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Besides, they’d already had a tame honorary luncheon where each student had received a plaque for their good grades, and photo opportunities galore for their proud parents.  They had done their part for their families, and now they were ready to get wasted and dance.

Lila threw her friend a knowing look. The real truth was that, outside of Lila giving a speech that afternoon, she and Chelsea were only ever present at these events for the free booze.  As long as they kept most of their clothes on, and no one started shooting, these kids could do whatever the hell they wanted as far as they were concerned.

Lila took in her friend’s blonde pixie cut, startling gray eyes and milky white skin in surprise.  Chelsea had just turned forty and was already a tenured professor in the English department.  She and Lila met after running head first into each other in the middle of campus on Lila’s first day.  They’d both been so preoccupied checking out a handsome man passing by that they’d completely crashed into one another during their simultaneous attempts at getting a better look at his incredible ass.

Lila blinked. “Was I mumbling?”

“To yourself.  Yes.”  Chelsea nodded.  “And looking like an absolute lunatic in the process.  What’s with you?”

Lila closed her eyes and went to explain, but Chelsea had already moved on.

“Sweet baby Jesus, help me. Okay, Lila, don’t look now, but there is a
fucking
Adonis headed right for us.  Be cool.”  After insisting they be cool, Chelsea immediately began fussing wildly with her hair.  “Is he looking at you, or me?  I can’t tell.”

Lila followed the eyes of her crazy friend and gasped at the sight that met her.

“Oh
fuck
,” she whispered.  It was the man her eyes had been trained on since she’d spotted him at the beginning of the event but had successfully managed to avoid.  The man who had left her a mumbling, jumbling mess just moments before, back when he’d been safely nestled in his seat across the grass, completely unaware of her presence.  Now that he was heading right for her, his brown eyes boring directly into hers from the distance, she had to fight the terror eating her alive.  Even after a year, she still wasn’t ready for this.  She wasn’t sure if she ever would be.

Lila knew Jack would likely be here to see his brother receive his honors plaque, his first as a freshman.  She’d known she would eventually have to see Jack and speak to him.

She just hadn’t expected it to happen this quickly.

“Ugh…” Chelsea scoffed.  “He’s looking at you. Have I mentioned how much I hate you?”

Lila couldn’t hear a word Chelsea was saying as Jack Almeida continued moving across the grass toward her.  Even as he rudely stepped into various people’s paths, he never broke their gaze, opting instead to hold out a halfhearted hand of apology to whatever stranger he bumped into next. But he never looked away from her.  Not once.

“Do you see the way he’s
looking
at you?”  Chelsea breathed.

Lila had the distinct urge to run.  Looking around her, she prayed for a quick exit.

“He is, literally, a Greek God in a suit. This is depressing. I need uglier friends.”  Chelsea grumbled.  “Please call me later with every raunchy detail.”

Before Lila could object, her friend scurried away; leaving her alone with a man that had her heart ready to climb out of her throat.

He came to a stop in front of her but didn’t say a word.

Lila’s hands shook and, when she attempted to still them, she only succeeded in clumsily dropping her white wine.  The plastic wine glass tumbled to their feet, immediately emptying its precious contents into the grass.

“Damn it,” she mumbled. How the hell was she going to handle her first reunion with Jack Almeida,
sober
?

They bent down to retrieve the glass at the same time.

She found herself holding her breath when that familiar scent engulfed her--soap, aftershave,
Jack.
Just like that, she was rocketed back to New York City.  Rocketed back to the damp sheets in her bed, the weight of him between her legs as he filled her, and the dark depth in his eyes as her warmth surrounded him.  It was the same look he had in his eye right at that moment.  They reached for the glass at the same time, and their fingers brushed. Her carnal reaction was intense.  She instantly pulled back, but it was still there.

It was official.

The chokehold he’d always had on her mind, and her body, was alive and well.

She could feel his eyes on her, but couldn’t look up.

“Thank you,” she said into the grass, as he handed the glass back to her.

His fingers lingered over hers longer than necessary, long after she had the glass firmly in her hand. 

Lila finally found the nerve to look at him and, when their eyes met, her mouth went dry.  She managed a small smile.

His gaze zoomed to her lips.

“You’re welcome.”  His eyes rose back to hers.  “Lila.”

Lila stood tall.  He followed.  His eyes instinctively traveled her body, and hers did the same to his.  He was decked out in a four-piece suit and flawless Italian shoes.  A bit overdressed for The Clever Crimsons, but that was the Jack she’d always remembered.  Always dressed to the nines regardless of the occasion, making the mere mortals around him look like complete and utter slobs in the process.

He was tall, dark, and utterly Greek. His dark hair was longer, still sharp and professional, but just a touch longer than she’d ever seen it. Enough to show a hint of a curl that Lila never knew he had.  He’d also grown a beard, but he kept it neat, shaved close.  Those deep-set, brown eyes were still as serious and intense as she remembered and still set fire to every part of her body they touched.  At the moment, they were touching her all over, in all her weakest spots. Not an inch of her body was spared as he took her in, lingering at every secret dip that he knew could make her beg. Scream. Cum. He took his time as if trying to memorize every inch of her.  He knew the atlas of her body well, taking in her hot spots with such depth in his eyes that it felt like he had his hands all over her.

When their eyes met once more, he had to breathe in deep.  Slow.

He was nervous too.  Lila was relieved.  Jack had always been good at hiding his nerves.  They’d never suited him, but today, they shone brightly.

The champagne glass he’d been cradling all afternoon began rotating under his fingers, the amber liquid offsetting his olive skin beautifully.  His eyes searched hers, and he found himself bringing the glass absently to his lips.

Lila couldn’t help smiling.  “What are you doing?  You hate that stuff.”

He gazed down at the champagne glass still dancing under his fingers, wincing as the bubbles went down his throat. “You remember that?” His eyes grew intense as he looked back up from under his eyelids.

“Of course I do. You wouldn’t go anywhere near it back home.  The only time I ever saw you swallow a drop of champagne was when…” Lila had to stop herself.

He didn’t need her to finish. 
When I was licking it off your naked body?
His eyes came alive.  Mercifully, he managed to bite his tongue.  There was no need for elaboration anyhow.  His eyes said everything neither of them could.

She looked up into the sky playfully, and then back down at him.   “I thought I might see you here.”

He held his arms out.  “Here I am.”

“You look good, Jack.  Really good.”

“Thank you.”  His acceptance was gracious, if not a bit cold.

Lila struggled with the silence. “So… what are you doing for work these days?”

“I run a non-profit organization for blind orphan girls in Southeast Asia.”

Lila covered her heart with her hand.
“Really?”

The smirk, though a far cry from the gleaming smile she knew lived somewhere in the deepest parts of him, lit up his face.  “No.”

She immediately shoved him, becoming instantly embarrassed by her actions.  They didn’t know each other well enough for her to put her hands on him, even playfully.  Not anymore.

Jack took the blow in stride, licking his lips.  “I’m a lawyer, Lila. It’s what I do. It’s all I’ll ever know how to be.  Didn’t you tell me that once?”

She crossed her arms over her chest.  “Not that I can recall.”

“Hm…” He licked his lips again.

“Stop looking at me like that.”

“How?”  He blinked lazily.  “How am I looking at you?”

Lila looked around her.  He was looking at her like he wanted to eat her alive.  Like he was a ravenous man who’d happened upon a tenderloin.  He was looking at her like he knew what her pussy tasted like, because he’d already licked every inch.

“It’s been a long time.” He held his breath and waited until her eyes were on his once more.  “Why?”

Lila swallowed as the wave of emotion she’d been fighting hit her like a brick. “You know why.”

He squinted at her and wondered whether he should speak.  “Do I?”

Without answering, Lila looked towards the grass.

Her eyes immediately went to Chase, who was in the process of grinding against a redhead who had an ass that should’ve been illegal.  That redhead was one of the many pretty young things that Lila saw Chase running around campus with these days.  As she watched the small smile grow on his face, and the sway of their hips become more intense, she wondered if this was the girl that would finally stick.

Jack’s eyes never left her. Not even as his baby brother degraded himself in broad daylight.  Not even for a moment.

--

The next morning, Lila couldn’t focus.

It was the first class of summer semester—a semester Lila had always despised. The students at Harvard were nearly all Type A, so when they felt they were floundering in their work, they immediately began to panic and crumble under the pressure. The summer workload wasn’t just heavy, but fast paced, making the semester a breeding ground for some of Harvard’s most infamous student body breakdowns.  Lila hated it.

She struggled with keeping her students at arms-length. Young people, especially those who were just trying to get ahead in their education, were easily her biggest weakness.  She yearned to see them succeed.  Watching them stress out in any way was not her idea of fun.

The fact that this was a Human Sexuality class didn’t make her much more excited.  She’d been hired to teach the course on Childhood Trauma, in The School of Arts and Sciences, during the spring and fall semesters.

She’d planned on taking the summer off to finish up the final edits of her manuscript. Being saddled with a six-week course that met Monday through Thursday had shot those plans straight to hell.

The original professor for the course had dropped out at the last minute.  Though she hated the summer session, Lila had to take into account that she was being considered for a full-time assistant professor position. It was one step up from the lecturer position she held now, so she hadn’t had the luxury of saying no when they’d offered her the opportunity to teach this class.

She could only hope this session went by fast.

Her eyes traveled over the auditorium that sat 200, easily the largest group she’d taught so far.  The classroom didn’t have individual desks, but long tables in the shape of half-moons, each one growing wider as the rows climbed.  Lila could hardly make out the faces of the few dozen students seated all the way at the top.

“Good morning class…” Her voice roared out into the auditorium like there was a speaker system in there, and it startled her.  She’d gotten so used to dealing with the shitty classrooms the tenured professors didn’t want that projecting her voice had become second nature.  That apparently wasn’t going to be necessary here.  She adjusted her blazer proudly and lowered her voice.

“My name is Professor Lila James. You can call me Lila.  I’m pretty laid back...”

She sat on top of her desk and crossed her legs, not missing the many eyes that fell to them the moment she did.  Perhaps the black skirt suit she’d chosen today was a bit too short.

“And I’m not that Professor that just
says
she’s laid back, waits until you get comfortable, and then eats her young out of the blue.”

Soft, nervous laughter followed her joke, and she was thankful to have a light-hearted group.  Her fingers held the edge of the desk, nerves calming quite a bit at the friendly faces before her.  “I really, really am… very laid back. Having said that, I won’t lie to you guys.  This is a fast paced course. I have a lot of work in store for you. I’m not going to let you skate by, but watching you guys tear out your hair from stress is certainly not my idea of fun, unlike some professors I know.”  She winked, enjoying the sound of the laughter growing with ease.  “I’m not going to saturate you with work, but I won’t coddle you either.  Come to my class prepared, and I promise you’ll be just fine.  Also, if you’re not feeling comfortable with the subject matter of this class, or any of your classes for that matter, if you’re having issues in your life, questions about the work I give you, anything at all, I’m here for you okay?  I really am…  So--”

Her words were cut short when the door to the classroom opened at the top of the auditorium.

She motioned to the door.  “I’m so glad someone is showing up late to my classroom because that is the one thing I am definitely
not
laid back about.  Young man?”  Lila waited until her late student stepped into the classroom and showed his face, her mouth dropping when she came face to face with Jack Almeida for the second time that week.  She recovered quickly, hiding the surprised expression that had flashed across her face, but not quickly enough to stop her students from turning their heads to see who was at the door.

It had been an entire day since they’d run into each other at the Crimson event. After saying congratulations to Chase, and declining his invite to a celebratory dinner, she’d gotten the hell out of dodge as quickly as possible.  She and Jack hadn’t said much to one another outside of that one polite, casual conversation, a conversation that was constantly laced with something murkier and darker under the surface.