Chapter 6

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• Rowen flicked through all the messages on his phone and leaned against the desk in his office. It was already half past ten and most of the teachers had gone home, leaving him alone in the building.
• With a sigh, he slipped the phone back in his pocket. It was always either him or K.M. who was in the lead every year. Out of all the players who participated in Teacher’s Pet, only a handful of them had actually managed to score it with a student. It was a sad fact, but it didn’t stop the rest of them from trying.
• With no progress on his end, K.M. was naturally in the lead. K never had a problem leading the ladies on, but he also had a penchant for being careless. It was this very behavior that Rowen considered his only advantage against him. Last he heard K had gotten into a little fight with his pet, and if he kept up with the act, Rowen could still have a chance.
• No, selecting Hayleigh Sullivan could not have been a mistake. A scholar with an impressive GPA who was unfazed no matter how many times he’d embarrassed her in class... Someone smart, serious, but who might do anything for a grade, especially if her education depended on it. Perhaps that was the reason she said yes to going out with him in the first place. Otherwise she was just as gullible as every girl her age, which he would be more than happy to take advantage of.
• Still, she seemed the kind of girl that had to be approached with caution. The only challenge was how to win her over fast enough to keep him in the running. It was a gamble he could’ve avoided had he gone with any other student, but if this was to be his third win, might as well make things a little more challenging.
• Rowen drummed his fingers on the desk before rising up to leave the room. It was time to play serious.
• Hayleigh played with her pen and tried to concentrate on her test paper. It was to no avail, since all the numbers on the page just swam in her head. Around the room the rest of the class kept their heads lowered, all busy with the exam. Up front, Professor Henderson was busy checking papers.
• It had already been two weeks since that eventful first date, but she was still reeling from the fact that she had kissed her own teacher. She’d kept it all in, unable to tell a single soul, not even to her roommate Tara. While she hadn’t spoken privately with Professor Henderson since that day, they’d been in constant communication via text.
• It was almost surreal the way he seemed so detached in class and yet so engaging in his messages. Naturally, things had to be discreet given their situation, and yet it was their very setup that complicated things. She was inviting trouble into her life when it was the last thing she needed. With a scholarship to maintain, she needed to keep her nose clean and avoid any distractions.
• Instead, there was Professor Henderson—handsome, smart, enigmatic, and way out of her league. He was no awkward high school boy. He was a full-grown man, and she didn’t know how to deal with one. It was a risk she couldn’t afford to take, not when there was so much at stake.
• So why are you still entertaining him?
• She nearly flinched in her seat when Professor Henderson averted his bespectacled gaze back at her. She immediately lowered her head and gripped her pen tight. This was ridiculous.
• Twenty minutes later, the bell finally rang. Students rose from their seats and started passing their papers. Hayleigh managed to finish her test on time as she grabbed her bag and followed the queue of students up front. She kept her gaze on her paper the whole time as she passed her test to Professor Henderson.
• “Miss Sullivan, may I have a word?”
• His expression in front of the other students gave away nothing. She could only nod, fighting not to rock on her heels as she waited for everyone else to file out of the room.
• “When are you free again?” he asked while stacking test papers. “Do you want to have dinner with me sometime?”
• Say you’re busy. Say you have to study. SAY NO.
• “I’m okay any time.”
• “How about tonight?”
• “Tonight?” Her voice sounded higher than usual. “Sure. Where?”
• “I’ll make dinner, put on a movie. My place?” His steel grey eyes searched hers. “Unless you want somewhere more... public, of course.”
• “No, I don’t think public’s a very good idea.” She uneasily laughed. “Tonight at your place it is.”
• A small smile formed on his lips. “Great. I’ll pick you up later then.”
• Hayleigh numbly nodded. “Okay, see you later.”
• She mentally slapped herself as she left the room. What the hell had she just done?
• “For someone who’s about to go on a date, you look more mortified than excited.”
• Hayleigh ignored Tara as she kept pacing back and forth in their dorm.
• “Why are you so nervous? It’s the same dude, right?” Tara’s lips rounded with curiosity. “Unless it’s a new one?”
• “No... it’s the same one,” Hayleigh muttered, unable to lie coherently when she was too busy trying not to throw up.
• “So what’s there to worry about then?”
• Hayleigh wrung her hands together and sat on the edge of her bed. Surely she could afford to slip out a truth or two. “He’s invited me over to his place tonight.”
• Tara perked up in her seat. “Oh my God! He has his own place? That’s so hot.”
• Hayleigh massaged her temples. Her friend’s excitement was not helping at all.
• “Oh okay, I get it.” Tara grabbed a pillow and hugged it. “You’re worried about being alone with him.”
• Hayleigh shakily sighed. “I’m not used to this dating thing. Besides, isn’t it a bit too soon for me to go to his place?”
• Tara shrugged. “At the end of the day it’s entirely up to you. If you get too uncomfortable, just let him know.”
• And that was the problem. She was having the hardest time saying no where Professor Henderson was concerned.
• “But come on, surely you’ve gone at least second base before, right? There’s no harm in a little making out.”
• The mere thought of it nearly made Hayleigh’s head explode. Tara laughed. It must’ve shown on her face.
• Hayleigh nearly jumped when something vibrated in her lap. Her heart leapt at Rowen’s message, letting her know he was already downstairs.
• “Well, looks like it’s show time,” she muttered, standing up. “See you later.”
• “Condoms, okay?”
• Hayleigh chucked a pillow at Tara’s grinning face before leaving.
• When Hayleigh arrived downstairs, Rowen’s car was already outside. She climbed into the passenger seat, where he met her still in his teaching clothes from earlier that day.
• She flashed him an uneasy smile. “Hey.”
• The moment she stepped inside, it was like being transported back to that night two weeks ago. The memory of kissing him flashed before her eyes again, and it was all she could do not to bolt back upstairs.
• “You ready?” he asked as she barely managed to lock her seatbelt in place. She nodded as he drove the car forward and out of campus.
• “So.” She cleared her throat to break the silence. “What are you making tonight?”
• “That’s for me to know and for you to find out.”
• “Oh? Drumming up a little suspense, aren’t we?”
• He merely chuckled as the car turned left at the next stoplight.