Page 27 of Wicked Scandal

“Umm…” His fingers draw around his mouth. “Yeah. Everything’s fine.” His smile returns, even bigger than it was seconds ago. “Actually, everything is perfect.”

“Good.” I run my hand down his arm because I can’t help but touch him. “I’m really happy for you. You deserve all the praise you’re getting from your father.”

His honey brown eyes pierce mine. The tension between us growing heavy. And when I watch his gaze dip to my mouth, I gulp.

Everything I’m feeling inside is wrong on so many levels. My heart shouldn’t be pounding like this for him. My hands shouldn’t sweat. I shouldn’t want to cry and let go of all of the pain inside me. He’s my student, and that has to be all he is.

“Mrs. J?” Wilder says softly and I can’t tell if it’s a question, or if he has something more to say. His eyes meet mine and I try like hell to show him I can’t do this. No matter how much I want to, I can’t.

When his hand reaches out and his fingers wrap gently around my wrist, I’m certain I’m going to break. But not in the way that will cause me physical pain like Troy brings, I am going to be torn in half by the two sides of my heart that are warring over this being right and wrong.

As his fingers graze my skin, causing a rush of electricity to shoot through me, every nerve ending feels like it’s been lit on fire. I gasp, my lips falling open while Wilder pins me with his gaze, intention and determination swirling in the depths.

My chest rises and falls rapidly as we stare longingly at each other. I watch him carefully, the way he’s reacting proof that he feels the exact same way I do.

“Wilder,” I whisper, knowing I should follow it up with “I should go,” but I don’t. Instead I stay rooted in place, letting the weight of his name hang between us like a heavy rain cloud ready to burst.

He steps closer, his eyes darting from my mouth to my eyes, and back again.

Moving his hand to my cheek, he strokes his thumb in gentle circles. “What are you doing to me, Mrs. J?”

His question brings me back to reality.

What the hell am I doing?

Wilder is my student.

I’m in a position of authority here. He’s eleven years younger than me and hasn’t even graduated high school yet.

I jump back, so quickly that I know he senses my anguish. I can feel my heart splitting as I put distance between us. It is so painful that tears fill my eyes.

“Go home, Wilder.” My voice trembles as I shake my head. “This moment never happened. It never happened. Do you understand?”

His brows pinch and that smile from earlier fades as he comes to terms with what I’m saying. “I understand,” he says quietly, but I feel a “but” hanging in the air.

I turn around quickly, my heart in my throat as I fight the urge to look back at him. I can’t. I won’t.

“Mr. J,” he calls out as I open my door. I glance back at him, keeping the door between us.

“Yes, Wilder?”

“Pretending it never happened doesn’t change that it did.” His voice hits me like a tidal wave and I find myself practically running from it before I allow temptation to draw me back to him.

I get in my car and toss the folders in the passenger seat as my heart threatens to pound out of my chest. They go flying, sending papers all over.

Cursing under my breath, I lift my eyes to the windshield, only to find Wilder still standing where I left him. His shoulders are slumped in defeat and the scorned look on his face sends an ache to my chest.

If only we’d met at another time, in another place—then maybe. But reality grips us too tightly and the here and now is not meant for us.

CHAPTER 8

WILDER

The day my mom passed away, she requested time alone with each of us boys. I laid beside her on the bed, holding her hand while we laughed and shared memories together. Then when it was time for me to go, she said something I’ll never forget. She told me, “Take chances, Wilder, because the one that could change your life might only happen once.”

It’s her. She’s CatEyes. At least, I think she is. After I told her the good news, I looked down momentarily. Her pants were raised up just slightly, but enough for me to see the tattoo on her ankle. A beautiful black dragonfly with the words “still I rise.”

I’m not sure how I didn’t realize it sooner. Granted, it was only recently that I began talking to CatEyes almost every day.

---