Professor Cline: Redeemed (Professor #2) (2 page)

One week later

Mason

Reaching under the covers, I ran a hand down the length of my cock and grabbed my balls, groaning at their tightness. I’d been lying in bed for the past half hour thinking about Emma.

The dream I’d woken from was so vivid in my mind. Her on her knees with my dick in her mouth, it was something I’d dreamed about many times, but this time was different. Her beautiful eyes stared up at me as she bobbed up and down, her spit shining off my skin like a beacon. The way she looked at me with want in her eyes as she enjoyed every inch I thrust into her mouth made me pump faster.

A blindfold was always in place with my conquests, never wanting my scars to be on display. Their hands were also held behind their back, so they didn’t grab on to me and feel the risen flesh from my scars.

It was the reason I did everything I did. I had secrets and I wanted them to stay hidden, but with Emma? With her, it was different. She’d seen my scars and all I could think of was her face. Every fantasy was with her in mind. She’d seen through my mask and for the first time, I saw light.

It terrified me. My whole life had been darkness. I didn’t know how to handle this new obsession I was beginning to obtain.

Wrapping my hand around my cock, I slowly stroked from base to tip and back again. Rolling the head of my cock in my hand, I kept picturing it down her throat.

I never thought I’d get to this point again. A point where all I’d think about was a woman. She consumed my thoughts just like Sophia did, but in a different way.

I wanted her to be consumed by thoughts of me, like I was of her. I wanted her to crave every inch of my body, like I did with her. I wanted her to need me, like I felt I needed her.

Squeezing my balls until I felt pain, I pumped faster and harder until my body tensed. I released all over my stomach and hands, groaning at every stroke against my sensitive head.

Letting out a heavy sigh, I closed my eyes and pictured Emma’s face. Staying away from her was what I should do. I’d told myself that many times. She didn’t need to be involved in anything that was going on in my life. After all, Donicko was up to something, and I still had no idea what that was.

I hadn’t gotten any closer to figuring out what I could do to bring him down, either. I was doing this alone, and there was a chance things could get bad. The only thing I was sure of was Victor, Luke’s dad and John’s partner.

John did way too much business in the office, and I knew he mixed business with pleasure. Victor was the primary shareholder of the company. He was the main money holder while John was only partial. Some would say Victor made John what he was today.

John was lethal, but if he was using the business to hide what he was doing, then I knew Victor would take him down, leaving me to watch the whole thing from the sidelines.

It wasn’t ideal for me because I wanted to be the one to do it, but I had nothing and no way to get anything to prove my theories. In the end, that’s what they were—just theories, plus Donicko’s pull at every corner.

Money was a big incentive, and I knew Victor had a lot of it.

Only time would tell how it would all work out. I just needed to get a meeting with Victor and begrudgingly tell him my story.

Emmalynn

“What are you doing after your classes?” Mel asked me as she poured a cup of coffee.

I looked up at her over the rim of my mug and sighed inwardly. “I’m probably coming back here to study.”

It’d been a week since that night at Mason’s, and Melanie had been mothering me ever since. I didn’t fault her for it, but it was unnecessary. To say she was disappointed that I kept things from her would be an understatement. She didn’t once judge me like I thought she would, but she was disappointed that I didn’t confide in her like I used to when we were younger. She did, however, state that seeing my professor wasn’t a good idea, which I knew. But I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

After letting the night’s events play over and over again in my mind, I couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking. He was a cutter. I knew deep down it was true. I didn’t see him do it, but I saw the scars, and there was no other explanation. It intrigued me, and it shouldn’t. Not after the way he treated me. Not after everything I’d seen, but it did.

Seeing him in class on Monday and Wednesday wasn’t easy, either. I tried to focus on my laptop and not stare, but the sound of his voice was too hypnotic.

He was so pristine and put together; you’d never know what was hiding under his clothes. It was sad and enlightening all at the same time. It opened my eyes to why he acted the way he did in the bedroom. This was his secret. This was what he hid from the world.

And I saw it.

“I was going to see if you wanted to get some dinner after I got off work. John will be gone for the day, so I won’t have to work late.”

I placed my mug on the table and stretched my arms above my head. I was exhausted. Sleep had not been kind to me lately.

“Where did you want to go?”

“I was thinking that Mexican place, Diablo’s.”

I shrugged in agreement. “Sounds good to me.”

Mel smiled as she placed her mug down on the table before taking a seat across from me.

“Good. I want us to try and do something together at least once a week, like we used to. It’ll be nice hanging out again. We can go over all the things you’re learning in your classes, and I can help you if you need it.”

I gave her a small smile. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

“How is everything going in your class, anyway?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

I scoffed and shook my head. I knew this was coming. I only needed one guess to figure out which class she was asking about. This whole spiel was her trying to butter me up to get me to talk. She used the same tactic Mom used.

“Everything’s fine,
Mom
. Is it hard? Yes. But that’s to be expected. I never thought it would be easy.”

“You can still transfer to another teacher. You still have time.”

I shook my head again. I knew she was right. It was a smart idea, but it was an idea I didn’t want to contemplate. I should’ve, but I knew I wouldn’t. I was basically torturing myself, but I wanted to see him. I knew that if I took that step and transferred to a different class, I’d never be able to. That thought alone caused an ache in my chest.

He made it clear he didn’t want me, but my body still craved his. It shouldn’t, but my core had a mind of her own.

“I don’t want to transfer. I’ll be fine,” I reassured her as I reached across the table and placed my hand on hers. “He’s a great teacher. It’s those moments he’s
not
teaching I need to watch out for.” I smiled.

“I know I’ve been up your ass.” She sighed. “I’m just worried about you. After everything that happened with Tim, and now
this
.”

“I know, but I’m good. I promise.” It was a complete understatement, but I just wanted her to drop it. “Let’s not talk about it anymore, okay?”

She nodded. “You’re right. I have to get going anyway.” She stood from the table and grabbed her mug. “I’ll call you when I’m on my way home. I’ll get changed, and then we can head out around six or so.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Mel transferred her coffee to her travel mug and walked to the foyer to pick up her satchel. “I’ll see you later,” she tossed over her shoulder before walking out the door.

Pushing my chair away from the table, I got up and walked to the sink to pour out what was left of my coffee. I needed to get my stuff together, too. It would be another day of trying my best to avoid staring at Mason.

~*~

“Good morning,” Brian said as he sat down beside me.

I turned to him with a smile. “Good morning.”

I arrived in class ten minutes early and Mason hadn’t shown up yet. Not that I was looking out for him or anything, which was a total lie.

“Are you excited about today?”

I finished typing some notes into my word document from the previous lecture then turned to him with a questioning look. “Excited about what?”

“Homicide,” he exaggerated.

I rolled my eyes. “You’re a dork.”

He laughed. “Yeah, but I’m an awesome dork.”

I shook my head at his antics and looked back at my computer. The previous week, we’d gotten together after our classes to study at the local deli, and we really hit it off as friends. He hadn’t brought up the whole incident with Mason again, but I could tell he watched my expressions as I looked down on Mason in class.

Brian was a good guy. The type of guy I’d probably be in to if my body wasn’t still yearning for Mason.

And just as his name flowed through my mind, he walked into the room. My breath hitched as he strode to his desk with briefcase in hand. He was dressed in a grey suit, his hair a tousled mess, and his face donned the five o’clock shadow he never seemed to shave off. Not that I was complaining, because it was sexy as hell.

He stood behind his desk and set his briefcase down before lifting his head and meeting my gaze.

I pressed my lips together as my stomach did a flip. Every time he looked at me, it was as if my world was tilted on its axis. I could feel my ears flush and averted my eyes back to my computer.

“Homicide,” I heard Mason say, as the clicking of chalk on the board ensued.

I looked up to see the word written on the board. He set the chalk down and shoved his hands in his trousers.

“Homicide,” he stated again as he walked around the room. “When most people hear that word, it’s automatically assumed that someone killed another human being intentionally. But that’s not always the case.” He walked back toward the board and picked up the chalk. “Murder, manslaughter, and justifiable homicide,” he stated as he wrote the words on the board. “These are the classifications. Every state in the US has different types of homicide classifications, but it usually falls into these three categories.

“Murder is typically broken down further into two categories: First degree and second degree. First degree is the most serious of all homicide charges. It’s reserved for situations where the person accused of the homicide planned the killing and intended for the victim to die. It was intentional. The killer wanted that person dead, and they did it.

“Second degree is for cases where it can’t be proven that the killer planned the kill, but where the killer still intended that the victim die.

“Manslaughter. These charges usually arise from accidental circumstances where a person died because of an event. The crime was not planned, nor was it intended for the victim to die.

“And last we have justifiable homicide. This is when an individual killed another in self-defense or similar circumstances. Technically, this isn’t a legal charge, but rather a classification for which authorities can register that the individual died, but no crime was committed.”

I wrote note after note as he continued with his lecture, all the while noticing he didn’t once look at me again as he spoke. Actually, his gaze never went to the center of the room at all, as if he was purposely avoiding me. Which he probably was, but why? He was the one who told me to leave that day and hadn’t talked to me since. He was the one who treated me the way he did when all I wanted to do was help. He should’ve had no problem looking at me. He’s the one who didn’t want anything to do with me anymore.

I was the one who should’ve been avoiding him at all costs. Instead, I was pining over why he wasn’t looking at me when I should’ve been focusing on the lesson.

“Are there any questions?” Mason asked as he leaned against the front of his desk, his arms crossed over his chest.

He looked around the room, avoiding my gaze, then nodded when nobody raised their hand.

“All right. On Wednesday, I’ll be bombarding you with questions to evaluate what you know. Make sure you review everything we’ve gone over. This is in no way to judge anyone. This is to help those who may not have known the answer. This is not a grade; however, participation is encouraged.”

He gave a small smile as he walked around his desk and took a seat. “Class is dismissed.”

A collective sound of conversations and students stuffing their bags ensued as I pulled my things together.

“Did you want to meet up again after classes today?” Brian asked as he stood up from his seat.

I looked over at him and shook my head. “I’m having dinner with my sister tonight, but let’s shoot for Wednesday, okay?”

“Okay, sounds good.”

We both walked down the steps in silence. I did my best not to look over at Mason, but it was easier said than done. Our eyes locked for a brief moment before I quickly looked away.

I need to get these feelings under control before I regret not taking Mel’s advice on switching teachers.

Brian and I were making our way to the door when Mason’s voice halted my steps.

“Ms. Blake, may I speak with you for a moment?”

I looked at Brian, who had stopped alongside me, and he gave me a reassuring smile.

“I’ll see you Wednesday,” he said softly, looking over my shoulder at Mason before turning and walking out the door.

The last of the students had already departed, so it was just him and me. I turned to meet his gaze, and a feeling of apprehension flowed through me.

“Would you mind closing the door?” He gestured with his hand.

I crossed my arms over my chest in a sign of defiance. In my mind, I was trying to show that I had some kind of control. I highly doubted it worked, but I had to try.

“I’d rather keep it open.”

He smirked as he leaned against his desk, copying my stance by crossing his arms over his chest.

He averted his eyes and stared at his feet. It was an action I’d never seen him do, like he was shy and needed a moment to gather his thoughts. It confused me and threw me off-kilter for a moment. I wasn’t sure if that was what he’d intended, but it was working and I didn’t have time to play any games.

“You needed to speak to me?”

He looked up and unfolded his arms to rest his hands on the desk.

“Yes,” he said as he cleared his throat. “I wanted to talk to you about the other night.”

I bit the inside of my cheek as he spoke.
The other night. As if it was just another night. A night that will forever be imprinted in my mind.
My overly active brain was no longer turning.

“There’s really nothing to say,” I finally managed to squeak out. “What happened between us was nothing. There’s no reason for you to explain anything to me. It happened, and now it’s done.”

I could feel the heat rush to my cheeks as I spoke.

He moved away from his desk and slowly walked toward me as I watched every step he took. I had so many feelings flowing through me that my heart was racing in my chest. I was excited and frightened all at the same time; excited that he was talking to me again, but also frightened that he was, too. I didn’t know how to feel about it. The only thing that kept looping in my mind was: what would Mel say?

He stopped a few feet away from me. Close enough where I could smell the cologne drifting off his skin. He took over my senses completely.

“I wanted to apologize to you, Emma. What you saw…” he said, furrowing his brow. “That should never have happened.”

I tilted my head to the side, curious as to what he meant. “Are you referring to your behavior or you cutting yourself?”

The words flew out of my mouth before I could censor them, and I averted my eyes from his before I could see his brow furrow more.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

“No, you’re right,” he said, cutting me off. “I know what you think you saw—”

I scoffed, interrupting him in return. “I
know
what I saw, but that’s not the point.” I shrugged, but none of it really mattered. “Look, I appreciate the apology,” I stated as I took a few steps back, “but I need to go.”

I turned and walked out of the room, and it took everything I had not to turn to see his face. I knew I was being rude. Mason didn’t seem like the kind of guy who dished out apologies often, but I knew he was going to lie to me. I didn’t want to stand there and listen to it.