Olivia felt a brief flash of alarm that she’d missed something in the cleanup. “What?”
“You look…loose. Your hair is even bouncier. And are you wearing eyeliner? To class? Oh, you cheeky, cheeky monkey.”
“Promise you won’t tell?”
“I won’t! I swear. No matter how many details you give me, I won’t tell.”
Olivia’s tension gave out a little, and she leaned her back against the wall, letting it hold her up. “He’s… He’s… Oh, Gwen.”
Gwen clasped her hands together and tucked them under her chin, as if she were a kid waiting for a Christmas present.
“He’
s… Oh, damn,” she groaned. “I can’t tell you anything. It feels too wrong. Like we’re football players bragging about some chick in the hallway.”
Her friend’s face fell. “Aw! Come on!”
“No, I’m sorry. And I have to go. Class starts in less than a minute.”
Gwen waved a dismissive hand. “Bah. Summer class. If you won’t give me details—yet—at least tell me this. Is he everything I’ve spent hours imagining he would be?”
“Gwen!”
“I’m serious. Have my fantasies been well spent? He can’t possibly be that cute and still be good in bed, can he? The universe wouldn’t give so much to one man.”
Olivia shook her head in happy exasperation and pushed away from the wall. “I’ve got to go.”
But Gwen’s last mournful groan got to her. And Olivia really didn’t want to keep every speck of information to herself. She was bubbling over with what she’d done. So before she walked away, she leaned in close to Gwen’s ear. “The universe gave him a lot. A whole hell of a lot. Shameful amounts, really.”
“No!” Gwen screamed, sending Olivia into peals of laughter as she rushed toward her class. She remembered to choke back her laughter before she opened the door, but apparently the doors weren’t soundproof. Everyone in the class was looking at her when she stepped in, and Jamie looked just the slightest bit nervous. Though he mostly looked highly amused as she stumbled to a halt and straightened her sweater.
His eyes burned through her as she descended, passing within inches of his body. “Is everyone ready?” she called out.
“I sure am,” said one voice over the murmurs of assent.
“All right.” Olivia took her place at the table and looked out over the rows of students. But in the end, she met Jamie’s eyes. “Let’s do this.”
SHE’D NEVER ENDED a class feeling aroused before, but there was a first time for everything. Jamie was just so very there. Right there, oozing charisma all over the room. Every time her eyes touched him, he made her feel aware. He was either watching her intently or typing his notes with a crooked smile on his face. Olivia was beginning to wonder if an hour and a half of blushing could cause fainting. She was certainly starting to feel light-headed.
Finally, thank God, class was over. She almost groaned when she spotted two different students leave their stuff at their desks and come forward to ask her questions. A terrible response for a teacher, so she shook it off and made a conscious effort not to hurry through the spreadsheets they needed help with.
Ten minutes later, she was done, and Jamie still sat patiently in his chair, looking too big for the small space the school expected him to fill.
He raised his eyebrows and she blushed again, smoothing down her skirt in an effort to dry her damp palms.
“Finally ready for me?” he asked.
For a split second, she imagined climbing on top of him right there. Hiking up her skirt and re-creating their hot tub encounter right in the classroom. Maybe he’d rip open her shirt, sending buttons flying so he could put his mouth to her again.
Olivia swallowed hard and closed her computer. “Yes, I’m ready.”
She led the way to her office, her whole back on fire with awareness of him following behind her. She’d never felt this way before. As if her nerves were too close to her skin. As if the merest stroke of a man’s finger down her arm could make her cry out. But not just any man…
When they came to her office, Jamie reached past her to open the door, and his arm slid against hers. She sucked in a hard breath at the feel of crisp hair and hot skin brushing over her arm.
“God, you smell good,” he whispered. As he pushed the door open his front pressed against her back.
She shivered hard, hoping he hadn’t noticed. But when she walked around her desk, she saw that his gaze dropped to her chest. Her nipples tightened further, and she knew they must be visible even under the layers of her shirt and sweater.