Temptation (The Hunted, #1)(22)

Professor Hunter's shoulders slowly rose as he took a deep breath. When they fell back down, I heard a sigh escape from his lips. He ran his hand through his smooth hair and started scribbling on the next piece of paper.

After the last speech, he dismissed the class. I said goodbye to Tyler, but remained seated, fiddling with things in my backpack. When the class was empty, I stood up and walked in front of Professor Hunter's desk.

"Did you enjoy my speech, Professor Hunter?"

He looked up at me. "Miss Taylor, you'll have to wait until Monday for your grade, just like the other students."

Great, I was now lumped with all the rest of his students in his mind. I looked down so that he couldn't see that I was hurt by his words.

He lightly touched my elbow. I looked back up at him.

"But I will say that it was rather enlightening."

I almost melted under his touch.

His fingers lingered for another moment and then he let his hand fall to the desk. He stood up so that he was now towering above me. He leaned forward as he went to grab his satchel. When his head was level with mine he paused. Our faces were only a few inches apart. He flashed me a smile. "Have a good weekend, Penny," he said and then grabbed his satchel and quickly exited the room, leaving me speechless. His intoxicating scent lingered in the air for a few moments after he disappeared.





Chapter 19


Monday

I had eagerly waited for the weekend to end, but now that it was over I was incredibly nervous. Professor Hunter had definitely liked my speech. I had made him smile. Originally, I thought that Tyler's comment had upset him, but then Professor Hunter had acted the way he had before our kiss. He seemed to like me again.

I took great pains getting ready for class. I added a few curls to my hair with my curling iron, and then ran my hands through them to give them a looser, more natural look. After scrutinizing my closet, I ended up wearing a turquoise high low skirt and a black tank top. It was casual, yet still chic. I wanted Professor Hunter's eyes on me, and he didn't seem opposed to the more casual look. I strapped on a pair of sandals, and without another look in the mirror, I went to class.

Tyler was already in his seat. When I sat down he was all smiles. "Well, you look fantastic," he said.

"Thanks, Tyler."

"So, do you want to have lunch again on Wednesday?"

"Yeah, I'd like that. Do you think we'll get our grades today?"

"Probably. I think he was just grading them while everyone presented. Why, are you nervous that you failed?"

"Should I be?" My jittery nerves were taking a quick turn into panic mode.

"No, Penny, it was a great speech. You seemed a little nervous presenting, but so did everyone else. Besides, you did exactly what he wanted, you thought outside the box. I wouldn't be surprised if you got an A."

A moment later, Professor Hunter walked into the classroom. I turned to face him. He was wearing his usual sweater and dress shirt combo with a pair of dark jeans. He seemed to get sexier every time I saw him. His hair was sleek and sticking up a little at the top today. He was clean shaven again.

"So I have the grades here," he said and lifted a stack of papers out of his satchel. "You'll get them at the end of class. The main problem that I saw with the first speeches was the amount of eye contact."

He grabbed the podium from the corner and placed it in the middle of the room. "Okay, I'm going to give you two examples, and I want you to tell me which speech is better." He pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and began reading it word for word without looking up:

"My older sister always inspired me growing up. She did everything first, fearlessly. And I admired her for that. Her insane courage was something that I lacked, but reveled in. She always pushed the boundaries and knew what she wanted. And she was determined enough to go after all her dreams. I just wished she had rubbed off on me a little more. Don't get me wrong, I love being your teacher. But I like to follow the rules. I like to play it safe. Because of her, though, sometimes I feel compelled to take those risky chances. Sometimes I make huge, stupid mistakes and don't look back. She inspired me to be strong."

Am I one of those huge, stupid mistakes? He wants to move forward with me!

"Okay, let me try that again. And let's see if you can see a difference." This time he gave the same speech, but only looked down once. For most of it, he gazed around the room. He made gestures with his hands. He delivered his joke a little louder and smiled to himself afterwards. He paused as the class laughed, clearly reacting to them. And he added another joke in since the class seemed to enjoy the first.

"So, which speech was better?"

A hand shot up in the front of the room.

"Yes, Miss Lang?"

"The second one. In the first one, you didn't make any eye contact. And you were pretty monotone throughout."

"Right. Was there anything else about the second one that was better?"

Another hand shot up.

"Mr. Potter?"

"You emphasized different parts of the speech and also had more personality during it. You used hand gestures and stuff."

"Right. So how many of you preferred the first speech over the second one?"

No one raised their hands.

"So why did half of you give me a speech like that first one, if you can so easily tell that the second one is better?"