I press my hand to his chest and break the kiss. “No. Nope,” I tell him, and his head drops in defeat. “I need to get this essay done. All making out and other activities will have to wait.”
He bites his lip in an attempt to conceal his grin. “Other activities?”
As his brows bounce suggestively, I roll my eyes. “Shut up. You know what I mean.”
“I don’t. Please, demonstrate.”
“You’re impossible,” I deadpan.
Throwing his head back, laughter bellows out of him. “All right, fine. I’m getting in the shower. Get your work done.”
With one last kiss, he retreats to the bathroom, leaving me alone to focus for once—though that’s no easier now that I’m thinking about his toned, dripping wet body. Ugh, no.
I’m a third of the way through when I realize I need to write down a few notes. I look in my bag but have no luck. I must have left my notebook in my locker. My eyes scan the room for any kind of paper when they land on a book sitting on Knox’s desk. However, as I split it open to find an empty page, I realize it’s not your typical notebook.
I flip through the pages, finding beautiful drawings all in pencil. The texture, the detail, the veracity—they’re stunning. It isn’t until I get further into it that my breath gets taken away. What started as sketches of scenery, like beaches and fields, becomes drawings of me. Sleeping in bed, smiling down at the ground, and even reading a book—I’ve become his muse.
“What are you doing?”
Startled, I drop the book and watch as it falls to the floor. “I-I was looking for a piece of scrap paper.”
He stalks toward me slowly, his eyes never leaving mine until he bends down and picks it up. “Did you find what you were looking for?”
I shake my head. “I found better. Those are incredible. I had no idea you were so talented.”
“It’s a cheap hobby that passes the time. I started because I wanted to start tattooing, but I don’t know if that will ever happen.”
“Why not?”
He shrugs. “Apprenticeships are expensive and take a lot of time where you make shit money.”
I don’t know what to say, being as I’ve never been in that place. I’ve always had the ability to do anything and go anywhere that I wanted. Growing up with wealthy parents is never something I’ve taken for granted, but I’ve also never fully grasped the privilege of always having everything I need, or at least having the ability to get it.
“One day, you’ll do it. I know you will.”
Chuckling, he looks down with his arms wrapped around me. “You always have so much faith in me.”
I smile, until I realize something about him is different. When I figure out what it is, my grin widens.
“You wear glasses?”
The cocky look on his face falls right off the minute he realizes he didn’t take them off. “Shit.”
I grab his hands, stopping him from removing them. “Wait, don’t. You look cute.”
“You’re a bad liar.”
“I’m not lying,” I try, but the small chuckle gives me away. “You look so much less like a badass.”
He rolls his eyes playfully before tickling me. “Hello. My name is Knoxley Vaughnwinkle.” His voice is nasally, like he’s doing his best nerd impersonation. “It’s nice to meet you today.”
I laugh like a little kid with her favorite person. “Please tell me that’s your actual name.”
“Fuck no, thank God.”
“That’s a shame. Knoxley Vaughnwinkle sounds like my kind of guy.”
A fire burns in his eyes as he stares me down and pulls me against him. “I’m your kind of guy. No one else. Just me.”