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by Ivy Smoak
"Yes," I said quickly. Oh please stop talking, Melissa.
"Yeah, it's going to be a Halloween themed party, since both our birthdays are in October," Melissa added. "It's going to be a blast."
Tyler sat down on the bed beside me.
"So, does this mean you two have finally admitted to liking one another?" Melissa asked.
I looked up at Tyler and smiled. Despite Melissa's intrusion, I did feel like Tyler and I were in a good place.
Tyler winked at me and turned back to Melissa. "Actually, no. I thought Penny made all her male friends take their shirts off upon entering her dorm room. Is that not a thing?"
"Ugh," Melissa said. "I'm going to leave you two alone."
"Unfortunately," Tyler said and looked down at his watch. "I need to get going." He hopped off the bed and grabbed his shirt from the floor. After he pulled it back over his head, he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "to be continued, Penny." He grabbed my face in his hands and kissed me.
If my face could possibly turn any redder, it did.
"Bye, Melissa," Tyler said and walked out the door.
"Oh my God," Melissa said before Tyler had even closed the door. She sat down next to me on my bed. "Out of bed with James and into bed with Tyler, huh?"
"Melissa, we didn't have sex."
"Yeah right."
I needed to change the topic before it got any more awkward. "Thanks for covering for me about James."
"Well, have you talked to him? You really do need to clear the air before you move forward with Tyler. It's only fair to both of them."
"I know, I know. I'm going to."
"When?"
I sighed. I didn't want to think about Professor Hunter. "I'll do it this weekend."
"So how about Tyler's six pack?"
I laughed. "He is sexy, isn't he?"
"I couldn't stop staring. Sorry, awkward."
Chapter 41
Saturday
Professor Hunter had sent me a few more texts asking to meet with me. But I couldn't see him. I had never been so angry with someone in my life. I opened up my email and clicked on the one from Professor Hunter. Maybe I could end this through email. I reread what he had written.
Subject: Our discussion isn't over
Penny,
I wish you wouldn't always feel so compelled to argue with me. I told you that I have done some things in my past that I regret. I am not withholding information from you to be spiteful. I'm doing it to protect you. If you will allow me to come talk to you, I can explain.
-James
I forgot how angry his email had made me. He was so full of himself. I quickly wrote back to him.
Subject: Trying to Protect Me?
Professor Hunter,
I thought that I was naive, but I believe that description fits you better. I don't think that I'm the woman in your life that you should be protecting.
-Penny
There. I felt better already. I pressed send. It was cowardly to hide behind my computer, but I didn't have the guts to do it in person. It didn't take long before my computer dinged, signaling that I had a new email.
Subject: You're the Only Woman in My Life
Penny,
I'm not sure what you think you know about me. But I can tell you that I'm falling for you. There is no woman in my life that is more important to me. It's you. I'm coming over now.
-James
Why was I smiling right now? I bit my lip. Yes, his words were sweet, but he was lying. He was treating me like a child. I wasn't the only woman in his life. I was the other woman! I quickly typed out my response.
Subject: Don't You Dare
Professor Hunter,
Don't waste your time. Even if you come here, I'm not coming out to talk to you.
-Penny
He couldn't come here. I didn't want to see him. This had to be done through email. It was the only way that I'd be strong enough to confront him. My computer dinged again.
Subject: I Do Dare
Penny,
Stop being so stubborn. I'm leaving now. I'll see you in ten minutes.
-James
Crap. I had quickly lost control of our email conversation. Was there anything I could say so that he wouldn't come? It didn't seem like it. I took a deep breath. Could I do this? I just needed to not look at him and his stupid beautiful face. My attraction for him had blinded me before. I needed to make sure that wouldn't happen again. If I could focus on his adultery, I could be strong. He was an awful person.
I glanced in the mirror, fixed my hair, and wiped away some oil on my face with a tissue. I changed into a nice pair of yoga pants and a tank top. Why am I trying to look nice for an adulterer? I closed my dorm room door behind me and went out the back of my building to where he usually came to pick me up. His car was already there. My heart beat was already accelerating and I hadn't even seen him. I walked down the steps and approached the car slowly, trying to remain calm. Professor Hunter opened the passenger's side door from the inside.
"Get in the car."
"But I don't want to go anywhere," I stammered. The idea of being so close to him in the car made me feel uncomfortable. I didn't trust myself around him. His hair was smoothed and he was clean-shaven, unlike in class earlier. He was wearing a t-shirt, a jacket, and jeans and I could smell his intoxicating scent through the open door.
Professor Hunter glared at me. "I'm not taking you anywhere. I just want to be able to talk to you in private."
I looked around. It was a chilly night and most of the students were either out partying or snuggled up in their dorms. "There's no one around."
"Penny, get in the car."
I didn't want our conversation to start this way. I sighed and sat down in the passenger's seat. He drove the car to the small parking lot by my dorm, pulled into one of the last spots, and cut the ignition. He stared out the windshield.
I thought he would start talking, but he stayed silent. My heart was beating so loud that I thought he might be able to hear it in the silent car. He was gripping the wheel of the car tightly and his knuckles were turning white. I glanced down at his ring finger. There weren't any tan lines or anything. I thought that's what I was supposed to look for. Was it possible that I was wrong about everything?
He finally turned to me. "I thought you weren't going to come out and see me."
There was something definitely wrong with me. All I wanted to do was start making out with him. I crossed my arms over my chest and looked out my window. "I figured I owed it to you to hear your side."
"You're cute when you're upset."
He was the infuriating one, not me. I was already fuming. We weren't supposed to be talking about us. We were supposed to be talking about him and his wife. "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked. I clenched my jaw.
"Tell you what?"
He was still going to play dumb? This was fucking ridiculous. "How could you possibly not know what I'm referring to? What is wrong with you?"
Professor Hunter took a deep breath. "You looked me up online, didn't you?" His brow was furrowed. Why was he pissed at me? What else was there online about him beside his hidden wife?
"No! Well, yes. But that has nothing to do with anything. I found your ring, Professor Hunter." I could feel the tears welling in my eyes.
He nodded his head, absorbing the information. But there was a slight smile on his face. Why the hell did he look relieved? What else was he hiding from me? He was such an ass.
"So you have nothing to say to that?" I asked.
"It's not what you think." He put his hand through his hair.
Stop doing sexy things! "And what is it that you think I'm thinking?"
He raised his left eyebrow. Damn it! Don't look at me like that! All the muscles below my waist seemed to clench. This car was stifling. The smell of him was everywhere, wearing me down.
"You're probably thinking that I'm a lying cheater that you want nothing to do with."
I swallowed h
ard. "Am I wrong?"
"Yes."
"Enlighten me." I couldn't believe I was having this conversation, with my professor no less. This situation was unbearable. I could feel myself starting to sweat.
"First of all, I never lied to you. I withheld information that I deemed unimportant to our relationship..."
"Unimportant? You're such an asshole," I said, cutting him off. I grabbed the door handle.
"Penny." He put his hand on my shoulder. His touch made me tingle.
"And you did lie to me. At the country club when you said you didn't relish sharing me, you made me believe that I wasn't sharing you either. You even denied having a girlfriend. If I had known you were married..." my voice trailed off as I started to cry.
"Penny, please don't cry." Professor Hunter reached over and wiped my tears from my cheek.
"Don't touch me." I pushed his hand away. "How could you do this to me? Why didn't you just tell me then? I trusted you!"
"Because Isabella and I are over."
"What? You're divorced?" I sunk into the passenger's seat. Thank God. I wasn't a mistress. I felt the weight fly off my shoulders. "You still could have told me."
He sighed. "It's just a matter of finalizing the paperwork. I would have told you once it was official. I just didn't want to upset you for no reason."
"So you're technically still married right now?"
"Technically, yes, but I've already signed the divorce papers. It hasn't been a smooth process. But I have no connection to Isabella at all. We're done. We've been done for a long time."
I stared at him, waiting for him to elaborate. Why was he so horrible at talking to me? "Well, what happened?"
He pressed his lips together. "We didn't love each other."
"Then why did you get married in the first place?"
"It's a long story."
I turned toward him and pulled my legs up onto the seat. "I have some time to spare."
Professor Hunter looked uncomfortable. He leaned toward me slightly and put his hand on the center console. "Do you really want to talk about this, Penny? All you need to know is that it was a mistake and it's over."
"Please. I need to know." I put my hand on top of his. I wanted him to open up to me. I didn't want there to be any more secrets between us.
Professor Hunter squeezed my hand. "Okay." He sighed. "Isabella's parents are good friends with my parents. Ever since we were little, our parents always pushed us together. But I just never clicked with her. She was always so cold.
"In high school, I started dating a girl named Rachel. Whenever Rachel came over my house, my parents were completely dismissive. It was clear that they didn't think she was good enough to be part of our family. They always made her feel so unwelcome. When I finally confronted them about it, they told me that if I didn't break up with Rachel they wouldn't pay for me to go to college. And I'm not proud of what I did. My life with them was all that I knew. I didn't want to have to be on my own. I didn't know how to live without money. I was young and stupid."
Professor Hunter was looking down at my hand. He rubbed my palm with his thumb. The pain on his face almost made me start crying again. He must have loved Rachel. But I didn't feel jealous, I just felt sad for him. I wanted to climb over into his seat and hug him.
"I broke up with Rachel the next day. And my parents began to make it clear that I was expected to eventually marry Isabella. Isabella was the only one they would ever approve of. They said that it was in my best interest to marry someone that wasn't after my money. I was so unhappy. When I told you that I was drunk most of college, I was serious. I completely lost it. I spiraled to the bottom. But my parents just kept telling me it was what was best. So eventually I just accepted the fact that I had to marry Isabella. Instead of worrying about it, I threw all my time and energy into the tech company I wanted to start. And when it blew up, I asked Isabella to marry me, because that was the next step I was supposed to take. Before I even realized what was happening, the wedding was planned, and everyone had been invited. I knew I didn't love her, but I walked down the aisle anyway. And I made promises to her. I vowed to keep those promises. And I did. I tried so hard to make it work.
"But she didn't love me either. She enjoyed dressing up and playing the part of my wife. Isabella loved the lifestyle, but she didn't love me. She was cold when we were alone. We barely talked. I knew she slept around. I tried to ignore it. I wanted for us to work out because our parents wanted us to be together. Neither one of us were happy. But she was still my wife, so I kept trying to make it work. I was always loyal to her. I tried to make her happy. When I decided to sell my company she freaked out. She couldn't believe that I'd rather spend my days doing something meaningful. And she definitely didn't support my decision. It's funny, because my parents told me we should be together because she wasn't after my money. But really, the only reason that Isabella married me was because I had money."
I bit my lip. So that's why he wasn't close to his parents. They had controlled his whole life. Professor Hunter had told me his story while staring down at my hand. I squeezed his hand and he turned to me. There was so much pain on his face. Failing in his marriage had clearly devastated him. Maybe not living up to his parents' expectations had devastated him more, though.
"I'm sorry," I said. I cared about him. I didn't want to see him upset. He had this way of drawing me in.
"No, I am. I should have told you. Being here teaching, being with you, this is what I've been missing. I don't want this to mess up what we have."
I looked into his eyes. He was so sincere. He rubbed my palm with his thumb. His light touch sent shivers down my spine.
"I've always been told what to do. I've never had to make choices. But I chose you. And when I walked into my bedroom and you were gone it hurt like hell. My whole life has been painful, living in a way that I didn't want to live. But nothing was as painful as you leaving and not talking to me. Seeing you in class was torture."
"I couldn't see you either. That's why I left class today. I could see that you were feeling all the pain that I was feeling. I've never been so heartbroken."
He leaned over and took my chin in his hand. "Don't do that to me again. I'll tell you whatever you want to know. No more secrets."
"Okay." My heart was beating fast. He was going to answer all my questions. I needed to make sure that him liking me wasn't part of the reason why he was getting divorced. "When did you file for divorce?"
"Last year I walked in on Isabella having sex with someone else in our bed. I filed for divorce the next day."
"And came here?"
"Yes."
He was back to his short answers. I remembered Melissa telling me that Professor Hunter had been fired from his last job. She had made a joke about how he had probably punched the dean in the face or something. "There's a rumor that you got fired from your last job."
Professor Hunter grimaced. "It's not a rumor; it's true."
"What did you do? Have sex with a student?" I asked the question as casually as possible and laughed awkwardly.
"What? No, Penny. I haven't made a habit of sleeping with students. You're the exception." He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
So he hadn't gotten fired because of that. What had he done, then? He hadn't answered my question. "So, what did you do?"
"The dean of the college was the one that I walked in on having sex with Isabella. It didn't end well."
Melissa was right?! "Did you have a fist fight or something?"
"Penny, he was in my bed. It's one thing to suspect it; it's another to see it."
"You have anger problems, don't you?"
He rubbed his hand down his face and then back up. Everything he did was so sexy.
"I don't think I'd put it that way," he said.
"So what would you call it?" I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
"Passion maybe." He leaned over and kissed me. Any leftover anger I had disappeared when his lips touched m
ine. I grabbed the collar of his jacket and pulled him closer to me. I wanted to make him forget his pain.
He stopped kissing me for a moment and stared at me with his piercing brown eyes. "God I missed you," he whispered.
"I missed you too."
He leaned over me and pushed a button. My seat began to slowly recline. He started to move over the center console and his ass hit the horn.
I started laughing as he straddled me. He silenced me with a kiss. His hand slid from my cheek, down my neck, and onto my breast. He squeezed it hard before letting his hand wander down to the waistline of my yoga pants.
"Professor Hunter?"
"You said there was no one around."
"Shouldn't we go back to your place?"
"You tortured me for almost a week, Penny. I'm not waiting another second. Switch places with me."
I ungracefully slid to the side and got on top of him, bumping into the door and dashboard as he laughed at me.
"Ow," I muttered.
He placed a kiss on my lips as he slid my yoga pants and thong down my thighs. Every inch of me felt alive with temptation. Professor Hunter really wasn't a bad man. He was still who I had fallen in love with. And I wanted him. I wanted him so badly. I slid off my shoes and kicked off my pants as he pushed his jeans and boxers to the floor of the car. His massive erection had already sprung to life.
I leaned over and kissed him. Without hesitation, he grabbed my hips and pulled me down onto his length. The sensation of him filling me made me gasp. I pressed my hand against the passenger window.
"Don't put me through that again, Penny." He kissed my neck as he moved my hips faster and faster.
"Never." His hands slid to my ass and he slammed his cock into me. I moaned as his fingers dug into my skin. I loved the way he knew exactly what to do to make me completely surrender my body to him. He pulled me closer to him.
"Promise me."
"I promise," I said breathlessly.
The seat belt buckle hit my knee and I quickly pushed it aside. The angle in the car was awkward but the sensation of him inside me was all that mattered.