Holy shit. Asher Hawthorne, the one-night-stand that will go down in history as the best sex of my life, is my new English teacher.
5
TESSA
I sit at my desk, unable to focus on anything but Asher. The look on his face when I walked in the room was unlike anything I’ve ever seen—furious, frustrated, and somehow hotter than fucking ever. It took a minute before I snapped out of it and went to sit next to Lennon. Still, he’s yet to look at me since.
“All right,” he grumbles, standing up and walking over toward the chalkboard. “My name is Mr. Hawthorne, and trust me when I say, I want to be here even less than you do.”
A round of chuckles fill the air as they think he’s cracking a joke, but judging by the way he rolls his eyes, he isn’t. Skye raises her hand with a cocky grin on her face. He raises a brow at her, giving her permission to speak.
“What’s your first name, Mr. Hawthorne?”
A bunch of girls fail at masking their giggles while Asher looks entirely fed up. “That is not information you need to know. You are a high school student, and I am your teacher. It’ll do you good to remember that.”
Skye pouts but my focus stays on the way Asher glances over at me and then down at the ground. Something tells me that little speech wasn’t meant for her, but for me. I can’t help the dull feeling of disappointment at his words, because seeing him again…I fucking want him, bad.
“Let’s get back to business, shall we?” He walks back over to his desk and sits down. “I’m going to take attendance. You’re all seniors in high school, so I don’t think I need to explain how this works.” Looking at his computer, he starts to call out names. “Tanner Ackerman.”
“Here,” Tanner calls back.
“Lennon Bradwell.”
“Here.”
“Tessa Da—” As he stops short, I realize he almost called out the fake name I gave him that night. He swallows, hard. “Sorry. Tessa Callahan.”
I drop my head down, feeling uncomfortable for the first time in a while. “Here.”
He continues as if nothing happened, but the way my heart is racing proves otherwise. If this is how the next few months are going to go, Jesus take the wheel.
THE WHOLE CLASS IS spent with Asher avoiding looking at me at all costs, yet I’m still afraid that when the bell rings, he’s going to ask to speak to me—which is something I can’t handle. When I woke up this morning, the absolute last person I expected to see today was him, and I just need a minute to get my head on straight. So, the second the bell rings, I grab my things and blend in with the crowd, careful not to make eye contact with him as I leave.
“Ugh, the rumors were true,” Skye sighs as she grips her book. “He is gorgeous.”
Charleigh laughs. “Didn’t you hear him? Messing around with one of his students doesn’t seem to be on his bucket list.”
“A girl can dream, okay?”
I look over at Lennon and can practically see the gears turning in her head. It’s obvious she hasn’t caught on yet, but it’s only a matter of time until she puts the pieces together.
“Honestly, he seemed like a major hard-ass,” Adrianna offers.
Kellan snorts and shakes his head. “You think that was him being a hard-ass? You should see him at practice. He almost made Tanner vomit.”
“He did not!” Tanner whines. “I told you. I was already feeling sick before I got there.”
“Sure you were, buddy.” Kellan pats him on the back twice before jumping away as Tanner goes to smack him in the stomach. He focuses on Lennon. “What’s up with you? You’re quieter than usual.”
Turning the corner, Lennon sighs. “He looked so damn familiar, but I just can’t put my finger on it.”
“You’ve probably seen him on TV or in a magazine.” Tanner shrugs. “He’s a former record-breaking quarterback for the 49ers.”
And there it is. Lennon’s eyes double in size as she stops and turns to me. I push her up against the wall and cover her mouth with my hand to keep in whatever she might blurt out. The girls keep walking, but Kellan and Tanner stop. Their brows furrow, but I smile sweetly.
“You go ahead. We’ll catch up,” I tell them.
Thankfully, they don’t ask any questions as they continue their trek to our next class. Once they’re out of earshot, I remove my hand.