Page 29 of Teach Me
Until Paul squeezed Cameron’s shoulder, then tugged a strand of his hair playfully, causing Cameron to laugh. I tensed with uneasiness as I covertly watched them, trying to be inconspicuous. What was crystal clear, however, was that Paul was no longer exhibiting professional behavior. They didn’tappear to be working on Cameron’s paper at all anymore if I went by their relaxed posture. No, they were…flirting. That was completely inappropriate.
Jealousy roiled in my stomach, clouding my thoughts. Another burst of laughter from them, and I closed out the document I was working on and started toward the pair with absolutely no plan. I knew as I approached it was a bad idea, and yet I couldn’t stop myself.
Their laughter died as I came to a stop in front of the table, resting my fingers lightly on the surface. I pasted on a jocular half smile.
“I trust you’re finding Paul to be helpful?” I addressed Cameron, painfully aware of how stiff and formal I sounded, while Paul eyed me curiously.
“Oh yeah.” Cameron grinned. “Super helpful. I’m really glad you hooked us up.”
Hooked us up? I didn’t like the sound of that. Nor did I like the way Cameron’s gaze cut toward Paul and the tinge of a flush on Paul’s cheeks that resulted. Paul was a reasonably attractive man, but Cameron was something else, and it was clear Paul was reveling in the attention.Veryunprofessional. I gave him a stern look, and the moony half smile on his face evaporated.
“Working on your paper?” I inched a finger toward a page on the table.
“Yeah,” Cameron said, biting his lip. “But I’ve only got the first page and my outline. Paul was?—”
“We were going over the outline. I had a few suggestions and?—”
“I’d love to take a look,” I interrupted. I didn’t like how he’d interrupted Cameron, so he could have a taste of his own medicine. “You can go,” I told Paul, and realizing I’d probably come across as rather dictatorial, tacked on an attempt at levity.“I know you’ve got a heap of tests to go through, and I need a break from my screen.”
“Oh. Yeah, umm, sure. Thanks!” Paul said in a way that didn’t sound particularly grateful. I didn’t care. I only cared that he shoved his laptop and books back in his bag and got the fuck out. “See you in a couple of weeks, yeah?” he said to Cameron.
“For sure.”
I slid into the empty chair Paul left behind, still warm from his body heat, the proximity to Cameron’s causing our legs to brush.
“It’s really rough,” Cameron said as I picked up paper, the tinge of grit in his voice tempting me to think of other things. I really should’ve come into this with a better plan. Never in my entire career had I insinuated myself like this or acted so on impulse.
“Rough is fine. It can always be polished later.”
I looked away from the color that rose in Cameron’s cheeks. I needed to stop thinking about all the things I wanted to do to him, roughly or otherwise. Flipping the page, I looked over his outline.
“How did your trip to DC go? I got your message. I’m glad I was helpful.” Fuck, the way he bit his lip and cut his eyes at me sidelong was endearing. “Did you get your chapter written?”
“The bulk of it, yes. Leading with the maze.” I glued my eyes to his paper, the words swimming in front of me as I tried to ignore the curve of his pleased smile.
“I can’t wait to read it. I don’t guess you’d let me read it early. That would be kinda weird, right? Unprofessional or whatever.”
“I—” I hesitated and then nodded. “I guess it’d be a bit unusual, yes. We’d probably better stick to class-related things.” I glanced again at the paper he’d handed me. “It looks like you’re off to a solid start,” I concluded.
“Did you send Paul away because he was flirting with me and you didn’t like it? I saw you look over.”
Christ, the guy’s bluntness kept catching me off guard.
“No, I…” I took a breath. “He’s supposed to be helping you with class, not trying to get into your pants.”
Cameron arched a brow. Then, he plucked his paper from my hands and stood, shoving his things in his pack. “What if I don’t mind the idea of him in my pants?”
I bit back the obvious question. The question he seemed to anticipate if the way his mouth hooked at one corner was any indication. “Are you jealous, Professor?”
“No,” I said staunchly, shaking my head despite the fact that every cell in my body was vibrating “yes.”
“Okay.” Cameron shrugged noncommittally. “Just checking. Thanks for looking over my outline. See you in class.”
I tracked him as he walked away, simultaneous surges of relief and disappointment making my heart pound. The air remained thick with unspoken tension, his question an electric charge that still hummed inside me with every breath, leaving my thoughts a turbulent mix of desire and, yes, jealousy. White-hot jealousy.
No sooner had the stairwell door closed behind him than the riot of emotions crystallized and propelled me back to my table, where I quickly packed up my belongings, slung my bag over my shoulder, and took the steps down two at a time.
I caught up to him on the sidewalk that wound around the side of the library and the tree line beside it, leading toward the streets bordering the campus where many students shared houses.