Oh no, she's not walking out like I'm her gigolo.
I jump off the bed and drag her into my arms, holding her snug against my body. "No, no, no, Siobhan. I'm not letting you run away because you're so uptight you can't let yourself enjoy a cracking shag. I am going to cook you dinner, then have you at least one more time, probably two or three."
"Nick—"
"Don't say my name in that voice, like you're my teacher and I've been a naughty boy." I realize what I've just said and decide I should amend that statement. "Well, I'd love to do that as a sex game, but your tone implies I'm a child." I slide my hands down to grasp her arse. "I am the man who gave you the best orgasm you've had in a long time, maybe ever. Don't deny it. We both know it's true. You gave me the best sex I've had in my entire life, so stop trying to turn this into a quick, casual thing."
"But I—"
"You said you want to get to know me. How will you do that when you're planning to scurry out of my flat?"
She bites her upper lip, her gaze searching mine, then she shuts her eyes and exhales a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I said that. And I do want to get to know you, but I have, um, issues when it comes to men. The hotter the guy, the hotter the mess I wind up in."
"Is that your way of telling me I'm the hottest man you've ever met? Or do you always beg men to make you come like a volcano exploding and then scurry out the door?"
"Please stop saying I 'scurry.' I'm not a mouse." She winces. "Though I kind of act like one sometimes. I run away at the first sign of…something more than sex. I can't handle another hot mess."
I cradle her face in my hands, suddenly aware of how intensely she's afraid of getting hurt. "Maybe I love to flirt, and I'm not shy about letting a woman see how much I want her. But I have never left a woman in a 'hot mess.' Give me a chance before you decide I'm bad news. Stay for dinner, at least."
"All right."
We're both still naked, I suddenly realize. Cooking in the nude has never seemed like a clever idea to me, so I grab a long-sleeve shirt from the closet and toss it to Siobhan, then I pull on a pair of trousers and my Arsenal T-shirt.
I slap her arse. "Time to eat, Dr. Griffin. I'm starved—for food this time."
Chapter Eight
Siobhan
"What is that logo on your shirt?" I ask Nick while I watch him whipping up something in a skillet. He wouldn't tell me what he's making for dinner. When I asked, he hit me with that steamy smile he's so good at and told me to be patient. "I remember you wore that shirt the first time we met, but I still have no idea what that symbol means."
"It's the Arsenal logo. That's my favorite football team."
"Football? I watch enough British TV series to know you guys think football is soccer."
"We don't think it, love, we know it."
"Uh-huh."
"The British Empire existed long before the colonies became a country, so don't look down your nose at our national sport."
"I thought cricket was your national sport."
"That depends on who you ask. Everyone I know prefers football." He stirs whatever it is he's cooking, glancing away for a moment before he aims his baby blues at me again. "My mate Dane Dixon loves bowls, but that's the most boring game on earth. I don't think anyone would call that the British national sport, except for Dane."
He's smirking.
Damn, I love it when he smirks.
I loved it even more when he had his body wrapped around me and his cock inside me, thrusting so hard and fast I felt like I might rocket up through the ceiling and straight into outer space. I came like that too. Hard, fast, and explosive.
No man has ever made feel as good as Nick does.
But I've fallen for one too many bad boys, and I won't do it again. Since I haven't slept with anyone in way too long, I probably shouldn't worry about the deeper meaning behind one "cracking shag," as Nick called it. It was hot. Now it's over.
Unless I take him up on that offer to screw me several more times.
Since I've already shattered the university's code of ethics, guess I might as well crush it to smithereens. Nobody needs to know I had sex with a student. Besides, he's forty years old, not a vulnerable teenager. I hardly took advantage of Nick, though I did boss him around.