Page 15 of Classroom Confessions

“Thanks for leaving this out.” Robert grabbed the whipped cream can and shook it. Before I could shout a warning, he pressed the nozzle. Maybe it was the extra shaking, maybe bad luck. Either way, the canister gave way with a pop and whipped cream shot toward the ceiling. Robert dropped the canister. It hit the floor, bounced, then careened toward the business group, still spraying whipped cream at a frantic pace.

“How much is there?” David watched the whole thing while sitting at the counter, his coffee in one hand and the other braced on his thigh.

“What the hell?” The businessman jumped up and covered his laptop with both arms, using his jacket to shield it as best he could.

White plops of foam dropped all over the team.

Lily raced out from the back room, her eyes wide and mouth hanging open when she spotted the disaster. “What happened?”

“Robert.” I couldn’t get past that before laughter overrode the horror. I burst out in great, heaving guffaws. Covering my mouth with both hands, I ran for the back, bursting into the quiet and trying to snuff out my chuckles.

Lily’s, Robert’s, and David’s voices collided with the group’s, and a flurry of annoyed shouts rang out. I should get myself together and help, but the laughter felt too good. After the shitshow I’d been through the last few days, I needed the laugh. I stopped long enough to wipe tears from my eyes, but the sight of whipped cream on the back of my hand started me all over again.

“Okay. How about this?” I emerged from the back in the middle of David raising his hands. “Free coffee for all of you. I’ll pay.”

“If your computer was damaged, I’ll cover a replacement.” Robert shot a look at Lily to check her reaction, and when she gave him a grateful smile, he puffed out his chest.

David sat back while Lily and I refreshed all the coffee orders and handed them out, including his and Robert’s. I carried his over last, pausing close enough that his elbow touched mine. “You never said what you were doing here.”

“Enjoying a cup of coffee.” He said it with ease, but the look in his eyes said so much more. It said things I could hinge my hopes and dreams on but dared not trust. This whole thing was ridiculous.

Wait. That was it. Ridiculousness. Romantic comedy. I should write a romantic comedy. What happened in the coffee shop would make an excellent meet cute, that perfect moment when the hero and heroine met for the first time and sparks flew between them. I itched to run home and start writing but tamped down the urge.

Lily and I had a serious study session planned. I’d write once we finished. On the computer this time. I might love old-fashioned typewriters and the melancholy of putting pen to paper, but my career depended on my getting this right.

David finished his coffee, paid the bill for him and the group, and added a tip to the jar. “See you tomorrow.” The words were a promise that weakened my knees.

Lily and I finished our shift, and I rode with her to my apartment. She managed to wait until we were inside with our laptops open and notes on the table before she burst out, “Okay, so what the hell was all that with David?”

“Nothing.”

She held up a finger while making a buzzer sound in the back of her throat. “Wrong answer. Try again. The truth this time.”

“Truth.” I mulled it over, considering how much I could say. “I don’t know. I like him, a lot.” I chewed on my lower lip before giving in and confessing everything. “I have a crush on all three of them.”

Lily was in the process of reaching for her drink. Her curls were piled high on top of her head in a messy bun, and she’d washed off her makeup, revealing her freckles and peachy complexion. Her eyes grew comically wide, and she picked up her drink, turning it around in her hands while tucking her feet under her and leaning into the corner of the couch. “All of them? Like, to what extent?”

“I don’t know.” I stopped her with a look when she opened her mouth to protest. “That’s the honest truth. I slept with David, but yesterday, in Cole’s office, I would have kissed him.”

“And Ethan?” Her expression tightened, closing off her thoughts and making it hard to read. “Would you sleep with all of them?”

“Maybe.”

One eyebrow went up. “What about all three of them at the same time?”

“I thought we were being serious.” I kicked her knee. I’d never even thought about sleeping with more than one guy in the same week, much less at the same time.

She shrugged and kicked me back. “It could be interesting. But who would put what where? Or would you line them all up like pogo sticks and just bounce your way down the line?”

I snorted out a laugh. “You’re horrible.”

“Think about it.” Excitement bloomed, brightening her cheeks. “What would that feel like? You know David’s dick already. What if you had one of them in your pussy and another in your ass? I bet it would feel amazing.”

That. That right there was one of the many things I loved about Lily. She always found a way to look at the bright side of things. Got a crush on three men? No problem, fuck them all. At the same time.

“What if one of them got stuck? Like how dogs do? Ooh. Or!” She clapped her hands over her mouth. “Is that what they mean in werewolf books when they talk about getting knotted?”

I had no idea, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to find out. But her constant chatter and questions had ideas pouring into me. The meet cute I’d thought of earlier turned dark and twisty. Instead of one man in the coffee shop, suddenly, there were three. And they didn’t just meet over spilled coffee, but they took the woman into the back room to help her get cleaned up. I could imagine it, meeting three hot men like Ethan, Cole, and David and feeling overwhelmed with sexual desire. It almost overtook me every time I walked into their lecture halls.

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