Hot For Teacher(153)

True, Jake wanted her. He was honest enough with himself to admit that much. But more than anything, he wanted to help her. He was certain her closed off nature was a direct result of the aftermath of Preston’s accident. So, he couldn’t help but feel partially responsible for it.

For all his noble intentions, Jake couldn’t help but feel like a gawky teen, waiting for his Prom date to come down the stairs, as he prepped his apartment for Savannah’s arrival. He tried to see his apartment through the fresh eyes of a young girl. What did Savannah think of the man he’d become? Did she see him as wasted potential? A poor college professor who threw away a professional football career to teach history? Or the traitor who’d ruined her brother’s life?

Brushing the unwelcome thoughts off, he nervously tidied and nitpicked until he’d rearranged the same furniture so many times there was nowhere left to move them. The doorbell peeled and his heart leapt in anticipation. She was there. Jake had never imagined being so excited about having Savannah Bradshaw back in his life. Then again, he’d never imagined his life without her before the accident.

He strode over to the door and yanked it open. There she was. Standing in his porch light, as beautiful as the first day of class, with her dark hair tucked beneath an over-sized hoodie and her long legs encased in faded denim. Her full lips parted into a shy smile that tied Jake’s gut into knots.

“Hi.”

***

Savannah stuffed her hands in the pouch of her hoodie and bounced nervously on the balls of her feet as she waited on Jake’s front stoop. She shouldn’t be there. Someone could see her. Jake could get in a ton of trouble. So could she. She should turn around and go right back to her dorm. But she’d already come this far.

Before she could change her mind and run for it, Jake tugged the door open. His face lit up the moment their eyes met. And all thoughts of running evaporated. Jake was safety and comfort. Jake was home.

“Hi,” she said softly, smiling shyly up at him through her lashes.

Gone were the dress shirt, tie, and slacks. A cotton t-shirt boasting his alma mater and sweatpants that looked impossibly soft had taken their place. Savannah liked comfy Jake. He reminded her of the boy who’d lounged around watching Saturday morning cartoons with her and Preston.

“Hi back,” Jake said with a soft smile, stepping aside to let her in.

Savannah bent to pull off her sneakers, cast a glance at his adorably bare masculine feet, and stripped out of her socks too.

“Please, make yourself at home,” Jake chuckled, nodding at her newly bared feet.

“Hey, it’s only fair,” Savannah protested. “You didn’t specify this was a pajama party. I feel uncomfortably overdressed.” She indicated her jean-clad legs with the sweep of her hands.

“That’s an easy fix,” Jake laughed, disappearing into a room off of the main living area. He reappeared, brandishing a pair of flannel pajama pants certain to be several sizes too large for her. He held them out to her with a grin. “Bathroom is the second door on the right. You can change there.”

Eyeing the bundle of flannel warily, Savannah considered declining, but thought better of it. Comfort always won out in her mind. With a sigh, she snagged the pants from his hands and marched in the direction of the bathroom. Behind the closed door, she stripped out of her jeans, folded them neatly, set them on the counter, and stepped into Jake’s pajama pants. Cinching the large waist and rolling the band down, she was able to make his giant-sized clothing stay on her much smaller frame.

Doffing her hood, she gave her hair a little fluff in the mirror and padded back out into the apartment. Much like his office, Jake’s apartment had a simple, yet masculine air to it. Bookshelves lined two walls of the main living area, chock full of hard cover texts. An overstuffed sectional took up the rest of the room, facing a big screen television beneath a sign that read ‘man cave.’ The space was well-maintained and impressively tidy, although she suspected from the usual condition of his office desk that he’d cleaned in anticipation of her visit.

Jake smiled at her from the kitchen as she strode out into the living room and stood uncertainly beside the enormous sectional. “Damn, Vanna, you even make my old flannel look good.”

The buttery scent of popcorn filled the air as he shook a bag of microwave popcorn into a big glass bowl. Saliva flooded Savannah’s mouth, not just for the delicious man, but the salty treat he prepared. The only thing better than buttered popcorn was buttered popcorn with M&M’s mixed in. If Jake remembered her weakness for that combination, she swore she’d throw herself in his arms and kiss him right then and there.