A Lesson in Temptation Read online

  She shrugged. “Well, you don’t have an accent, for one.”

  Only because he’d worked so hard to get rid of it. It had taken all four of his undergrad years, but he’d done it.

  The bartender set their drinks on the bar.

  Julie reached for her bag, but Adam put his hand on hers. “I got it.”

  A brief hesitation, and then she nodded. He dug out his wallet, setting the cash down on the bar before picking up his drink.

  “Cheers. Here’s to having fun.”

  She grabbed her glass and raised it. Their eyes locked. “To doing something for the sheer pleasure of it.” She tipped her glass forward and clinked it to his.

  His blood surged as he remembered her whispered words in class tonight. What about sex? He’d almost kissed her then, with her body soft and pliant against his, her eyes dark and seductive. He’d wanted her so badly he’d almost forgotten where they were. But that had been nothing compared to how much he wanted her now.

  Maybe that was the answer. Maybe he needed to sleep with her and get it over with. Maybe all this thinking about her was because she was like any other goal he’d ever gone after, and once he reached it, he could move on to the next thing.

  Adam shook his head at his own callous thoughts. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn’t. But regardless, she wasn’t a prize to be won, despite how much he wanted her.

  He should leave now, before he did something he regretted. “Julie,” he began.

  “You’re supposed to take a sip, Adam.” She was still watching him, her glass poised in front of her lips, which were parted slightly.

  Right.

  He sipped, barely tasting his drink, his senses were so overwhelmed. Would it be so bad to take her home and strip her, spread her open on his bed, and come for her?

  No. It wouldn’t be bad. It would be ecstasy.

  He’d worked nonstop since he was twelve years old, clawing his way out of poverty with the determination to become something—someone—important. And now this woman was making him wonder whether he actually had any willpower at all to walk away from her after this drink.

  Jesus. He took a deep gulp, draining half the glass. She eyed him strangely. “What did you mean earlier, when you said you’d never had fun before?”

  He looked down at the beer in his hand. “I meant exactly that.”

  She let out an exasperated breath. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at her through his lashes. “I spent most of my time working on our farm to help my parents make ends meet. When I left for college, I had to do well or I’d lose my scholarship, which was my only hope of getting out of the life that I’d left back in North Dakota. And ‘fun’ to my friends in college meant drinking, parties, and girls. Things that would have jeopardized everything I’d worked for.”

  He traced one finger around the rim of his glass. “After college, it was grad school, and on top of TA’ing, I spent a lot of time taking what I learned and building my savings. It happened pretty slowly, given my paltry grad student salary, but I did it. After I got my doctorate last year, I was offered a job by my adviser, I took on consulting projects in addition to my research, and everything in life exploded. I’ve never had time for hobbies. Unless you count going to the gym.”

  She made a soft sound of dismay. “You weren’t exaggerating, then. And it makes sense that someone bought you this class as a gift.” She brought one hand forward and patted his leg. “Who was it?”

  Such an innocent touch, and yet Adam’s blood fired at the feel of her fingers on his thigh. He wondered what they would feel like if there were no clothes between them, whether she would pat him in such a friendly way, or whether she would stroke gently, her nails scraping over the hair there. Or maybe she would massage him, knead all the way up to his ass and push his cock against—

  “I understand if you prefer not to tell me.” Her voice cut into his thoughts, making him jump at getting caught daydreaming about being naked with her.

  He cleared his throat, trying to focus. “I apologize. My mind wandered. And it was a friend of mine, Naomi Franklin.”

  “Professor Franklin?” Her voice squeaked, and he tensed at the reminder of who they really were. His position, his age, and the general impropriety of his thoughts just a moment ago.

  He nodded tightly. “Yeah. You took her class?”

  “The class took me, more like it.”

  I’d like to take you. Hard.

  He took another deep sip.

  She quirked an eyebrow at him. Great. Now he looked like he had a drinking problem. And it’s your turn to say something. Make it not creepy.

  “How’d you end up doing in her class, anyway?”

  She shrugged. “I made an A.”

  He nearly dropped his beer. Naomi was famous for her tough grading. Even he would have had a hard time getting such a good grade from her. Making an A in her class was impressive, to say the least.

  “How did you manage that?”

  He hadn’t meant for it to come out sounding so disbelieving. He remembered Julie as extremely bright, and she’d aced the course he had TA’d.

  “I studied, Professor Harkness.” He didn’t miss the annoyance in her voice, nor the way she called him by his title. But of course, she made it sound ironic.

  “I apologize, Miss Stanton.” He mimicked her formal address, and to her credit, she gave a small laugh. “I didn’t intend to insult your intelligence. In fact, I know from experience that you’re incredibly smart. But I also remember that many diligent students came out of her class with a B-plus, at most. You don’t strike me as someone who would have holed up in the library and studied as much as one would have needed to earn such a high grade.”

  “Appearances can be deceiving, I guess. I got out enough in college, but only because I made it a specific goal to enjoy my life. Have fun.”

  Another surprise. He thought her fun-loving personality was natural. “Why?”

  But she just said, “Priorities,” her mouth drawing tight and her face shuttering, clearly ending that topic of conversation. Interesting. She raised her glass again, and this time, he watched her lips close around the rim, her throat work delicately as she swallowed, her tongue dart out to lick away any lingering drops. He drained his beer and nearly slammed it back down on the bar. When he looked back at her, she was frowning.

  “Wow, that was the fastest ‘one drink’ I’ve ever seen.” She paused for a second, her finger tracing a pattern on the bar. “Does this mean you’re going home now?”

  He stood up slowly, searching for a way to explain, to offer some excuse, but nothing would come. All he could do was nod. She set her own glass back on the bar, slowly. Then she took a deep breath, and the words she spoke next managed to intoxicate him more than the alcohol he’d just drunk.

  “Want some company?”

  Chapter Seven

  Adam was staring at her like she’d just admitted to murder, or something equally heinous. Julie tried not to cover her face and run away, but she desperately wanted to fall through the floor right now. Even though she wasn’t inexperienced with guys, she’d never been the one to make the first move. And especially not when she had a history with the guy.

  But something about Adam made her feel reckless enough to take a chance, it seemed. She reached out to pick up her drink again, trying to cover her embarrassment, but before her fingers could close around the glass, Adam’s hand was on her wrist, tugging her upright until her face was only inches from his.

  “I’d love some.” His breathing was coming fast, and she had a sudden image of bare skin, his body working over hers, his face exactly like this as he neared his climax.

  Oh, wow. Wow wow wow. Thank God she’d worn the blue set.

  Within a couple of minutes, they were pushing out of the bar, Adam grabbing her hand and leading her to the edge of the street to hail a cab.

  A taxi pulled up and he opened the door for her, ushering her inside before settling in himself. She was st
ill wearing his jacket, though she no longer needed it. She’d never felt hotter in her life.

  “Hundred-twelfth and Amsterdam,” he told the driver, and as the car sped away from the curb, his hand settled on her knee, gently squeezing. She nearly moaned at that relatively innocent touch, she was so desperate for him.

  By the time the cab stopped, her control was nearly gone. And all he had done was keep his hand on her knee during the ride. She jumped out and waited on the sidewalk while he paid the driver. But when he stepped out and joined her, his face had lost that intense, predatory look that he’d worn at the bar. His mouth was drawn tight, as though he had made a decision he didn’t like, but was determined to go through with it.

  Her heart sank as he stopped a foot away from her. “Julie—”

  But before he could say anything more, she made her own choice. She stepped forward and slid her arms around his waist, tipped her head up to his, and kissed him.

  …

  Convictions officially shot to hell.

  As the cab had sped through the street of Manhattan, Adam had gripped Julie’s knee and wondered what the fuck he had been thinking. It was one thing to imagine having sex with her just to get past the infatuation stage and back to his work, and another thing to actually go through with it. Because he knew what would happen. He’d sleep with her, and then he’d have had her, and he’d walk away. There was too much risk in that. She might get hurt. That had been enough to convince him, and he’d been about to tell her that he’d made a mistake.

  Until she’d pushed up on her toes and licked at his lips, and his cock had immediately grown hard and heavy, crowding out his more rational thoughts. He looped an arm around her waist and hitched her higher against him, letting her play in his mouth for a bit before he took over the kiss, thrusting his tongue into her sweet, wet heat until she moaned and arched against him.

  The sound of a car horn beeping at a red light had him pulling his lips away. He’d completely lost himself in her, forgetting that they were standing on a public street corner.

  There was no way he could not have her. But she had to know what she was getting, first.

  “Listen, Julie.” He forced his breathing to even out. “Before we do this, I need you to know that I can’t—this can’t be more than one night.”

  Her face fell. Damn it.

  “It’s just that I have a lot on my plate. I can’t slow down, even for a minute, and I’ve already spent too much time away from my work because of the tango class and—”

  “Fine.” She pushed through his explanation with a single word.

  “Did you say—”

  She nodded. “One night. That’s fine. I just want you.”

  He stared at her for a moment, but then his body took over and he reached out his hand, taking hers and turning toward the entrance of his apartment building. “Let’s go up, then.”

  He practically hauled her inside, but she rushed along with him, laughing, and pressed her breasts against his back as he unlocked the door. They stumbled into his foyer, drunk on desire, pushing and pulling at each other in a frenzied dance toward the bedroom.

  God, this woman made him crazy.

  His jacket fell from her shoulders, and she pulled her own shirt off, discarding it on the floor in front of his bed where, finally, he paused, chest heaving, cock throbbing. He must look like a wild man. He could feel his hair sticking up in some places where she was running her fingers through it, tugging gently when he kissed her neck near her ear.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he breathed, and it pained him that he couldn’t think of anything more poetic to describe just how awe-inspiring she was, but what he had said was the truth. She was beautiful. Creamy, flawless skin, flat stomach, and full breasts plumped up in a blue silky something that made her look like a pinup girl. She blushed, and he felt a thrill at the sight of that pink wash spreading over her body. He had wondered about this, whether she blushed everywhere.

  It made something mad and animal rise in him, something he never even knew he was capable of. She reached for him and he was on her in seconds, turning her, lowering her to the platform bed before taking her mouth again. Her hands slid up his body, pushing his shirt up, and even though he hated the vanity of the thought, he breathed a sigh of relief that he went to the gym regularly. He was fit enough to at least hold his own against the kind of guys that she was probably used to.

  But that made him think of her with other guys, and a hot wave of jealousy rushed through him, suddenly, unexpectedly, and it made his fingers rough when he reached behind her back to unclasp her bra, bumping her forward, putting her mouth only a hairbreadth away from his jeans zipper even as her bra slipped down, her breasts spilling free.

  His cock pulsed at the sight. Her lips were deep pink and puffy, her nipples hard and pointing upward, two dots of color on perfect, pale skin. She leaned forward, closing that small space between lips and fabric, and pressed her open mouth against the placket of his jeans.

  He groaned and slid his hand into her hair. “Julie. God, baby. I wasn’t trying to …”

  But he trailed off, because now she had her hand at his waistband and was working it open, unbuttoning and unzipping and pushing his pants down until his erection sprang free, standing almost level with his navel.

  “Oh.” Her mouth was rounded with surprise as she tried to palm his length but only managed to fit part of him in her curling fingers. His cock was so hard, her touch almost hurt, and he sucked in a breath through his teeth when she ran one finger over the bead of moisture at the tip, spreading it over the wide head before slowly pulling him to her mouth. God, yes.

  Except… “Julie.” He was trying again to tell her that she didn’t have to do this, but the rest died in a harsh grunt as her lips closed over him.

  The pleasure was so intense now that he was reduced to nothing but pure feeling, all concentrated in his cock. There was no way he was going to last. He drew out of her mouth with a groan, pulling her up off the bed and yanking her jeans down before pushing her back again, rolling them the rest of the way off her legs. And then she was lying on his bed, her hair spread about her, naked except for a scrap of blue silk across her sex.

  “Adam.” His name came out of her on a sigh. She lifted her hips in invitation and that was all he needed. He stripped completely, not taking his eyes off of her for a moment, before bending down to slide those pretty blue panties off her body. Her legs parted, leaving him staring glassy-eyed at the sweet pink cleft between her soft thighs.

  “Yeah.” He could only grunt basic sounds now, he was so lost in the intense, burning need to have her just take her. He put his hands beneath her thighs to pull her body to the edge of the bed. This time, the kiss they shared was hot, dirty, and wet, and he couldn’t help stroking himself as their tongues slid over each other, fucking each other’s mouth.

  Insane. This was insane. He’d never done something this wildly reckless in his life, and certainly never with someone like her. A faint memory flashed of being so close to her lips, three years ago, before he’d pulled away out of fear. Had he known even then that it would be like this? Is that why he’d drawn away?

  He moved back a step, but stayed hunched over, his cock so painfully hard now that it was pulling him into a crouch. “Julie. Do you—” Adam shut his eyes against the vision of her swollen lips, her bare body, flushed with desire. “I don’t think I can wait.”

  She sank backward and looked up at him. “Then don’t.”

  He yanked open the drawer of his nightstand and pulled out the box of condoms. There was a moment of frustration when he realized he still hadn’t opened the box since he’d bought it last year, but he still managed to rip into it and draw a condom on in record time.

  Now. He was going to have her now. He’d lost any finesse completely, long ago. All he knew now was the need to be deep inside her. He took himself in hand, positioned himself at her entrance, and pushed.

  “Oh my God.” She gasped, jer
king in response as his head breached her entrance.

  Holy fuck, she was so small and hot and wet. He shut his eyes for a moment and pushed deeper. Her legs tightened around his hips, and she made a small sound of discomfort. His eyes snapped open and his hips froze in place.

  “You okay?” he could barely get the words out, her passage was squeezing him so hard, but he forced himself to wait, bringing one hand around to gently stroke her clit. He felt her relaxing, just slightly, and after what seemed like an eternity, she finally nodded, spreading her legs a little wider.

  He pushed again, just another inch, and this time she moaned, “Ohhhh, Adam.”

  Fuck, yeah. The sound of his name, just like that. Another push. This thrust was harder, and a couple more inches slipped inside. She groaned and bucked, and he massaged her body, working her open by degrees. She writhed beneath him all the while, squeezing and pulsing around him until, after what seemed like an eternity, the base of his cock met the tight ring of her entrance, and both of them let out heavy sounds of satisfaction. They were both breathing hard, and his forehead was damp with perspiration

  He couldn’t imagine anything better.

  But it was getting harder to stave off his release, and the urge to move, to thrust blindly, was spreading like wildfire through his limbs.

  “Please, Adam. I’m so close.” She pushed her swollen bud against his fingers. “Please.”

  Oh, thank God.

  He pulled out slowly, pushing the heel of his hand against her clit, and her breathing grew faster. “Yes. Yes, like that.”

  He could feel his climax approaching, and he thrust back in hard, fast, unable to hold back anymore. He kept his hand against her for one thrust, two, in rapid succession, and that was all it took. She gasped and bowed off the bed, arching those beautiful breasts toward him, and he felt her channel contract tightly just before she screamed his name, spasming around him, pulling his own orgasm from his body in shuddering waves.

  …

  I just had the best sex of my life with Adam Hotness.

  Julie had never felt anything like this. Her former boyfriends had never been able to get her so hot, so fast, and the sex had been more like a chore than anything. She was holding Adam after he’d practically collapsed atop her, completely spent, and sifted her fingers through his hair. His weight was pleasantly heavy, and she widened her legs to let him sink into her body, running her hands over the hard muscles of his back, the firmness of his ass, before pressing a kiss to his cheek.