Page 4 of Degraded Terms

His blue eyes darken with a wicked promise. “Crawl to me.”

My mouth drops open. “W-what?”

“Crawl.”

I stand there, shocked at his demand. Professor Rockford waits, his stoic stare unwavering on my face.

My stomach turns in circles as I slowly lower to my knees and then onto my palms. I feel exposed, even with the skirt being long enough to cover everything from behind.

With each shuffle of my knees and a slight sway of my hips, my cheeks burn with mortification.

“Eyes on me.” His curt voice startles me and I raise my head, our gazes locking.

I continue forward, a charge in the air that claws up my throat the closer I get to him. When my fingertips graze the edges of his shoes, a slight flare of his nostrils as he stares at me is his only reaction.

“Kneel.”

I straighten back so my ass perches on the heels of my feet. After a second of wondering where to place my hands, I rest them on my thighs.

He stands suddenly, and I try not to flinch as he steps closer to me. My heart thunders in my ears as his fingers grab my chin, and I fight not to look away from his intense leer. A gasp fans over his thumb when he rubs it against my bottom lip.

“Are you a virgin?”

My breath rushes out of me, and I jerk away from his hold.

He tuts, shaking his head. I drop my chin, staring down at the floor while his question rattles around inside me.

“I asked a question, Miss Williams.” His shoe scuffs at the floor, the tough material of his slacks brushing against my knees.

His smoky, allspice scent clouds around me, making me dizzy as my mouth waters.

“N-no.”

I don’t dare look up after I answer him. I’m not sure if that’s the answer he’s looking for, but it’s not like I can hide it if I lied.

His hand appears in front of my face. “Stand.”

He helps pull me to my feet, and I finally lift my eyes to his.

“This is your last chance to back out.”

I shake my head once. “I can’t fail this class.”

Professor Rockford’s mouth twitches in one corner. “Then let’s go over the rules.”

He drops my hand and moves to sit behind his desk. In the corner of my eyes I swear I see him adjusting himself, but I’m not delusional enough to think he’s attracted to me like that.

This is all a game to humiliate me and to have the control he loves to lord over others. Leaning back in his chair, hands clasped together to rest on his stomach, the smile that stretches across his face is chilling.

“Come closer, Ava. Stand at the corner of my desk.”

I shuffle closer, my knees brushing against the dark wood.

“We’ll do a little test, okay? Given your past performance on those, my expectations are low.”

Tucking my chin into my chest, I don’t answer him and bite down on the inside of my lip.

“You have underwear on?”

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