Page 86 of A Whirlwind of Color (The Light to My Darkness 2)

“Okay.” I bit the inside of my lip. Was he going to see Liam or to flirt more with that nurse?

“What?” he asked.

“Nothing.”

He laughed. “I know when something is bothering you. What’s wrong?”

I hugged my manuscript to my chest, but then immediately pulled it away. That was how Scarlett had held her favorite book. I didn’t want James to think of me as a child. I lifted my chest slightly.

The amused look on his face only grew.

Damn it. “Nothing really. I just happened to notice that yo

u seemed awfully close with the nurse…”

He stepped forward. And I held my breath. He’s going to kiss me again.

But instead, he lifted my hand and placed it on the center of his chest. “Baby, my heart beats for you.” He leaned forward, sending my own heart into a fit, and kissed my temple. “And for our children. I’ve spent as many hours as I could in the NICU. Liam is the only reason I’m going.”

“Good.” The word came out squeaky and high-pitched.

“Good.” He smiled down at me. “So unless there’s something else…” His eyes dropped to my lips.

I swallowed hard. “No, that was it.”

“You sure?” He moved a fraction of an inch closer.

All I had to do was stand on my tiptoes in order for my lips to brush against his. Instead, I closed my eyes and inhaled the smell of his sweet cologne, willing him to be the one to kiss me.

But instead of his hot breath intertwining with mine, I suddenly felt cold. I opened my eyes to see him a few feet away from me with the biggest smile on his face.

“Have fun reading, Penny.” He winked at me and walked away.

I was pretty sure he left me with my mouth hanging open. God, he had me wrapped around his finger. Temptation. I looked down at the manuscript. That seemed like a perfectly fitting name. I wandered over to the couch and dove into my book.

Chapter 31

Monday

Oh my God, tell him. I read the words as fast as I could. It was a scene I could picture clearly. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was a great writer or if it was because it was helping me remember. James had said the book was super detailed. But those probably weren’t the reasons I could visualize what was happening so easily. I had walked the green hundreds of times. I knew the campus like the back of my hand. No! Tell him!

The chapter ended with the door closing with a thud. And me referring to seeing James again as a date. And leaving the lie of me being at least 21 hanging there. Why the fuck hadn’t I just told him the truth? I just wanted to scream at the character, rip her out of the pages, and shake her. So mortifying.

I blamed the booze. Vodka was a seductive mistress. I was also horrified that my shirt was see-through in the rain. And that I had just kneed Tyler in the nuts. And that I was drunk and underage in front of my dreamy professor. A girl could lose her senses when all that had just happened.

Regardless, it was pretty clear that I had been smitten with James immediately. Tyler had never stood a chance. Maybe if I had run into him first. But that’s not how the story went. I'd met James. And I had fallen head over heels for him despite knowing that it was wrong. Somehow it being wrong just made it even more appealing. To me now and to me then. Something must be wrong with me.

I put the pages of the manuscript on the coffee table and stood up to stretch. I hadn’t read very much, but my mind was racing. I could feel the chemistry through the pages. It was undeniable. But it was still hard to believe I’d sleep with my professor. That I’d fall in love with someone so utterly unattainable.

And what did James mean by details? I leaned over and flipped the manuscript to a random page and scanned. Nothing unusual. I flipped to another page and my eyes bulged.

He pushed my back against the tile. "Is there something that you wanted?" His voice was so seductive.

I gulped. "Yes." His torso glistened from the water flowing down it. And the steam from the shower surrounded him. God he was sexy. He looked almost ethereal.

He leaned over and took one of my nipples in his mouth and bit it lightly. He pinched my other nipple between two of his fingers. I writhed under his touch.

"And what is it that you want?" He left a trail of kisses down my stomach and stopped right where I wanted it the most. I could feel his warm breath.

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