He doesn’t slow his pace. In fact, he moves faster. The pressure in me builds again, renewed and unsatisfied with draining me of all energy. Despite my lack of breath and fully-functioning brain cells, my body constricts around him. I am rising even higher until we both tumble back down to Earth.
He leans me back against the desk. Neither one of us speaks. I’m pretty sure I’ve lost all ability to from this.
So that was what I had denied myself all these years?
That’s what every one of my friends enjoyed while I spent my days and nights working and studying? It was worth it. Every minute I sacrificed saved me for Zach. I wouldn’t trade a moment. Not for him.
Zach moves over me, brushing my hair back out of my face. The way his eyes watch me warms a piece of my soul. The adoration I see there, the incandescent devotion, tugs at my heart.
I’m falling in love with him.
This is dangerous.
I hadn’t expected to feel this way about him, to fall so desperately for him despite how far out of my reach he is. We agreed to make this work, didn’t we? We agreed to more than one night of passion. Or was this to be it? Get this attraction between us out of our systems, so we can move on with our lives.
One day would never be enough.
“Did I hurt you?” he asks.
I smile. “No. Why?”
“You’ve got a teardrop under your eye.” As if for emphasis, he wipes his finger beneath my eyelid.
The thin drop sweeps away easily. I hadn’t even realized it was there. Was that normal? What about the numbness in my toes? I’m not sure what to expect. My body could be shutting down in this very moment, and I would chalk it up to pure bliss.
“Oh. No,” I respond. “I feel wonderful.”
He kisses me once more, a tender exchange of promises and declarations I want so desperately to believe. But there has been no assurance of tomorrow. We only settled our feelings for today. He never agreed to a lifetime. He never agreed to anything more than this one time. But parting now almost seems crueler than if we had never gone down this path.
And yet, I still can’t bring myself to regret a minute of it.
He pulls away from me, tossing the condom in the trash and bending down to collect his clothes. All I can do is sit there ogling him as he pulls his pants over his muscled thighs. My gaze lingers on his buttocks, a firm round pair that I’m dying to feel again.
“You really shouldn’t objectify me like that,” he says, without looking.
I laugh. All at once, I note that my blouse is still open and my skirt ruched up over my hips. I don’t even want to begin to contemplate what my hair and makeup look like.
I hop down off the desk and adjust my clothing. I haven’t even started buttoning my shirt when a knock vibrates through the door.
My eyes instantly move to Zach.
He only stares at the door, debating whether to open it or not. Maybe if we stay here quietly, not making any sounds, they’ll think the room is empty and go away.
“Professor Hawthorne?”
Dammit. It’s Jackson.
Zach sighs, something in his thoughts telling him he can’t ignore the pounding on his door. Or so I assume, when he whispers, “I have to answer him.”
“Why? Let him think the room is empty.”
“I’m pretty sure he’ll wait in the hallway for an hour just to check,” Zach says, closing the distance between us. His fingers grip my chin and lift my gaze to his. “And if I’m locked in a room with you for another hour, there are bound to be things he’s going to hear.”
I blush.
“We’re past the point of that, my darling,” he says and lays a soft kiss across my lips.
He pauses there, his eyes locked over me as if trying to convey his thoughts without words. His thumb grazes my lower lip. “Aly. There’s something we need to talk about.”