Naughty Professor - A Standalone Teacher Romance

by Claire Adams

  I laughed. “Not really,” I said, pulling into a spot halfway away from the main entrance doors. “I was over the college experience after the first semester of my freshman year.”

  “Glad to hear that. I don’t feel so lame then wishing it was over.”

  The mall was as crowded and busy as expected for a Saturday morning. The smell of fresh donuts and salted pretzels filled my lungs when we stepped inside. Jen looped an arm through mine casually as we headed toward the elevators.

  “I think we should shop for some spring outfits,” she announced. “I’m dying to get out of my winter clothes now that it is starting to warm up again.”

  “Agreed. I’ll window shop,” I said.

  Jen shot me an exasperated glance. “I meant, you need some spring clothes, too. Don’t protest it,” she said when I opened my mouth to tell her no. “You’re literally my only friend on campus right now; consider it a gift.”

  “I can’t do that,” I protested, shaking my head as we climbed into the elevator with a group of young teenagers. “Really, Jen. That’s too much.”

  “Not really,” she said, smiling. “Look, my parents have a lot of money. My dad’s the VP of a bank. My mom owns a couple of fashion lines. I rarely see them anymore, but they give me exclusive access to credit cards to make up for their busy schedules.”

  My eyes widened. We reached the second floor, and Jen immediately started to lead me in the direction of Hollister.

  “And they don’t ever say a word when they look at the statements?” I asked as she tugged me by the hand into the darkened store that smelled heavily of cologne.

  “They have an accountant who pays bills for them,” she said. She grabbed a white blouse and held it up against me. “This is cute on you. You should get it. Oh! We should get some new skirts and shorts.”

  We spent the next three hours combing through the stores. No matter how much I tried to protest, Jen waved them away at the register. We collapsed at the food court with bags scattered around us.

  “Thank you,” I repeated again with sincerity. “I really appreciate it, Jen. I really do.”

  “You’re welcome.” She beamed at me. “Maybe you can catch a PHU boy’s attention before you go with some of those outfits.”

  Or Noah’s.

  I swallowed thickly as I thought of couple sets of bras and panties Jen had insisted on buying me when she caught sight of my gray underwear in the changing room. I couldn’t even remember the last time I had even bought new ones. I spent entire summer breaks working over 40 hours a week to survive for nine months without having to work while studying for school.

  “Yeah, maybe,” I replied, and out of curiosity asked, “Why don’t you have a boyfriend yet?”

  “Not interested in having one right now,” she said, shrugging her petite shoulders. She took a large bite of her salted pretzel. “It’s kinda hard to date me because my parents like to meddle in certain areas of my life. They never care about anything else besides that. I gave up a year ago trying to have a boyfriend that they liked.”

  I took my own bite of pretzel, allowing the saltiness to linger on the tip of my tongue. “It sounds like your parents really care about your life.”

  “They do. They’re almost too involved,” Jen said, rolling her eyes. “What about your parents? Overly involved in your life, too?”

  My stomach churned as I picked at a few pieces of salt on the pretzel.

  “Complete opposite,” I said, quietly. “Years ago, my mother and I used to be close, but life happened and now I only see her a few times a year.”

  “I can’t even imagine that,” she said sadly. “I’m sorry that’s how it is for you. Maybe you could come visit my home with me for a weekend. Get away from school before you graduate.”

  The idea was appealing. A trip away for a weekend would be nice, even if it meant leaving Noah behind for a few days. Then again, we both had agreed it was best to keep things under wraps until I graduated.

  I had no idea how long that would last. I already wanted to drive over to his house to wrap my arms around him.

  “I’d like that,” I said. “Let’s do it soon once the weather starts to stay warm.”

  Jen grinned widely. “Great! So, let’s finish up shopping and go back to my room to try everything on one last time.”

  Two hours later, my jaw hurt from smiling so much. We managed to squeeze through the glass doors to walk out into the parking lot with bags in hand. I couldn’t remember the last time outside of time spent with Noah that I had felt this relaxed and happy.

  “We should watch a movie tonight,” Jen suggested. “I have popcorn. We can wash the clothes at the laundry mat while we find something to watch.”

  “Sounds wonderful to me,” I said. “No homework, either! Let’s make it a no homework night.”

  “Agreed.”

  “Iris?”

  I stopped short at the sound of Bailey’s voice. I looked over my shoulder to see her approaching us from behind with a frown. Her eyes landed on where Jen stood at my side, and they narrowed at her.

  “Great,” I grumbled, reading the bitchy look on my roommate’s face. “What are you doing here?”

  “I was getting some shopping done,” she said shortly. She looked over at Jen with narrowed eyes. “Who’s this? Your new freshman bestie?”

  “Her name is Jen,” I said, defensively.

  “Whatever. I guess you’ve got yourself a new best friend to hang around with today. I’ll see you back at the apartment.”

  She whirled on the heel of her boot and walked away from the both of us with her head held high. I let out a tiny groan knowing that I was in for a long couple of days. Whenever Bailey got into those moods, or felt threatened by people, she made everyone’s life a living hell by acting like a complete bitch. I dreaded going back to that apartment to deal with the pointed silence.

  “Wow,” Jen said, shaking her head. “I don’t mean to sound mean myself, but your roommate is sort of a bitch. No offense.”

  I burst out laughing despite the growing dread in my stomach. “You have no idea how big of a bitch she really can be,” I said.

  “It doesn’t seem like she’s even your friend, honestly,” she continued, watching Bailey walk through the glass doors into the mall. “I’ve seen you two around campus. You don’t look like get along with one another.”

  “It’s-” I stopped, trying to think of the right word. I gave up with a shrug. “I have no idea what type of friends we are. We’ve known each other for four years. That’s pretty much all we have in common.”

  “Well, I don’t think she likes me hanging out with you.”

  “I don’t care if she doesn’t,” I said, flatly. “You’re also my friend. She can deal with it.”

  “If you’re sure…” Jen trailed off uncertainly, shooting one last glance at the mall doors that Bailey had disappeared through.

  “I’m sure,” I said. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go get a movie and do some laundry.”

  Jen smiled at me as we loaded up the rest of the car. I shoved away my thoughts of what sort of scheme Bailey planned on pulling against me for revenge. I just wanted to enjoy one night without any drama.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Noah

  I woke to the sound of birds chirping in the tree next to my window, which was quickly followed by an insistent pounding on my front door. Maybe Iris had decided to come by this weekend, after all.

  Fully alert, I pushed back the blankets from my legs, and hurried down the hallway to unlock the door. I slouched in disappointment when Hunter smiled brightly at me from the front step. His eyes dipped down at the bulge in my boxers

  “Try not to look too happy to see me,” he said, wryly. “I love you, man, but I think you’re a little too excited to see me.”

  I rested my forehead on the doorframe as I willed myself to cool down.

  “I didn’t think it was you,” I said. “What are you doing here?”

&nbs
p; He held up a fishing pole and tackle box. “Remember what we planned this weekend? Fishing at the lake ring a bell with you?”

  “Oh, right.” A relieved breath left me when I thought of how close that would’ve been if Iris had shown up for the weekend. Hunter was smart enough to put things like that together, and he would’ve figured it out instantly if she had been in my bed.

  “Let me get my shit together so we can go. Come in.”

  “Who were you expecting?” He set his fishing pole and tackle box on the front porch before closing the door behind him.

  I shrugged my shoulders casually. “No one, man. I just forget you were coming, that’s all. Let me get dressed.”

  Hunter waited in the living room as I got ready and grabbed my phone from where it was charging. No missed calls or texts, but I’d expected that. I had called earlier, and Iris wasn’t the clingy type, from what I gathered. She liked her space just as much as I did. It made her even more appealing in a lot of aspects.

  We drove an hour outside of Provo to a spot that Hunter boasted had good fishing, despite me pointing out that all the fish would taste like salt. The tension in my shoulders from dealing with Miles and tutoring students lifted the second we arrived at the lake. Nothing but blue sky stretched out across the water, and warm sunlight sparkled off the surface.

  I let out a relieved sigh when I sank down in a chair after casting out my pole and setting it in a hole in the ground.

  “If I could live by a lake for the rest of my life, I would,” I said, closing my eyes against the warm sunlight.

  “Pretty sure that we promised ourselves a farm next to a pond when we were older,” Hunter said, lounging right next to me. He tossed me a beer from the cooler. “It’s funny how shit like that seemed so important years ago. Now, look at how different our lives are. Not what either one of us would’ve expected.”

  “No,” I agreed, shaking my head. “I never expected to be here in Utah sitting next to your ugly face.”

  He laughed. “Right. I’m always the ugly one in this relationship.”

  “I can’t alter the truth, bud. That’s just how it is.”

  A few minutes of contented silence passed between us. Finally, Hunter broke it by popping open another beer. He tossed the empty can in a little trash bag between us.

  “How is everything going at PHU? I haven’t spoken to you in a few weeks.”

  “Fine,” I replied, shrugging my shoulders. I didn’t want the subject to venture over to me being “too popular” with the female students. I went straight to the subject that was starting to irritate me. “The dean keeps trying to get me to help out with the rugby team there by telling the team that I might help out.”

  “Why is that a bad thing?”

  “It’s not a bad thing. I just don’t have the time everyone thinks I have for it. That chapter of my life closed over a year ago.”

  “Not all of it was your fault,” Hunter said angrily. “That guy was out to end your career. I still don’t agree with you not pushing him getting kicked out of the sport like you were pushed out.”

  Irritation swept over me. I opened my eyes to look at Hunter seated next to me in his chair with a beer in hand.

  “Nothing would reverse the damage to my knee,” I said. “Let him live with that shit hanging over his head. I have enough hanging over mine.”

  “Still-”

  “Drop it, Hunter,” I snapped, tossing my empty beer can into the garbage bag. “I don’t want to spend my afternoon talking about the past. It’s said, and it’s done. Nothing will ever change it.”

  “All right.” He held up his hands in surrender. “How is everything else going there?”

  I settled back in my chair. “Fine. Everything else is fine.”

  “Just fine?” he asked skeptically. “I have a hard time believing that coming from you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because the last time we talked about PHU, you hinted at having a pretty girl in your class. ”

  Of course he was going to bring that up. Should have kept my damn mouth shut.

  I avoided Hunter’s gaze when I opened up another beer. “It’s like you said: you can’t sleep with students there.” My throat tightened as I said it. “I’ve apparently become too popular with the students. I was warned.”

  “Just be careful, man,” Hunter said, taking a long pull from his beer. “I’ve heard stories about that dean firing teachers on the spot for rumors. He’s obsessed with maintaining his authority on campus, but I think he’s more worried about the community looking at him.”

  “His ego is bigger than his package,” I agreed, reeling in my line a bit more. “I’ve noticed he tends to collect teachers who are famous in one way or another.”

  “And, how did he end up with you again?”

  Hunter laughed when I reached over to punch him in the shoulder roughly. A grin spread across my lips despite how badly my stomach twisted.

  We watched the afternoon melt away some of the snow on the lakeside before packing up when the warmth of the sun faded away. Hunter insisted on stopping at a local bar on the outskirts of town to grab a few more beers.

  “Are you sure?” I asked as he led me inside the tiny bar jam packed with people. “I don’t want you to get into trouble with your wife.”

  “She isn’t home right now, so don’t worry about it.”

  Hunter didn’t turn around to look at me as he said it, but I could see the tension in his shoulders and neck. He continued straight up to the bar to order a beer. I took a seat next to him on a bar stool and ordered one, as well.

  “The fishing trip wasn’t about fishing,” I commented, taking in my friend’s stiff posture. “What’s going on at home? Where’s your wife?”

  “Beats me,” he said.

  I arched an eyebrow at his testy tone. “Okay. Now, I know something is going on if you don’t want to face her. You two are glued at the hip, and it’s nauseating at times.”

  “We just had a fight is all.”

  “About?”

  Hunter took a long pull from his beer. Sighing in aggravation, he rubbed at the back of his neck. “About her going back to work. She found out how far behind I am in at the shop and took a job without asking me.”

  I frowned in confusion. “I don’t see how that led to a fight.”

  “It led to a fight because I promised her the world.” His head dropped down. “And, I can’t give it to her, apparently. I’m a fucking mess because I was an idiot in college.”

  “You’re not a mess,” I said, grabbing him by the shoulder. I squeezed tightly to get his attention. “Look, your wife loves you, and isn’t that what marriage is all about? Helping each other out when the other one needs it?”

  “I suppose.” The corner of Hunter’s lips twitched up into an amused smile. “I’m surprised to hear marriage advice coming from you.”

  “It’s not advice,” I said. “That’s just how I view it.”

  “Right. So, when are you planning to find someone and take your own advice?”

  I traced the rim of the bottle in front of me. Marriage had never been a thought in my head since my parents’ divorce. What was the point if you ended up leaving someone after a few years? I thought.

  “I don’t know. I doubt that I will ever get married. I’m not the greatest person alive, either.”

  A hand touched my knee. I looked over to find a busty blonde with red-rimmed eyes smiling at me. Red lipstick stained her front two teeth, and she smelled of cigarette smoke and sugar.

  “Hi sexy,” she said, leaning into me. “Would you like to have a drink with me and my girls?”

  I looked her up and down with a grimace. The frayed jean skirt she wore barely reached her upper thigh, and her breasts threatened to spill out of the tank top she wore.

  “No thanks,” I said. “I’m here with my buddy.”

  She pouted when I lifted her hand from my knee. “Are you sure? You look like you know your way about a bedroom.”
>
  “I’m sure. Thanks.”

  I turned to look back at Hunter, whose eyes were wide with surprise. “What?” I snapped, ignoring the irritated huff from the woman beside me before she stomped away back to her friends. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Are you sure that you aren’t seeing someone?” he asked, quizzically. “I’ve never seen you turn down an easy lay in the years that I’ve known you.”

  I rolled my eyes at the comment while I took a long swig of beer to shake off the feeling of the blonde’s hand on my knee. I didn’t want Hunter to see that he was right because I never did turn down an easy and drunk lay. I just didn’t want it from her.

  I wanted it from Iris.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Iris

  The sound of dishes clattering loudly in the kitchen sink jolted me from a delicious dream of being wrapped up in Noah’s arms. I grumbled in irritation as I glanced the alarm clock next to my bed.

  Of all the times Bailey had to do the dishes, she had to do them early on a Sunday morning just to irritate me. That was what she had been scheming about the night before when I arrived back at the apartment to find her sitting in the living room sullenly with a glass of wine.

  “Why are you doing dishes at 9:46 in the morning?” I asked with a sigh, tugging up the blankets around my head.

  Bailey was the absolute queen at being passive aggressive when it came to people doing things she didn’t like. She did it to me all the time, and half of the time I caved in just to save face with her. Living with her was already complicated enough; having her pissed at me was a living nightmare.

  A pot clanged down hard on the counter. She was still upset over not being invited to the mall with Jen and me. It seemed petty for how old we were, but things like that seeped beneath her skin. She cared greatly about popularity.

  That’s why I never saw her on the weekends anymore. She always had somewhere to be and somewhere to go. Except, in her eyes, I couldn’t do the same thing for some reason. I rolled my eyes. I wondered if Bailey ever got tired of competing with everyone around her.