Page 25 of The Naughty Professor
My reflection frowned back at me from the glass.Pale skin.Wrinkled shirt.Tie hanging crooked, like it had been put on in the dark.
“Ugh,” I muttered, tugging at the fabric.“Is that me?This shirt is hideous.”
I gripped the collar, yanked, and ripped the buttons apart.The shirt came off in one sweep, the sleeves tearing at the seams.The reflection showed my chest—broad, cut, sharp with muscle that had been hidden under these rags for far too long.
Now that was better.
I spied a trashcan by the nearest desk and tossed the shirt inside.
The reflection stared back, bare-chested now.Strong, but pale.“Christ,” I muttered.“It’s like I’ve never seen the sun before.”
Then my gaze fell lower.The chinos.Baggy, beige — a crime against fashion.They bunched around my thighs, puddling awkwardly at my ankles.
“No way in hell I’m being seen in these.”
I unbuckled the belt in one swift motion and whipped it off, the leather snapping through the loops.Then I popped the top button and slid my fingers down to the zipper.
That was when the footsteps came.Thudding fast, pounding down the hall, and voices were shouting.
A second later the door burst open and a pack of students barreled inside, led by a cop with a buzz cut and a nervous grip on his flashlight.
They froze at the sight of me, half-undressed in the middle of this lab.
The pimply kid in the hoodie pointed at me with wide eyes.“I swear!He was laying on the floor!Right there!”
The others stared.One girl squinted, her cheeks turning pink.“Um… Professor Sterling?”
Sterling.
The name meant nothing to me.
I tilted my head, grinning slowly.“Don’t know him, sweetheart.”
The cop stepped forward cautiously, voice careful, like he was talking to a child.“Felix… this kid says you were passed out on the floor.Are you okay?And where are your glasses… and your shirt?”
Felix?
I blinked at him, genuinely baffled.But the cop—cute in his uniform, jaw tight, cheeks pink from running—was worth looking at.
I let my grin widen.“You worried about me, officer?Don’t be.The only thing I need is someone strong enough to pin me down.”
The students gasped, and the cop choked.
“Professor!”one boy whispered in horror.“What the hell?”
Another girl giggled nervously, her eyes darting to my chest and away again.
I rolled my shoulders, letting the muscles flex.“Relax, kids.I’m fine.Better than fine.I’ve never felt so good in my life.”
The cop frowned, concern tightening his brow.“You’re not acting like yourself, Dr.Sterling.Did you hit your head?”
“Baby, if I hit my head,” I said, stepping closer, “you’d be the first thing I’d want to see when I woke up.”
Laughter broke out, shocked and scandalized.The pimply kid turned crimson.A girl with a nose-ring fanned herself with a notebook.
The cop sighed, shaking his head.“You’d better calm your ass down with all this nasty talk, Professor.What the hell is wrong with you?”
From the hallway came the sound of clicking heels, then a figure appeared in the doorway.
