Professor X

by Kiki Leach

"No... And you?"

  "Nah, darlin'. I ain't."

  "You're sure?"

  His brow arched as he smirked; his eyes lowered to his hand as he continued caressing her skin. "Yeah..." She rolled against the cushions, moving closer to him, forcing her breasts to rest against the muscles in his arm as his fingers slipped beneath the edge of her skirt.

  A slight whimper escaped her as she swallowed. "I know that..." She stopped to clear her throat and pinched her lips to temper her reaction as the heat rushed between them with every touch. "I know that you don't believe in celibacy," she said.

  A deep, throaty laugh escaped him as he prepared to respond. "I don't even know how the fuck to spell a word like that, darlin'."

  "I could teach you before you're forced to teach it to someone else..." Her fingers swept along the corner of his mouth; his jaw tightened. "If you're willing to learn."

  "Yeah?" He grinned. "That somethin' you learned while bein' on campus?"

  "It's what I learned after leaving the club." Her hand fell to his shoulder as he turned his head and stared into her eyes with question. "What is it?"

  He shook his head and frowned. "Too goddamn much, darlin'."

  "What does that mean?" His eyes dipped to her breasts as they remained pressed against his arm. She looked across his face as it darkened and deeply inhaled. "You know that we can still watch that movie? It's not off the table."

  "What kind were you thinkin' 'bout puttin' on?" he asked. "Somethin' liable to keep my ass awake or knock it the fuck out 'fore the credits start rollin'?"

  "That depends."

  "On?"

  "What you're interested in watching," she replied. "Action, romance, something of both?"

  He shrugged as his eyes returned to the television. "It's your place, darlin'. Make the goddamn rules."

  "You're a guest."

  "Fuckin' hardly." He snickered while continuing to roll his fingers across her skin. "You should surprise me with somethin' you wanna see. Somethin' you'd watch on your own -- without my ass bein' around to make you wonder 'bout somethin' else."

  "Okay."

  She reached for the remote and scrolled through a set of older movies before finally landing on 'My Best Friend's Wedding'.

  "Christ." Xavier rolled his eyes and groaned. "What the fuck is this shit?"

  "Something I would watch without you being around -- I like it."

  "What the fuck is it about, Mariah?"

  "A woman in love with her longtime best friend," she told him. "The entire movie revolves around her being part of his wedding to someone else while she quietly tries to win him over for herself."

  "Shit." His head fell back as he barked with laughter. "Does it fuckin' work?"

  "We can watch and find out."

  "You know the goddamn answer."

  "I've seen it ten times, but I'm not telling you. That's supposed to be the point of joy in watching a movie together, X. Especially with someone else who's never seen it before."

  He grumbled while settling into the couch; his fingers remained on her skin as she turned away from him and sat back. "This the kinda shit you were talkin' 'bout?" He peeked at her from the corner of his eye and lowered his voice. "Bein' with somebody outside of a goddamn bed and all that?"

  "Something like that." She smiled. "How do you like it so far?"

  "Depends on how this movie ends, darlin'. And if I'm still awake to see it."

  "You will be."

  "Fuckin' promisin' me that shit?"

  "Yes." She placed her hand on top of her heart and bobbed her head. "With all my heart."

  He stared at her with a need for more than the flow of words rolling between her lips and tapped his fingers across her skin. She lowered her hand to her breast before dropping it to her lap and sucked in her cheeks before quietly returning to the television.

  Chapter Four

  Xavier

  A wave of nausea shot through that motherfucker like the weight of a goddamn bullet as his eyes flew open and his shoulders twitched against the couch. He blinked a few times and rattled his head to shake himself awake, then looked aside and frowned in realizing he had been left alone at some point after falling asleep.

  "Mariah?" He looked behind himself as the sound of her voice echoed from the kitchen and narrowed his eyes as the voice that followed belonged to none other than Scooter. "What the fuck?" He stood up and stormed around the couch with a pair of clinched fists swinging at his sides, then stopped at the door as he saw Mariah sitting at the table in front of her laptop with a shirtless Scooter hovering over her shoulder, his mouth hanging open as he leaned forward and pointed at the screen. Xavier grimaced as his skin flushed; he brushed his thumbs across his knuckles and stepped inside. "What the fuck is this shit?"

  Mariah lifted her eyes from the screen and sat back. "Your boy here got a phone call--"

  "What the fuck time is it?" he interjected. "Did we finish that goddamn movie?"

  She bit her lip as a smirk arched the corner of her mouth and nodded. "It's 7am and you went on a five minute rant about Julia Roberts giving up too soon on what she wanted before tossing back a few more shots of tequila and passing out."

  Scooter dropped his hand to the table and chuckled. "Can't believe this bitch convinced your ass to watch a movie without pussy bein' shown in the first goddamn shot."

  "Yeah, 'cause your ass never showed the fuck up onscreen to make the shit possible." He dragged his attention back to Mariah and jerked his chin. "What the fuck is goin' on with this shit in here? Where's your girl?"

  "Still asleep--"

  "Fuck yeah, she is." Scooter straightened his back and rubbed his hand across his stomach. "With a belly full of my cum, that bitch might not ever wake the fuck back up."

  Mariah peeked at him from the corner of her eye and pointed. "You better hope to hell that isn't true for your own sake." She glanced at Xavier and shook her head. "He left her snoring in bed and came to find me in here after getting a phone call from Boone."

  Xavier rolled his eyes back to Scooter and glowered. "What the fuck was Prez callin' your ass about -- Us not showing back up out there last night or somethin'?"

  "Nope. Motherfucker called in the middle of his own mornin' cock suck back home to let me know that LapDog is fuckin' around with some cunt on that same goddamn campus; asshole saw us out there with Mariah."

  Xavier folded his arms and soured. "A member of the goddamn Kings is scopin' out young pussy on a college campus? Their MC ain't into the old bitches of yore anymore?" His brow arched as his gaze scattered across the kitchen. "Who the fuck was Prez hearin' this shit from?"

  "Cheddar. That asshole hit up ACE'S with Chop and Poke around 4am to titty fuck in the back and came out to find his ass sittin' at the bar. Once the place filed out and Lap took off, Rockafeller rolled up to 'em and asked Cheddar about you and Mariah -- If you were fuckin' again or movin' to more serious shit in rollin' up on campus and puttin' her on the back of your bike before ridin' off with me trailin' behind."

  "Shit. What the fuck did he say?"

  "Said he didn't have a goddamn clue about who you were fuckin' these days outside the club; said he didn't even know your ass came out here last night, but that anything could be possible, hopin' it would throw him off the trail."

  "Motherfucker will be on that shit like cum on a dress now." He lifted his hand to his mouth in concern and lowered his shoulders. "That asshole is gonna be a fuckin' problem."

  Mariah shrugged. "Maybe it won't be as bad as you might think."

  Xavier made a face. "How the fuck do you figure with that shit, darlin'?"

  "I still need that job at ACE'S, remember? If he already knows that you were out here to see me, he'll believe it was because I called you to help me get it back and will back off of anything else."

  "Don't think so." Scooter rattled his head. "Rocka won't back off of a goddamn thing with LapDog snoopin' around campus pussy and reportin' back to him that this asshole is rollin' in the s
ame area with his hair slicked back and cut free while standin' in the front of a goddamn classroom."

  "Yeah. If LapDog is hittin' it with pussy out here," said Xavier, "the shit means he'll know any time I'm on campus; somethin' liable to get us fucked when my ass wasn't supposed to be seen."

  "I'm sorry." Mariah rolled her fingers along the edge of her laptop and sighed. "I never should've asked you to give me that ride home."

  "Not your fault, darlin' -- shit ain't on you. With or without the ride, if that asshole was out there, he was gonna see us no matter what."

  "It wouldn't have been as obvious without me there."

  "Darlin'." He leaned forward as Scooter dropped aside and crossed the room. "Don't start with blamin' yourself for any of this shit. You know our charters go back with the Kings for over a goddamn decade. LapDog went to Rocka outta feigned respect to get info that asshole didn't have. We'll deal with it."

  "He's right, we're gonna fuckin' deal with it -- startin' with the pussy he's been cozyin' up to." Scooter glanced at the laptop and grunted. "I had Big Tech hack into their campus security system to find out who that asshole had been hookin' up with. He sent the info right before you walked in."

  "You know who the fuck she is?" asked Xavier.

  Mariah bobbed her head. "Kyla Jacobson. Big Tech sent a picture of her kissing LapDog outside her dorm last night. We took a class together during my first semester; she was one of the older freshman like me, around 27 or 28 back then, and looking to give up her day job at the Riverwind Casino for something better."

  "Makin' her closer to our age now, yeah? Any clue as to her knowin' 'bout LapDog bein' a goddamn member of the Kings?"

  "Most likely no," she said. "Of all the times he's apparently been on campus to visit her, he's never been seen wearing his cut and Tech found nothing on her ever being at their club. But I can't promise to be sure about anything either way."

  "Alright." Xavier glanced at Scooter and pointed toward the living room. "Get your ass dressed. We need to get this bitch on the phone and roll her ass out to Pink ASAP. Find out what the fuck she knows about the Kings and LapDog personally; maybe see if she knows Rocka or anything 'bout the rest of us."

  "Brother, if this bitch knows anything -- even if she don't, her ass ain't rollin' out to Pink without bein' pushed."

  He opened his hands and lifted his shoulders. "Then we push like a pair of motherfuckers. I got ways of makin' the shit happen. Get dressed so that we can roll out."

  A sigh of defeat escaped him as he nodded. He peeked at Mariah and lifted his chin, then bypassed his brother and strolled back into the living room.

  Mariah dropped her hands to the table, pushing herself to stand, and crossed her arms. "If she's anything like I was back then, she won't talk on what she knows about the Kings, X. She'll keep mum if she knows about you or the coke floating around campus too..." She stopped and chewed the inside of her lip. "What if the Kings are involved with this?"

  "That's some shit we'll need to find out -- whether it's from her or the asshole she's currently fuckin'. If that's the case, I won't need to be on campus to teach a goddamn thing. If not, I'll need to figure out how the fuck to keep that asshole and the rest of 'em as far away from it as possible 'til we learn the truth." He turned on his heel.

  "Wait." She slipped her hand around his arm, then trailed her fingers along his muscle, stopping as she reached the back of his hand. She gulped as he looked over his shoulder and flipped his hand, allowing her fingers to dance between the creases of his palm. "I want you to be careful with this, Xavier. With Rocka, LapDog, the Kings -- Kyla? Anything could be possible for any of them. I can't have you hurt or worse when I've barely gotten you back."

  "You got me back?" He grinned as her fingers continued to roam across his skin. "Shit can't hurt me, darlin'. Too goddamn much has tried since before I could fuckin' walk. Only one thing has ever come close to fuckin' me up." He stared into her face with a spark of regret as her gaze drifted. "I'll talk to Rocka 'bout you and ACE'S," he said. "No promises or guarantees 'til I find out where the fuck his mind might go where you're concerned."

  "I understand, and I know that this is now in part for the club."

  He nodded. "As long as all parties get what the fuck they need from this shit."

  "I'll get enough of what I need for now. Anything else...?" She pulled her hand from his and leaned her head to stare directly into his crystal blue eyes. Feeling lost inside each one, she grinned. "I'll figure it out along the way."

  "You'll let me know when the fuck you finally do?"

  "Always, X." She lifted her hand to her chest and bobbed her head. "Cross my heart."

  They stared at each other for what felt like a lifetime of silence as no other words passed between them before Xavier scrambled out of the room.

  Chapter Five

  Xavier

  After swallowing back the last of his whiskey, Xavier sank into his chair and stared at the ceiling of the club. Three hours had passed since he last saw Mariah, though it seemed longer since knowing the feeling of her skin pressed against his own.

  He closed his eyes and gulped in remembering the look of desire on her face as she watched him fall asleep post-rant and more shots of tequila, then sucked in a breath deep enough to collapse him from the inside out in realizing she had remained awake next to him until this morning.

  "Yo-ho, brother." His eyes reopened as Cheddar lunged forward and glared. "Your ass alright down there? 'Cause you look worn the fuck out." He frowned. "Thought Scooter was the only asshole that got his balls tickled by some college bitch last night?"

  "My balls didn't get tickled last night."

  "Then why the fuck do you look like a pile of shit that ain't slept in a whole goddamn year?"

  "'Cause I didn't sleep too much last night, motherfucker. Price I paid for tappin' out on Mariah's goddamn couch." He threw his hands on top of his head and interlaced his fingers. "Watched a movie with her and knocked out once it was over."

  Cheddar sat down in front of him and nodded. "Scooter mentioned some shit about that. You two watchin' a movie while he got sucked off in the back by her roommate with ties to that University Center... Sounds like a raw goddamn deal to my ass."

  "What the fuck are you talkin' 'bout?" he muttered through a set of clinched teeth.

  "Mariah. Goddamn, asshole." He rattled his head and leaned into his chair. "Last time I saw that bitch was on all fours in front of the pole down at ACE'S. Sweet brown titties just... bouncin' between her arms while she tried to keep 'em covered in the middle of pickin' up piles of left over cash." He chuckled. "The fact that you didn't even try to get an updated peek at 'em last night is disappointin' as fuck to say the goddamn least."

  "I went out there last night for information, dipshit." He dropped his hands from his head and pointed. "Not to fuck." He got up from the table and crossed to the bar. He reached for an opened bottle of vodka and drank back what was left, then bent forward and swiped his hand across his mouth.

  Cheddar hopped up from his chair and moved in next to him. "Had you known she was out there...?" He leaned aside and arched the corner of his mouth. "Had you known she would be lookin' to get her job back at ACE'S, you wouldn't have tried to hit?" Xavier slammed the bottle on top of the bar and grinded his teeth. Cheddar lifted his hands in defense and dropped back. "Just a question, motherfucker -- just a goddamn question."

  "The shit between us has been done since she skipped out on my ass three fuckin' years ago," he spat. "I ain't goin' back to the same shit with her regardless of whatever the fuck I might be feelin' 'bout it--"

  "Regardless of what the fuck you might be feelin' about this shit? Brother." He grinned. "You've still got it bad for this bitch; a blind man could see that shit rollin' deep inside you like a motherfucker. It's why you ain't been properly fucked since she left. Why you don't bother too much with any pussy hangin' around here or ACE'S anymore, and the ones you do bother with can't keep your attention long en
ough unless their mouths are suckin' the goddamn life outta your balls. Even then, you don't give a fuck -- out here fallin' asleep while they're tryna make you cum like an asshole." Xavier slumped forward and folded his hands. Cheddar leaned into him and snickered. "She talk some slick shit about why the fuck she actually left and never came back? With all the years she'd been around us, the shit was abrupt." He peered. "She tell you somethin' about her still feelin' the same as she did back then?"

  Xavier made a face and jerked his shoulders. "What the fuck did Rocka have to say 'bout LapDog seein' me with her last night?"

  He looked aside and shrugged. "Nothin' more than the shit I told Prez."

  "And you think he bought what the fuck you told him 'bout not knowin' shit in who I was fuckin' these days?"

  "Seemed to." His eyes lowered as he questioned himself. "But I think the shit made him curious about her again."

  His skin reddened as he snarled. "In what kinda way, asshole?"

  "You know the kinda way I'm talkin' about, brother. Think he misses havin' her pussy around his cock on the regular. Bitches at ACE'S don't get him off like they used to."

  "Yeah..." A flash of heat washed over him as he tossed the empty bottle of vodka into a trashcan and turned away from the bar. "He can join the goddamn club."

  "Yo." Scooter jogged into the middle of the room after escaping Prez's office and pointed toward the lot. "Kyla's supposed to be rollin' through with Big Tech in a bit. Said he needed to pick her up from one of her grandparent's renthouses in Guthrie to keep from bein' seen on campus."

  Cheddar's mouth dropped. "How'd the fuck you manage to convince that bitch to come down here without her runnin' off to LapDog about it first?"

  "Money," he replied. "Few hundred bucks to keep her mouth shut on this shit and the chance to ride a motherfucker in his cut before she heads back out -- IF she gives us the kinda information we're lookin' for. That last part is only based on what the fuck she says."

  Cheddar's eyes narrowed as he slid his tongue between his lips and sucked them between his teeth. "What the fuck does she look like?"