"I'm eating while food is still hot," Lana declared. I nodded nervously. It didn't matter to me that Lana was eating. It mattered that Noah wasn't here.
"Maybe he's just shooting the shit with Professor Billings," I said, checking my phone again.
"If Noah was a girl, I'd say Professor Billings was trying his lame moves on him," Lana mocked.
Professor Billings had a bad reputation for offering grades for favors. I didn't know why someone didn't report him to the administration, but I’d personally avoided taking any courses in the finance school.
Really, for the last two years, I'd been just taking general humanities courses until I was accepted into the art program. The dean had assigned me a couple of reading assignments over the break because he thought my eye for art was well-developed. My favorite type of photography had been deemed too commercial for the dean of the art school, and he wanted me to see further into people and draw their secret feelings out to the surface through my photography. Given that I'm naturally a private and shy person, the idea of breaking through people's barriers in order to exploit them for my art felt uncomfortable. I think I probably preferred the too-commercial types of photography, but there was a lot I could learn from the art program even if I didn't want to take pictures of someone's soul and then hang it in a gallery in New York.
Two hours after I'd finished dinner, Noah showed up with an apology and a bouquet of gas station flowers. I could tell from the orange price tag on the cellophane. Forcing a bright smile on my face, I took the flowers and held up my cheek for a kiss. Noah gathered me in his arms and held me for a long minute, burying his nose in my neck and lifting me slightly off my feet. The ferocity of his hug alarmed me, but I just hugged him back. Noah was stubborn, so I already knew that I wasn't getting anything out of him until he was ready.
"There's some pork and steamed vegetables in the oven warming."
"Awesome," Noah replied, letting me down to the floor. He went into the bedroom and dropped off his backpack. I noticed his hair was wet.
"Go for a run?" That would explain his absence. Kind of.
"Yeah, a long one. I'm sorry I didn't text you. Just got caught up in the run. Zoned out."
As apologies went, it was kind of lame, but I held my tongue.
"How was your test this morning, Lana?" Noah asked, and it wasn’t just out of politeness. He genuinely liked Lana, which wasn't easy because Lana had her own barriers that she kept up between herself and others. It was just instinctive, though, her need to hold people at a distance. Lana's mom was pretty horrible to her, and the only way Lana had been able to survive was to encase herself in cold steel. My mom wasn't horrible. She just wasn't there. But I had my brother Josh, whereas Lana had been alone until Josh and I had come to live with her when Lana and I were twelve and Josh was fourteen.
"Aced it, I'm sure." Lana tossed her head in mock arrogance although she probably did ace it.
"How'd your meeting with Dr. Billings go?" I asked Noah as I prepared a plate of food for him. Sitting down with my own, I was struck by the obvious show of anger and frustration on Noah’s face. "That bad?”
Noah mustered up a smile. "It was fine."
"Don't tell me he propositioned you too," Lana called from the living room.
Noah turned in his chair to stare at her. "What's this?"
"You don't know?" I asked Noah.
"No. Remember, I just transferred here this semester," he replied with a touch of impatience.
"Dr. Billings is known for offering to increase the grades of cute co-eds so long as they do him favors."
Noah looked contemplative. "Is this a random rumor or one that you have actual proof of?"
"No actual proof, but it happened to Lana."
"Tell me,” Noah demanded harshly. Lana looked a little taken aback by Noah's tone. "Sorry.” He tried again. “Please, will you share with me your story of woe?"
Lana and I both laughed at Noah's weak attempt at humility. Lana said, "It was second semester freshman year. I was taking first year Statistics because, you know, psychology is a lot of about statistics." Noah and I shook our heads that we didn't know this. "Yeah, well it is. I think Dr. Billings hates underclassmen, and so to amuse himself, he picks out a couple of first year girls he'd like to bone and probably fantasizes about all the dirty things he'd like to do with us. I felt like I needed to take a shower after every class based on how he looked at me.”
Noah frowned. I could almost see his protective nature rise up behind him. Lana continued. "So around midterms, Billings calls me in and suggests that my poor C grade could be improved if I underwent some private tutoring with him. I reminded him that my father was one of the original donors who’d endowed the Smith Entrepreneurial Center here, and that shut him up. Kind of coasted the rest of the semester because Billings was too afraid I might mention to my dad how much I didn't like the man. Too bad for him, he doesn't know that Dad never listens to me anyway."
Tapping his fork against the plate, Noah muttered, "So he's afraid of donors. He's reckless with his money."
"What's this about?" I asked.
Looking down at his plate, Noah appeared to contemplate his options and then exhaled heavily. "I went running to clear my mind," he admitted.
"Did it work?"
Noah
Grace's patience was never ending. I had recklessly banked on that fact before when I hoped that she'd wait for me. Against all odds, she did. After four years of writing to me only to receive a blow off letter, Grace should've run off with the first guy that asked her, but her love was so strong and steady and enduring that she was still available when I hunted her down just four months ago. She should've slapped me across the face, but she met me with pained uncertainty, still loving me but afraid that I’d crush her again.
I couldn't reward her tolerance with more obfuscation. I didn't even care that Lana was there to overhear. "Billings strongly suggested I throw my fight in order for him to make money betting against me, and made it clear my grade and scholarship would be in jeopardy if I didn’t."
"My God," Grace exclaimed. Fire sprung up in her eyes. The anger she exhibited on my behalf was gratifying, but Grace against Dr. Billings was like a kitten against a pitbull. I was suddenly glad Grace's classes never took her into Billings' circle. "We need to report him." Turning in her seat to face Lana, Grace asked, "Did you file a complaint against him?"
"No," Lana admitted. "I had no proof. Right, Noah?"
"Right," I said sourly. The problem we had was that it was our word against his. Given that I was dating Grace, a complaint by her cousin and me looked like a concerted effort to bring down a professor who gave a poor grade to a jock on a scholarship rather than an administrative violation.
Outraged, Grace clanged our dirty dishes into a pile and stomped to the dishwasher. I helped clear the rest of the table and then took the dishes from her, afraid she would break them in her anger.
"So this jerk just gets away with preying on students?"
I shut the dishwasher and leaned against it. "Honestly Grace, I'm just tired. Mentally and physically. Maybe I can come up with something, but for now, I just want to go to bed. Can we do that?"
My plea triggered her caretaker response. "Of course, Noah." Grabbing my hand, Grace started pulling me toward the bedroom. "Come on. I'll give you a massage."
Grace stopped next to the bed and pushed me down. I dropped my ass onto her cloud-like bed, grateful to be off my feet. The workout had been hard this morning and my long, twelve-mile run had left me worn out. I let her undress me, lifting my arms when she pulled the shirt over my head. My jeans came next. The soft brush of her hands at my groin as she pulled down my zipper resulted in the stiffening of my cock. She patted it and gave me a sly smile under her lashes. The sexy look made my semi harden further. Good thing the zipper was already down.
"Maybe you need a different kind of massage." Grace pressed her hand more firmly against me, and I felt my dick pulse in response.
"Yeah?" I swept her long, heavy hair off her shoulder so I could see her delicate neck. Leaning forward, I pressed my lips against the smooth, elegant column of flesh tracing the veins from her ear down to her shoulder. Her cowl neck sweater prevented any deeper exploration, so I moved upward and engulfed her small ear in my mouth, licking the whorls and curve of the inner shell. A gratifying shiver shook her body and she allowed her body to melt against mine. Her hand squeezed my c*ck rhythmically. God, I would do anything to keep her. Transgress any rule; violate any law. I drew one large hand up her back underneath the sweater and the light cotton tank she wore against her skin. The smooth skin of her back felt like silk.
"Yeah," she breathed lightly in my ear. Placing one hand on her ass, I urged her to straddle me on the bed. The lightweight fabric of her yoga pants were no proof against my insistent erection. Clutching both ass cheeks in my hands, I pulled her up against me. Her own arousal was enough that I could feel her wetness through the layers of fabric. I pushed off with the balls of my feet, shifting backward on the bed and pulling her with me at the same time. We fell against the covers, the weight of her body pressing against my own. The warmth of her touch chased away all the cold that had seeped in during my meeting with Dr. Billings and that had threatened to swallow me during my run.
The situation had seemed kind of hopeless earlier, but now, with Grace in my arms, I felt strong enough to defeat any opponent. My hands cupped her ass, pulling her against me as I thrust against her sex. Her mouth was pressed against mine, and it had a sort of desperate taste, as if she were trying to absorb everything. Pulling my mouth away from her, I panted, "Are you done studying?"
She shook her head. "I can study later." She fastened her mouth on mine and ground down with her hips. For a moment, I thought maybe I should push her away from me so that I wasn't distracting her, but then her soft hand crept into my shorts. When her fingers wrapped around my c*ck and started stroking me, I lost track of our conversation. Grace's wet tongue on my neck and her hand on my c*ck made me blind and stupid. I pushed down her yoga pants and underwear and then interrupted her exploration of my neck when I pulled her sweater and tank off. With Grace's helpful hands, I divested myself of my jeans, underwear, and socks until we were both nak*d.
I rolled us over so that I could stare at her gorgeous body, her full br**sts tipped by hard pink n**ples, and the lush curves of her stomach and waist. Grace was built like a woman, all softness and curves, and I loved it. Other men might like a harder body, a trimmer figure, but I loved the plushness of her body. "I f**king love your body, Grace,” I told her in worshipful tones. Leaning down I licked one nipple and then the other. The light touches sent Grace's fingers digging into my hair so she could pull me closer to her tits. Her assertiveness in bed was so hot, but it was even better when I got to tell her what I wanted and she did it.
"Turn over," I commanded. Grace tried to hide a small grin of anticipation. She didn't move at first, just pulled up her legs so that her sex was hidden from me. I frowned at her and repeated the command. "Turn over." I gave her a little swat on the side of her ass. Grace's smile turned even naughtier, and she shook her head no.