Page 26 of The Naughty Professor
She was older, but glamorous in a way that demanded attention—a tumble of bright red hair that looked too bright to be natural, but too bold to question.Jewelry glittered at her ears, wrists, and throat, each piece catching the fluorescent lights like tiny fireworks.She leaned against the frame, one hand planted on her hip, eyes sweeping over me in a single, devastating glance.
“Well,” she said, her voice rich with theatrical surprise.“What on earth is going on in here?”
The students shifted nervously, like they’d been caught sneaking out of class.The cop straightened, clearing his throat.“Professor Hernandez—”
So she had a name.Hernandez.Exotic, fiery, dripping in jewels like a Vegas queen.
I grinned and winked, then stepped toward her.“Now this is more like it.My very own audience.”
Her eyebrows shot up.“Excuse me?”
“You walk in here looking like trouble wrapped in velvet and rhinestones,” I said, raking my gaze deliberately down her shawl and up again.“What’s a man supposed to do but thank the universe?”
A boy near the back choked on his own spit.A girl clapped her hand over her mouth, eyes round.
The cop muttered something under his breath, then reached for the radio clipped to his shoulder.“VCU police,” a woman’s voice announced.“Dispatch, this is Officer Gallagher,” he said, his eyes still on me.“Situation in the chemistry lab is under control.Dr.Sterling seems stable, but he’s… not himself.I’ll stay on the scene until I’m certain he’s not a danger to himself or anyone else.”
Professor Hernandez blinked once, twice, then let out a laugh that was half-disbelieving, half-delighted.“Good Lord,” she said, fanning herself with one jeweled hand.“Is this really Dr.Sterling?”
The cop muttered under his breath, “Swear to God, Lorna, it’s him, but not like I’ve ever seen him before.”
“I told you,” I said, spreading my arms, chest bare, pants still unbuttoned.“I don’t know who you’re talking about.My name’s Jax.”
“Jax?”Ms.Hernandez repeated, lips curving in amusement.
“Short for Jackpot.”I winked.“Because that’s what you just hit walking through that door, sweetheart.”
The classroom exploded—gasps, snorts, laughter muffled behind hands.
The cop scrubbed a hand down his face.“Sterling—Jesus Christ.Pull yourself together.You’re embarrassing yourself.”
Embarrassing myself?I’d never felt better.Every eye was on me, everybody leaning in closer.Even the bejeweled redhead couldn’t tear her gaze away.
I rolled my shoulders again, the muscles flexing like I was posing for them, and gave them all a smile that promised exactly the kind of trouble they weren’t ready for.Then I glanced down and saw the hideous loafers on my feet.Brown leather, scuffed, flat like something an accountant’s corpse might wear.
“Absolutely not.”
I kicked them off, one after the other, and sent them skidding across the lab.They clattered against a filing cabinet and tipped onto their sides like dead fish.
The cop pointed at me sharply, color creeping up his neck.“The rest stays on, Professor.All you’ve got left is your pants.”
I smirked, cocking a brow at him.“Relax, Officer—what’s your name?”
“Gallagher,” he said tightly.
“Mmm, Officer Gallagher.”I drew it out, savoring it.“Don’t worry.I wouldn’t strip for free.”
The students tittered, and Professor Hernandez took a step closer, bracelets jangling.“Oh, Officer Gallagher, let the poor man breathe.”Her eyes never left me.“I think he looks just fine without those dreadful clothes.”
Her tongue darted out to wet her crimson lips.She smiled slowly, like a predator.“Lord have mercy, Felix—”
“Jax,” I corrected smoothly.
“—Jax, then.”She purred the name.“You’re full of surprises.And I do like a man who surprises me.”
The room vibrated with giggles, gasps, and someone whispering, “No way this is happening.”I noticed three students in the back holding up their phones, cameras trained right on me.
One boy muttered, “This is going on TikTok.”
