2. Zac

TWO

zac

PRETENTIOUS. CONCEITED. CONDESCENDING.

That summed up James Easton pretty well. Averse to authority could be another, and whether he liked it or not, that was exactly the relationship we had within these walls. I wasn't a peer he could trample all over the way he did with everyone else at Astor.

"So," he said as we started down the hall, "did any of my tips for Professor Rathborne include the use of a full-body deodorant to make it possible for us to sit in his class, or did I start with sex advice?"

"Doesn't seem like a guy who smells like that would need sex advice."

"Excellent point."

I side-eyed East. "You're conceding a point? To me?"

"Agreeing is not conceding."

"I didn't think you knew what it was to agree with anyone."

"I don't. Especially someone who would rather be homeless with frostbite than in my company."

"Admit it. You liked that one."

"Creative, but a little extreme. No one thinks I'm that bad."

I scoffed as we turned a corner, where the crowd of students died off a bit. "Everyone thinks you're that bad."

"Even you?" The way he kept his face so neutral yet so patronizing to anyone we passed was impressive, and I could only shake my head.

"Especially me." I opened a door to my right and gestured for him to go in first. He cocked his head at me in defiance until I finally said, " Now , James."

East smirked and took his time sauntering past me like the little shit he was. I followed after, shutting the door behind me, and once we were alone in the empty office, everything changed.

I barely had time to lock the door before East turned around, backing me up against the wall. His mouth crashed down on mine, and I met him with the same hunger that came from the long weekend away.

Gripping the lapels of his jacket, I tugged him in closer so that his long legs straddled my thigh. All that tension and animosity had my dick aching for release, and judging by the way his cock grew hard against me, he was feeling the same.

"God you're such a shit," I murmured, and he grinned against my mouth.

"And?" He nipped at my lower lip, and when I leaned forward for more, he dodged the move by angling his head to run his teeth along my jaw. "Makes you want to fuck me harder?"

I groaned, my hips jerking toward his like they had a mind of their own. "You have no idea."

Before he could dare me to show him, I tightened my hold on his jacket and spun us around so he was up against the wall.I gripped his chin and angled it in the pompous way that flicked my fuck switch, then leaned in to lick a path up the side of his neck. East gripped my hips, his hands boldly sliding around to cup my ass and pull me even closer.

"If I didn't have somewhere to be…"

East slid a leg up between mine, nudging my balls. "You know how I feel about empty threats."

"And you know it isn't empty." I nipped at his ear and thrust my body hard against his. "Are you forgetting last week? Livingston's empty lecture hall? Your hands braced against the podium?"

East's low moan told me he hadn't forgotten one forbidden second of that quick but satisfying encounter.

It'd been out of the norm for me, since I generally did everything I could to avoid making contact with East when we were within the halls of Astor. That day, however, much like today, he'd pushed my buttons, and he'd pushed them really goddamn hard.

One minute we'd been arguing over the fact that he and his "prince" buddies were an entitled bunch of brats who thought they could get away with everything, and the next, his pants had been around his ass and I'd come all over him.

It wasn't one of my proudest moments, but knowing I'd be what he smelled like for the rest of the day gave me almost as much satisfaction as coming all over him in the first place.

East turned his head against the door as his fingers massaged my ass."Then tell me who I have to kill to have you follow through."

"King."

East's eyes glittered dangerously, but the leg between mine slowly slid back down to the floor. "Well, I always did like a challenge."

I chuckled at his audacity as his hands dropped back to his sides and I took a step away from him. If there was one person in the school that people—East and his friends included—didn't fuck with, it was the professor I TA'd for.Professor Kingston—or King, as he was known amongst the student body.

"Not even you are that stupid."

" That stupid?" East arched his brow so high it all but hit his hairline. "Implying that there is some level of stupidity here?"

My eyes traveled from his leather loafers, up his immaculately tailored pants, to his slightly disheveled shirt and that ridiculous ascot. "I mean, you are wearing a maroon ascot to school."

East pushed off the wall and straightened his shoulders, reaching up to fix said ascot. "The color is plum, and it doesn't make me stupid. It makes me fashionable, distinguished?—"

"Or self-important? Maybe vain?"

"Perhaps." East's eyes lowered to my mouth. "But don't tell me you've never imagined tying me up with it."

"Well, I am now ."

"You're welcome." He stepped aside and shooed me toward the door. "But you better hurry along—your professor's waiting for you."

He was right. Professor Kingston didn't wait for anyone, and the last thing I wanted was to get on his bad side."I'll see you tonight at Nocturne?"

East inclined his head. "I'll be there."

I moved toward the door, willing my dick to calm down so I could step into the hall without making a public spectacle of myself. But damned if I wasn't picturing his hands tied up with that stupid fucking scarf of his.

"Oh, and Zac?"

I glanced over my shoulder to see he was now stroking the plum -colored silk.

"I'll be sure to wear this for you."

So much for calming down. I let out a sigh and pulled open the door, forcing myself to think of anything but leaving temptation behind. We'd been doing this for months, sneaking around, usually outside of Astor, but never at each other's places. That would be too personal, and this was just about sex.

Really fucking good sex. The kind that made me reckless and uncaring of getting busted.

Only I did care. I was two months from finishing my master's, and it was a conflict of interest to be involved with a student, even if he was no longer under my direct instruction.

But we were careful…ish. I didn't plan to get caught. I was just having f?—

"Good morning, Zac." The sound of Professor Kingston's gravelly baritone had me freezing mid-step.

Oh shit.

I slowly wheeled around to face him and prayed he wouldn't notice my still-not-completely-calm dick.

"Oh, hi, professor," I said, forcing as casual a smile as I could muster with my heart pounding a mile a minute. You would think after working together for as long as we had that he wouldn't be as intimidating as I'd always thought him when I was an undergrad, but that wasn't the case. If anything, being up close and personal just made it more difficult, adding in a crush factor that hadn't been there before.

Like before I knew how damn good he smelled or how he'd say my name with such authority I felt like I should kneel and say, Yes, sir.

Dark eyes that were almost black bored into mine before sweeping over the rest of me, and the panic I felt when they lowered had me coughing, forcing his attention back to my face and not my on-edge erection."Are you feeling okay? You look a little flushed."

"Me? No, sir, I'm fine. Great, actually. How are you?"

Smooth, Zac. Now he'll definitely know something's up if he hasn't already seen your dick.

King's lips twisted in faint amusement. "I'm assuming you were coming to find me, then?"

My mind blanked.

"To go over your course assignments for the week."

Oh, right. My job. Wake the hell up. "Yes, sir, that's exactly what I was doing. As a matter of fact, I have it right?—"

The door to the empty office opened at that exact moment, and, because his timing was impeccable, James Easton stepped out.

It didn't matter that he still looked as perfectly put together as he had been when he entered. King had noticed we'd walked out of the same empty room.He was too perceptive not to put it together, because the man didn't miss anything. It was why I'd always been extra careful around him, and why I usually kept my mouth shut. So I didn't slip and beg him to bend me over his desk.

East startled when he saw the two of us standing in the middle of the hall, clearly not expecting me to still be there after waiting the full minute to exit. But just as quickly, he smoothed his expression and winked at Professor Kingston.

"Nice suit, professor," he said as he walked past us—ignoring me completely, thank God.

King nodded. "James."As East disappeared down the hallway, King turned back to me and lifted a brow."Making good decisions, are we?"

My stomach dropped to the damn floor, but before I could muster up some kind of excuse, King cut me off.

"I'll see you in class, Zac. You can email the assignments."

Without another word, he walked off, leaving me standing there cursing both East and my wayward dick. Professor Kingston was fully within his power to reprimand me, but I had a feeling I'd just been given a one-time pass. Which meant I had to tell East tonight that we needed to keep our hookups outside of Astor for the rest of the semester. He'd probably be annoyed about that, because East wasn't the type to acknowledge there were rules he had to follow, but that was too bad.

I'd just have to blow his mind—and his impressive cock—until he saw things my way.