by Lynn Stevens
Quinn reached forward slowly. His large fingers slid inside the fabric, parting the shirt like the Red Sea. When his skin skimmed over mine, heat radiated from my core. God, I needed him. And I wasn’t in the mood to wait patiently. I pulled my shirt off and unhooked my bra. Quinn’s breath hitched.
I pulled back from his touch. His eyes darkened as he stared at me. If he didn’t know how much I wanted him, he knew when I tugged off my jeans. His breathing grew heavier when he noticed I wasn’t wearing anything under my pants. I stood completely naked in front of him, waiting as he took in every visible inch of my body. To give him the full view, I turned around to let him see my bare ass. It was my best asset.
He pulled me back against him. His erection pressed against his jeans onto my ass. I wanted that inside me. Quinn’s hands had other ideas. He didn’t hesitate as he pinched my nipples between his fingers. His other hand slid south. I spread my legs, bumping into a table. Knowing what I wanted, and what he wanted to give me, I lifted my leg and put my foot on the table. His fingers slipped into my folds and inside me with quick moves.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered against my neck. His kisses peppered with small bites on my skin.
I moaned. “More.”
He pulled his fingers away, leaving me panting for more. He pushed my neck down, then slipped his fingers back into me from behind. I felt his body leave mine, but I reveled in the friction inside me. His mouth kissed down my back to my ass. Little bites sent me closer to the edge, but I needed more. Wanted more.
“Please,” I whispered.
Quinn licked as he added a third finger to my hungry body. His thumb circled my rear entrance. He pushed the tip inside, sending me over the edge. The orgasm rocked me so hard I bit my tongue. Quinn didn’t stop his assault. He pulled me on top of his face, his mouth taking over where his fingers had given me heaven. I orgasmed again, barely able to keep myself upright on him.
“More?” he asked, his voice smoky with need.
I nodded, unable to keep my eyes open. Yes, more was what I wanted. If he made me feel like this with his fingers and his mouth, what else could he do? I slid off him, but I didn’t get far. Quinn turned me away from him, and I felt his skin against mine. I spread my legs, needing him inside me. The distinct sound of a condom wrapper opening was all I needed to hear to know he was coming.
He pushed inside me gently, his hand rubbing up and down my spine. I pushed back against him. This was no time for gentle. And I didn’t want gentle. I wanted him to take me like a caveman. Pure sexual passion.
“Now,” I said as he filled me. My moan filled the room. “Fuck me now.”
That was all it took. Quinn grabbed my hips and slammed our bodies together hard. I fell to my elbows, unable to keep myself up. His groans were quiet, but mine filled the room.
“Harder,” I said as my breathing grew more rapid.
He complied, and the sensations building in my body were entirely new. I felt him everywhere. I wanted him everywhere. My skin prickled with need. His knees spread, pushing my legs father open, and letting him go deeper inside me. The orgasm racked my entire body, and I blacked out for a moment. My body floated on a high I’d never experienced before. Quinn rode me through my overpowering bliss then joined me.
We collapsed on the floor together. My body slick with sweat, my thighs wet with my orgasm. I rolled toward him. Quinn was on his back. At some point, he’d taken all his clothes off. I gazed at his tight body, his toned muscles. His condom covered penis flopped against his thigh. My eyes widened. It was huge.
I ran my hands over his abs. “Hi,” I said.
We hadn’t said much when I got there.
Quinn chuckled. “Can we say hello like that more often?”
I kissed his pecs and up his neck, climbing on top of him. “Or similar ways? I can think of multiple different types of hellos.”
He pressed his lips gently to mine. “We should make it a rule that you walk around naked all the time.”
“Ditto.”
Quinn chuckled. “That was…”
“Incredible. Amazing. Phenomenal. Orgasmic.” My cheeks hurt from smiling.
“I was going to say unexpected.” His gaze darkened further. “Not that I’m opposed to multiple repeat performances. But… we need to talk about last night. Those images you sent me.”
“I broke into Shepherd’s office and found incriminating evidence to support my story about the lacrosse team.” There was no way we weren’t going to stay naked while having this conversation. “I’ve been up all night writing the article about it.”
“The school’s not going to print that,” he said matter-of-factly.
I smiled sadly. “Remember, I quit. Then they claimed I wrote that defaming article about the shelter. And I promised Dean Stubbins I wouldn’t publish it on Mandy’s gossip blog. So… I took it somewhere else.”
Quinn’s hands slid up my sides and I shivered with pleasure. “Where?”
“The Leader Gazette.” I slipped down his body, connecting our sweet spots. My hips shifted slightly as he stirred awake. “I emailed it this morning and the editor is printing it front page tomorrow. He offered me an internship, too.”
“So within less than twenty-four hours, you committed a felony, wrote a front-page article, and got a job?” He raised an eyebrow.
“It’s nothing more than a misdemeanor.” I squinted my eyes and grimaced. “If I get arrested…”
Quinn’s fingers dug into my hips. He closed his eyes and frowned.
“But I may not,” I said quickly. “If I do, then it’s nothing more than a misdemeanor.”
Quinn’s eyes snapped open. “How did you break in?”
“I Googled on how to pick a lock.” I bit my lip. “Are you pissed?”
“Start from the beginning,” Quinn said.
I took a deep breath, but I didn’t move from my spot-on top of him.
I told him everything.
Chapter Seventeen
Quinn walked me back to my dorm. When I got there, Delilah tackled me into the couch. Her tears dripped into mine as we hugged. She blubbered for several minutes before becoming coherent.
“Calm down,” I said, pushing her off me. I glanced at Quinn who stood by the door. “Tell me what’s going on.”
She inhaled, choking on her own tears. “The campus police are looking for you. Like everywhere. I saw them at the LeHigh and the Labyrinth. They questioned everyone who might even know you. What’s going on?”
“It’s better if you don’t know,” I said, squeezing her hands.
“But—”
I cut her off with a wave of my hand. “Just give me a minute, okay?”
It felt like a long walk to my room, but I hurried to it as fast as my shaking legs would let me. After I closed the door, I breathed a sigh of relief. Then I went to task, grabbing the mini-camera brooch and pinning it to my shirt. I went back to the living area and sat with Delilah, holding her hands in mine and trying to smile.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “The less you know, the better.”
A knock rattled the door. Quinn grimaced and stepped back, pulling it open.
“Is Emerald Paquette here?” a gruff voice said.
Quinn stepped back and let the man in. He was older with graying hair and a growing pot belly. His brows furrowed into a V as he glared at Delilah, then me.
“Miss Paquette?” he asked, although I was fairly certain he already knew the answer.
I nodded. Quinn and I had a plan, and it involved keeping my mouth shut.
“Come with me, please.” He stared at me until I stood.
Quinn stepped between us. “Regarding what?”
“We have some questions for Miss Paquette. This doesn’t concern you.” The cop stared Quinn down.
“Why are you arresting her?” Delilah wailed through another fresh round of tears.
“She’s not under arrest.” His gaze turned to me. “Yet.”
“If she’s no
t under arrest, then you can ask your questions here.” Quinn crossed his arms. It was sweet, all his bravado, but I wasn’t going to let him get involved.
I stood and nodded again. Without looking back at either one of them, I walked out of my dorm room.
The ride to the campus security station was short, but he didn’t need to turn on his lights. It was humiliating. This guy was a prick. I knew it when I saw him. He made me ride in the back, even though I wasn’t under arrest. I didn’t care though. When I made the decision to get into this mess, I knew the consequences. I was prepared to face the music.
He led me in the station and into an enclosed room with a table and three chairs. I sat in the lone chair facing the one-way window.
“I see you’ve done this before,” he said as he sat facing me.
It was hard not to roll my eyes, but I managed.
“Where were you last night?” he asked.
I didn’t respond.
“Your roommate said you weren’t home.” He cocked his head to the side. “Were you with somebody you shouldn’t have been.”
I bit my tongue. That was uncalled for.
“Okay, if this is how you want to play it, I don’t need anything else to arrest you. I’ve got enough evidence.” He shrugged and held up his hands. “I just wanted to give you a chance to explain yourself.”
I swallowed hard, but I didn’t let out a sound.
He paused, waiting for his words to sink in. When I didn’t react, he stood and sighed. Then he read me my Miranda rights and led me to one of two holding cells. I sat on the bench. My cell was empty, but the other one held three guys. I stared at them and one smiled. His front tooth was gone, and there was blood on his lip. The other two were passed out.
I sat there, in complete silence, for almost two hours. My stomach growled. I hadn’t eaten since breakfast, and that had been a bowl of granola.
The door opened, and a different cop came in. He glanced toward the guys and shook his head. Then he turned toward me. His smile was kind, unlike the other cop. He took a ring of keys off his belt and opened my cell.
“Come with me, please,” he said.
I followed him back to the interrogation room. At least, that’s where I thought we were going. I was surprised when we entered an office with a couch and desk. Dean Franks sat behind the desk. There was a TV on a rolling stand haphazardly near the desk. I pressed the tiny camera to start recording. Hopefully, it would still send to my phone even though the cops had taken it after booking me. They didn’t take any of my jewelry.
“Have a seat,” Dean Franks said. It was easy to see how Colin would age over the years. The only difference was the color of their eyes. Dean Franks had soft brown eyes that made everyone comfortable. Colin’s blue eyes were cold, calculating.
I sat on the couch and waited. Now I was too scared to say anything. Dean Franks didn’t look at me. He picked up a remote and hit play. A black and white video filled the screen. It showed the hallway outside Shepherd’s office. Then there I was, hurrying down it. But my face wasn’t visible. My heart raced though. Why would they think it was me? That could be any girl on the screen.
“Just wait,” Dean Franks said as if he could read my mind. He pressed fast-forward. Then he stopped as I came out of the office. My head was down. My face wasn’t visible. Then the view changed. It was clearly me sneaking out the back door. I’d glanced up at the moon as I made sure the door didn’t slam against the brick that had propped it open. My face was clear.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The smoking gun. I hadn’t thought about security cameras. Clearly, I hadn’t watched enough crime shows.
“Security brought this to my attention this morning,” Dean Franks said. The remote was still in his hand. He dropped it on the table. “Shepherd hasn’t reported anything missing. And I can’t understand why you’d break into his office. Tell me it was a prank, and I’ll make this go away.”
I opened my mouth and closed it.
“That’s what I thought.” Dean Franks stood and tugged his blazer down. “You’re expelled from this university. Campus police will turn you over to the local PD.” He glanced down at me. “I hope it was worth your education.”
It was so hard to tell him it was, but I remained silent. He’d know soon enough.
Chapter Eighteen
The local police station wasn’t nearly as clean as the campus one, but I wasn’t there long. Thank God for night court. A judge released me on my own recognizance. My public defender gave me his card and that was that. I had to appear in again in a month to enter my plea.
I got back to my dorm room that night. Delilah was nowhere to be seen. I stood in the center of the room and looked at everything. Being expelled meant I had to move out. I went to my room and did the one thing I didn’t want to do but was necessary.
The phone rang twice before she picked up.
“Hello?” Grandma said. Her voice was cheery. That was how she answered when she was too busy baking to look at the caller ID.
“Hi, Grandma,” I said just before the sobs erupted. Everything, it was too much. I’d put on a brave face, but I couldn’t lie to my grandmother. “I screwed everything up.”
“Oh, baby, talk to me.” I could almost see her wiping her hands on a kitchen towel and tossing it on the table before she sat down.
“I got expelled.” That hurt way more than I thought it would.
“Because?” she asked, her voice hardening a notch or ten.
“Because I broke into the athletic director’s office to find proof that some of the lacrosse guys have been cheating.” I inhaled. “And I didn’t think about cameras.”
“Stupid girl.” Grandma’s voice dropped into a growl. “You should’ve known that a school that expensive would have cameras.”
I was taken back. That wasn’t what I expected. I expected getting yelled at for the actual breaking in part.
“Did you at least get what you needed?” she asked sharply.
“Wh—”
“Did you?” she snapped.
“Well, yeah. I mean, I actually got more than I needed.” I blink away the remaining tears. “The school already knew.”
“Really? That’s interesting.” She sighed. “Is the school actually running the story?”
I replayed the last week to her, telling her every detail about the paper, Madame Gutherie, and Mandy’s blog. Even my time in jail. Quinn was one story I kept to myself. For now. Maybe one day I’d take him home to meet Grandma. That made me smile.
“Does this mean you’re coming home?”
“I… uh… I don’t want to,” I whispered. That may be my only option when it comes down to it. “I kinda have a job here. The Leader Gazette, the one running the article tomorrow, they offered me a paid internship. I accepted.”
“Where will you live?”
“Good question. I guess I’ll have to look for an apartment. Like now.” I felt the tears prick at my eyes again. “Maybe a roommate. There’s got to be some place.”
“If you need anything, even money, you ask me, understand?” She sighed into the phone so I would hear her. “I guess this means I’ll never see you dance at The Met.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, genuinely meaning it. “I know I disappointed you.”
“No, you didn’t.” Grandma paused again, and I heard something clink around in the sink. “Emerald Jean Paquette, you have never disappointed me. Dance was my dream, your mother’s dream, not yours. Even though I know you love being onstage and the spotlight, you’ve always fought for what’s right. Remember in third grade when you argued with your teacher that graphic novels should count for reading time?”
“They totally should,” I said. That teacher was such a control freak.
“Yes, and you took it to the principal and to the school board. You spoke in front of those men and women as if you were their equal. You were their superior in so many ways. You showed them the books. And you won.”
“
Not entirely. She would only let us read the ones she read.” I was still bitter about that.
“Yes, but a few years later, she had more graphic novels in her room than any other teacher.”
“I didn’t know that. How did you?” That was a complete surprise.
“One of my friends had a grandson in her class. He hated reading books, but he loved graphic novels.” I could hear her smile. “Emmy, you need to follow your heart and your gut. If you need some money for a deposit, you let me know. I’ll transfer money into your account.”
“More than you already have?” I asked. Grandma was on a fixed income. That was one reason I didn’t go home often. Plane tickets were costly. “I can’t take more.”
“Yes, you can. And don’t worry about me. My friend Abigail helped me set up an online store on this website called Etsy. Have you heard of it? I put some of my crocheting on there, and people are buying them like crazy. I’m working more now than I ever did when I was at the hotel.”
“That’s great. I think. You’re not wearing yourself out?” Grandma was a young sixty-five, but she still wore out faster than she used to.
“Oh, honey, I’m fine. I love doing it, and I don’t put up anything I haven’t already made.” Her voice dropped into a whisper. “You remember that quilt I made a few years ago? The one with the ducks? I sold that for two-hundred dollars.”
“That’s great, Grandma.” I was genuinely impressed. Grandma had worked at a hotel until the new owners forced her into retirement.
“You see my point then?” she asked.
“That you can help me financially?” I asked, totally confused.
“That is one. But I meant that sometimes life takes you where you need to be, not necessarily where you want to go.” She chuckled, confusing me more. “You were meant to dance. You are meant to be in the spotlight. And you’re meant to do what you’re doing now. Just… please no felonies.”
I laughed at that. “I promise. No felonies.”
“Good,” she said as the oven beeped in the background. “Oh dear. I have to go, honey. My ornaments are done baking.”
