Page 30 of Holiday Home

With that pronouncement, Avril saw that a seating change was in order. When they’d been led to their booth by a hostess, they’d naturally taken seats across from one another. Now, that no longer seemed to be what the brazen woman wanted.

“Scoot,” she ordered as she swung around to the same side as him.

Making room as best he could, he found himself nestled close to the gorgeous woman for the second time in as many days. She smirked playfully after pulling her plate and drinks over to her new seating arrangement.

“Bring back tasty memories?”

Liam grunted to hide his embarrassment, which caused Avril to laugh and lean her shoulder against his. The look she pointed toward him was simply unfair. His heart couldn’t handle it. Nor the fact that they were in a public place, which meant the flurry of scintillating desires scorching his skin couldn’t come to pass.

“I think it’d be the opposite for you compared to Anna,” he said.

“Huh?” Confusion tugged her mouth to one side.

“You’d make a horrible teacher. You keep disrupting the lesson.”

Avril smiled wide. “You’re right there. I’d be fired in an instant.” She leaned in further, batting her eyelashes. “After all, I’m flirting with my student during class at this very moment.”

Liam swallowed. It was impossible to find any semblance of balance around Avril Knight. He was neither stoic enough to remain unaffected nor witty enough to parry her flirtations with his own retorts. For the staff and other customers, the temperature inside the restaurant was pleasantly warm. For him, it was molten.

“Thisispart of what you need to practice a lot,” Avril said, removing her shoulder from his. “It’s foreplay, too, so you can double dip. Knowing what to say before, during, and after—it’s all pretty important. Don’t skimp on learning this stuff, especially if you want a shot at a woman as intellectual as Tess.”

That was what he wanted. A shot, one in a thousand, one in a million, he didn’t care. This was what he’d wanted for years. His logical side cautioned him not to get his hopes up, but Avril’s confidence was infectious. She seemed to think he had a chance. He wanted to trust that she knew what she was talking about.

“First, we’ll start with the bad news. Every woman’s different, and we all have certain likes and dislikes. Some women want you to whisper into their ear that they’re your princess; others want to be spit on while they’re told they’re a dirty fucking cum slut. It varies.” She grinned teasingly. “Can you guess what I like to hear whispered into my ear when a man’s got me gasping for air?”

Liam steeled his resolve. He wouldn’t just quiver and burn beside her.

“You know, I always hated teachers who would single out a student and ask them a question like that,” he whispered back.

His retort unlocked a brilliant smile as Avril ran her finger around the rim of her glass. “Guess you won’t get to hear the answer, then. So, we can move on over to the woman of your dreams. In your own words, how would you describe our alluring and recently divorced professor?”

Her question gave him mild pause, but he eventually found his voice. “Well, uh, she’s incredibly kind, generous, patient, intelligent. She’s always willing to stop whatever she’s doing and have a conversation, and she’s never once seemed annoyed or impatient about it. I think she really does care about other people, and she wants to make sure that they’re well and happy. When she asks how you’re doing, she isn’t just doing it because it’s just what you say to a friend. She’s the kind of professor everyone dreams of having, whom you’ll remember fondly well after you graduate. I was lucky enough to have her as a neighbor instead.”

Avril wore a crooked grin. She’d spent her time nodding during his rambling, which set his anxious heart slightly at ease.

“Too true, too true,” the amused redhead said. “You missed thebiggesttrait of them all, but we’ll go ahead and pick at the ones you properly called out. Now, I could be wrong about what I’m about to say. There are plenty of people out there who are as kind and sweet as a ladybug but are into some hair-pulling, chain-jangling, cum-until-you-pass-out-and-still-keep-fucking-me-please depraved stuff in the bedroom. But I really,reallydoubt that I’ve read Tess wrong. Like you, I don’t just see her in the classroom, so I feel like I have a pretty good understanding of the differences between Professor Williams and Tess.”

She paused as their waiter looped back around to their table, checking if everything was okay with their food. Liam realized he’d stopped eating halfway through his meal, as Avril’s “lesson” had completely sidetracked him. Once they assured her that everything was great, she moved off to her next table. Avril barely waited until she was out of earshot before continuing.

“Tess is everything you’ve said she is, but she’s also a mature woman. She’s not some blushing college freshman who’ll let you feel her up after she’s had a couple drinks. She’s not some repressed sorority girl who’ll awaken once she has her first orgasm. If anyone ends up in that role in your hopeful relationship, it’ll probably be you. That’s not a bad thing, by the way.

“Because how did you just describe Tess? Kindhearted, considerate, compassionate, right?” Avril tilted her head to one side, piercing him with a shameless smirk. “If she were a bit more depraved of a person, I bet she’d like to hear you call her ‘mommy.’ Alas, I don’t think she’s quite there, so maybe give up that dream.”

“That’s not one of my dreams,” he immediately retorted, though Avril’s smirk remained incessantly dubious.

“Well, then I guess there won’t be any issue. But she’s close to that type. She’s also the big thing you left out when you described her.”

“Which is?” he asked warily, which earned an eye roll from Avril.

“Dude, she’s fucking lonely. Why do you think you have a real shot at this? Yeah, she raves about you, but that’s not going to be enough for her to overcome the inertia in your way. She’s way older than you, has known you for forever, and it would not look good for her career-wise if it got out that she’s banging a student. Yeah, yeah, you’re not one ofherstudents, but you know what I mean.

“Her loneliness might be enough, though. Her loveless, horrible marriage is over, and she’s looking for a way to feel a little less alone. It’s not like she doesn’t get regular offers; hell, I’ve seen a few attempts from facultyandstudents. So far, she’s shut them all down. Sooo, here comes her young, handsome, but also sweet and compassionate next-door neighbor, and he’s not going to rush things for a quickie. Instead, he’ll let Tess set the pace of their relationship, no matter how fast or slow that ends up being. And he’s going to listen to what I have to say and woo Tess right, isn’t he? He’s going to take things at a pace she’s comfortable with, and he’s going to relieve this lonely woman of some of that sadness she’s been carrying around for at least a few years.” Avril paused, eyeing him. “This is the part where you promise to do these things, or at the very least, where you dumbly nod along.”

Seeing as how she’d left him speechless, he opted for the latter option. Not because what she said didn’t ring poignantly with truth, but because itdid.He’d misjudged her, or at the very least, underestimated her. The level of insightfulness—and compassion—carried through her words astounded him. He’d not expected their conversation to wind up like this.

“You look dumbfounded, Liam,” Avril noted, scrutinizing him thoroughly. She pulled her mouth to one side, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Oh, sothat’show it is. You went and assumed a rude thing about me, didn’t you?”

“I, ah, no, that’s—”

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