Page 19 of His to Teach
And fuck if Harper reacting this way, without any training, doesn’t make me as hard as steel.
She’s still taking those deep calming breaths, the shakiness nearly gone now. “Good girl,” I murmur, and I can feel the pleasure of my praise radiating off of her. Damn, I want her. Have wanted her ever since I bumped into her outside of Club Wyld. But never so much as now, in this moment, as I realize that I will never be able to have her.
I glance over to Mason, his hands waving as he barks instructions into the phone. We probably only have a few minutes more.
“Listen to me, Harper.” I lean towards her, waiting until she makes eye contact. She’s much calmer now, the panic I sawin her eyes earlier muted. “Last night I tried to introduce you to a different kind of life, but I didn’t explain something very important. Do you know what it is?”
She shakes her head, biting her lip, and I so badly want to tug that soft pink flesh away from her teeth, to sink my own teeth into it, rubbing my tongue along her sweetness and?—
Stop it, Nate. Control.
“The most important thing about this life is boundaries. None of us could enjoy what we do if we didn’t know how to compartmentalize our lives. We need to be able to exist in the world, to have relationships and careers, without allowing our kink to control us. Do you understand?”
She nods, even though I can see the uncertainty in her eyes. My instinct is to chastise her for lying to me, even about something so minor, and I have to remind myself that I’m not training her. That she isn’t mine to train. And now she never will be.
The disappointment I feel at that thought is so strong that I need to take a breath to steady myself.
“What I’m saying, Harper, is that this won’t be the first time different areas of your life intersect unexpectedly. If you choose to explore this lifestyle, it’s bound to happen. You must learn to control your response. You must learn to compartmentalize. It’s like I said—boundaries.”
This time when she nods I can see the understanding in her face. “So what happens now?”
“We enjoy a nice breakfast with your brother.”
“And pretend we don’t know each other?”
The thought makes me feel uncomfortable, but I know it’s necessary. “Yes.”
“And when we see each other on campus?”
“Your brother told me your concentration is in sociology?” She nods. “Then it’s unlikely we’ll see each other often.”
She raises an eyebrow, the challenge in her eyes enough to make me hard all over again. What I wouldn’t do to wipe that expression off her face.
I struggle to focus on her words as my thoughts desperately try to drift to the many ways I could have fun trying to tame that challenging spirit of hers.
“Sociology and Psychology are part of the same college at Denby.”
“True,” I agreed. “But you’ll probably be working under Travers?” She nods in agreement. “He’s old school, insists on keeping his office in the humanities building. Most of his lectures take place there as well, so that’s where your TA sections will be.”
“While you’ll be over in Grovers,” she says, correctly guessing the building where both my office and lectures are housed. I expect her to look relieved but instead I hear unmistakable disappointment in her voice. This isn’t a good sign.
“My career is incredibly important to me,” I tell her. “And from what your brother tells me, you’re very focused on your studies. Therefore, it’s important that we both remain detached and professional when we’re at the university.”
Her eyes light up. “And when we’re at the club?”
I look at her with horror. She can’t possibly be considering going back to the club. Not now. “We will not be seeing each other at Wyld,” I say, my voice harsh. “Because you will not be there.”
Her face falls. “Why not? I thought you said?—”
“Harper. Surely you don’t expect me to continue to interact with you in that lifestyle now.”
That challenge is back in her eyes. “And what, exactly, doesourinteraction—or lack of it—have to do with my going to the club?”
“Harper—”
“Surely there are other men there that can?—”
Fuck that. “Forget it, Harper.”
