Page 18 of My Forbidden Professor

I’m aware of the minutiae of his every movement. His scent. His light step on the pavement. The way the air creates a bubble around us. The way perspiration coats my skin, hot and heavy. The way I’m flustered. Not quite myself but more me than I’ve ever been here.

His arm brushes mine, his shirt material whispers against my denim jacket. I grab the strap of my backpack and glance up from the corner of my eye.

He watches me, his gaze shadowed in the darkness. My skin prickles, making me aware of the clothing I wear, the weight of my bag and the relative silence of the campus.

I glance through the windows of a nearby dorm, seeing students lounging on sofas, chatting and laughing. Living a normal life I’ve never been a part of. One glimpse of the wrong social media post and I’d be outed. A couple ahead of us strolls from the path and onto the damp grass.

Jacob has kept up a line of conversation. His voice is a deep rumble that washes our bubble with calm. I smile and nod and respond, entranced with the picture he paints of his home town that is nothing like the hectic streets of New York where I grew up. After they split, my mother decided to stay on for the sake of her career. Dad may be a business mogul, but Mom is no slouch when it comes to business and property. Her agency doesn’t sell condos under three million. Ever since I was little, she’s been the driving force behind her own business.

But I share none of that with Jacob.

I don’t want to even think about my parents. All I want to is to hear more about Jacob’s home town. His parents. His brother.

“I never had a sibling,” I admit. The words slip out as though I have no control over them. I’m surprised, but not. I have no control when it comes to Jacob.

“So you’ve always been alone?” he asks.

There’s no way he could find out about me if I admit I’m an only child. There are plenty of single children families. Not so many who are the sole heiress to billions, but the reference is broad enough that it couldn’t be used to trace my real identity.

“I have a friend now,” I say, thinking of Adeline.

Jacob stops and another frown creases his brow. He does that a lot around me. “Now? As in, recent? What about your childhood? School friends?”

I’ve said too much already. “Of course!” I lie. “I did all sorts of typical teenage stuff. Sneaking out, pulling pranks, that kind of thing.”

“Sounds like you had a fun childhood.”

“Super fun.” His gaze burns through me, as if sensing the lies, so I turn and keep walking, hoping he’ll follow. After a while his steps catch up.

“My brother made sure I never had a dull moment. We were always getting up to something. We made Mom and Dad’s life very colorful. We played cops and robbers, knights and dragons and any childhood game we could come up with. Big yard in the country, you know. We were always outside, building forts, climbing trees. My mother used to dress us in matching clothes, so we looked like twins when we went out, to make it easier for her to keep track of us. I hated it, but looking back, those were the best days of my life.”

Steph bites her lip as if trying but unable to stop a grin that transforms her expression. “Matching clothes, huh? That must have been a sight.”

Jacob chuckles, the sound making my stomach flip with awareness. “The worst was when she made us wear matching bow ties. Every Sunday for church.”

“Bow ties? I’ll never be able to look at you the same way again.” The mental image of a young Jacob with his dark curls and adorably bright blue eyes wearing a bow tie makes my stomach tighten with something akin to desire.

Jacob’s gaze on my face is hot enough to sear my skin. “You’re such a mean woman, Steph Smith.”

I shake my head, breathless. “Not mean. Just honest.”

But not honest enough to tell him who I really am. My stomach tightens again, but in another way. I don’t like that he doesn’t know, but knowing would change him and me. I like seeing the real Jacob shine through. Not the professor. Just him.

I don’t want to admit the truth and lose him.

“And here I was thinking you’d say something nice about my beautiful face.” There’s an added husk to his voice and I get the feeling this conversation is taking a turn I don’t want to go down.

“I—” I feel my cheeks heat because he really does have a beautiful face and when I glance up at him, the look he has trained on me is wholly intense.

“What were you going to say about me?” he asks, leaning in close. Too close. I could lean over and kiss him if I wanted to. That’s what makes my heart thud against my ribs, my stomach clench for another reason entirely.

“That playtime is over and now it’s time to get back to work,” I say.

Thankfully we reach the steps to the library and Jacob swipes us in. The familiar scent of books and coffee reach my nose. The few nightlights left on guide us to the reference section, but even if they were off, I know the way intimately.

I set my pack on the ground at my favorite table in the corner of the vast space and pull out my laptop. Jacob settles into the chair next to mine. His fresh aftershave wafts over me as he leans in close. “Now, where did we get up to?”

I try to focus on the task at hand, pulling up the planning document we’ve worked on. I need to lose myself back in the work so I don’t think of impossible things. I can’t ignore these growing feelings for Jacob. I just need to be careful not to act on them.

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