Page 24 of Finley

“I’m nine years your senior.”

Daniel couldn’t help the way his lips stretched into a grin, because that meant— “You checked to see how old I was?”

Professor Hayes’s mouth pulled into a tight grimace. “It doesn’t matter.”

Feeling braver than ever after having learned that piece of information, Daniel glided one of his hands up his teacher’s shirt and rested it over his ribs. “It kind of does.”

“No, it doesn’t. Whatever you think can happen between us, Daniel, it can’t.”

“Finn,” he gently reminded Hayes, and then he tightened his fingers around the fabric of the shirt under his palm. “Let me kiss you.”

Professor Hayes grabbed his wayward hand, halting Daniel in place as his eyes latched on to his, and Daniel marveled at the dark lashes surrounding them. He really was an extraordinarily attractive man.

“Just once. Let me kiss you, and if you?—”

“Stop talking,” Hayes said, and brought his other hand up so he could hold Daniel’s chin in place.

Daniel did as he had been told, mainly because he was having trouble breathing with his mouth that close to Professor Hayes.

“Youneedto stop talking.” Hayes grabbed a bottle of water, held it out to Daniel, and said, “Here’s your water. Now, I think you should go.”

Daniel took the plastic bottle, and, when Hayes stepped back, he straightened and moved away from the counter. He headed back the same way he’d come in, and at the last minute, he looked over his shoulder and asked, “How close were you to giving in?”

Professor Hayes stared him down, and Daniel thought that it was pretty fucking impressive that his eyes never left his, considering they werebothhard as hell.

Instead, Hayes inclined his head toward the door and said, “I have a class to get to, and so do you. Have a good day, Mr. Finley.”

Then he exited the kitchen, and Daniel was left standing there staring at Hayes’s perfect ass as he disappeared down the hall.

Chapter 7

BRANTLEY SENSED THE change in Daniel a second too late, and before he could pull out of his embrace, Daniel was pushing him away.

For a minute there, he’d let himself get swept up in the sensual lure and promise of Daniel’s mouth. But as the reality of what they were about to do set in, Brantley knew that it wasn’t the way he wanted to begin this new chapter of whatever they would become.

The troubled man rubbing an agitated hand over his face muttered, “I can’t do this.”

Brantley had figured that was coming. “Okay,” he said, unable to put into words what he really wanted to say. Something along the lines of,But don’t go.

“It’snotokay,” Daniel said as he glared at him. “I should be able to just…”

“Just?” Brantley said, hoping that what he was thinking wasn’t what Daniel was about to say.

“Just take what I want and be done with this. Be done withus.”

Yes,that was exactly what he hadn’t wanted to hear. He’d been so optimistic when he’d heard that Daniel was back. But with every minute that passed and the more he spoke with him, things were starting to look…

“Is that why you came back? To move on? To be done with this? Because I’m pretty sure you could’ve done that just as effectively from where you live, Finn.”

As the anger in his tone reached Daniel, the annoyance radiating off Brantley amplified. That was too damn bad, though. It pissed him off to no end to think that Daniel had come back to just fuck him out of his life. And it was abundantly clear that the pressure that had been simmering under the combustible lust had just exploded like a powder keg.

“Why are you so surprised?” Daniel said. “You were done with us years ago.”

Brantley took a step back, his mouth hanging open in shock. Daniel had left under strained circumstances, sure, but he’d never suspected this.

This…deep, underlying anger.

“No, Finn,” he said, tempering his own irritation. “You know that’s not true. I?—”