Page 1 of Schooling Lucy (Off Limits #1)

R OMAN

"Did you have a good summer break, Mr. Drake?"

I paused mid-word, glancing up at the owner of that breathy voice. I was exasperated and rapidly losing patience as Isobel stared at me from her seat at the front of my class. Her overly made-up eyes were focused on me, making her thick, fake eyelashes flutter like two moths against her lids.

This was the fourth time Isobel had interrupted my class by chiming in with another pointless question aimed at my personal life. It was starting to grate on me.

She licked her lips in what I'm sure she thought was a look of intimate seduction. Instead, she looked like a child licking a glob of red gunk off her mouth.

The class I was teaching was twelfth-grade Chemistry, so most students were either eighteen or on the cusp of reaching that milestone into what society deemed the start of adulthood.

They were immature with an annoying sense of adult entitlement which they thought they'd earned since they were on the verge of leaving home, could consent to sex, and had the freedom of a driver's permit.

But to me, they would always be children.

I loved teaching; truly, I did. The majority of students were a pleasure to teach. But a select few always liked to stir the pot for shits and giggles.

Speaking of giggles, Isobel's friend - who had been whispering and sending not-so-subtle elbow digs to Isobel - was giggling behind her hand as she eyed me. Like I said - children .

Isobel obviously felt emboldened by her merry follower to keep interrupting the class.

Too bad I ate disruptive students for breakfast.

"As you two insist on distracting the class from learning, please give everyone a brief rundown on the laws of thermodynamics."

Isobel's jaw dropped a fraction, and her face colored. Her friend inched slightly away, attempting to distance herself from Isobel's antics. But I wasn't in a forgiving mood.

"Both of you." I folded my arms as I glared at the cowering girls. The rest of the class hid smirks and stifled laughter behind coughs. "I've just spent the last twenty minutes going over this. Give me the first two laws."

I walked out from behind my desk and stood before their cowering forms. I watched them shift uncomfortably in their seats, both of them eyeing their closed textbooks and covertly attempting to open them. I sighed internally before unfolding my arms.

"Next time you choose to disrupt everyone else's learning, you'll be called upon to brief us on what we've missed. Am I clear?"

Isobel's eyes glassed over as she took in my stance. Her keen eyes skimmed over my black jeans and white polo shirt. She bit her lip as her eyes swept and held their stare when they reached my biceps. "Y-yes, sir," she gushed.

I turned around and hid an eye roll as I strolled back to my desk. I picked up the whiteboard marker as I attempted to re-focus everyone. Again .

"Okay, can someone take us through -"

A small knock sounded on the open door - again interrupting my flow. I bit back another frustrated sigh. But before I could turn to the intruder, a soft, melodious voice penetrated the tense quiet of my classroom.

"I-is this Mr. Drake's Chem class?"

People have said they remember exactly what they were doing and wearing when a life-altering event occurred.

The birth of their child. When their partner proposed. The death of a loved one.

I've never had a significant occurrence unfold where I've wanted to take a snapshot of that exact moment.

Something to retain in my memories so that when the smell of a particular scent or the sound of a familiar noise entered my sphere, I would be instantly transported to that precise moment when my world changed.

Lemon.

That's what I'd remember. As was my routine, I had wiped the tables down with lemon-scented surface wipes before class started.

The sound of my wall clock ticking and the hands pointing to nine and five.

Nine twenty-five AM.

The exact moment my world altered forever.

Black hair, the color of the sky on the darkest night. Cobalt blue eyes. The color of the sky on a warm, clear sunny day.

Night and day.

That's how she made me feel. Like day is night, and night is day. Like my whole world had flipped upside down, fate had pointed its middle finger at me in glee.

"Umm...I'm sorry I'm late. It's my first day, and they made me sign some stuff. I also got a little lost."

It took a moment for me to register what she was saying before my mind clicked into place. She stood there peering up at me with flushed cheeks and a small self-conscious smile. I realized that I was standing there gaping at her like an idiot.

Fuck. Get it together, man .

She crushed her books closer to her chest and twisted her lips in the awkward silence.

I felt myself harden beneath my jeans, and I thanked the stars that I was still behind my high desk.

"Name," I growled out.

She flinched, and I cursed myself for scaring her. The command sounded rough to my ears, but I was desperate to know her name.

Desperate to know anything about her.

If only to assuage that she was not a mirage I'd created in my mind.

"Please. Name." I tried to soften my tone, but it still sounded like a Neanderthal grunting.

"Lucy." She licked her lips as her eyes stared into my soul.

Lucy .

Jesus. Did she feel it, too?

This unexplainable pull that had me tethered to her at the first sound of her voice?

"Last name."

Her brow furrowed, and I'm sure she wondered why her goddamn teacher was barking out commands like a drill sergeant.

"Thomas."

Lucy Drake sounded better.

"And how old are you, Lucy Thomas?" Her name sounded like a prayer on my tongue. But I was also holding my breath, mentally praying while I waited for her answer.

God, please be legal. I will throw this table out the window if she's too young.

I was prepared to throw my career and life away for this girl. But even I had my limits on what acts were morally acceptable.

I watched her eyes bounce around the room in confusion. I also noticed a few boys eyeing her up and down like she was fresh meat. The rest of the class watched our exchange with rapt attention.

I didn't blame them. I was no better. But I didn't give a fuck. I would rip their eyes out of their head if they didn't stop looking at what was mine.

"Eighteen," she finally confirmed.

My breath whooshed out of me in stark satisfaction.

I would've waited. Of course, I would've. But I would've let her know in no uncertain terms that she was mine once midnight ticked over.

Knowing she was of age caused pre-come to leak onto my boxer briefs, and I shifted in discomfort. I was overcome with the need to mark her.

"Take a seat."

She flicked me an uneasy smile before quickly striding to an open seat. I watched her under the guise of a supportive teacher who wanted to ensure the new student was comfortable. But in truth, my cursory gaze hid a dark hunger that yawned awake with each move Lucy Thomas made.

The shake of her hair as she moved. The curve of her ass as it filled out her light blue jeans. The way her simple white t-shirt grazed her back. The plain gold necklace hanging off her neck with the initial G.

Wait, who the fuck was G?

Was that a slang word that teenagers use these days?

Did it stand for good? It fucking better. My good girl. That's who she was.

If it was some fucker's name, then it was gone. Ripped the fuck off and incinerated. Replaced with a goddamn choker necklace with my initials on it.

RD.

"No!" I snapped out before I could think better of it.

Lucy turned in fright at the sound, and I berated myself again for sounding like an ass.

But she was about to sit next to Billy Turnpike.

Granted, Billy had a mouth full of metal and the unfortunate appearance of adolescent breakouts, but I didn't give a shit.

It wasn't coming near my girl if he had a penis.

"Isobel." The blonde perked up at her name being called upon. I pointed to the spare seat beside Billy. "Move beside Billy. Lucy," her name puffed out like a reverent prayer. "You can move into Isobel's seat."

Isobel's mouth dropped open in shock before her face colored in anger. With an annoyed huff, she jerkily gathered her books before screeching her chair out roughly and storming off to the back of the room.

I didn't care about her attitude. All I cared about was Lucy as she offered Isobel an apologetic glance before climbing into the seat Isobel just vacated.

I stared intently at my girl as she dropped her backpack under her feet before neatly placing her pens on the desk. I could see her side-eyeing Sarah, who was openly glaring at her, obviously blaming her for my haste in her friend's desk change.

I realized that I shouldn't have singled out my girl like that. The last thing I wanted was for her to be circled by mean girl vultures. But something told me that she could hold her own. And she'd need to with what I had planned for our future.

A throat cleared, reminding me that I had a class to teach. A few pupils eyed me curiously, unused to seeing me so flustered.

I stared at my textbook while thinking of my eighty-year-old neighbor until my erection slowly started to deflate. Once I felt like I had myself under control, I glanced up and was again ensnared by a pair of blue eyes.

As slow as my erection was to fade, it snapped back just as fast with a quick stroke of Lucy's eyes.

This was going to be the fastest yet longest lesson of my life.

In fact, the whole day dragged. When the bell rang for the next period, I was leaking like a goddamn fiend.

Outwardly I was cool, calm and taught my lesson without a hitch.

But inwardly, I was getting off to each bite her little white teeth made on her pen as she concentrated on my teaching.

The curve of her long fingers as she made notes in her book.

The way she had gathered her hair to one side of her shoulder, her hand occasionally touching it playfully in thought.

And then, every so often, her head would lift and sucker punch me in the gut with her piercing stare. Her cheeks would blush when she noticed my eyes never left her vicinity.

It was obvious. I was being too obvious. But I couldn't seem to stop myself.

My fingers itched to stroke her face. To kiss her mouth. To run my lips in worship over every inch of her body. Bury my face in her pink gash. Lick her asshole. Fuck her mouth. Pound her tight, wet pussy until she was brimming with my come.

By the end of the school day, I was dying. The last time I saw her was when she strolled out of my class, and I lost sight of her among the crowd of students milling about.

I couldn't chase after her. I had another class to teach. In fact, I had no free periods today.

It wasn't a surprise since the beginning of the school year was always jam-packed. I liked keeping busy, but now I cursed that my job hindered me from seeing Lucy.

I couldn't even leave once school was over, either. I coached the soccer team, and we had practice today.

After I changed into my athletic gear, I exited my classroom in a foul mood. Only to stop in my tracks when I spied the object of my obsession standing at the far end of the hallway. She had yet to spot me. She was too busy playing around on her phone.

My heart leaped in joy, and I walked towards her without thinking. I was unsure what to say; I just knew I needed to speak to her and hear her sweet voice again. Preferably calling my name out as she came around my cock.

But before I reached her, the door she was standing by opened, and a man I had never seen before exited and turned to lock the classroom.

Lucy straightened and smiled at the middle-aged man as he bent to hug her. Red-hot jealousy churned through my gut as I watched him place his arm around my girl's shoulders. Together, they exited the hallway.

Whoever the fuck that was, he was a dead man.