steven
“Y-you’re the professor?” Sierra asked, eyes widening. “F-for the course?”
A smirk tugged at the corner of my lips. “Yes.”
“Oh my God,” she said, hiding behind her hands. “I’m so sorry.”
After a chuckle left my lips, I placed my hand on her lower back and steered her in the direction of the main office, where she could officially sign up for Sex Education 101. Michelle was the organizer for every class, and she had roped me into teaching this time after giving me a sob story about how we needed to help more people.
“There’s nothing to apologize for, Miss Monroe, was it?”
“Sierra. You can call me Sierra. But there totally is! I just—” She smacked her lips together and averted her gaze. “You know what? I’m, um, going to shut up now before I say something I shouldn’t.”
“I’d love to hear all the things you shouldn’t say,” I murmured.
Cheeks turning a shade darker, she peered back up at me through her lashes and cracked a small smile. I stopped to catch my breath and gathered my thoughts before pausing in front of Michelle’s office.
I knocked three times. “Michelle!”
“Come in, Steven,” she hummed.
Once I pushed the door open, I allowed Sierra to step into the room and then followed her. A waft of strawberries drifted from her hair. She stopped in front of Michelle’s desk and smiled nervously.
“You must be Sierra,” Michelle said, extending her hand. “I’m Michelle Patton.”
Sierra formed an O with her mouth. “Oh, a-are you two married?”
“Michelle is my sister,” I clarified.
“Adopted sister,” Michelle added. “That’s why we don’t look anything alike.”
Sierra nodded, then glanced back at me—or more specifically, my bare left hand. “Oh.”
“You’re here to enroll in Sex Education?” Michelle asked.
Sierra nodded.
Usually, at this point in the conversation, I’d leave and let Michelle do her job. But I found myself shutting the door gently to give Sierra privacy and sitting on the maroon couch in Michelle’s office.
“Great!” Michelle said, taking note. “We have one spot left.”
“Lucky, lucky, Miss Monroe.”
“So very much,” she whispered, playing with the end of her sleeve and peeking another glance up at me. With her breath sucked in just a smidgen, she inched her legs closer together and returned her gaze to Michelle. “Is there anything you need from me?”
“Yes.” My sister handed her a clipboard. “Please fill out the information and sign.”
Sierra sat on the edge of the couch beside me while Michelle leaned back in her seat and smirked in my direction. I stared back blankly, not wanting her to make a big deal out of this once Sierra left. I’d bet this was the exact reason she wanted me to teach.
Five minutes of silence later, Sierra stood and handed the clipboard back to Michelle, who reviewed it briefly for a signature. She unclipped the papers and filed them in a cabinet. “You’re all set, Sierra. Here are some papers to explain the class in more depth.”
“Great,” Sierra said, blushing. “I will, um, see you soon then, Professor.”
“Don’t be late for class, Miss Monroe,” I said. “We start tomorrow night.”
She paused at the door, holding the stack of papers to her chest and blushing again—which was going to drive me mad throughout the semester. I didn’t know how long I’d last with her sitting up front, staring at me with those huge brown eyes.
“I won’t be,” she said shyly.
Michelle leaned back in her swivel chair as Sierra scurried out of the office, throwing me one last shy look. When she disappeared into the hallway, Michelle glanced up at me and hummed to herself, the way she always did when she had done something.
“Is she the reason you asked me to teach?” I asked.
“I thought you would like her,” my sister said, setting the end of her pen on her lips and giggling softly. “I talked to her on the phone about a week ago, and she was a nervous wreck. She sounded so cute, and who would’ve known that she is?”
“Michelle …” I twisted my head toward the window and watched Miss Monroe exit the club and head down the street toward the bus stop, her brown hair blowing in the breeze. “I can’t teach this class.”
My sister rolled her eyes. “You’re so dramatic.”
“I’m not dramatic,” I argued. “I’m being reasonable.”
“Unreasonable,” Michelle said, smirking. “Because you won’t do anything to her. You do remember what you told me last year after you sold your business, don’t you? That you’re done searching for a submissive. That you’re going to be a grumpy old man by yourself.”
“I didn’t say that,” I growled.
“Maybe not the last part, but you haven’t been yourself since Mom died,” she said.
“Mom dying has nothing to do with my life here.”
She shrugged. “Well then, you should be fine teaching, huh? You don’t want a submissive, and Sierra Monroe is definitely not your type. So, you don’t have to worry about a thing! Right?”
I gritted my teeth and walked out of the room, heading straight for my office. After shutting the door behind me, I leaned against it and lifted my gaze to the window facing one of the many bus stops near our club.
Sierra bounced on her toes to keep warm, glancing back at the club. While she couldn’t see me through the tinted windows, I couldn’t pull my gaze away from her. I drew my tongue across my lower lip, dick twitching.
The way she couldn’t stop blushing tonight, stuttering and stumbling over her words.
“Fuck,” I growled.
This was going to be a long semester.