As a model, Serena had been trained to control her expressions under every possible circumstance. But even that didn't mean she could contain her surprise today. "But what about Professor Fairworth?"
The woman's expression twisted into one of pure revulsion. "I believe he has decided to take a sabbatical."
"He has?" Serena knew she must be making a terrible first impression, but she was so shocked that she couldn't pull herself together.
"He has." Her new professor looked more than a little angry as she said, "He admitted to what he tried to get you to agree to, Serena, and for the way he inappropriately spoke to you and touched you. I'm very sorry you had to go through that."
"I was just about to come here to report what happened."
"I'm glad to hear that, because they will likely need to interview you about the incident, or incidents as the case may be, to make sure they have everything well documented. But for now, I thought you might like to know that it is extremely unlikely that he will return to teaching at the end of his break. Here or anywhere else."
Now that she'd had a few seconds for it to sink in, relief--and pure joy--broke through. "Thank you for telling me all of this." She couldn't stop smiling and couldn't wait to tell Sean the amazing news.
"Now," Professor Adams said as she opened up a file that had Serena's name on the tab, "I know you recently gave your midterm presentation on the Bronte sisters. However, because I haven't yet had the pleasure of working with you, I'd appreciate it if you'd be willing to repeat it for me. Early next week, perhaps, so that I have some time to settle in with the class first?"
"That would be great." Serena could hardly believe her good luck. Everything that had gone so wrong had completely turned around to be even better than she could have imagined. "Thank you so much."
"I must warn you, however, that I am going to have very high expectations." She pulled out a set of papers. "I read the paper you wrote a couple of weeks ago on the same subject. My specialty is Jane Austen, but I know enough about the Brontes to be very impressed with your initial analysis of their impact on the modern novel."
Serena was so bowled over by the unexpected praise--Professor Fairworth had told her that her paper had only skimmed the surface--that she almost didn't realize why the woman's name was so familiar. "You're the leading academic in the field of Early Romantic literature. Your book last year on Jane Austen was pure genius!"
Professor Adams grinned. "I'm sure there are several people who might like to lay claim to leading, and who might argue with genius, but just between you and me, I'll take them both."
A handful of minutes later, after Serena had admitted to being a total fangirl who had read everything the professor had ever written, she all but skipped out of the English Department.
*
"Thank you." Serena got to the stadium just as Sean was walking out of the locker room. She threw herself into his arms and kissed him, loving the way he smelled of soap and totally yummy him.
"You're welcome." He kissed her again, before he drew back enough to ask, "What great thing did I do now?"
She laughed. "You know what you did. And even if his career is ruined, the truth is he brought it on himself."
"Wait a minute, did something happen with your professor? I didn't think you had class with him today. You know I wanted to go with you the next time."
"It wasn't class. The English Department called me in for a meeting. The thing is, I was already going to see them. I decided they needed to know what happened."
"There's nothing you won't face down, is there? But if you're the one who got him fired, then why are you thanking me?"
Finally, she realized he'd meant it when he said he didn't know what was going on. "Fairworth is already gone. I didn't even have to say anything, because they already knew! And now I have a new professor. A really nice woman, who happens to have written the definitive book on Jane Austen and is a legend. And on top of all of that amazingness, she told me she was impressed with my paper on the Bronte sisters. Very impressed!"
"Seriously, do you have any idea how hot it is when you start talking about books?" He pulled her closer. "Tell me more about these Bronte sisters."
He always made her laugh--and burn so hot, too. She loved it, but she also needed to know, "What do you think happened?"
"I don't know for sure yet. Although--" He pulled out his phone. "--Drew sent me this text earlier. Now I'm wondering if this is what he was talking about." He showed it to her.
SMITH TOOK CARE OF IT
At her confused expression, he said, "I was talking to Drew about how Smith wants his songs on the soundtrack to his new movie, and of course my brother asked about you. I mentioned that you'd had trouble with a professor. We talked about a few possible plans to deal with the guy that I was going to run by you, but I'm guessing he said something to Smith before that. And now the guy is history."
Amazing. She didn't just have the Morrisons behind her. She had the Sullivans, too. Not to mention Abi, who had offered at least a dozen times to ambush Fairworth and kick him in the balls hard enough that he wouldn't have any reason to hit on a student ever again. That is, when Abi wasn't raving about how gorgeous and perfect and sexy Drew Morrison was.
Serena had been glad to hear that nothing had happened between the two of them--apart from Drew making Abi feel like the prettiest, most important girl in the world for one special night. Maybe Sean's rock-star brother was a player, but something told Serena that one day, when he found the right girl, his life would change in the best possible way.
Just like hers had.
*
The sun was just setting in front of the library when Serena said, "Are you ready?"
Sean was holding the classic 35mm Canon film camera he'd been lucky enough to find online, and feeling a hell of a lot shakier than he liked. "Sure."
"You don't have to do this today."
But he did. And he was going to completely lose the light if he kept stalling.
Clearly, she saw that he'd made his final decision, because she said, "Tell me what you need me to do."
"You're already doing it." And it was with Serena standing right beside him that he finally lifted his camera, framed a shot of the setting sun illuminating the library's pillars, and took his first picture in months. At first he was unsteady, and it was frustrating to feel like he was starting all over again. Soon, though, he found his groove.
He didn't know how long he'd been taking pictures when a couple of students walked up to Serena. She was no longer hiding in baggy jeans, sweatshirts, and baseball caps, and he'd noticed more than one person do a double take today. He assumed they wanted an autograph, but all the students wanted to know was how to get to the Engineering building.
The moment he heard Serena laughingly confess her utter lack of directional skills, it was pure instinct to turn his camera so that he could see her through its viewfinder. She was pointing, then laughing again when she realized she was pointing in the wrong direction. By the time she turned back to him, he'd already taken a dozen pictures of her. Each one, he already knew, would be beautiful.
Especially the one he took when she looked straight into the lens and smiled the biggest, happiest smile he'd ever seen.
*
A little while later, Serena and Sean had just made it up the steps to her floor when his large, warm hand curled around her waist. He turned her to face him in the deserted stairwell, then drew her against him so that she was looking up into his incredible green eyes.
When he touched her, she lost not only her breath, but most of her brain cells. Which meant the best she could manage was, "Hi."
He smiled down at her. "Hi." Once upon a time when he'd smiled at her, it hadn't reached his eyes. Now, it did.
"Have I mentioned in the past five minutes," he said in that deep voice that always made her insides all melty, "how much I love you?"
"It might have been six minutes ago," she teased.
He fram
ed her face with his hands. "I love you."
"I love you, too," she said, and then, "Have I mentioned in the past five minutes how happy I am that you're taking pictures again?"
He answered her with a kiss, and by stroking her with deliciously demanding caresses. He ran his hands down over her back and waist and hips until he was grasping her bottom and dragging her tightly against him. This was the unquenchable passion, the never-ending glow, the endless desire she'd been waiting all her life to feel.
Wanting even more, she threaded her fingers into his hair and pulled his mouth down harder against hers. On a groan, he complied with her silent request and took the kiss deeper.
In the tiny space he gave her between kisses, she whispered, "My room," deliberately bringing them back to the first night they'd met.
The next thing she knew, he had her hand in his and they were hurrying down the hall to her room. The second the door was closed and locked behind him, he said, "What about Abi?"
"She's not coming back until late tonight."
"Thank God." His hands tangled in her hair as he kissed her hungrily, his mouth roaming from hers down to the pulse point at the side of her neck. "I love it when I can feel your heart beating this fast."
He licked against her skin, then followed it up with a light scrape of his teeth that had her moaning. She wasn't thinking--couldn't think at all when he was slicking his tongue across hers--but it was okay. She didn't need to be in control all the time anymore. Especially not when losing control with Sean was so much fun.
"I love how hot your skin gets when I touch you." He rubbed his five o'clock shadow across her skin, and she arched into him, desperate to get closer. "I love hearing the sounds you make when you come apart for me." He moved his hands so that he was cupping her hips and dragging them against his, nearly taking her over the edge with nothing more than that. "And I love how bad you need me," he said as he gripped the bottom of her shirt and had it off over her head before she could take her next breath. "Just as much as I need you."
She didn't know what was hotter, his tongue licking a wet path over the upper swell of her breasts...or the way he was talking to her, telling her everything he loved about being with her. Showing her that he noticed everything.
"But do you know what I love most of all?" He brought his mouth back to hers. "I love it when you kiss me like this."
Kissing Sean was like having the most amazing dream, one that she never wanted to wake up from, an erotic and sweet seduction that sent wave after wave of helpless pleasure through her.
"Please."
He was so eloquent, so good at telling her everything he was feeling, but all she could do was beg...and tug at his clothes, even as he stripped the rest of hers away. Thank God they were soon completely naked. He quickly took care of protection, and then she was lying beneath him in the bed, wanting him so bad she thought she actually might burst if he didn't take her soon.
As if he could read her mind, he threaded his fingers through hers and held her as he slid into her, so slowly, so perfectly. His kiss was as sweet and sinful as the movement of his body inside hers, and she gripped his hands tightly, crossing her ankles behind his hips as she rocked with him, getting closer and closer to a peak that was higher than anything she could ever have imagined.
She'd given him all of her trust, had surrendered all of her defenses. And he'd done the same for her.
As sweet turned to wild, Serena whispered against his lips, "Kiss me again, Sean." And even after they'd tumbled into ecstasy together, they didn't stop kissing for a long, long time.
EPILOGUE
As the stage lights went dark, Drew Morrison took a few seconds to ground himself before stepping away from the mic. He'd started recording and doing shows so that he could play the music that had always been in his head...and it had quickly turned into something bigger than he ever could have expected.
Press. Parties. Groupies.
He could have anything he wanted, but every night as he stood onstage after a show, he thought about what his mom had written in her final letter to him: "When nothing else makes the pain go away, all I have to do is put on one of your songs and it works every time. Every single time."
Music. That was why he was here.
"Great show tonight, man."
The crowds had gotten so big--and hungry for a piece of Drew--during the past several months that the label had hired a security team to keep away the crazies. James was well over six feet and nearly three hundred pounds. He was also one hell of a nice guy.
"Thanks, James."
Drew and his backup players had been working out the kinks on a couple of new songs and tonight everything had finally gelled. He was planning to lock himself into the portable studio he'd set up in the back of the tour bus tonight and get it all down while it was still fresh.
"They ready for me in the meet-and-greet room?"
James nodded. "I'll take you back."
It didn't matter how drained Drew felt after a show. He always took the time to meet with his fans, especially the ones who needed the music like his mother had. Sick kids and adults got priority over everyone else for the VIP post-show tickets, and they didn't have to pay for them, either.
An hour later, he'd signed dozens of autographs and taken even more selfies with his fans, big and small, young and old. He was just about to head back to his tour bus when a woman stepped out of the shadows in the corner.
She should have just blended into the background in her conservative dark pants and top, with no makeup on and her hair pulled back from her face.
And yet, she was still the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen in his life. By miles.
How the hell could he have missed seeing her backstage until now?
"Your show tonight was really great."
"Thanks." He grinned to try to put her at ease. "I'm glad you came. What's your name?"
"Ashley Emmit." Something jogged in his brain, but he couldn't quite nail it down before she added, "I know you've got to be exhausted after your show, but I just wanted to tell you that I really appreciate the opportunity you're giving me to go on the road with you for my research."
Finally putting two-and-two together, Drew asked, "You're Professor Emmit's daughter?"
She nodded. "He told me you were expecting my call about setting up all the details, but I thought it would be better to meet in person the first time we spoke."
"But..." Drew still couldn't get his brain to work right. "The picture he had of you on his desk--"
"Is really old." She wrinkled her nose. "I think he likes pretending I'm still his little girl."
In the picture she'd been wearing huge glasses, so big and thick that Drew had barely been able to make out any of her features. All he'd known was that he was going to be totally safe taking her out on the road with him since he could never touch his professor's daughter in a million years.
"Drew?"
Oh man, she wasn't only drop-dead gorgeous, her voice had that husky edge to it that he always loved to hear after he'd made a girl come apart beneath him over and over again.
How the hell was he going to keep his hands off her while they traveled the country together in his tour bus? Especially when he was already this tempted by her...
THE END
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Watch for Drew Morrison and Ashley Emmit's story, TEMPT ME LIKE THIS, coming soon!
*
And don't miss Bella's New York Times & USA Today bestselling series about The Sullivans! Please also enjoy the following excerpt from THE LOOK OF LOVE (The Sullivans, Book 1)
Chloe Peterson is having a bad night. A really bad night. The large bruise on her cheek can attest to that. And when her car skids off the side of a wet country road straight into a ditch, she's convinced even the gorgeous guy who rescues her in the middle of the rain storm must be too good to be true. Or is he?
As a successf
ul photographer who frequently travels around the world, Chase Sullivan has his pick of beautiful women, and whenever he's home in San Francisco, one of his seven siblings is usually up for causing a little fun trouble. Chase thinks his life is great just as it is--until the night he finds Chloe and her totaled car on the side of the road in Napa Valley. Not only has Chase never met anyone so lovely, both inside and out, but he quickly realizes Chloe has much bigger problems than her damaged car. Soon, Chase is willing to move mountains to love--and protect--her, but will Chloe let him?
Enjoy the following excerpt from THE LOOK OF LOVE...
Chase almost missed the flickering light off on the right side of the two-lane country road. In the past thirty minutes, he hadn't passed a single car, because on a night like this, most sane Californians--who didn't know the first thing about driving safely in inclement weather--stayed home.
Knowing better than to slam on the brakes--he wouldn't be able to help whomever was stranded on the side of the road if he ended up stuck in the muddy ditch right next to them--Chase slowed down enough to see that there was definitely a vehicle stuck in the ditch.
He turned his brights on to see better in the pouring rain and realized there was a person walking along the edge of the road about a hundred yards up ahead. Obviously hearing his car approach, she turned to face him and he could see her long wet hair whipping around her shoulders in his headlights.
Wondering why she wasn't just sitting in her car, dry and warm, calling Triple A and waiting for them to come save her, he pulled over to the edge of his lane and got out to try and help her. She was shivering as she watched him approach.
"Are you hurt?"
She covered her cheek with one hand, but shook her head. "No."
He had to move closer to hear her over the sound of the water hitting the pavement in what were rapidly becoming hailstones. Even though he'd turned his headlights off, as his eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness, he was able to get a better look at her face.
Something inside of Chase's chest clenched tight.
Despite the long, dark hair plastered to her head and chest, regardless of the fact that looking like a drowned rat wasn't too far off the descriptive mark, her beauty stunned him.