Page 15 of Corrupt Educator (The Syndicate Academy)

I allow my fingers to skate over her skin more this time as I drag her skirt up slowly, needing to feel her for as long as I can.

She gasps quietly as my fingers coast over her inner thighs deliberately. Her wide, innocent eyes shoot to mine, which snaps me out of it as I let go of the skirt. She wiggles it the rest of the way, zipping it on the side.

“Can you handle it from here?” I say, glancing at the bra and blouse.

She swallows hard. “I don’t think I will put the bra on. My ribs are sore.”

I nod in reply and grab the bra, stuffing it back into her bag. I can see the outline of her nipples in the hospital gown that she’s wearing. At least the sweater will hide them from my view.

“Do you need help with the blouse and sweater?”

A part of me wants her to say yes. The idea of seeing her beautiful, puckered nipples makes me mindless with need.

She shakes her head. “No, sir. I can manage. If you wait outside, I’ll give you a shout when I’m ready.”

I stand there battling my primal urges to take this girl here and now. “Of course.” I turn and walk out of the room, shutting the door behind me. I rest my back against it, pinching the bridge of my nose.

What the fuck have I gotten myself into now?

Eva Carmichael is the epitome of innocent temptation, and I’m not sure I can resist taking a bite out of the forbidden fruit, fruit which I intend to destroy along with her family. My desire for her is a complication I don’t need.

6

EVA

An awkward silence fills the car, underlined by the engine’s roar as Principal Byrne drives toward the academy. He shouldn’t have been the one to help me dress in the hospital, as it’s inappropriate.

My body tingles from the way his fingers delicately skated across my skin. It was as if he was working to turn me into a molten pool of desire, even if that probably wasn’t his intention.

I can still sense that sexually charged tension now, but I can’t work out if it is from my side or whether it’s just wishful thinking; I mean, Principal Byrne is the most attractive man I’ve ever met, but I’m also high on pain meds.

There’s no way a man like him would be attracted to me, especially since I’m his student, a student whose parents sent here because I allegedly slept with the janitor at my last school. He might assume I’m a hussy who will sleep with anyone, and perhaps he’s testing the waters. It wouldn’t shock me, as this school isn’t conventional.

Principal Byrne keeps his eyes on the road with such intensity. His large fingers are wrapped tightly around the wheel, turning his knuckles white.

I don’t understand why he is so angry. “Have I done something wrong, sir?”

He tightens his grip, eyes narrowing but remaining fixed on the road. “No, why do you say that?”

I swallow hard, twirling a curl of my hair around my finger. “You always seem so angry.” I shrug as his piercing aqua eyes shift to me briefly. “I thought maybe it’s because you have an issue with me.”

There’s a soft rumble from his chest as he shakes his head. “I’m not angry, Eva.”

I laugh. “You could have fooled me.”

His grip tightens further, the leather squeaking under pressure. The tension in his shoulders and the tight set of his jaw as he grinds his teeth indicate he’s lying to me.

The silence stretches between us as he doesn’t intend to continue the conversation, focusing on the road with fierce intent.

I gaze out the window, observing the town disappear as we head into the tree-lined forest, where the Syndicate Academy is hidden from prying eyes.

“Maine is beautiful,” I say, peeking at the principal. It’s so different from Atlanta’s concrete jungle that I’ve grown up with. “Have you seen a black bear, sir?”

He shakes his head. “I don’t have time to venture into the woods.”

I feel disappointed he doesn’t hold a conversation with me, but I sense that Oakley Byrne is a man who prefers not to participate in small talk.

“What do you do for fun, then?” I ask, wondering if he does anything other than teach and run the academy.

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