Page 7 of Cocky Professor

Neat bookshelves along one wall, a desk near the back, a tiny window that overlooked the rugby ground, and barely enough room to turn around.

Brutham spared no expense in other areas, but the professor's offices were all small.

Apparently the Chancellor's office was the only one which was a decent size, but I'd never had reason to go there.

Mr D sat on the top of his desk, watching me glance around.

He was nothing short of sex on legs. If he was any hotter, I'd melt into a puddle on the floor. There should be laws against being that hot.

"You're on time." His blue eyes seemed to appraise every centimetre of me, and liked what they saw.

"You sound disappointed, sir," I replied.

His tongue swept over his lips.

I'd suspected he'd have had a thing for being called 'sir.' It seemed I was right.

"Not at all," he said. "I like a woman who can come when she's told."

And there went my fresh panties. If all it took from him was one innuendo, I was in trouble.

I lifted my chin. "What a coincidence, I like my men that way too." If I let him have the upper hand from the start, I'd never get it back. I needed him to know I wasn't going to be walked all over by him. I had enough of that from everyone else. Enough was fucking enough.

He laced his fingers together and placed his two pointers against his lower lip. "Do you now? That's very interesting. As much as I'd love to get into that…deeper, we have a lot to discuss. Close the door." He nodded towards it.

I hesitated for a moment before I moved over to do as he asked. I leaned my back against it and crossed my arms.

"What did you want to discuss?" As if I didn't know.

"I've seen your sister with the Brantley brothers," Dane started. "Consorting with the enemy is an interesting choice."

I shrugged. "I'm sure there's something in it for all of them."

My family and the Brantleys had been at each other's throats for fuck knows how long. Lila was basically sleeping with the enemy. Something she wouldn't do if it didn't factor into her bid to take over the family business. Somehow, she thought she could use Hunter and Parker to her benefit. And, no doubt, vice versa.

Whatever, that was their problem, not mine. Considering how much our father hated the Brantley family, it might put her out of the running without me lifting a finger.

That would make my life a lot easier.

"Which is why we're both here," Dane said. "Traditionally, my family has sided with the Brantleys against your family."

"That's true," I said slowly. "Have you brought me here to execute me? That would give you plenty of brownie points with the Brantleys. Although, you'd make an enemy of my father. Something I wouldn't recommend you do." I didn't want to die, but I was stating a fact. Getting on my father's bad side was a dangerous thing to do, no matter who you were.

"The Brantleys have been treating my family like shit for a long time," Dane said. "I see no reason to be loyal to them anymore."

"You can be bought?" I asked.

Silly question, of course he could; most people could. As long as the price was right. It was no secret he was ambitious. It shouldn't surprise me he was ready to turn on his family's traditional allies, to further himself. Otherwise, he was looking at teaching history until the end of forever. I suspected that was the last thing he intended to do.

"Don't make it sound so crass," he said. "I'm willing to support you, to take over from your father. As the older twin, it's your birthright anyway. Something everyone else seems to have conveniently forgotten. Except you, I'm guessing."

"I haven't forgotten," I said carefully. "What makes you think I'm a better fit for the job?"

"I could say it's as simple as two oldest siblings sticking together," he said. "But it's more than that. Lila is very forward in what she wants. People notice her. But you, you're the one to watch. I see you taking in everything, noticing the way everyone responds to her and… Everything else around here. She's too busy trying to get noticed, trying to get popular, to pay attention to important details."

"You and I." He waved a finger between us. "We're alike. We bide our time and wait for the right moment to strike. When we do, everyone will notice. No one will be able to ignore us then. I think we can do this together. I have contacts you can use. And you have the position of oldest Bell sister. Why wouldn't we work together?"

I nodded slowly. "You make a lot of sense. What else are you proposing?"

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