Page 100 of The Thorne at My Side
With him?
In trouble?
Because, yes.
I brought my SMS Connect phone with me to campus today. I wanted to feel close to it. To him. I run my thumb down the side of the phone while I read the message again. I haven't responded yet but based on the physical reaction I got to this text I think I need to be honest and tell him that yes, I am in.
All in.
With my gaze down staring at the message, and my head in the clouds deciding how I’ll respond, I don't see the person standing right outside the classroom door. I bump into them hard.
"Oh, Excuse me. I'm so sorry, I wasn't…Austin?"
"Hi Maggie."
Every muscle in my body simultaneously freezes and goes up in flames. I think I'm standing up straight but with the way the earth is tilting I have to lean towards him.
Austin Thorne is standing in front of me and looking like a wet dream. His hair is longer than it was in the fall, but not too long. I like it. His glasses are perched on his nose and the scruff he’s sporting adds a sexy new dimension to him. His eyes are dark and rich like a cherry wood desk but they sparkle like he’s picturing doing me on it. I’d be into that.
Way into it, I think as I look down. Did he get more muscularor did my memory fade over the last few months? He's in a suit but no tie, the top of his shirt is open and it's almost indecent. His shoulders are round and curling towards me because his hands are behind his back.
Desire takes over. I want to rub my nose along the spot where his neck meets his chest. I want to inhale him. I want to feel his heat inside and out.
I want him.
"I heard you were teaching and I wanted to see how you were."
"How did you hear I was teaching?" My question comes out at half strength because I'm not confident I'm breathing.
"Sam told me."
“Sam never said she talked to you."
"Checking in on me MC?” He smirks and I feel myself blush.
"No, but I heard about the program being canceled and I may have looked into it a bit further" I deny but I can hear how flat it falls.
"I'm starting to work on some other things. But I didn't come here to talk to you about my work."
"Oh, no? What did you come here for?"
"I wanted to get your thoughts on something."
"Yeah, what?" I say with a little more sass. His vague sentences are starting to annoy me, I can feel my breath returning and my insides are warming up for a fight. Our old dynamic is back and I don’t hate it. I feel alive.
"I wanted to see if we could be friends."
"Friends?"
"Friends. You know, two people who talk about things, hang out occasionally, drive the other to the airport, that sort of thing."
"Don't youhave a car service on retainer?"
"Well it would be you using my car service if you needed it I guess. That still counts I think. I'll have to check the rulebook."
I hate myself for it but I laugh. He's charming. And now that I’m coming out the other side of my job loss I can separate Austin from the product he invented.
"You really think we can be friends?"
