Always You(24)

But it was. At least, that’s what society wanted us to think. We could have the most exceptional circumstances in the world and it wouldn’t make a damn difference.

He would always be my teacher, and me, his student. I just prayed he could get past that.





Chapter Fifteen


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Dalton

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The more time I spent with Wrenn, the more I liked her the more I liked her. Every moment I spent with her, she cemented herself a little bit more in my life. Slowly, she was beginning to unravel the walls I’d built around myself.

And that made me nervous.

I laughed to myself. The funny thing was that she could sense my anxiety about our relationship, and she thought it was all to do with the fact that I was her teacher. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Honestly? The risk of losing my job—I’d risk it all in a second for her. How bad was that?

No, this ran much deeper. It killed me that it was always in the back of my mind. One test, and I’d know. One way or the other I’d know for sure. But I didn’t want to know. Hell, I was angry at my own mother. Why couldn’t she have lied to me? I wouldn’t have known the difference. I could have lived my life not caring.

Sometimes it was best not knowing.

***

The realization hit me late one afternoon after Mom texted me, reminding me it was coming up to the anniversary of Dad’s death. I couldn’t do this. It had to stop. I had to think of Wrenn before this went any further. I could end it now. I wasn’t sure I’d have the strength if I left it much longer.

Picking up my phone, I texted her, asking her to meet me down by the river. A deserted space, the river was a favorite place for us to meet, because it was so far out of the way there was no chance of us getting caught.

Sure. Give me twenty minutes xx

I grabbed my jacket and headed to my car. I couldn’t think straight. All I wanted was to take her in my arms, and feel her skin against mine, and taste those sweet little lips. Fuck, she was intoxicating. Even the thought of her being close to me got me hard. Hell, thinking about her in class last week had gotten me aroused.

That’s a good look.

How the hell was I going to end this and still be around her for the next few weeks? And then what? She’d made it clear she would wait for me. What excuse would I have when she was no longer my student?

I thought about telling her everything, but I didn’t want pity. I didn’t want her to confuse her feelings of sympathy with desire for me. Yet I hated the thought of her not wanting me at all.

The thought of her kissing some teenage boy who knew nothing about pleasing her made me want to punch the shit out of someone. The kinds of emotions I was feeling were completely new to me, and honestly, they scared me.

The drive to the river was ten minutes. She was there already. Waiting for me. Her face lit up when she saw me, her lips parting into a smile that reached those stunning green eyes. I breathed in hard as she stepped out of her car. She looked so f*cking sexy. Her boots came up to her mid-calf over her tight jeans, which showed all her curves. She wore a fitted blue sweater under her jacket.

My heart raced as I stepped out of my car. She leaned in to kiss me, and I let her. I was here to break up with her, yet all I wanted to do was explore every inch of that body with my hands, my mouth, and my tongue. I laughed. Oh, the irony.

God, all I could smell was the sweet floral scent of her perfume. And the freshness of her skin. She waited for me to say something, her brow furrowing as she studied my face. She knew something was wrong.

“Wrenn. I can’t do this to you. We need to stop this before it goes any further.” There, I said it. Did I feel any better?

No. I felt like shit.

She stepped back, crossing her arms over her chest, her eyes widening. She hadn’t been expecting me to say that.

“What do you mean, we can’t?” she said evenly. “You didn’t seem to have any problem with it the last few weeks.” She was hurt. I could see it in her eyes. And I didn’t blame her. It had come out of nowhere.

“I’m sorry. This . . . I can’t do this.” I so badly wanted to elaborate, but I couldn’t.

What could I tell her? That I was so close to falling in love with her? That the last thing on my mind was the fact she was my student? I was hiding something, something so potentially life-changing—for both of us. Something she deserved to know.

But how could I tell her? How could I be responsible for breaking her heart like that? I’d rather end this now and have her think I was a weak piece of shit.

“I don’t care that you’re my teacher, Dalton. I don’t give a damn about that.” She was angry now. Her green eyes flashed as she stared me down. So much fire and passion for such a quiet girl. She knew what she wanted, and she wasn’t going to give up without a fight.

“But I do,” I fibbed. “My career, Wrenn. I’ve worked too hard to get where I am to ruin it all on . . . ” My voice trailed off. The only way to do this was to convince her my career meant more to me than she did.

“On me?” she supplied. Her face hardened. “I get it. You don’t want to throw your career away on some fling, right? I was just some cheap entertainment to get you through the year?” She glared at me, demanding an answer that I wouldn’t give her. She nodded. “I’m surprised you didn’t f*ck me while you had the chance,” she taunted.