Page 33 of Bleeding Hearts

“When I walked in on them?” She covers her eyes. “I saw hims butt.”

I chuckle and kiss her nose. “Yep. That. But it’s better, and that’s all you need to know. Be good.”

“Always am.” She kisses me back. “And you fornicate with Miss Bethany if that will help. I think you should. It made Cora feel better, so I’m sure it will help her too. Love you.”

Kellie can only laugh as she kisses my cheek and then she takes her sister into the living room, where her grandmother is standing with a look of shock and disgust pasted on her face. I should feel bad, but I don’t because she brought this all on herself.

“Have fun. I know I will.” I yell over my shoulder as I open the door and leave.

Chapter 16

Bethany

The doorbell rang just as I hang up the phone. My meeting with Dean Bellows didn’t go as planned. Apparently, the Stewarts are making a huge donation to the university—or a bribe, in my mind. To avoid upsetting them, she wants me to be the bigger person and allow Theo to finish the class.

Is she fucking kidding me?

Now that I’m department head, she patronized me with that tired line about the importance of happy supporters. The family, she continued, wasn’t just offering a significant donation—exclusively for the psychology department—but also a scholarship for students interested in the field. Which tells me they knew I was a professor at this university and didn’t think twice about sending their spoiled little boy here to harass me.

I hate people who have more money than sense. They think money solves all problems when it typically causes bigger ones. Although the urge to tell her to shove her blood money where the sun doesn’t shine is strong, the words catch in my throat. Many of my students would find a scholarship like that valuable, allowing them to further their studies with less financial strain.

I’m dying to know how much they donated. A sick suspicion warns me it’s the exact amount I turned down. I wouldn’t besurprised if they gifted the SUV I refused to the university as well, and concocted some outlandish excuse about why I should get it. I won’t drive it, even if it came down to something like that. I’d park it at the school and let it sit unused just to spite them.

The thought makes me grin, knowing how irritated that would make Teddy, Theo’s father. He’s already going to hate the fact I’m rearranging my staff and switching classes with another professor. I don’t want to do it, but I cannot in good conscience continue to teach that class. It wouldn’t be fair to the other fifty-three students enrolled. Tomorrow, at our eight a.m. department meeting, we will thoroughly discuss it.

My doorbell rings again as I shuffle my way through the house. I’m not sure I’ll be great company tonight. I should’ve called and canceled, maybe I’ll do that now.

Nolan jumps on me as soon as I open the door, not giving me a chance to speak. The walker slips from my grasp as his arms encircle me, a comforting weight; his lips press against mine, silencing all other thoughts. It’s not gentle like it has been in the past when he’s saying hello. The carnal need has me moaning, stirring up a desire inside me that’s been dormant for longer than I want to admit.

After a few amazing minutes, he pulls back. “Hey.”

“That was unexpected. Not that I’m complaining.” With my hands on his shoulders, I lean back so I can look at him closer. “You okay?”

“Better now.” He sighs and then slowly plants my feet on the ground. “Susanne just knows how to get under my skin. Always has. She’s probably watching us now.”

“Is that why you kissed me like a man dying?” I peek around his broad shoulders and sure enough, a woman who looks slightly older than me is standing behind his glass screen door, glowering our way.

“What? No.” Nolan takes my chin in his hand, compelling me to meet his gaze. “No. I did that because I wanted to. Are you ready? I have a plan, but we’re on a tight three-hour deadline. How hungry are you?”

“I’m a little stressed, so I’m not sure I can eat much.”

His grin is followed by a heart-skipping action that sets the butterflies in my stomach in flight. I’m no longer standing but in his arms as he carries me to his truck.

“I need my walker.”

“I’ll go back and get it. But this is faster.” The sparkle in his eyes, a bright, fleeting gleam, is something I’ve only seen on a few precious occasions. “You know I could just carry you. Fulfill that fireman fantasy of yours.”

“Don’t tempt me.” A warm sensation spreads across my cheeks, making them feel flush. “But no, I need my walker. If I want to get rid of that stupid contraption, then the more I use it, the faster I can toss it aside and graduate to a cane. Which I know will be super attractive and make me irresistible. I might just keep it so I can whack people when they irritate me like my grandfather used to do.”

Somehow, he opens the passenger door and deposits me inside with very little effort. He hasn’t even broken a damn sweat.

“You can’t possibly be more irresistible than you are now.”

Before I can tell him how ridiculous that sounds, he closes my door, and walks back to my house. I watch him fold the walker with ease, close my front door and then lock it with the key I gave him when I was in the hospital and my dishwasher broke. It was the same weekend Alicia left to grab her vehicle back in DC and he was the only one around I trusted enough to help. I never asked for it back. At first, I told him to keep it while I was gone just in case. Then I told him to keep it in case the boys got locked out. Even though we have a keyless garageentry. Knowing he possessed a key eased my mind. It meant I didn’t have to go through the trouble of giving him one later, when I wanted him to come over for some late-night fun.

Shifting my gaze, I turn to look back at his house, where his mother-in-law still stands, watching us with disgust.

How dare she?

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