I let out the breath I was holding as a huge load fell off my shoulders. Now I just had to prepare for the minefield of question that Maria would bring with her tomorrow. I hated how I knew some of the questions and yet I was ignoring them because I didn’t have an answer myself and I was scared of what I would find if I looked too close at my own feelings.
For now, it was enough that I’d told Maria, I’d deal with the rest when the time came.
I kept the cell phone on the nightstand and looked up to find Damien lounging in the doorway looking like he had been there a while. I bit my lip and wondered just how much he’d heard.
I tried to decipher his expression but I couldn’t make out anything. I was being paranoid, he couldn’t have heard anything.
“Thanks for charging my phone, I talked to my friends.” He didn’t need to know I’d only talked to one friend. The only one who was like a sister to me.
“You were eaves dropping on me?” Oh God! He'd heard everything.I wasn't Marie, I didn't know how to magically come up with a quick save!“Not by design” he said, “I just happened to come by at the right moment.”“You mean wrong moment.” I groaned and hid my face behind my hands. “You should know that you shouldn’t take anything I say to Mari seriously. She’s.. overdramatic, so I have to, you know be really overdramatic too, just to counteract that.. I really didn’t mean it..”I peeked up at him and he didn’t look at all angry.He just opened the tub of ice cream and dipped his spoon in, “You can keep hiding behind your hands while I’ll enjoy the ice cream.” he said.“You mean you aren’t angry at me?” I asked tentatively.“Why would I be angry?”“Oh,” I was confused.I let down my ha
I twisted once more, trying to get comfortable in the big empty bed. I wasn’t used to such a big bed, it seemed strangely lonely when I had so much space to myself.Did he always sleep alone here? I wondered.I knew the answer to that one, he definitely didn’t.He was so hot, there must be a lot of women willing and eager to sleep with him should he just snap his fingers.I painted a comic in my head where hot models with long legs who flipped their hair and had tons of attitude just dropped their panties when they saw him coming. Panties dropping left, right and center.Pathetic. I was pathetic. Anyone with half a spine would have already come onto him, kissed Damien and then whatever would have happened, would be fate.But I just wasn’t built that way. In my whole 23 years of existence, I’d never tried even flirting with a man, not just because I’d been too busy working and studying but also because I’d
There was a door leading off from the washroom that I’d been curious about for some time and after the housekeeper had escorted me to the washroom, I was impatient to find out what was behind it. I could either take a chance, snoop around today or I could wait until my foot healed to give it a try.It wouldn’t be easy with my busted up foot to play spy but what if I didn’t get the chance again?Oh Lord, it was so tempting. It could be locked though..I bit my lip as I turned the lock. Hah, it wasn’t locked.I almost gave a cry of alarm as the lights automatic turned on.Shit, wow… So this is how the other half lived.The entire room had been turned into a walk in closet the likes of which I had only ever seen in magazines, I was awestruck.I slowly made my way inside walking on the plush grey carpet in the room. It was so clean that it gave me the creeps. No shirts strewn about, no shoes on the floor, no
“What happened to you Seline?” Maria burst out as she looked at me.“What?” I looked down at myself, concerned. Surely I didn’t look that bad.She laugher, “I’m not talking about your clothes, although this new style really doesn’t suit you,” she teased me and then grabbed me in an unexpected hug, and then leaned back and looked me in the eyes.“Are you sure nothing bad happened and you’re here only because of the accident?”Her face was tense with worry and I realized that she was dead serious.I put my hands on her shoulders, simultaneously balancing myself so I didn’t fall and also to calm her down.“Nothing happened to me, don’t worry Mari, but if you don’t help me out of here, I just might slip and really hurt myself!”Mari rolled her eyes but helped me out of the washroom.“This place sure is the works, so who&rsquo
After Mari left I thought a lot about what she’d said at the end. Was I that obvious? Did I act this obvious around Damien too or did she just see through it because she was my best friend?It was a lost cause in any case since I was already here and probably would be staying. I felt a relief as I made that decision in my head. I was going to take the chance life had accidentally handed me.I had a lot to do that afternoon and even though I was pretty exhausted and had strict instructions from Damien via the housekeeper to rest, I set up my laptop on the bed.For once in my life, I was grateful that I was in the habit of lugging around my laptop with me to classes even though I never even used it a lot on campus. I wrote an email to my college explaining the situation, it wouldn’t have been a big problem had I been a regular student but it actually was because I was on scholarship.I had worked my ass off for this scholarship and
Oh my, I gasp behind the finger he has on my lips but I say nothing else, what is this mood?He wants to get used to me welcoming him home? Is that supposed to mean..I quickly stop thinking about anything related to being with him because that wouldn’t make sense right? I mean he could have anyone.. Why me?My breathing is haywire as I think of everything this could mean and the path he seemed to be taking me on.I shift on top of him but he catches me closer to him. I look up at him and get caught in his stare, his eyes glitter in the dim light and a thrill passes through me.“So what were you doing when you decided to fall down on me?” he asks me, a definite smile in his voice. I stare down, too mortified to answer. And then I realize what I’m staring it, he’s wearing a black shirt, open at the collar, probably the one he wore to work. He didn’t even change before he decided to look in on me?His open c
My head was reeling, not only was I sprawled like a wanton creature on top of a man but I was enjoying it. What was happening to me? What was this man doing to me? I wondered now what he could make me do. He was the only man who had even made me this hot and it seemed like he really might be interested in me too.A snide little jealous voice in my head told me not to get this excited, maybe he was just playing while I was here, maybe I was just temporary entertainment.I couldn’t stop it from shouting that I was a nobody. A broke on scholarship college student that had to work very hard at making ends meet while he was suave and sophisticated and super rich.It seemed implausible to assume that such an important wealthy man would just want something with some girl he met a few days ago. I needed to protect myself in case all the castles I was building in my head just crashed and melted with the next wave.I couldn’t afford to fall for him.
“No reply?” Damien went on, “I have to tell you I’m disappointed, I wanted to hear something from that smart mouth of yours.”My mouth popped open in shock and I couldn’t speak for a few seconds. I think I was almost equal parts shocked and aroused.Had he really just suggested I strip for him? Although I was shocked, the idea had a strange kind of forbidden appeal to me. I’d never been naked in front of anyone and being naked in front of Damien sounded scary but hot at the same time.What was I thinking? Did I really want him to see me naked?Yes, hard yes, I squirmed as I thought of all the possibilities, of his slate eyes going dark with desire for my body, for me.“Seline?” Damien roused me from my dirty thoughts, “What are you thinking about?”“Uh..nothing, I’m just hungry,” I replied. Hungry for you, I finished in my head.“Oh,” he so
“What?” I looked at her in confusion, had she just said what I thought she’d said? “An arranged marriage? What do you mean an arranged marriage?”“Just what you heard!” Mari replied and sped up as we got near her place.I was struck dumb as I put aside all my problems to focus on Mari’s problem, an arranged marriage in this age? What were her parents thinking?“But Mari, we’re not in the dark ages anymore.. maybe you misunderstood your parents..” I said hesitantly as she parked her car.She gave me a murderous look and without saying a word, banged out of the car. I winced and slowly got out thinking about the huge bombshell she had dropped on me.Mari was like a free bird, not ruled by anything, fears or uncertainties. She had always lived a charmed, cushioned life, never faced any problems or gone through any tragedies as I had and so she had flourished.I had never be
It was Baron. I heaved out a sigh of relief as I saw Baron hesitantly come into the room.Damien tilted his head and just stared at Baron and no joke, he looked scary.Poor Baron just stared at me and Damien and then back at me. I tried not to fidget or fix my clothes but it was hard with the silence.I guess Baron was waiting for me to speak but I refused to say anything because he had no right to come barging in here like this and I was pretty sure he had come here to check on me. he didn’t have a good reason for this interruption.I hadn’t wanted this interruption; I had wanted to be kissed by Damien instead. To be taken by him against the door. I felt hot just thinking about him and me in here, on his desk, on the chair, on the sofa.“Yes? How can I help you today Mr. Hoffman,” Damien asked him finally as Baron said nothing and the silence continued to lengthen.“I..I came here to talk to Seline, I mean info
I watched Seline walk away from me and after Professor Flynn and I was afraid for her. What if I had put her in trouble because of my stupid attempt at taking her out of the class.Shit. I thought and followed behind her maintaining a distance so I would know which office they were heading to.Both of them entered the room and the door closed. Seline had looked remarkably calm and even as if she had been expecting the professor to call her out.But Seline was too good, she probably thought she really had made a mistake by disturbing his class.The prick.Why did he have to act so high and mighty as if what he taught was so fucking important to our lives. Who even needed his advice on running a business? He just liked to brag about how much of a big hotshot CEO he was. If he was such a big thing, why was he teaching?Huh, I could brag about my family business better than him and I hadn’t ever even spent a day working there.It wa
Class was almost over and the lecture was finished. Some of the students had already left but a few of the girls had gathered around Damien. Now I could see what Mari had meant when she’d said that most of the girls had a crush on the new professor.Well obviously, he was hot as hell. That’s how he had fooled me as well.Oh God, I was dating a professor and it was a secret relationship.How had I gotten into this mess?Shit..Could I tell my friends?I didn’t know, I needed to talk to him first.Mari hadn’t noticed anything strange about me but she had been a bit distracted by a call she had received from her mother and had rushed out right after class to talk to her. I wondered if everything was alright.“So why does he want to see you?” Baron asked me gesturing at Damien who was still surrounded by his fandom.I shrugged, “I don’t know, might be because I didn’t att
I was equal parts angry and shocked, unable to decide if I should keep staring at him or to look down at my notebook. I didn’t even know what Damien was teaching, I was so confused.Whenever I looked at him, I kept looking until I had to tell myself to stop. It felt strange to watch him talk to the class and know that I had kissed those lips, those hands had pulled me closer.It made class so distracting.I didn’t know how to behave, how to sit, how to write..I didn’t remember ever being this nervous before.But in all of this, Damien was calm cool and collected. It should have affected him too, I thought irritably. My being in the room should affect him too.I was glad I wasn’t sitting next to Mari today, she was at the other end of the aisle and we hadn’t been able to get seats together because of the stunt I’d pulled midway.Baron wasn’t as in tune with my feelings as Mari and he merely th
I turned back the way I had come in and slammed right into Mari.“Whoa, what’s wrong Seline?” she caught my arms and steadied me before I could move past her and out the door.I couldn’t think clearly, “I..need to go out Mari, to the bathroom, I forgot something.”“You forgot something in the bathroom?” Mari asked me as I moved past her but I didn’t answer. My head was spinning as I took deep breaths to think clearly.Back in the hallway leading towards the classes, I tried to make sense of my reality.Damien?Damien was my professor? He was the new professor? How was that possible?How? And why hadn’t he said anything?Suddenly I remembered his words in the text, ‘See you in the morning.’ and then his words last night, that I’d find out tomorrow whether or not he told me.This is what he meant.THIS IS WHAT HE MEANT?!I suddenly
Mari was surprised to see me back so early, “Didn’t I just talk to you about meeting us for dinner or something, don’t tell me the plan is off?”I didn’t know what to say or how to explain what had happened.“What happened Seline?” she looked concerned now. I twisted my fingers and thought of where to start.“Mari, he’s hiding something.” I sat down on the bed, most of my anger had drained at this point and I was just confused now.Mari came and sat down next to me, putting her arm around my shoulders, “How do you know that?”“He told me himself.” I told her, “but he didn’t tell me what it is that he’s hiding from me.”“Hold on, so you came back without asking him what it was?”“Well, he refused to tell me until and unless I stayed the night. Am I the only one who thinks this is crazy?” I looked at Mari.
I felt a frisson of alarm move through me at his words, what did he mean?What was he hiding from me?I should have known. I should have known.He was just too good to be true. My instincts had told me before he could tell me.I wondered what he was hiding and how big an impact it would have on me.I stared at his face, unable to comprehend what he was saying or what I should do now.And why now? What was the relevance of this moment.Did it have anything to do with my friends coming over? Why?I was silent for a minute, trying to get my disjointed thoughts to form a single sentence that would make sense. Damien waited patiently as if he had all the time in the world.“Are you hiding something from me?” I asked finally, scared of his answer.He took one of my hands in his, “It’s not as serious as you think but this secret will require your trust in me, in us. Which is why I’m asking y
There was a devil on one shoulder and an angel on my other shoulder because my thoughts were conflicted as hell. On the one hand I wanted him to be joking and on the other hand I wanted to strip off this shirt and call him up on his challenge. It was maddening. I stared up at him from beneath my lashes trying to guess if he was serious. He was waiting too for what I would do, call his bluff or brush it off? My phone rang in the middle of our silent war and the spell was broken. I took a shuddery breath and moved to pick it up while Damien took his coffee to the breakfast table. It was Mari. “Rise and shine Babe,” she chimed as I picked up the phone. “Good morning to you too,” I laughed as I turned to make my own coffee, light and sweet. “I don’t know about my morning but I’m sure yours was pretty good..” I could hear the curiosity in her voice. I laughed and Damien looked up, “Well have I guessed correctly?” she asked m