Chapter 2

I stood there momentarily stunned, just gaping at him with my mouth wide open. "What the hell..., "I finally said through my teeth. How dare Vince turn up at my doorstep! 

"First you knock into me in school without apologizing, now you still have the balls to turn up here? Do you want me to kick your balls? Oh wait I already did. Hope I haven't done a sex change on you," I taunted sardonically.

To my utmost surprise, he burst into laughter. "Wha...you don't...know?" Vince managed to say in between laughs. I tried not to be distracted by his low-slung jeans that hung nicely over his hips and his freshly-washed hair that smelt too good, so I averted my eyes. How could he affect me this way at a time like this?

"All I know is you better get away from me before I do something even more violent, but this time I won't spare you. By the way, my tutor is arriving soon. So get out before you make a bad impression of me." I spoke, trying, and failing, to sound threatening as my words came out breathy and unsettled.

Finally, Vince calmed down from his laughing fit. He looked dazed. Speaking of looks, he was wearing a grey turtleneck that complemented his hazel eyes over some jeans and sneakers that made him look good as always.

I made a mental note to stop checking him out all the time, but my cheeks started heating up again. 

"But you see, kitten," Vince smirked, running a tongue across his pierced lips, "I am your new tutor."

"What... This can't be." Shaking my head in denial, I crossed my arms. What was he saying?

"Prove it then." I blurted out without thinking and stared at him challengingly. Inside, I was in a state of panic. I was wearing a loose cotton shirt and some comfy shorts. No doubt, I looked like a mess right now. I didn't expect him to be here. Oh crap.

"Okay, let's see," Vince said, taking out his phone from his pocket. Tapping on his messages, he passed me his phone with a smirk. My eyes almost popped out of their sockets as I read the messages that were sent. 

"Are you convinced now, kitten?" Vince asked with his trademark smirk on his face. 

"I guess so... But I'm not going to invite you into my house," I said matter-of-factly. He looked hurt. "Why not?" "Based on my previous experience, no doubt you are going to try something. Besides, I don't trust you yet." I replied indifferently, but my heart was pounding rapidly. Oh no, why did he affect me so much?

"Your cheeks are red, kitten." Vince purred and leaned against the door frame. "As you know, the offer is still on." He winked and I wanted to hide, but instead, I cleared my throat and rolled my eyes.

"I want to puke now," I said, but I couldn't keep the smile out of my face. Damn it, Vince! 

"Would you like to go to my house instead then? It's not too far away." He said innocently, still holding his motorbike helmet in his hands.

"Nice try, player.'' I scoffed in response, but it would be cool to ride in a motorcycle after all...

From behind me, a clearing of a throat interrupted us.

"Aren't you Amanda's new tutor?" My mom asked, raising an eyebrow at Vince. "Yes, that's me, Mrs. Summers." Vince toggled between expressions, looking polite as ever. Secretly, I rolled my eyes. He is such a prude.

"Sure, come in. Amanda needs help in her history, thanks for coming over to help her. Call me Liz. " My mom beamed, seeming to have approved of him. I gritted my teeth in frustration.

Way to go Ryker. Going on a first-name basis with the parentals.

Reluctantly, I opened the door wider and let him into the house. He strolled in confidently and glanced around, assessing his surroundings. My house was modest in size, with only two bedrooms. Dad was still serving his prison sentence, and Liz was the only one staying with me. It could get lonely sometimes, as I was in my room most of the time.

As it was the first lesson, I thought it won't be appropriate to have the lesson in my room straightaway considering his reputation and hence we settled into the couch in the living room. I took out my history textbook and flipped it to the page that we had learned that day. Throughout the whole time, Vince was looking intently at me and I felt heat rising in my cheeks. 

"Let's start with something simple. Draw me a timeline of events that happened during World War 2." Vince said casually, and picked up a piece of pen and paper, handing them both to me. With that, we got to work. 

To my utter surprise, Vince did not make one inappropriate comment during the lesson. He was rather good, I'll admit, for someone like him who the number of times he went to class could be counted off on my fingers in one hand.

I was surprised that he actually knew his stuff. He actually made me understand all of the factors and events leading up to Hitler's invasion of Poland, something which I had always struggled to comprehend in class. We made much progress and soon enough, the lesson drew towards an end. At this point, I was much more relaxed with him and he even made some jokes along the way to keep the lesson fun. 

The sky outside was turning darker as the sun disappeared beneath the horizon. Idly, I wondered what he would be up to at night. Studying, perhaps. I didn't want to ask him though. 

I was thinking maybe, just maybe he wasn't as bad as he seemed. I was too quick to judge this bad boy. Just then, when I stood, I tripped on my slippers and fell. Ow... it hurt.

When I glanced up, Vince was smirking at me. "You should be more careful, kitten." As strange as it was, it sounded like a warning. Maybe I shouldn't get too involved with him, but his mysterious energy drew me in. I was suddenly curious how did he gain so much knowledge since he wasn't in school regularly.

"You too." I muttered to myself, hinting that he might get kicked in the balls again if he didn't behave himself. I was proud of how I was standing up to him, given that many people were afraid of him. This made me feel more confident. 

"Cute that you're showing concern for me, kitten." Vince quipped, his hazel eyes twinkling in the night light of my living room.

"You know what I meant." I replied, giving him a blank stare.

"Trust me, I don't." He said innocently and winked once. He actually looked pretty cute when he did that. My heartbeat sped up involuntarily as a result. I turned my face away to prevent him from seeing my face redden again.

"Vince, please stay for dinner. We hardly have visitors these days." Liz's warm voice chimed out, which startled me. 

Oh no, why did Liz like him so much? Internally, I groaned again.

"If that won't be too much of a hassle." Vince said sweetly, running his fingers through his hair.

Liz set up the table for three at our small dining table and I realized that I was actually famished. She served us steak with potatoes and garden vegetables, which were pretty delicious. I sneaked a look at Vince when he wasn't looking, and saw that he was enjoying his food too.

During the meal, Liz asked us about school and how we were coping. Vince said he was coping pretty well with decent grades for all his subjects and Liz looked impressed. Damn it, how does he do that?

"A great tutor you have, dearie," Liz said, smiling at me.

I blushed and quickly finished my food before Vince could tease me about it. 

"Thank you for the food," Vince commented and smiled a warm smile. I was surprised that he could be so polite.

After our meal, I walked Vince to the front door as it was time to leave. 

"What? No goodnight kiss?" Vince smirked, leaning against the door. His physique was great and I could see his abs from here, but I tried to divert my gaze again. 

Goodnight kiss? "In your dreams, player." I retorted flatly, crossing my arms. 

However, despite this, I had to wonder. Was Vince really a bad boy at heart? I pondered to myself. Or was it just a front for others? My mind raced to process this idea.

"You sure know how to kill my vibe. I thought we were getting along." Vince said, a little hurt in his voice and I felt a little bad for him.

 "Nope, you were mistaken. You should leave now." I replied nonchalantly, trying to discourage him from staying longer and to stop my face (and a certain other part of the body, if you know what I mean) from heating up.

As I spoke those words, I could feel my subconscious telling me the opposite. You can stay as long as you want, actually. That was what I meant, but that would be a little creepy.

"Laters, kitten. Love you too." With that, Vince left. I was hoping that he would stay longer, feeling a little disappointed.

Damn... did he just say what I thought he did? My heart was pounding. Crap, I was really losing my mind. How was I going to face him at school now? In any case, he probably didn't mean it at all. However, a part of me still wished that he did.

He was probably grateful for the meal that Liz prepared, that was it. Wasn't it?

Besides, his changes in personality and behavior were so intriguing. Why was he so nice and then douchebag the next moment? It was so confusing. Hot and cold, but it really captivated me, drawing me closer. I really wanted to figure him out as a person. I believed that he was good, internally.

Closing the door, my thoughts were racing. I showered quickly, brushed my teeth and said goodnight to Liz before going to bed. Somehow, I thought of Vince and his hazel brown eyes looking into mine. What did his warning about being careful mean exactly? I shivered and snuggled closer into the sheets. 

After my brain could register no further, I drifted into a deep sleep.