To Professor, With Love (Forbidden Men 2)

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“The only way to find true happiness is to risk being completely cut open.” - Chuck Palahniuk, Invisible Monsters

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~NOEL~

I decided to give Aspen some time. I know, that made no sense. Whenever she had time to reason things out, she decided against us. But I was banking on the fact she’d miss me.

Because I sure as hell missed her.

“Come on, man. You’re killing me here.” Ten reached past me where I sat at the table in our dinky kitchen with homework spread across the surface and slammed closed the textbook I was reading. “You’ve been working or doing homework all fucking weekend. It’s driving me batty.”

I sent him a glare and reopened my book, muttering under my breath because the bastard had lost my place. “I told you, I need to catch up with this shit. Back the fuck off.”

Ten slowly tipped the book shut again, lifting his eyebrows in outright challenge. “You’re not doing homework, pussy. You’re pouting because she dumped your ass.”

Clenching my teeth to keep my temper in check, I ground out, “She did not dump me.” She’d specifically said the word break. Break meant we’d get back together...eventually. Break meant there was still a chance.

When I opened the book a third time, my roommate snagged it off the table and out of my reach, holding it above his head like some kind of eleven-year-old bully stealing his little sister’s doll. “You just keep telling yourself that, bud. But we’re still going out tonight.”

I slapped the top of the table. “I don’t want—”

“Well, I’m starving, and there’s no food in the fridge. It was your turn to grocery shop. So you’re taking me out to eat. I’m craving Guido’s.”

I shook my head, startled by how specific he was. He never craved one certain place. Hell, the guy never craved one certain type of food. He was one of those vacuums that ate whatever you put in front of him.

“What is this?” I asked. “You asking me on a date?”

He winked and blew me a kiss. “Buy me enough drinks, and you might even get lucky.”

With a snort, I gave in and let Ten drag me out of my apartment. I wouldn’t admit it to him, but it was nice to get some fresh air. I’d holed myself up in the apartment for too many days, and getting out to breathe for a minute actually helped clear my head.

We found a spot a block down and across the street from Guido’s. Still flipping me hell about mooning after Aspen, my roommate bumped his arm into mine, trying to rile me up. But I ignored him for the most part.

Not until he breathed, “Oh, shit,” did I look up and catch how wide his eyes had gone.

“What?” I began to turn to see what he was staring at, but he caught my arm. “Nothing. I changed my mind. Guido’s sucks. Let’s get some Mexican or something instead.”

I rolled my eyes. How much more obvious could a guy get. I turned again. When he physically tried to bar me from looking, I shoved him back and faced the little Italian joint.

And there she was.

Across the street, in front of a wide, open glass window at a table for two, sat Aspen. In Guido’s. With Dr. Chaplain. On what looked like a fucking date.

“Motherfucker.” When I stepped off the curb to cross to her side, Tenning grabbed my arm.

“Whoa, man. What do you think you’re doing?”

My jaw set. I couldn’t look away from my woman as she took a drink from a wineglass and smiled at something the douche across the table from her had just said. What did she think she was doing? That was the question.

“I’m going over there,” I told Ten. But he jerked me back, pissing me off something major.

“Are you nuts? If you go over there and create a scene like some kind of jealous ex-boyfriend, people are going to realize you’re actually a jealous ex-boyfriend. Do you want to get kicked off the team? Do you want her to lose her job?”

I snapped a hard glare at him. He lifted his brows, and I cursed under my breath. “Damn it.” Digging my phone out of my pocket, I did the next best thing. I called her.

I could tell the moment her end of the line started ringing. She went stiff and her date made a gesture, probably telling her it was okay if she answered. But she shook her head. I ground my teeth. When it went to voice mail, I growled. “I see you. I see who you’re with. And I don’t like it. How is being with an engaged man so much better than dating a student?”