“Let me show you,” he said quietly. “Let me show you that you can trust me to be there.”
He meant be there, as in picking her up from school, but those words could mean so much more and her insides trembled with fear.
He reached out with both hands and gathered her long hair behind her neck, resting his hands there, eyes focused on hers. “Three o’clock.”
She nodded, her throat still tight.
“At least drink your juice. Bring the toast with you, you can eat it on the way if you feel like it.”
“Bossy,” she said. “I’ve been living on my own for several years now.”
“You don’t live on your own. You live with Easton.”
“He doesn’t boss me around.”
“Good. Let’s go.”
She slid off the stool and grabbed her purse.
Duncan’s alarm had woken them at seven-fifteen, earlier than he’d promised, and he’d proceeded to seduce her yet again with his big hands and talented mouth. They’d had quickie sex that had nonetheless resulted in a satisfying orgasm for her. Then he’d herded her into his shower.
And what a shower. Holy hugeness, it was big enough for three, with water coming from all directions, deliciously warm and steamy. She’d eyed a huge tub on a raised platform with interest, even though she was more of a shower girl than a bubble bath one. The whole bathroom was gorgeous, tiled in stone in various shades of gray, with thick, soft towels that Duncan used to dry her off after washing her and shampooing her hair.
She’d forgone the blow dryer he’d offered, letting her waves air dry. She’d just put it in a ponytail when she got home, anyway. With all remnants of makeup washed off, she was bare-faced and wearing last night’s clothes as he drove to her place.
Easton had already left by the time they got there, so the apartment was empty. Duncan hung out in the living room while she changed and got her things together for school. And workout gear for later.
“Where are we going to work out?” she asked when she emerged from her bedroom ready to go.
“My place.”
She set a hand on her hip and tipped her head. “Come on. When I said work out, I was serious. Not a mattress workout.”
He laughed. “Me too, sweetheart. I’ve got all the exercise equipment we need, or we could go for a run.”
She bit her lip. She’d seen the workout equipment. She also liked running. “You’re probably in better shape than I am.”
“Probably,” he agreed. “Ready?”
She rolled her eyes but couldn’t help the smile tugging at her lips.
She gave him directions to the campus and pointed out where to drop her off.
“This is where I’ll pick you up,” he said. “Same place. Okay?”
She sucked in a breath and let it out. “Okay.” She could do this. And what was the worst that would happen? If he never showed up, she’d take a bus home. She could probably figure out how to do that.
He leaned over to smooch her lips before she left, and her heart went soft in her chest.
This was crazy. “Um. Have a good practice.” She hopped from his truck and hustled to her first class, The City, a sociology class.
Wow, it was hard to focus when she kept replaying every minute of last night, reliving every sensation. Holy hell, he was sexy, and a generous lover—the time he’d spent kissing and petting and teasing her had made her burn hotter than she ever had. And the orgasm…she sighed.
“Miss Johnson.”
She blinked and her head snapped up to look at the prof. “Um, yes?”
“Can you answer the question?”
She swallowed and caught the eye of her classmate Brandon sitting next to her. He grimaced. “No,” she replied honestly, heat washing into her face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear it.”
“Let me repeat it—what are the essential characteristics of a community, according to Robert Ezra Park?”
Chicago School. “Um. Population…territorially organized.”
“Yes.”
She searched her brain. “More or less completely rooted in the soil it occupies.”
“And…?”
“Individual units live in a relationship of mutual interdependence that is symbiotic rather than societal.”
“Correct. Very good.”
Shit. She’d totally been daydreaming. She needed to focus. She had only a couple more months of class. Midterms were coming up, then it was the homestretch. She had to do this. She couldn’t let a little hot sex distract her from her goal.
She made it through class, had coffee with some friends, met with her adviser about her thesis, then headed to the library to get as much work done as she could before Duncan picked her up at three.
Then they were going to work out together.
How crazy was that?