by Hamel, B. B.
“I can’t just leave her,” Kayla says but still stands up.
“She’s going to be fine,” I say. “Come on.”
“Where are we—”
I pull her along behind me. We leave out a side door, her protests disappearing as we step out an emergency exit and into an alley. I reach out and grab an old metal ladder, pulling it down with the loud sound of rusty metal on metal.
“What are you doing?” Kayla asks, looking around with panic in her eyes. “We’ll get in trouble.”
I laugh. “I’m a sponsor,” I say. “We don’t get in trouble.”
I pull the fire escape ladder down and turn to Kayla. I hoist her up before she even knows what I’m doing. She climbs up and onto the first-floor landing. I jump up, grab the bottom rung, and heave myself upward, slowly climbing. It’s not easy, but I’m in pretty good shape.
“Come on,” I say, and we walk up the rest of the way. The fire escape is surprisingly secure, despite looking old as hell. I suspect it’s well-maintained and we probably aren’t the first sponsored couple to climb up this way.
We reach the roof and I help her up and over the short stone wall. I follow, leading her over to the edge.
In silence, we look out over the campus. Gradus is an oasis in a sea of forest with only the lake on the far side to break it up. Otherwise, it’s pretty incredible how secluded we are.
“Wow,” Kayla says softly. “This is…”
“Pretty, right?”
She nods. “Gorgeous.”
I lean up against her. She looks up at me with those big, beautiful eyes.
“You know, I don’t believe in all that bullshit.” I say softly.
“What bullshit?”
“The sponsors, the guys down there. You said something back at your apartment…” I trail off.
She watches me for a second. “I’m trying to figure you out, Reed. But I don’t think I have it down.”
“Good.” I smirk and lean closer. “The mystery is more fun.”
She looks up at me, lips parted slightly. “You say you’re different, but I don’t know. Something’s going on here that you’re not telling me.”
“You think?” I cock my head. I’m surprised she hasn’t figured it all out just yet.
“Iris won’t say. I think she’s actually afraid to say, honestly. Like I’ll be scared of it or something.”
“Scared?” I muse slightly, more to myself than to her. “I doubt it. You don’t seem the type to be afraid.”
“I want to know what’s going on,” she says, staring up at me.
I reach up and tilt her chin closer. She bites her lip but doesn’t pull away. I press my body against hers, my other hand falling onto the small of her back, just above her perky little ass.
“Are you sure?” I whisper in her ear.
“Reed,” she says, and I swear it sounds more like a moan.
“Let me show you then.”
So I kiss her. God, I kiss her, and I know it’s a stupid mistake.
But it’s a mistake worth making.
7
Kayla
I just want him to tell me the truth. I just want him to say it, say it out loud. Tell me what all this “sponsor” crap is really all about.
But I can’t seem to press him. I can’t seem to do anything.
Not with his lips against mine like this.
He tastes good. I mean, really good, like the sort of taste you never want to get away from. I kiss him slow and deep and I feel his hand linger down over my ass, squeezing it tightly. I don’t pull away or try to stop him like I might have with other guys.
With him, it feels good. God, it feels good.
His fingers lace through my hair and hold tight, pulling my head back. I gasp as he kisses my neck.
“This is what they want us to do?” I manage to ask.
“This is it exactly,” he whispers back.
A chill runs down my spine. I don’t know what he means by that.
But I don’t have time to find out. He pushes me back against the wall separating us from the plunge down to the pavement below. It’s about four feet tall and I can feel the void behind me, but I’m not afraid.
No, I’m not afraid at all. I know he has me.
His hands moves from the small of my back and slide up my leg. I feel his fingers trailing along my skin as he lifts my skirt up. His hand slides up between my legs and I finally let out a moan as he kisses my lips and teases my pussy over my panties.
“Perfect,” he purrs in my ear. “Wet already.”
I groan. I know he’s right. I was soaked through the moment he stepped close to me. I can’t help myself, my body betrays me whenever he gets near. I wish I had better control but I just don’t, not with Reed.
His fingers tease my pussy and I’m moaning as I grab onto his hair and pull him into another kiss. His tongue slides against mine and he wraps his arm around my shoulders, keeping me steady while his other hand teases my pussy. He flips my panties aside, wet and useless now anyway. His fingers tease my lips, spreading me open, rubbing my clit. I moan into his kiss, a shiver of pleasure running all down my spine.
It feels good, so amazingly good. I’ve never had a man touch me like this before. It drives me wild, absolutely insane. All the boys I’ve dated never knew what they were doing, but Reed, he’s different. He knows exactly where to touch me, where to rub me, when to slides two fingers deep inside my pussy. It makes me moan low into his kiss.
It’s so good and I don’t want it to stop.
He teases me more and suddenly he’s down on his knees in front of me. “Reed,” I gasp, “What are you--?”
But he cuts me off, lifting my skirt up. He pulls my panties down, tossing them aside, and spreads my legs wide. I lean up against the wall as his tongue and lips find my pussy.
I gasp and grab his hair tight. “Oh my god,” I moan. “We’re out in the open. Oh my god, Reed.”
“You want me to stop?” He’s smirking at me and teasing me with his fingers. “You really want this to stop?”
“Fuck you,” I gasp. “No, don’t stop.”
His smirk drives me wild but he doesn’t stop.
His tongue feels incredible as he sucks and licks my clit. I feel like I’m dizzy with pleasure, riding high on a wave of pure intensity. I roll my hips and push back against him as his tongue does its work. He teases me, slides it inside and back out, sucks and licks my clit, uses his tongue in ways I’ve never felt before.
This is so far beyond good, so far beyond anything.
I grip his hair and groan. “Oh my god,” I gasp. “Reed. Fuck. We have to be breaking some kind of rule.”
He smirks up at me and slides two fingers deep inside my pussy. I gasp as his other hand grips my ass. “Rules? You don’t get it yet, do you?” He pumps his fingers in and out and I tighten my grip on his hair, eyes rolling back in my head. “The rules don’t apply to sponsors and the girl they choose. We can do whatever the fuck we want whenever the fuck we want to do it.”
I throw my head back and moan as his mouth finds my pussy again, licking and sucking me rapidly. It feels so fucking good I can barely stand. He’s supporting me almost entirely now, holding my ass and keeping me from dropping to my knees. I’m wedged against the wall and I can feel the rough stone against my back but I don’t care about anything but his mouth on my pussy.
I need him to keep going. God, I need it. I beg for him to go faster, faster, and he obliges. He gives me what I want and I think he’ll give me anything I ask for. No, I know he will. If I want it to feel better, he’ll make it feel better. He’ll give me anything in the world.
I moan and roll my hips and his tongue works me faster. He sucks on my clit and I’m losing my goddamn mind. I swear I can barely breathe as the pleasure starts to peak and crest and break all over me.
I come so hard I don’t even realize I’m having an orgasm at first. He doesn’t slow, he just keeps licking me through it. I come hard and almost silen
tly, only moans escaping my lips, until finally I gasp his name. “Reed,” I groan.
The orgasm slowly subsides and I sink down along the wall until I’m sitting. He chuckles softly and licks his fingers clean, sitting next to me. I lean up against his shoulder, panting, flushed and sweating. I don’t think I’ve ever come like that in my whole life, not even when I did it to myself.
“That’s what they want from us,” he whispers in my ear.
I turn to ask him what he means, but he just kisses me. I kiss him back and I still feel the spark there, right on our lips.
He pulls back. I watch him pick up my panties and slip them into his jacket pocket before getting to his feet. “I’ll walk you home,” he says.
“Now?” I ask, dazed.
He nods. “Now.”
“But what about Iris?”
“I’ll come back and make sure she’s okay, I promise. I don’t think she needs you this second, though.”
I nod stupidly, get to my feet, and let him lead me back down the fire escape. He helps me climb down the ladder, helps me hop down, and holds my hand as we walk back through campus.
It’s a short walk before we’re outside my dorm.
“I don’t understand any of this,” I say to him.
He just smiles and kisses my cheek. “I’ll go check on your friend,” he says. “You go inside.”
I nod and head up into my room. The door clicks shut, I get into bed, and I go to sleep like I’m still in a dream.
* * *
“Holy crap, Kayla!”
Iris is always so shockingly peppy in the morning. Right now, all I want to do is keep sleeping, but I know we have to go to class. I’m not hungover or anything like that, just still so calm and relaxed from the night before.
“What was he like?”
“Oh, god, so nice.” She grins at me as we walk toward our class together. “I thought all those guys would be, you know.”
“Rich assholes?”
She grins. “Yep.”
“I thought you’d be able to handle a rich asshole. I mean, Reed said your family is a bunch of badass women or something.”
She giggles a little. “Oh, grandmom is pretty badass. I guess my mom and her sisters are too, but not me. I’m just the black sheep, you know?”
“I doubt that,” I say. “Anyway, what was that guy’s name?”
“Albert Taylor. He’s Dutch.”
“Really?”
“Yeah! He owns the biggest chain bookstore in the Netherlands.”
“Huh.” I frown at her, confused. “Why would a Dutch guy sponsor a random American girl at some tiny little New England university?”
“Uh,” Iris says and blinks rapidly. She looks away, turning slightly red. “I don’t know.”
I narrow my eyes. “Iris. Come on. What’s going on with this whole sponsor thing?”
She shakes her head. “It’s nothing.”
I grab her arm and stop walking. She turns to look at me but can’t seem to meet my eye.
“Iris,” I say again, softly this time. “Please, just tell me what I’ve gotten myself into.”
She finally looks up at me and I can tell she feels uncomfortable. I hate to put her through this but I need to know.
“Listen, it’s not as weird as it sounds, okay?” she says softly. “You’re not from this world, so it’ll sound totally insane.”
“This world?”
She winces. “You know. Rich people.”
“Oh.” I frown. Sometimes I forget that Iris is a rich girl just like everyone else here. “Right.”
“It’s just, I don’t want you to, I don’t know, look down on me. I mean, I didn’t make any of this up, but I’m a part of the world and—”
“Iris, none of this is your fault. I wouldn’t blame you.”
She nods slowly. “Okay. Okay. I know.”
“So come on, just tell me.”
She opens her mouth to speak but suddenly shuts it. I frown then follow her gaze behind me.
A small, slight man in wire-rimmed glasses is standing not far away, beaming at the two of us. He’s wearing a dark suit and holding a leather briefcase in his right hand.
“Good morning, ladies,” he says. “I hope I’m not interrupting.”
I turn to face him, instantly recognizing him from the welcome literature the university sent me.
“Hi, Dean Trim,” I say.
Iris clears her throat. “Hello, Dean.”
He beams at us some more. “Kayla Cox and Iris Griffin. The perfect pair. I thought you two might get along.”
I frown at Iris but she looks flustered. “Well, thank you, Dean,” I say.
“Of course. Kayla, may I borrow you for a moment?”
Iris stands there awkwardly. I want to continue our conversation but I see no way out of this. “Of course,” I say, and let the dean lead me away. Iris watches, a vaguely terrified expression on her face.
Dean Trim seems like a normal man. We walk a bit away from Iris, down a side path and into the shade of the Life Sciences building. He smiles at me and puts his hands behind his back, holding his briefcase out of sight.
“So, dear, how are you finding Gradus so far?”
“Good,” I say. “I’m making friends and my classes are going fine.”
“Wonderful,” he says. “And how is your sponsor?”
I frown slightly. “You mean Reed?”
“Of course, dear. You don’t have another sponsor, do you?” He smiles and raises an eyebrow.
“No,” I say quickly. “Reed is fine. He’s, uh, he’s good.”
“Are the two of you getting along?”
“Ah,” I say, feeling awkward. My mind flashes back to the night before, to Reed’s tongue between my legs. “Yes. We are.”
“Good, good. I hope you’re happy with him.”
Dean Trim continues to beam at me like I’m some exciting little child but the way he’s talking is making me really uncomfortable.
“Right, well, uh, I should get back to class.”
“Let me ask you something,” he says before I can turn away. “Did you know about our sponsorship program before you applied to our school?”
I shake my head. “No, I didn’t know about it. I was pretty surprised when I got chosen, to be totally honest.”
“Ah, yes. I thought not.” He sighs while still smiling, which is an amazing feat. “So you’re not intimately familiar with all the rules, I assume.”
I shake my head. “Not at all.”
“Good, good.” He clears his throat. “You should know that if your sponsor ever decides to withdraw his support, he can do so at any time. Are you aware of that?”
I shrug. “Someone might’ve mentioned it.”
“Right, right. Very good.” He clears his throat again. “And, ah, you are not obligated to marry your sponsor. Many girls erroneously assume they are obligated to marry, but that is simply not the case. He can pull his support, of course, but—”
“Wait, hold on.” I stare at him, eyes wide. “Marry?”
He chuckles uncomfortably. “Yes, well. Here at Gradus, our sponsorship program has turned out many, many happy marriages.” He leans toward me. “And some not so happy ones.” He winks and I almost gag.
“Why… marriages?” I shake my head. “I don’t understand.”
His smile slowly disappears and he looks at me with something between pity and disgust. “Listen, Miss Cox. You’re embroiled in a game that’s been going on for longer than Gradus has been around, for much longer than I’ve been dean here. The rich and powerful use this school to pair their children off. Sometimes, men of wealth simply buy their way into the program just to find a young, pretty girl with good connections to impregnate. We don’t actually advertise it as such, but they have a nickname for our little school.”
“Nickname?” I repeat the word softly, a little too stunned to actually reply.
“Oh, yes. They call us the Baby Daddy University.” He chuckles and sha
kes his head. “Very crass but accurate. Sponsors almost always marry the girl they sponsor. Unless, of course, they choose another girl. In the end, they usually end up married or with a girl pregnant, which is basically the same thing.”
“Same thing?” I blink rapidly. “I’m supposed to marry Reed? Or let him get me pregnant?”
“That’s what I’m trying to warn you about, Miss Cox. You’ll hear rumors and such, but the truth is, you don’t have to marry him or get pregnant by him. However, he can remove his support at any time.” He shrugs a little bit, like he can’t do anything about any of this. “It’s a fine line to walk, if you don’t enjoy him.”
“I don’t understand any of this.”
“I know, dear. You’ll hear more rumors in the coming weeks and months, but if you remember one thing, remember this.” He steps closer and I take an involuntary step back. If he notices, he doesn’t let on. “You don’t have to marry him if you don’t want to.”
With that said, he smiles again, nods his head once and turns away.
“Have a nice day of classes, dear. Try and get some learning done.” He walks off with a backwards wave, whistling a merry tune.
I stand there absolutely fucking stunned.
It all clicks into place suddenly. The rich men at the party last night, the way the girls were all vying for their affections… the way Iris wouldn’t tell me what was going on… what Reed meant when he said he would show me.
My god, Reed. He went down on me.
And he chose me.
Oh my god. He chose me.
Which means he wants to either marry me or get me pregnant.
Sudden rage shocks me out of my stupor. That fucking bastard thinks he can force me to marry him just because he’s paying for my education. It’s insane, absolutely insane.
But Dean Trim says I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do. The only downside would be losing my academic scholarship.
Fucking hell. This whole place is insane. It’s a cesspit, a hellhole, it’s…
It’s insane. It’s the viper’s nest and I’m suddenly in the middle of it.
