“He spank you?” Gabe’s eyes mocked across his coffee.
“Yes, Gabe,” I said calmly. “Because that’s how they punish bad students here at UW — with a yardstick and a smile.”
“I wish.” He whistled. “What I wouldn’t give to have Saylor—”
I plugged my ears.
He threw his head back and laughed while Saylor turned bright red and put her hand over his mouth to shush him.
“So…” Wes ignored Gabe as was his usual and leaned across the table. “…why don’t you take pictures of people here in the coffee shop? I mean, ask permission, but most people here are super interesting, right? Studying? Stressed out? Tired?” He pointed to a guy in the corner. “He looks like he’s running on five cups of coffee and one hour of sleep. Go ask, take the picture, make some notes, project done.”
“You make it sound so easy,” I grumbled.
He grinned. “I’m Wes Michels.”
I hung my head lower and grimaced.
“Phone.” He held out his hand and stood.
Within minutes, not only had he snapped two pictures for me but had taken notes on two pre-med students who had stayed up all night cramming for what they’d assumed would be a pop quiz, only to find out that they’d been in the wrong class on the wrong day.
“And that’s why I'm not pre-med.” Gabe shuddered.
“Really?” Kiersten asked. “I thought it was because big words scared you?”
“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. What now?” He nodded. “Keep talking, Kiersten, or keep walking.”
“Spell it.” She smirked.
“So this professor…” Gabe changed the subject. “If he tries anything, use the Mace or the rape whistle.”
“Right.” I nodded. “I’ll be sure to do that. In class. With a hundred other students. When he looks at me cross-eyed.”
“Good,” he huffed.
“I was kidding.”
Saylor patted Gabe’s shoulder. “Gotta let the baby birds out of the nest someday, Gabe.”
“No, that’s actually not true, and this is why—”
I leaned forward and banged my head against the coffee table a few times. “Okay, guys, as much as I love all this fun banter and exhausting dialogue, I really need to go finish this assignment, so you two—” I pointed at Gabe and Saylor. “—kiss away. And you guys—” I pointed at Wes and Kiersten. “—go solve world hunger or something.”
Wes tapped his chin . “Done.”
“Wise ass.” I grinned. “Now, you guys go be all mushy and hot elsewhere. I’m going to finish this assignment if it kills me, and then I’m going to go take a nice long walk.”
“And think about your hot professor?” Kiersten asked.
“Bye, guys. See you at the benefit.”
“Dress nice!” Gabe called as I walked off.
“Wear pants!” I called back as I pushed open the door to Starbucks and rammed smack-dab into heat.
My bag fell onto the ground with a thump. “I’m so sorry.” I bent to pick it up and noticed the shoes.
Brown shoes.
Ones that belonged to feet. Feet that I recognized from before. My gaze slid up the dark jeans and settled on a trim waist, finally landing on the same scowl I’d seen a few hours back.
“Maybe if you weren’t so late all the time, you wouldn’t be in such a hurry?” Professor Blake’s eyebrows shot up as he offered me his hand.
Left with no choice but to take it, I grasped his fingers, gasping as the contact singed me from head to toe. Hot professor was a serious, serious understatement. Swear, his gray eyes saw through my clothes.
His breathing changed just briefly before the mask went back on. He nodded to the papers clenched tightly in my hand. “Working on your assignment?”
“Yup.” I rocked back on my heels. “Caffeine’s my drug of choice and all that.”
He smiled.
Not a mocking smile, but a real smile, one that I felt all over my body like someone had just attached me to a freaking tanning bed and turned it on high. I took a step back, nearly colliding with another body leaving Starbucks.
“Whoa! Class meeting!” The male voice said from behind me. “Hey, do I get an A if I spot the professor out of class? You know like seeing a bear in the wild?”
Professor Blake’s eyes darkened as he turned slightly away from me. “No, Mr. McHale.”
“Damn.” He crossed his arms and laughed.
“Assignment’s due at midnight,” Professor Blake said in clipped tones then sidestepped both of us and walked into the coffee shop.
I exhaled in relief and started walking toward my dorm.
“Hey, wait up!” Jack called from behind me. “You finished yet?”
“No.” I wanted to kick every pinecone I saw but refrained, just barely. “I have a few more to write down.”
“Me too.” He smiled warmly. “Let’s do it together.” He blushed and then shook his head. “I mean the assignment.”
“I knew what you meant.” I laughed. “I’m a girl. We don’t think on that same… level.”
Jack eyed me up and down. “More’s the pity.”
“You gonna try to flirt or work?”
“Can I do both?”
“No.”
“Fine.” He slugged his backpack over his left shoulder. “Let’s go watch people.”