Page 49 of Tempting Teacher

There are over a dozen pictures of us from the weekend, all of them of us having sex. My stomach rolls with nausea, my body flushing red hot as wheezing breaths puff out of me, tears begin to fall in a steady stream down my face. Who would do this to us? Before I can form another thought, my phone rings.

I gasp in relief when it’s Alexander’s name. I swipe to answer, stuttering a hello between gulps. “Summer?” Concern evident in his voice. “What’s wrong?”

I shake my head, attempting to form words an impossible task. “I--, pictures--, text?—”

“Where are you, baby?” His voice soothing. “Tell me where you are so I can come to you.”

“My room.” I manage between sobs.

“I’m coming.” He barks into the phone. “Ten minutes. Hold on for ten minutes.”

I can’t stop scrolling through the photos. There are over a dozen. Someone was watching us? All weekend? Panic seizes me as I wonder if these were sent to anyone else. I can’t seem to catch my breath between my heart racing and my crying.

I jump as a fist pounds against my door. “Summer, it’s me!” Alex shouts from the other side. I run to the door, yanking it open after I unlock it.

I’m in his arms a second later, cocooned in his warmth, in the stead-fast safety of him. He holds me, easing us into my room, shutting the door with a kick of his foot, calming me with kind words until my sobbing subsides.

“Look.” I shove my phone at him, my body still trembling.

“I’ve seen them, baby.” He takes my phone and sets it on the table.

“What?” I exclaim, a new wave of anxiety striking. “Did you get the text as well?”

“No.” He guides me to the bed, wrapping an arm around me as we sit. “Someone sent them to the head of my department.” He gives a slight shake of his head. “Anonymously of course.”

I twist to face him, a hiccup escaping through my nerves. “I heard you got fired.”

“Actually, I resigned.” He clarifies. “But news sure travels fast.”

“Wait, you resigned?” My hands reach for his. “Alex…”

“It’s fine.” He assures me. “I’ll fill you in more on that later.” He brushes a kiss to my forehead. “Let’s just worry about you right now.”

“What are we going to do?” I inhale a deep breath trying to steady my voice.

“I’ve already got a team on it.” His fingers brush the loose tears still falling over my cheeks. “What I’m trying to figure out is how anyone could have even known we were in Block Island. Did you tell anyone?”

I sniffle, dragging my knuckles across the bottom of my nose. “I mean, I sent a text to Serena Saturday morning. I told her about the mugging and that you were going to take me to Block Island for the weekend.” I swing my gaze up to his. “But Alex, she wouldn’t do this!”

“But could she have told anyone else?” He wonders out loud.

The thought hits me like a lightning bolt. The one person who seemed entirely too smug and not surprised at all over Alex’s firing. “Lily.” I hiss out.

“Who?” Alex’s brow furrows.

“Lily. She’s in your physic’s class. And she’s friends with Serena.” I purse my lips, my mind racing as I recall each conversation we’ve had. Her obsession with Alex and his job at Temptations.

“Call Serena.” He grabs my phone and hands it to me. “Ask her if she told anyone.”

I do as he requests, my stomach plummeting when she admits she had drinks with Lily on Friday night. When I tell her what’s happening, more than a few expletives spew from her. “She kept bragging about how she was sleeping with Tim, and how the professor was next on her hit list.” She lets out a gasp. “This is all my fault, Summer. I got so angry when she claimed she was going to add him to her body count, I blurted out that she had no chance because he was seeing you.” She lets out a huff of distress. “I am so sorry! I had no idea she would ever do anything like this.”

“I know, Serena.” My lips turn down as I stare across at Alex who’s listening to our conversation silently. “You couldn’t have known.”

“What can I do to fix this? I need to do something. Besides kick her ass of course.” She declares angrily.

“Nothing right now.” I sigh, my mind reeling with all the information it’s trying to process. “I need to talk to Alex and figure things out. I’ll call you later?”

“Please. Let me know if you need anything.” She pleads, offering another apology as we hang up.

---