Page 1 of Falling For The Professor

Chapter One

Ashley Fleet suppressed a shiver as she tried to get comfortable on the hard wooden seat. For a college as revered and as modern as this one, Ashley still couldn’t figure out why they wouldn’t make the lecture hall seating around this campus more comfortable. The air-conditioning was on full blast though, so at least that was something. That hadn’t been available in her first two years here, and she was thankful for it now.

Outside, it was still a sweltering eighty-seven degrees, and Ashley couldn’t wait for fall to set in. She took a sip of iced coffee, more than ready to swap it for something warm and autumnal like a pumpkin spiced latte or a caramel apple coffee.

The cologne from the guy sitting in the row below her drifted into her space. More and more students started to file in, the hum of their voices growing with each passing minute.

Ashley took out her Moleskine notebook and opened it up to the first page, running her hand over the smooth paper before jotting down the date on the top of the page. September 7th.

Ashley had zero interest in this class, Psychology of Language, but she’d signed up for it, knowing that Professor Carla Lawless would be teaching it. In the last three years, Ashley’s attraction to this woman had steadily grown, but in struck her now, as she was sitting in the middle of a very crowded lecture hall, that this was it. This was Ashley’s final year, and after she graduated, she’d never see Professor Lawless again.

It was just a crush. An infatuation. But Ashley was living for it. She’d only had a few short-lived relationships with other students, and if Ashley was honest with herself, she knew it was because she had a very clear preference for older women. And Carla Lawless was the definition of a sophisticated older woman.

Ashley glanced to her right as Olivia took the seat right beside her. They’d only just met a few days ago, but Ashley liked her. She was probably in her early thirties, and she’d said something when they’d first met about coming back to college part time.

“Hey,” Ashley said as Olivia took out her laptop. “I didn’t think this class would be so popular.”

Olivia looked around the crowded lecture hall, a knowing smile on her lips. “I have a feeling it’s more about the professor than the subject matter.”

And just as Olivia said that the side door behind the podium opened and Carla Lawless appeared, a black leather messenger bag slung over her shoulder. Her dark brown hair flowed across her shoulders, as glossy and luxurious as Ashley had remembered it. It could easily be mistaken for black except when the mahogany highlights caught the light, and the rich, earthy tones came through.

Ashley forgot all about Olivia and their conversation. Ashley only had eyes for Carla Lawless. She swallowed as she watched Carla bend gracefully in her charcoal gray pencil skirt to plug in her laptop.

Professor Lawless put on a pair of black glasses as she focused on her laptop and got her slides up on the screen behind her. Carla slid her glasses up and into her hair as she sashayed over to the wall to dim the lights.

Ashley inhaled a shaky breath. She had it so bad. And this was as close as she’d ever gotten to Carla Lawless. Ashley never sat down in the front row. She’d never knocked on Professor Lawless’s door in the last three years with a question or for some kind of advice.

Once the lights had been dimmed, the chatter started to die away, replaced with the shuffling of papers and the occasional chime of a message on a phone.

Olivia leaned in and whispered, “Do you think she knows?”

“Knows what?”

“That everyone in this room wants her. Men. Women. Everyone.”

Ashley shrugged as she reached for her coffee. “Maybe. She doesn’t really come across as someone that’s full of themselves.”

“I bet the guys have no idea she’s gay.”

Ashley nearly choked on her drink. “What did you just say?”

But Olivia’s attention was on her laptop as Carla Lawless took her place in front of the podium and introduced herself to the class.

Ashley could barely hear what Professor Lawless was saying over the thumping of her heart. It was probably just a rumor. Ashley knew Olivia was gay. Maybe it was just wishful thinking on her part. But why had she said it so matter-of-factory?

Ashley wet her lips as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the light from the slides illuminating Professor Lawless’s stunning features, and it wasn’t long before Ashley let her imagination run wild, Olivia’s words feeding her fantasies.

Chapter Two

Carla Lawless unlocked her office door, glad to have her first week behind her. As soon as she entered and flicked on the lights, the hot stuffy air greeted her. She left her laptop bag on her desk and strode over to the oscillating fan in the corner of the room, turning it on.

Carla stood in front of it for a few seconds, letting the cool air run over her face and through her hair as she kicked off her heels. It had been a long week, but it was good to get back in a routine, to have somewhere to be each morning, to have something to keep her mind occupied.

In the four months since her ex had moved out, Carla had struggled to motivate herself. Yes, most of that was summer vacation, and she’d told herself that she deserved to just relax, to not be as strict with her workouts or her runs, but she just wasn’t wired that way.Carla thrived on having a schedule and working towards targets whether that be fitness related or professionally.

This was the start of her tenth year here at this college. She’d been reluctant to add too many personal touches to her office over the years, always weary of not getting this far, of not making a name for herself here, but her reputation was solid, and if she wanted to, she had a job at this college for the rest of her teaching career.

And Carla needed that distraction. She needed to be at work, staying late to plan the following day or, in the coming weeks, to grade papers. And maybe now, she’d start thinking about how she wanted this office to look. Right now, the potted plants and the framed photo of her and her sister that sat on her desk were the only unique items in the room.

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