AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I think I’m going to make it my personal mission to break you of that habit,” he said, his sly, playful grin making him look boyishly handsome.
“Is that right?” I teased back and chased his mouth for another peck. If that’s all I could have, I’d take it. But he deepened the kiss I instigated, and after a minute of our tongues stabbing and dueling, a low groan vibrated out of him and straight into me.
We pulled apart, and I suspected my facial expression mirrored his. He had to know how badly I didn’t want to stop.
“If you close and lock the door, you could lie with me?” I suggested the idea with the lilt of a question because I wasn’t sure how he’d react. I didn’t want to feel embarrassed if he shot me down.
“I think you need your rest, baby. Not your horny professor groping you through your pj’s.” He cushioned the rejection with a wink, and if I were wearing panties beneath my sleep shorts, they would’ve melted right off.
“I don’t know…” I drew out playfully. “I could make a case for that.”
“Oh, the day will come—if I have a say in the matter,” he assured. “So are you going to let people deface this thing?” He motioned to my cast, changing the subject.
I plastered on a masterful pout, and he chuckled.
“Why? Do you want to be the first to write your name on it?”
“Honestly, I’d like my name to be the only one on it.” He made the comment so nonchalantly, I thought maybe I misunderstood what he said.
Luckily, he saved me from having to come up with a response to his unexpected possessive comment by once more changing the subject altogether.
“So how long in the cast? Will you need physical therapy when it comes off?”
“The doctor said six to eight weeks in the cast, which is basically the entire summer.” I pouted again in case he didn’t pick up my opinion on that tidbit from my tone. “He said we have to play it by ear when the cast comes off. If I have good range of motion after the bone heals, maybe not. Since I’m young and otherwise healthy, it should heal just fine. I was lucky because it is a pretty clean fracture.”
He grew very solemn then and apologized again. “I’m so sorry.”
“Look. If you apologize one more time, I’m going to kick you out of here and not show up to school tomorrow.” Yes, my threat was empty, but he had to stop taking ownership for my clumsiness.
“Hmmm.” He made the noise dark and sexy somehow. “Who knew you were so bossy under this sweet good-girl exterior?”
“Good girl, huh?” I tried to laugh, but it sounded as awkward as me refuting that was the vibe I put off.
Andrew raised a brow skeptically. “Are you telling me you’re really a bad, bad girl under all this pretty fluff?” He fingered the end of my braid, and even that slight touch sent thrills through my whole body.
He leaned closer to kiss me again, but there was a loud knock on the doorframe. I had completely forgotten the door was still wide open.
“Hey there… Whoa…” my twin clipped as she strode across the room. “Don’t mind me. I just need to grab my laptop, and I’ll be out of the way.”
I let out a huge sigh of relief that it had been her and not one of my parents.
“Hey, Shep!” I said, excited to see her. It had been days, and I missed her. I was so anxious to catch her up with what had happened between my professor and me. Of course, I couldn’t do that with the man sitting on the edge of my bed, but the minute he left, I’d tell her everything.
In the meantime, I made some introductions. “Andrew, this is my sister, Shepperd. Shep, this is my…my ummm…” Okay, so I hadn’t thought this through. At all.
While I fumbled and stammered about what to call him, he stood and crossed the room to offer a friendly hand to my twin.
“Andrew Chaplin. How are you?” he said without missing a beat.
With a weary expression, Shepperd took his hand and mumbled some sort of greeting. She was eyeballing the guy up and down, though, and like always, I felt compelled to interject.
“How was your day? I haven’t seen you since, what? The day before yesterday?”
Rather than answer the question I asked, she bugged her eyes out when she got a view of the bright-blue cast.
“Whooaaa, Mayday. What the hell happened? Are you okay?”
Before she could rein it back in, her natural concern for me shone through. Just hearing her distress made my heart swell, and my smile couldn’t be contained. It probably outwardly looked like an odd reaction to her worry, but we all had become too accustomed to the bitter version of her lately, and it was a nice surprise to see the caring, compassionate sister I grew up with.
