Page 46 of Private Tutoring
I dragged my gaze from her joy-filled face to the papers she’d handed me. A quick scan revealed correct answers and processes to reach those answers. I tried to withhold my proud smile, but she made it impossible.
A wall full of diplomas behind my desk, and none of it made me happier than seeing Harmony light up. “You got them all right. Congratulations.” I made a notation in the grade book. “Your overall grade is improving.” My throat convulsed. “I’m proud of you.”
Her eyes widened, the glow in them brightening. “Thank you. That means a lot coming from you.”
Always so polite. Except in bed. The wildness came out in the bedroom. I loved the contradiction she created, and part of me wanted to unravel every part of her and figure out what made her different from every other woman I’d encountered.
I set the papers aside and propped my hip on the side of my desk. “We need to talk.” I made the decision on the spot. Harmony deserved to understand what she was up against, why I’d demanded no feelings as part of our arrangement.
“Uh-oh.” She leaned forward and propped her chin on her fists. “Sounds serious.”
I considered letting it go, but it was going to come out sooner or later. I took a second to settle the concern ricocheting around in my chest. My office held an array of items I held dear, but the one thing that was missing from every part of my life remained absent. I’d removed pictures of my wife soon after her death. They were too hard to look at, and I didn’t need pictures to remember her.
“I lost my wife and baby girl in childbirth five years ago.” I’d never said it out loud before. Even after all this time, the words tore my heart to shreds.
“Oh, Stephen.” She stood and took a step toward him.
He held out a hand to stop her, and she staggered to a halt. “I feel more like myself since I’ve started spending time with you. I’m still grieving.” I said it with all the warning I could muster.
“I’m sorry.” She looped her arms over her middle and rocked side to side. “I’m glad you told me, and I’m so sorry you’ve gone through such pain.”
She didn’t offer any other sympathies, and I appreciated the honesty she showed. Most people offered platitudes that only angered me. So what if they were in a better place. They were not here with me, and that was all that mattered. I’d been forced to continue on in this life without them. Nothing about that was right. It fuckinghurt.
“I like spending time with you.” The confession slipped out in the morbid silence.
This time, Harmony ignored my outstretched hand and ducked close enough to hug me. “I like being with you too.” She seemed touched by my words, and when her arms went around my waist, I let them stay.
Her breath fluttered over my neck, and the rasp of her shirt against mine sounded too loud in the deafening quiet that followed my admission. It was too much. All of this was too much for me to handle. Harmony made me feel things I’d rather never experience again. It wasn’t love, but it was damned close. I wanted to protect her, even though everything I did put her at risk.
If I truly wanted to protect her, I’d break off our tryst until she graduated. That would be the adult, responsible thing to do.
I’d never been foolish like this. Harmony scrambled my head and made me want things I had no business asking for. Things that included her staying with us…and not just after classes.
My office had never felt smaller than it did with Harmony in my arms, and there was nowhere else I’d rather be than in her embrace.
Location stopped meaning anything when she tipped her head up to look into my eyes. “You don’t have to hide from me, Stephen.”
I kissed her before she said anything else, before she made me believe there was more to this than sex. My hands locked on her hips, pulling her flush against my body and giving me a chance to deepen the kiss. She leaned into it, into me, opening her lips and exploring my mouth in a deep, passionate kiss.
In all the times we’d been together, it was never this, never just the two of us. I took advantage of the moment and splayed my hand across the back of her head, anchoring her in place. All my wants and needs surged to the surface. We might be inthe middle of my office with the door open, but all I cared about was the next touch of Harmony’s lips and the healing that she brought me with her calm acceptance.
“Harmony?” a feminine voice called out from a distance.
Harmony’s name pierced the fog, and I dragged my mouth away from hers. She blinked slowly up at me, her hands fisted in my shirt and her breathing ragged. “What?”
“Someone called for you.” I ran my thumb over her lips and stepped back. The instant her hands fell away from me, a girl I recognized from Harmony’s class appeared in my office door.
She looked from me to Harmony, her eyes moving in darting motions as they narrowed. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“Oh?” Harmony shrugged, but the move was too tight to look genuine. “I have a tutoring session tonight?”
“I know.” The girl—Delilah—crossed her arms. “I’ve been texting you. We’re supposed to have a sorority meeting tonight. Leighona changed the date to tonight instead of tomorrow. Attendance is mandatory.”
Harmony rolled her eyes. “Leighona and her meetings. Sorry I missed your texts. Professor Harding was explaining my grades.” She motioned one hand in my direction, then grabbed her bag from the desk and threw it across her shoulder.
“Keep up the hard work and you’re guaranteed to pass.” I rounded the desk and sank into the swivel chair. “I’ll be sure to update Mrs. Collins on your progress.”
“Thank you.” It was amazing how easily we slipped into this routine. Harmony had floundered the first few seconds, but looking at her now, I’d have no idea we were just locked in a kiss to end all kisses.
