Page 34 of Where We Met

We walk through the clear plastic walls of the tent, working to keep the heat in. I do my best to not even glance in the direction of Luke.

After our trays are safely placed on the stands, Declan and I begin putting the options down in the center of the table. With every move I make, Declan whispers something in my ear to make me laugh.

It's all gibberish, he's just trying to get me to react.

When we’re in front of Luke, I lean down and put a piece of tiramisu in front of him. Declan leans over me to do the same as his hand lands on my lower back then slides to my ass as we stand up straight.

Luke grumbles and says something under his breath, and his brother witnesses the entire thing with a huge smile on his face.

"Did you guys know this beautiful young lady here is a student of Luke's?" his brother announces to the rest of the table.

Their father chokes on his drink as a chuckle escapes him. Declan looks over at me with wide eyes, not realizing the man we're making jealous is my professor. He recovers quickly, winks at me, and gets right back to work.

Great, now he thinks I'm a whore. I'm so happy my life can be the source of entertainment for so many people tonight.

The lady sitting next to Luke's father, presumably his mother, speaks. "Oh, how lovely. We're so proud of Lukie for taking that on with everything else he has going on."

Lukie?

I think it’s sweet that his mother calls him that, but when I look down at him, his hand is on his forehead as he shakes his head.

"We are so proud of you,Lukie." His brother pats his back.

"He's a great professor," I say with affection.

I'm still furious with him, but that doesn’t mean I like seeing him embarrassed or being picked on by his family, even if I know it's all in good fun.

Instead of standing around to hear the rest of the conversation play out, I follow Declan away with our empty trays. When we get to the back of the space, he puts his arm around me and squeezes my side, then leans in to whisper in my ear. "You didn't tell me he was your professor."

When we pull away, he's looking back toward Luke's table, but he somehow manages to wink at me.

Once we're out of the tent, I break free from his hold. "Shit, you really know how to play this game."

"It comes naturally," he says with a shrug. "Now let's get back to the fact that you're not the innocent girl I thought." He throws his arm around my neck jokingly. "Are yousleepingwith your professor?"

"What? No! I'm not, I swear."

He laughs loudly. I know it doesn't seem like I'm telling the truth given the circumstances, and I can tell he doesn’t believe me. Before we can enter the tent, a strong hand wraps around my wrist, gently yanking me back.

"Not so fast, princess," the familiar voice snaps.

"What do you want, Professor?"

Instead of answering, he pulls me away and starts to lead me to the opposite side of the house. It's vacant and dark on this side, leaving us alone.

"What are you doing?" I snap. "I'm gonna get fired if I go missing."

He flips me around and invades my space until I'm pushed up against the house. The cold stone makes me shiver—or maybe it's the handsome man standing in front of me whose radiating anger is seriously affecting my body.

"No, you're not. I'm sure we're paying this catering company enough money to tell them we can steal their staff away if we choose to." He moves closer to me. "Now, tell me. Are you trying to drive me crazy with your littlefriend,or is there really something going on between you two?"

Ugh, he seriously has some nerve playing me like a pinball. I push his chest in an effort to give myself some much-needed space, but he doesn’t budge.

"I don't need to answer you. You were the one who said it not even an hour ago: I'm free to do what I want."

I barely get the words out before his lips come crashing down on mine. They're aggressive and demanding. His hands are on my face, fingers reaching behind my neck while his thumbs caress my cheeks.

"Fuck, princess. I'm so crazy over you," he whispers into my mouth.

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