chest. My fingers itched to touch his hair. “Hi,” he whispered against my lips. I took a step back from him, feeling a little bit dizzy and overwhelmed.
“Hi,” I said again and bit my lip. “I hope you got here okay?” I asked.
“Yeah. I live like ten-ish minutes away,” he said. Josh looked around then. There wasn’t much to see, the place was small and self-explanatory. Jerry was currently hiding in my room. “Nice place, I like how it’s decorated,” he said.
“Thanks,” I smiled. My apartment was all mellow tones and I went for a boho-chic/beachy vibe with the furniture and décor.
“Where’s your cat?” he asked. I waved him into the living room and he sat on the couch.
“He’s in my room, he’ll come out eventually,” I said. “As long as you don’t start to sound like a serial killer he’ll grace you with his presence.”
Josh chuckled. “He’s part guard cat, part King of the Apartment?” he asked.
“Exactly,” I said. I gestured to the kitchen and offered Josh a drink. He settled on beer and I grabbed a couple for us and sat next to him. The list of things V mentioned that I should ask him was at the forefront of my mind and I really wanted to get them out of the way. But I didn’t want to come off as interrogating him or anything like that.
“Do you have any pets?” I asked.
“Nah, I just moved into my own house so I kinda want to settle in and not have to worry about anything before welcoming the mess of a puppy or kitten,” he said. “My sister has two Labradors that I watch sometimes though,” he said.
“Where’d you move from again?” I asked.
“I was all over for a couple of years, drifting, really,” he said.
“You were a drifter?” I asked, incredulous. “How does a drifter get such a good job at a private university?”
“Well, I was teaching before I wandered off,” he said cryptically. I took a sip of my beer, he uncapped his and took a swig.
“How come you wandered off?” I asked. Josh shrugged.
“My ex-wife cheated on me while we’d been trying to have a baby. She had one with the guy and now she’s marrying him,” he said frankly. I was sure my eyebrows were in my hairline, I couldn’t hide my shock. Josh took another swig of his beer.
“That’s…well that’s what divorce is for,” was all I managed to say. As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them. “I’m sorry, that sounded—”
“It’s okay,” he laughed. “You’re right. She wasn’t the one, if she had the capacity to cheat on me, she was never the one,” he said.
“So now what? You just…take your pick from all the students who fawn over you?” I asked, teasing only a little.
Josh’s eyebrows wrinkled and he actually looked affronted. “No, of course not. It’s only you,” he said. “You’re the only student I’ve ever been attracted to and pursued.” He didn’t miss a beat when he said it. I bit my lip and then took another swig of my beer.
“Oh,” I said after I swallowed. Josh scooted closer to me and put his beer down on the coffee table.
