A Taste of Temptation(2)
Brandi ducked in her seat so he couldn’t see her. As he continued, all she could see was the sexy man that had turned her out, an entire night and well into the next morning. The more she thought about having slept with her English professor, the sicker she felt. She had worked way too hard to get into Madison to have it all suddenly come crashing down. Sleeping with a professor was not the best way to start a course of study. Sleeping her way to the top wasn’t about to happen.
For the past month, the very thought of Jacob Wells made her smile. Now thoughts of him brought on emotions far different from the ones he had aroused in her that night. Shock and embarrassment washed over her. She couldn’t look at a man who represented unwanted friction in her life. She grabbed her books and ran out. Tiffany was able to stop staring at Polaris long enough to see Brandi run from the lecture hall.
Tiffany caught up with Brandi, who was huddled in a corner in the main hallway. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not okay. I can’t go back in there.”
She took Brandi’s shaking hands. “That is not your lover, Brandi. There are a lot of people who look alike in this world. I’m sure that’s the case here.”
“I’m not. He’s too much of an exact replica. He would have to be a twin because everything is exactly the same, from the shape of his head to his shoes. Everything, Tiff.”
“He’s is our professor, nonetheless. Isn’t he everything I told you he was?”
“That and more.”
“Okay, I’m missing something here.”
“You don’t understand.”
“You’re right, I don’t! Girlfriend, women don’t run from Polaris; they run to him.”
“That’s…that’s him, Tiffany. That’s the same man from the Entrapment, no matter what you say.”
Tiffany frowned. “Still on that, I see.”
“Yes, I’m still on that because he is who I was with. No doubts.”
“You didn’t say his name was Tim when you called me the next day.”
“I said his name was Jacob Anthony Wells, but apparently that wasn’t his real name. Don’t you understand? He…he lied to me—lied, like all men seem to do. ‘Jacob’ and Polaris are the same person.” She looked desperately into her buddy’s face. “I slept with Timothy Polaris, and didn’t even know it.”
“Maybe you’re right, since you’re so dead sure about it. I guess you would be since you were able to get a good look at him from the monitors around the room.” She leaned against the wall. “You got a good look at him somewhere else, if you know what I’m saying.”
“I do know what you’re saying, and it’s not bringing a smile to my face. Not this time.”
Tiffany covered her face and took a deep breath. “You lucky heifer. Don’t you know that women would give up organs to sleep with him? They transfer from other schools to get him.” She rested her books on the floor and smiled into Brandi’s less-than-eager face. “Dang, girl! You’ve made history and don’t even appreciate it.”
Brandi stared at her in amazement. “You really don’t get it, do you? I have slept with my professor, not a great way to start at the one school I’ve wanted to attend since seventh grade. Even worse, he lied to me. Haven’t I had enough of that with Eric?”
“First of all, you didn’t commit a mortal sin. Professors need love, too. True, it shouldn’t be done if he’s your professor, but it happens.”
“How do you know?”
“Women talk, Brandi. I see and hear all kinds of things because my nose is always into someone’s business. I admit to that, proud of it, actually! I would consider it myself if Polaris as much as looked at me, which he never has, I’m sorry to say!”
“Be serious. This is terrible. I could lose everything I’ve worked for. Winning the Seymour is not an everyday thing. Besides, he could lose his job, too!”
“He won’t let that happen, girl, and you know it! Timothy Polaris is too smart for that. The guy has a nightlife, apparently. Because he’s a college professor doesn’t mean he has to stay home and grade papers all night. It makes sense to use a fake name. I know dudes who do that all the time, not that they have to. Yet, they do it. So does he, apparently.”
”He lied to me, Tiff!”
“I know. I’m not saying the lying part was cool, but he had his reasons. You could still have a relationship with him.”
Brandi’s voice dripped sarcasm. “Really now; do tell.”
“If you like the dude, you’ll figure something out.” Tiffany couldn’t suppress a devilish grin.
“Why are you smiling at me like that? Let’s go so I can face the music, very unsettling music.”
“Not just yet. I need to know something.”
“Yeah, like what?”
She lowered her voice. “What was it like? You know, being in bed with Timothy Polaris?”
“Are you crazy? That’s personal.”
“I tell you about my conquests.”
“You always volunteer details like they’re notches on your belt or something.”
“A girl’s got to be proud of something, right? Come on! You’re holding the key that every chick on campus would pay big time for.”
“This better not go any further than this little huddle you’ve got me in.” Her eyes took on a dreamy look. “For lack of better words, it was out of this freakin’ world! I never knew sex could be like that. With Eric it was on the verge of boring. I could balance my checkbook while Eric and I were in bed, but with Polaris, every nerve ending was on fire!”
“He looks like he’s great at everything, especially sex. A man who looks like that can’t help but jam. Come to think of it, don’t you think he looks like Prince William? I bet he can jam, too.”
“Right, when the tabloids aren’t chasing him.” She looked at her watch. “We had better get back in there. My dreams are over!”
“You’ll figure out what to do. Just believe that you will.”
Brandi grabbed her books and walked toward the lecture hall. “There’s no solution to this problem.”
“You’re not going to see him after sharing a night with the only man you seem to care about?”
“He made it clear that night that it was a one-time thing.”
“And you were okay with that?”
“I had to be.”
“But if you like him…”
“I just said what could happen!”
“So you’re going to sit there day after day, remembering what you two did and not even try to make anything else happen?”
“Yep.”
“Have you changed that much?”
“Again, yep. I can’t ruin things for both of us, and apparently I can’t trust him, anyway.”
“I think it’s because he’s white. Your attraction to a white man scares you. You don’t want it out of the closet.”
“That’s not it! He was white the other night, and I wasn’t scared then.”
“I just don’t get what the urgency is.”
“Things have changed. Despite knowing what’s in his pants, I still have to get an education from him.”
“Sure wish I could experience what’s in his pants because he’s fine as hell, girl! You’re lucky.”
* * *
“Glad someone thinks so; I sure don’t.”
Tim had completed his course overview and was announcing the scholarship recipients when Brandi and Tiffany walked back in. Brandi and Tim’s eyes locked briefly and his mind kicked into maximum overdrive. Please tell me this is not Brandi Miles. The other name on his list of recipients was Joseph Drake; surely, that name didn’t match that lovely face. He looked at the name again. This can’t be happening to me. He squared his shoulders, trying to keep what little composure he had left. “Are you Brandi Miles?”
“Yes.” She stood frozen in her tracks. Tiffany had to force her into her seat. She stared at him open-mouthed, unaware of everything in the room other than the man talking to her. His voice was so real to her, as if she had heard it just the night before. He was impressive, memorable. She could still feel him making love to her as no man ever had. How his body moved through hers with powerful force. He would be the one, wouldn’t he?
Tim forced himself to look back at the paper in his hand. Yes, there was a red star next to her name. He cleared his throat. “Welcome to Madison Tech, and congratulations on the Seymour Scholarship.”
Brandi felt hyperconscious of herself and her surroundings, as if everyone knew what she had done with him. She knew she was being paranoid. People were looking at her because it took mega brains to even apply for that scholarship, let alone win it. She knew he was aware of her intelligence based on their conversation that night. However, she hadn’t mentioned her schooling, and he had failed to inquire. Turns out to have been a bad move for both of them.
Throughout his lecture, his eyes came back to hers. Something that was normally so easy for him, such as teaching sophomore composition, suddenly was not very easy at all. He wanted to get out of there and never return. The fact that he was paid handsomely kept him there. Now Brandi would keep him there. He didn’t like the idea of having slept with a student, but couldn’t change it. His only recourse was to pray that it would stay between them.