Page 68 of My Forbidden Professor

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Steph

The video footage of Daniel’s dramatic airport arrest plays out on the laptop screen before us. His face is contorted into a mask of panic and indignant outrage as the burly security officers swarm him in a flurry of movement.

“I did nothing wrong!” he shrieks, his words dripping with desperation as they wrestle his arms behind his back. “This is a setup! You can’t do this to me!”

So hypocritical.

A dark, vindicated thrill lances through me at the sight of the arrogant bastard being so utterly humbled and brought low. To see that supreme arrogance shatter completely is nothing short of cathartic.

Next to me on the bed, Jacob lets out a low, rumbling chuckle thick with disdain. “Look at the prick,” he muses, his arm tightening around my waist in a possessive embrace. “So good seeing him get exactly what he deserves.”

I tear my gaze from the screen to offer Jacob a grin, warmth blooming in my chest. “He’s going to hate prison.” I stamp down the flicker of contemptuous pity I feel watching him hauled away. I have no empathy to spare for a man like Daniel.

Jacob nods in agreement. “Your dad’s lawyers aren’t pulling any punches by the looks of it. Extortion, possession of exploitation materials, larceny, on top of all the counts from the university... That manipulative freak is going away for a long, long time.”

“Good,” I growl, imagining the pathetic existence that surely awaits Daniel behind bars. “Dad made sure to hire the absolute best and most ruthless legal team his fortune could buy. Daniel will be lucky if he doesn’t end up sharing a cramped cell with that worm Marcus Sotheby for a long time coming.”

My stomach flutters at Jacob’s smile. “And even if they do eventually get out, you can bet your ass your father has spent all his influence blacklisting the both of them from every half-decent university or corporation in the country. Their professional reputations are torched for good, just like they deserve.”

I nod in grim satisfaction, tension I didn’t even realize I was carrying sloughing off my shoulders in palpable waves of relief. It’s over. Really over. After endless years of living under that thick cloud of fear and dread, never knowing when Daniel’s next demands would make my life implode...the constant anxiety and spiraling doubts about my self-worth and safety are gone.

My roving eyes settle on Jacob. My anchor, my shelter from the unrelenting storm no matter how dark and ugly Daniel’s manipulation turned. Jacob is there, resolute and steadfast in his support.

And now...now he’s so much more than that.

“Thank you,” I murmur, cupping the rough stubble of his cheek in my palm. His piercing eyes ignite embers low in my belly. “For everything, Jacob. I couldn’t have done this—I couldn’t have survived this—without you right here by my side. You’re my whole world.”

The weight and truth of my words hangs between us in the charged air. Jacob holds my gaze with an intensity that makes my breath hitch in my throat and my pulse thunder in my ears.

“Then be my world forever, Steph,” he replies in a low, gravelly murmur that sends a delicious shiver racing across my skin. “Marry me.”

I stare at him, stunned into speechlessness as his words reverberate through me like a physical force.

Marry him?

The idea is profound. So utterly right.

I don’t see myself anywhere else but by his side. In his arms.

Slowly, tremulously, a dazzling smile blooms across my face as the haze of shock melts into euphoric certainty.

“Yes...” I let out on a breathy laugh, flinging myself into his arms. “God, yes, Jacob! There’s nothing I want more in this world!”

“We’ll need to set a pre-nup,” Jacob says.

I pull back to look up at him. “Don’t be silly. For the first time in my life, I trust you.”

A wry smile curves his lips. “I know, but I insist. I want you to know one hundred percent I’m in this because I love you. Not because of anything to do with money. Or your dad. Or your name. You’re my forever, Steph. Come what may, I want you at my side. I want you for being you.”

He’s so serious. So honest. And the truth is that I want him at my side too and my heart swells that little bit more that he’s willing do to this. “If this is important to you, then yes. We’ll have one drawn up.”

His lips turn up in a hundred watt smile. “Thank you.”

Then his lips claim mine in a searing kiss that sets my body on fire. I melt into his strong embrace, surrendering myself completely to the overwhelming tide of love and desire crashing over me. His tongue delves deep, tangling with mine in an erotic dance that leaves me breathless and aching for more.

When he finally breaks the kiss, we’re both panting, chests heaving. His eyes blaze with the intensity of his feelings. “I love you, Steph. God, I love you so much. You’re everything to me. I’m so damn grateful to have you in my life.”

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