Page 38 of The Naughty Virgin

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Stone

Evie had been wandering like a lost little lamb, her eyes big, dazed, ever since she exited the Financial Aid Office. And I knew why. I’d gone in there and paid her tuition bill, making sure to bring the balance down to zero.

The woman at the counter had resisted that morning.

“And who are you?” she asked suspiciously, eyeing me up and down.

Now I admit, it’s not every day you get an alpha male in the dinky offices of Financial Aid, a dude who literally took up all the space in those tiny confines.

“Stone Phillips,” I said peremptorily. “Here to pay the bill of Evie Jones.”

The woman wasn’t persuaded.

“I can’t just hand out personal financial information,” she said tightly. “It’s confidential.”

And I leaned forward, my manner slightly threatening.

“Let me clarify,” I said, my voice low, rasping. “My name’s Hanson Stone Phillips, and I believe you’re sitting in a building my grandfather built.”

Because I’m a scion of the moneyed Phillips family who made their fortune in packaging. We started off making paper boxes and wrapping paper but soon branched into industrial packaging solutions, doing everything from the crates for Dole Pineapples in Hawaii to the shit that your laptop comes boxed in. So yeah, my family’s at the head of a massive empire, the money rolling in waves, and at this very moment we were sitting in a building which my grandfather had endowed way back in the day.

The woman immediately perked up, sitting up straight.

“Oh yes, of course Mr. Phillips,” she chattered nervously. “I’m sorry, Phillips is such a common name, I didn’t realize a member of the family was here.”

And I sighed, leaning back. Her behavior was exactly why I didn’t use my first name. First, because Hanson is a lame name. Well, not lame but I just don’t want to be called “Han,” “Han Solo,” Hannie” or any number of juvenile nicknames. So I go by my middle name instead, Stone. It works and everyone’s called me Stone since I was a kid.

Second, Hanson Phillips is way too recognizable. It’s the name of my father, my grandfather and countless male relatives. As soon as people hear the name “Hanson Phillips,” they bow and cower, making way for the alpha dogs. And I didn’t want that. Sure, I came from power and money but that didn’t mean that I wanted to lord it over people, make them feel like vassals in my kingdom.

So I took a job as a high school Biology teacher and it suited me well. Of course, my family was devastated. They wanted me to join the Phillips packaging business but I was reluctant, I wanted to explore my own interests and make my own way in life without becoming a part of the hive collective immediately. So I got a teaching degree and started at Spencer Prep as a biology instructor.

But my family never gave up, giving me time to grow and develop professionally on my own, before pressing their case.

“It’s been five years,” my dad rumbled, his brows drawn. “Don’t you think that’s enough teaching? You’ve done a lot for the kids.”

And my grandfather was even more direct.

“I’m getting old,” he croaked. “I’m going to kick the bucket any day now and we need fresh leadership at the company. You and your dad are the only ones, I can’t hand over the reins to Hanford or Hansel,” he said with disgust. I agreed with him there. My cousin Hanford was an addict, in and out of rehab a couple times in the last few years, and my other cousin Hansel was just lazy. I don’t think he’d even graduated junior high, it was that bad.

So I’d left Spencer after that magnificent date with Evie and gone to work for my family. It was abrupt, I admit. The administration wasn’t too happy with the zero notice I gave them, leaving them scrambling to find a sub, and threatened me with bad references, cutting off my paycheck immediately. But it didn’t matter, I didn’t need references and my paycheck? It was a pittance, just a tiny amount of money each month that barely paid the bills.

Besides, I had to do what was right for me and Evie. We’d finally gone on a date, a real date between a man and a woman and I realized how dangerous that was. Not for me, I didn’t give fuckall for what people thought of me. It was for my best girl. If people found out that she was dating her Biology teacher not only would there be scandal but people would question her integrity, and she’d potentially be cited by the Academic Integrity Committee. And then what? There’d be a permanent mark on her transcript and her dreams of going to college would be ruined, blackballed by all the good schools.

So I had to leave. I cut off all contact with the curvy girl, telling my doorman to screen her if she came by, act vague and say that I was out. And I was careful to avoid being seen for a while. I left for work early in the mornings and stayed at my other apartment most nights, so that no one caught me unawares.

And it worked. I’ve spent a year without Evie now, without her hungry pussy wrapped around my cock, without feeling those heavy breasts in my palms, the nipples hard, the flesh soft and creamy. And even more, I haven’t heard her laugh, seen those pink pouty lips stretch in a smile, those brown eyes gaze into mine with love and lust.

And fuck, but I hoped it wasn’t too late. A woman’s love is nothing to sneeze at and I’d been a fucker, leaving her with no warning, dropping off the edge of the Earth. So I had to take this opportunity to explain myself, confront her and make her see that what I’d done was actually best for her, for us as a couple.

“Evie,” I ground out harshly, my mouth watering at the sight of the beautiful female. What the fuck was she wearing? It was some kind of blue thing, totally transparent, sleeveless, stopping just above her puss, showing her swimsuit underneath. How could she walk around campus half-naked like this? My hackles raised and my cock punched out. God, it was an automatic reaction for me around her, I was immediately aroused, turned on to the fucking max whenever in her vicinity.

And the brunette spun slowly, her eyes widening, taking me in.

“Mr. Phillips?” she breathed. Then a little louder, “Stone?”

I growled, drawing her into my arms. We were just outside the pool complex with students streaming by, but I didn’t care.

---