Page 15 of Perfect Professor

“I can’t,” she said, tears stinging her eyes. “I’m in love with him.” It was the first time she had admitted it aloud, and the words rang with a note of finality.

Tiffany’s eyes widened. “Adrianna, no. This is so dangerous. He could lose his job and you could get expelled from school.”

Adrianna shook her head. “I don’t care about any of that. I just want to be with him.”

“Listen to yourself!” Tiffany said. “This man has clouded your judgment. Can’t you see that?”

Her words struck a chord of doubt in Adrianna’s mind. She knew Tiffany only wanted to protect her, but she couldn’t believe Mickey would do anything to intentionally hurt her. He cared for her too, she was sure of it. The tenderness in his touch, the longing in his gaze—they spoke of a deep affection that transcended the bounds of propriety.

Still, Tiffany’s warning echoed in her thoughts as she bid her friend goodnight. While her heart remained devoted to Mickey, her mind couldn’t stop questioning whether she was making a terrible mistake. Loving him felt so right, yet never had a choice seemed so wrong. She was caught in a web of desire with no way out, drifting further into the abyss with each passing day. All she could do was close her eyes and surrender to the bittersweet pleasure that might just consume her whole.

10

The heavy stack of term papers in his arms did little to distract Professor Hanks from the turmoil in his mind. As he walked down the hallway of the English department, his thoughts drifted to Adrianna like wisps of smoke, clouding his better judgment.

Their forbidden romance had begun so innocently, a shared passion for Keats and Byron blossoming into stolen kisses in his office. But it had spiraled out of control, consuming them in a blaze of desire that left no room for reason. He knew it was wrong. He knew he could lose his job, his career, everything he had worked for. Yet when she looked at him with those emerald eyes, he was powerless to resist.

Hanks was jolted from his reverie by the hushed voices of two students up ahead. He paid them little mind until he overheard Adrianna’s name on the girl’s lips, spat out like a curse. His heart pounding, he leaned closer to listen.

“Can you believe Professor Hanks is sleeping with Adrianna Rose?” The girl’s eyes glinted with malicious glee. “I heard they were making out in his office the other day. Rachel saw them.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “No way. He could get fired for that.”

Hanks’ face burned with anger and shame as he strode past the gossiping students. So their secret was out, spreading through the university like wildfire. He knew this was a disaster in the making, but he hadn’t expected the fallout to come so soon. There would be questions to answer, consequences to face. But all he could think about was Adrianna. He had to warn her before she became engulfed in the flames of their forbidden love, burned beyond all recognition. The path before them was shrouded in smoke and shadows, but he would guide her through to the other side.

The boy’s eyes darted up, catching sight of Professor Hanks approaching. “So, uh, did you finish the reading for English Lit?” he asked, nudging the girl.

She blinked, confused for a moment, before following his gaze. Her face paled as she realized they had been overheard. “Oh, um, not yet. I was planning to get to it this weekend.”

Hanks towered over them, his usual charm replaced by a stony expression. The hushed whispers and sly glances of the other students in the hallway grated on his frayed nerves. His relationship with Adrianna was nobody’s business but their own. “Is there something you’d like to share?” he asked.

The students shook their heads, refusing to meet his piercing gaze.Satisfied, Hanks swept past them and rounded the corner, yearning for the solace of his office. But there he would be confronted with memories of Adrianna, her laughter echoing off the walls, her scent lingering on his jacket draped over the back of his chair. There was no escape, it seemed. Not from his feelings for her, and not from the prying eyes of the world.

Hanks frowned at the cowering students. “Where did you hear such nonsense?”

The girl worried her bottom lip, torn between the urge to tell the truth and the desire to avoid further angering him. “We didn’t mean anything by it,” she said. “It was just a rumor we heard, that’s all.”

“And where did you hear this rumor?” Hanks pressed.

“From Rachel,” the boy blurted out. “She said she saw you and Adrianna in your office the other day.”

“I see.” Hanks pinched the bridge of his nose, irritation simmering in his veins. Of course, it had been Rachel. That girl delighted in creating drama where there was none. She would soon find that her games came with consequences.

With a curt nod, Hanks dismissed the students. But their uneasy expressions and hastily whispered apologies followed him down the hall, a discordant symphony echoing in his mind. His relationship with Adrianna was spiraling out of control, the currents pulling them under in a swell of passion and poor judgment. If they weren’t careful, the rapids would dash them against the rocks, shattering the fragile bond between them into a thousand pieces. A tragic ending to their story before it had even begun.

Hanks shook off the gloomy thoughts and straightened his shoulders. There was still time to right the ship, to steer them into calmer waters before they reached the point of no return. He would sit Adrianna down and explain that they had to end this, for both their sakes. No more secret rendezvous in his office, no more longing looks across the lecture hall. They would go back to being student and teacher, and nothing more.

It was the responsible, ethical thing to do. The only thing to do.

And yet, the prospect of pushing Adrianna away filled him with an ache more painful than any he had known. How had she slipped past his defenses so easily, capturing his heart before he even realized it was missing? Against all odds, against all reason, he had fallen deeply for this girl. His student.

With a bitter laugh, Hanks ran a hand through his hair. Fate had a cruel sense of humor. After years of holding himself aloof, guarding his independence, he had finally opened himself to love. Only to find it where he least expected it, and in the one place he could never have it. The gods were laughing at him now, he was sure of it.

By the time he reached his office, resignation and heartbreak warred within him. He knew what he had to do. But oh, how he dreaded it. How he wished for once in his life he could be selfish, throw caution to the wind and take what his heart desired.

If only it were that simple. If only he were free to love Adrianna as he longed to. But he had a duty to uphold, and a hard path to walk. No matter the cost to his own happiness.

With a heavy sigh, Hanks steeled himself for the conversation ahead. It was time to be the professor once more, and hide the man beneath.

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