* * *
We lay on my bed,both of us catching our breaths as we stared up at my ceiling after another round once we got out of the shower. We couldn’t keep our hands off of each other, and there was no way I could stop now.
“Tyler,” I called.
He turned his head and looked at me. “Yeah?”
Turning onto my side, I faced him and said, “No one can find out.”
He moved to face me too. “I know.”
“I mean it.”
“I know,” he repeated. “It’s not just about your job, but also my future too. I could get kicked out of school and then it’s four years for nothing.”
He was right. While I’d been stressing that we couldn’t be anything more because he was my student, I hadn’t stopped to consider he had a lot to lose too.
“Then are you sure about this?” I questioned.
“There’s about four more months left of school. I think we can manage to keep this a secret until after I graduate.”
“And then what?” I wondered. Were we dating? Were we just hooking up?
“I don’t know, but I’m excited to find out.” He smiled and it put me more at ease.
I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his. “Me too.”
11
Tyler
Loud voices filledthe entryway as I pushed the front door open. The chapter room was directly to the right of where I stood, and several of my frat brothers were seated around the large oak table. It wasn’t very often all of us were home at the same time, but no one missed a meeting unless they had an emergency.
Since I still had a few minutes before we were supposed to get started, I headed for the stairs to change out of last night’s clothes.
“You just getting in?” Fallon smirked, eyeing the outfit he had seen me leave the house in the night before.
“Looks like someone got lucky last night,” Preston teased as he stood next to Fallon.
Movement from inside the room caught my attention, and I noticed Ford watching us. He grimaced and a flicker of pain seemed to pass over his face before he looked down at the iPad on the table in front of him.
“Nah, man.” I slapped Preston on the shoulder. “I just had too much to drink and crashed at a friend’s house.” Technically, that wasn’t a lie since I hadn’t gotten lucky the night before but rather that morning.
“Yeah, sure, and pigs can fly.” Preston laughed and walked toward where some others were seated.
Fallon raised an eyebrow, and I knew he didn’t buy my excuse either.
“What?” I asked, not wanting to confirm his suspicions. Since we were such close friends, it was likely he’d eventually figure out I was seeing someone, but my priority was making sure he didn’t find out it was our professor.
“Nothing.” He smiled, and I was grateful he didn’t push the issue. “Let’s get this meeting started.”
“I’m going to change, but I’ll be back down in a minute.”
He nodded, and I ran to my room, stripping off my clothes before slipping on a white Hawkins U hoodie and a pair of black sweatpants. When I got back downstairs, the only spot left at the table was directly across from Ford. As I pulled out the chair, his gaze traveled down my body, and a hint of red colored his cheeks. It was reminiscent of how he used to look at me when we were together. I didn’t want to be a dick, but I also didn’t want him checking me out, so I avoided his stare and pulled out my phone, hoping he’d catch the hint I wasn’t interested in whatever was on his mind.
Before I could think much more about his strange behavior, Fallon started the meeting. He went through all the regular business items and then moved on to our charity event. “We are a little more than two months away from our celebrity softball game, so I want an update from each committee, starting with Preston and Tyler. Do we have a confirmed roster?”
Preston gestured for me to speak because I had the most recent information. “We’ve been able to get commitments from several retired athletes and a couple of local celebrities. We currently have enough people for both teams, but I hope to get a few more on board. I can also confirm that Flirting with Fire will play a few songs after the meet and greet for all of the attendees and perform the National Anthem before the game.”
