I planned a day full of activities and now she’s relaxing in a long bath while I cook our dinner. I’ve laid out a beautiful silk dress on the bed for her, knowing it will show off every curve of her sexy body. Then, as we eat together, I’ll tell her exactly why I want to spend the rest of my life with her.
When she comes downstairs in her new dress, she takes my breath away. Her green eyes are less puffy than before and she’s wearing a little makeup, but not so much that it takes away from her natural beauty. The teal dress shows off her curves and makes my cock spring to life in my pants. She’s so incredible that I can barely believe she’s mine. If she says yes to my proposal, then I’m going to be the luckiest man on Earth.
“Something smells good,” she says with a gentle smile. I gesture to the dining room table.
“I made your favorite, risotto.”
She blushes. “Dylan, you’ve gone to such an effort. What’s all this for?”
“I just think you deserve it. Here, let me help you in to your chair.”
I pull out her chair for her so that she can sit and start the meal. She can’t stop smiling as she tucks into the food.
“It’s really good. I’m so lucky to have a man as thoughtful as you,” she says timidly. I take her hand in mine.
“All I want is to dedicate my life to making you happy. You deserve the world, baby, and I plan to give it to you. I just want to show you that you made the right choice by coming with me.”
“I already know that, Dylan. You don’t need to prove it to me,” Cora says softly, squeezing my hand. I want to kiss her so much right now, but I know where kissing always leads us. Right now, I just want her more than anything to know how I feel. I just want her to know that she’s making the right choice when she says yes to my proposal and I slide that diamond ring onto her pretty finger.
“Cora. I’ve never seen a future with anyone before. I’ve had opportunities in my life to be with women, but I turned every single one of them down. I was waiting for someone special. I figured if they weren’t the one then what’s the point? And now I know that I’ve found that person in you. And I don’t want to wait for a second longer to start our future together. I know that I want a family with you. I know that I want to spend the rest of my life loving you and giving you everything I have. Which is why…”
I reach in my pocket and bring out a small black velvet box. She gasps and I open the box so she can see the diamond ring.
“You deserve nothing less than the best and I can give you that,” I growl. “So that’s why I wanted to ask you...will you marry me?”
“Yes! Of course, I will,” she says without a moment’s hesitation. She leaps up out of her chair and I do too so I can catch her in my arms when she runs to me. I twirl her around the room, my strong arms holding her close to me. As we kiss I feel like the luckiest man in the world. I set her down on the floor long enough to slide the ring onto her finger and then we’re kissing desperately again. I feel the familiar surge that always happens when she’s around. I sweep her up easily in my arms and look deep into her eyes.
“I love you so much,” I growl.
“I love you too, Dylan.”
I can’t tear my eyes away from her as I carry her upstairs, dinner forgotten completely. I need her body. I help her out of that silk dress to admire her beautiful naked body before me. I lay her down on the bed and take off my clothes while she watches breathlessly. I growl as I move over the top of her body. There’s no time for foreplay today, no need to take this slow. We both know exactly what we want. I slide inside her easily and hear the sweet sounds of her moans filling the air.
All we want or need is each other.
Chapter Ten
A few days later
Cora
Dylan’s final lecture is today. I still can’t believe that my Dad went through and fired him, but there’s nothing I can do about it. His mind is made up and Dylan says he wants to go without another fight. I know if it was in any other situation he would fight, but he doesn’t want to upset me more than my Dad already has. Even with Dylan’s ring on my finger and his baby in my belly, it still hurts that my Dad pushed me away so easily.
And the worst part is that I’ll have to face him today. He’s coming to Dylan’s final lecture to observe and make sure he doesn’t step out of line, I guess. The last thing I want is to be in the same room as him if he’s not going to even speak to me, but I want to be there to support Dylan at the university one last time.
I stand in front of Dylan’s bedroom mirror, staring at myself and wondering how things got to be this way. Dylan comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my middle.
“You okay, baby?”
“I don’t know. I...I don’t want to see him. I don’t want to have to watch you leave the university. You don’t deserve it. You’re the best professor we’ve ever had. No one can replace you.”
“Well then, it’s a good thing you’re not losing me, isn’t it?” he growls in my ear before kissing my cheek tenderly. “If the replacement professor is awful, I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”
I turn around to kiss him. “How did I get so lucky?”
“I’m the lucky one,” he says. “Even if I had to lose my job to get you it was fucking worth it. I’d walk through hell for you, Cora. I hope you know that.”
The thing is, I do. I thought it would be harder for me to accept that he loves me the way I am. I’ve always had male attention, but not always in a good way. I know my curves change things for me...men either fetishize me or condemn me for my weight. But not my Dylan. He just loves me in every possible way. I don’t have to try and convince myself of the way he feels because he shows me all the time. He’s proved to me that I’m special and now I feel much more confident in myself.
“I’d walk through hell for you too, Dylan,” I tell him. He kisses the top of my head.
“You already did, agreeing to come to class and face your father today, leaving home for me, but don’t worry. I’m never going to let anyone hurt you again. I’m always going to be around to look after you.”
I kiss him once again. “I know. I believe you.”
The drive to the university is quiet and tense. Even with Dylan’s hand on my knee comforting me, I can’t shake off my nerves. How will it be when I see my father again? Will he look right through me like I don’t even exist? I close my eyes. I feel sick. He hasn’t responded to any of the messages I’ve sent him. I really don’t want to do this, but I have to.
I can feel the color leaving my cheeks as I get out of the car and kiss Dylan goodbye. We agreed to enter the class separately to avoid a scandal, even though I don’t particularly care anymore. The worst has already happened by Dylan losing his job. It feels weird not having him at my side, having to pretend that nothing has changed when my whole world has turned topsy turvy.
I’m glad to see my father hasn’t arrived yet, and Penny is waiting for me when I arrive in the class. I told her everything after I got engaged, and I could tell she was surprised, but she at least tried to be happy for me. More than my father ever did. Still, Penny is coming over for dinner this week to get to know Dylan and I couldn’t be happier with how she’s handled it.
“How are you feeling?” she asks me the moment I sit down. “I know today must be hard for you...having to pretend you’re not having a hot affair with your teacher...your Dad being here after what happened…”
I sigh. “I just can’t believe that is happening to me. I used to lead such a boring life… and now it’s like drama follows me everywhere.”
“Don’t worry, you just have to get through this class and then you don’t have to associate with your father again if you don’t want to. I’ve got to admit though I had my fears that you’re rushing into things. But Dylan does seem like your type of man. Smart, studious, sexy as hell.”
I manage a smile. “Watch it. That’s my fiancé your drooling over.”
“Can you blame me?” Penny says
gleefully. “Anyway, my point is he’s clearly made you happy. And sure, you have no idea what the future will hold but if you’re deep enough in love then I know you’ll make this work.”
“I will, for sure,” I say. Then I sigh. “I just wish my Dad was around to be a part of it. He might never get to meet his grandchild.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Penny says gently. “I think that he’ll come around, just give him some time.”
I’ve heard that sentence a lot recently, but I’m done giving him time. Either he loves me and accepts me or he doesn’t. Either he values my happiness or he doesn’t.
My Dad enters the room now and our eyes meet. He doesn’t look angry anymore, but his expression is hard to read. Is he still mad at me? I don’t know. But he doesn’t stick around to talk to me. He makes his way to the back of the lecture hall to observe the class. Moments later, Dylan arrives and I feel my heart do a backflip. His eyes linger on me for a moment and he smiles. Penny leans over to me.
“God, you guys are sickeningly cute.”
I smile to myself. Penny always knows how to cheer me up. Dylan takes a deep breath at the front of the class and addresses the room.
“Alright, class, let’s talk Jane Eyre…”
Dylan
It’s over. My final lecture is complete. It went as I knew it would. I had the students rolling around with laughter, engaging in an open conversation, thinking deeply about the book...but of course, none of that matters because I won’t get to see them through their final year now. The whole lecture, I felt the Dean’s cold gaze on me and I knew that he couldn’t wait to see me go. But I guess I can understand that. I have the one good thing in his life that he pushed away. He must be feeling the sting of having Cora leave by now. It’s no wonder he hates me.
But now the class is over I need to find a way to tell the students that I’m going. I glance at Cora and she gives me a sad but encouraging smile. I’m glad she’s here to get me through this because this feels harder than I expected. I guess I’m not quite ready to let my career go. But I will. For Cora.
I take a deep breath.
“Alright, class, before you go...I should tell you that your next class will be taught by someone else…”
I’m about to dive into an explanation but I meet the Dean’s eyes across the room and he stands, shaking his head. I pause in confusion. Is he telling me not to make this announcement?
“Uh…”
The Dean makes his way down to meet me at my lectern. He turns to the class.
“Ignore that announcement there’s been a misunderstanding. Mr. Harker will see you at your next scheduled lecture. Now, run along.”
I have no idea what’s happening. Why is the Dean lying to them? Why is he making this whole thing harder when he knows I won’t show up for the next lecture? Maybe he’s trying once again to make me give up Cora, but that’s never going to happen.
I wait until all the students have left before facing him. Cora rushes to my side and I feel stronger than ever.
“If you’re trying to tell me that I can stay so long as I end our relationship it’s not happening. I’d rather go,” I growl. But the Dean shakes his head.
“No, that’s not my intention.”
“Then why are you here?” Cora asks. “You’ve been avoiding our calls. You don’t want to make things right between us. So stop torturing me, just say whatever you want to say so we can leave.”
The Dean sighs. “Cora, I’m here to say that Dylan can keep his job. You can carry on with your relationship in peace. It goes against protocol….but since you’re engaged, I think I can let it slide. We can tell people that you met before this class even started if asked…I am the Dean. What I say goes and I think that if this is what makes you happy, then I’d be a fool not to support it.” He pauses. “And I suppose congratulations are in order. For your engagement and your pregnancy. I want to say...I am truly happy for you both.”
I frown. Has he really changes his tune. Or is he working an angle here, but if he is, I can’t figure out what. He sees the look on my face and sighs.
“I know this might not seem insincere given the way I behaved the other day. But I truly just want to make things right. Dylan, I see the way you’ve changed my daughter. I see a happiness in her that has never been there before. That’s down to you. How can I take that away from her? And how can I miss out on everything just because I don’t want to let my daughter go?” He turns to Cora. “I’m so sorry that I told you to leave and I hope you’ll accept me back into your life. I already lost the love of my life. I don’t want to lose you too. I know I can be overprotective and overbearing but it’s only because you’re all I have left. I want you to be safe and happy, but now I can see that you’re going to be fine with Dylan. I can see he’s a good man.”
I can’t believe the complete change of heart he’s had. It feels good, knowing he finally trusts me to give his daughter the future she deserves. I know how much Cors wants her father in her life, so this is a better outcome than I ever could’ve expected.
But Cora still has to let him back in. I can see hesitance in her eyes, and I don’t blame her. Her father let her down. But then she steps forward and hugs him hard.
“I’m so glad you changed your mind,” she whispers. Her father kisses the top of her head and I feel relief. As they break apart, the Dean reaches out to shake my hand and I take it.
“You take care of her and we won’t have any issues,” he tells me. “Welcome to the family.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll never let her down,” I growl. This is exactly what I hoped for. I can be with her forever and have her father’s blessing. Now Cora is happier than she ever thought possible. The two most important men in her life have ended their feud. She doesn’t have to hurt anymore.
The future is ours for the taking.
Epilogue
Nine months later...
Cora
My belly is so big, swollen from pregnancy, that it’s beginning to hurt my back. I’m so tired all the time, but I’m ready for our beautiful baby boy to come into the world. Pregnancy has been a beautiful thing, but I’m ready for it to be over now and meet my baby.
I feel him kicking in my stomach and press my hand to my belly so I can feel it. As I lie in bed, having a lazy day in preparation for the birth, I smile at the thought that the baby can’t wait to get out either.
“We’ll meet each other soon, little one,” I whisper to him. “I’m going to give you so much love...you hear me? Your Dad and I are going to be such good parents to you. We’ll never spoil you, but we’ll give you the world. We won’t be strict, but we’ll make sure you grow up to be a good man. We’ll let you follow your dreams, whatever they might be. You’re going to have the life you can’t even dream up yet.”
He kicks again and I smile to myself, closing my eyes with my hand resting on my stomach. I’m already craving how things will be when I have my baby. I’m looking forward to being a Mom. I want to do it all; breastfeeding, late nights rocking him to sleep, taking in his gorgeous baby smell, showing him off to various members of our family, making friends with other moms so we can gush over our kids together. And even though this whole process has been exhausting, and definitely not an easy ride, it’s so worth it. Just the thought of the birthing process is scary, but I know I can do it with Dylan by my side.
There’s a knock at the door and then he enters the room, holding a tray with my breakfast on it. I blush. He brings me breakfast in bed every morning that I don’t have to be up for classes, and I still can’t believe how lucky I am to be with him. Of all the women in the world, he picked me...even though he could have anyone he wanted. As he smiles and hands me the tray, I feel a rush of love for him. After almost nine months together, even though all my hormonal mood swings, and rough nights, he still shows me every single day that we’re made for one another. He makes me happier than I ever thought possible.
“How are you this morning, baby?” he asks
as he kisses the top of my head.
“I feel tired, but I’m good. I’m always good when you’re here,” I say, and kiss his lips.
“I wouldn’t miss being around you for the world. Especially now when the baby is due. Does anything feel different? If you’re concerned about anything I can call the doctor again.”
I take his hand in mine. “No, it’s okay. I’m not worried. I know everything will be okay as long as you’re here with me. You’re all I need.”
“I’m right here,” he growls, kissing me again. I sigh into the kiss and he pulls me even closer. I can tell he wants me right this second. My pregnancy hasn’t killed either of our appetites for one another, though it’s been a few weeks since we’ve had proper sex because of the baby bump. Still, my body responds to him every single time he touches me. I feel a wetness between my legs and I wish that I could have him right now. His hand finds its way between my legs.
“We’ll be able to have one another again soon,” he growls in my ear. “And I’m going to remind you exactly how good it feels when we’re together.”
“How could I ever forget?” I whisper. “You’re everything, Dylan. I want it so much...but it’s going to have to wait a little while.”
“It’ll be worth the wait,” he says in my ear. “Besides, we have a baby boy on the way. That’s a gift I never expected to have. You’re giving life to someone, to our child. That’s the most important thing in the world, baby. I just want you to know that not a second goes by when I don’t want your sexy body.”
I blush again. I can barely believe he still wants me now, even after all the morning sickness, sleepless nights and backaches, and how I ballooned in size during the pregnancy...how does he still want me when I’m like this?
Claiming His Student: An Instalove Possessive Age Gap Romance (A Man Who Knows What He Wants Book 209) Page 6
