Seducing Professor Coyle (12 page)

Did that just happen?
What the hell have I done
...

He pushed himself up on shaking arms, looking down at the gorgeous creature beneath him. Ben blinked up at him, his face gleaming with sweat.

“Okay,” Peter said softly. “
Now
will you leave?”

Ben’s eyes crinkled as he laughed, the movement causing Peter’s softening cock to glide out of him. “You mean now that you’ve proven how much you
don’t
want me?”

Peter smiled, and climbed off, getting to his feet. He slid the condom off. He was about to toss it in the trash, then remembered where he was, and wrapped it in a tissue. Hurrying to put his pants on, he stuffed the condom in his pocket. “In all seriousness, Ben, this is not the place to be caught. Hurry and get dressed.”

Ben winced as he sat up. “Oh.” A breath escaped through his teeth. “Yikes.”

Peter glanced at him. “Sore?”

Ben smiled as he stood. “Very.” He moved gingerly, limping as he picked up his jeans and tee shirt. “Nothing a hot bath can’t fix.” He looked at Peter as he pulled his jeans on and zipped them up. “I don’t suppose you’d like to join me?”

Peter smiled. “Not tonight.”

Nodding, Ben pulled his tee shirt on. He stepped up to Peter, his eyes soft with awe as he reached up, running a finger over his lips. “At the risk of sounding like a cliché,” he whispered, “will I see you again?”

Peter sighed, his eyes closing as the sensation of the finger on his lips made him shiver. “I don’t know.”

He opened his eyes, Ben’s green ones staring back at him, pleading, expectant. Peter said nothing. There was nothing to say.

With a sigh, the boy stepped back. “Well, maybe you’ll need your core processor adjusted again.”

Peter grinned and nodded. “Maybe so.” He stared back at Benjamin, who gazed at him with such softness and longing that he had to turn away. “You should go. We shouldn’t be seen leaving together.”

“I know.” Ben walked over and unlocked the door, then turned back. “I’ll see you Friday,” he said, and left, closing the door behind him.

Peter let out a huge breath, walking slowly to his desk and falling into his chair. Yes, he’d see him Friday. In class. In
class
! So much for his temporary memory lapse; it was his
student
who just walked out the door. His head knocked on the desk as he leaned over, groaning. “Crap,” he muttered. He banged his head on the desk twice more. What the hell had he just done?

Something fucking amazing
. His body still buzzed with pleasure, a near euphoria making him light headed.

He’d fucked a student. In his office, for crying out loud. He needed a drink.

His cell phone rang and he lifted his head, digging it out of the drawer. Thorn. He answered. “Hey.”

“Hey baby, what’s new?”

Peter chuckled. “Oh, the usual.”

“Well, I wanted to tell you I got hold of Married Wayne.”

Peter straightened up. He’d forgotten about Thorn’s promise to seek out truths about Benjamin. “And?”

“And, he knew who I was talking about right away. Benjamin was definitely at my party. But when I pushed, Wayne clammed up. He said he wouldn’t sell Benjamin out. Said he was a sweet kid. He seemed quite smitten.”

An unfamiliar sensation chilled Peter’s gut, and his temples tapped with something like anger. “Do you think they hooked up?”
Jealousy
, he thought.
I’m fucking jealous
. How pathetic.

“He says they didn’t, but something obviously happened. But Wayne asked me if I knew Benjamin’s last name, so I’m guessing he doesn’t know that much about him either. Has the kid approached you again? Have you seen him?”

Peter sighed into the phone, rubbing his brow.

“Peter? Helloooo.”

“Yeah,” Peter said. “I’ve seen him.”

There was a long pause. Then Thorn snickered. “Oh my God. You fucked him, didn’t you?”

“Thorn, it’s been a long day.”

“You did! You fucked a student. I can’t believe it, you fiend.”

Peter sighed. “Yes. I fucked a student. And now I feel like drowning myself. I screwed up, Thorn, I lost control.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. Shit happens.”

“Not to me.”

Thorn giggled. “So you keep saying. Do you want to come over for a drink?”

“How about a pitcher?”

“That bad, huh? I’ll get the blender out. See you soon.”

Peter hung up and gathered his things. He’d have to run home for a shower first. The musky scent of Benjamin LeClair still lingered on his skin.

He took a deep breath, savoring it. Then grabbed his bag and headed out the door.

Chapter Ten

Ben sat in class, gazing dreamily at Dr. Coyle as he lectured. As always, the professor made no eye contact with the students as he paced back and forth. Ben hadn’t seen nor heard from him since what happened in his office, and he felt strangely betrayed. His ass was still tender, and while the sensation sent a little thrill through him, he feared he’d never feel Peter inside him again. It was the best sex he’d ever had, and now the guy wouldn’t even look at him. Not a stolen glance, nothing.

He supposed he’d expected this. He hadn’t really thought Peter would contact him. He’d put up a hell of a protest, begged Ben to leave him alone before his resolve finally weakened. But it had weakened, and he’d admitted he wanted Ben. More or less. Then he’d shown him just how much.

Ben tried to rationalize that this meant something, but he was now somewhat ashamed that he’d thrown himself at Peter. And embarrassed that he’d thought it might lead to something more. Peter had given no indication that it meant anything, so why had Ben expected to hear from him?
Hey, he could have called security, and he didn’t! Must be love!
Pathetic.

But despite the touch of shame, there was exhilaration that it actually happened. It was so much more thrilling than Ben imagined, having his control taken away like that, being manhandled by Peter Coyle. Still in the afterglow, he’d allowed his ego to believe Dr. Coyle wouldn’t be able to stay away. That he’d want more. That he’d insist on seeing Ben again.

Dr. Coyle turned his back on the class as he sifted through his notes on the podium, and Ben stared longingly at his ass, draped in soft brown pants. When he turned around, his gaze caught Ben’s. Ben’s mouth went dry. Coyle held his eyes for a moment, then turned away as he continued to speak, pacing back and forth again.

When class was over Ben swallowed his pride and went down to Coyle’s office, but he wasn’t there. His eyes scanned the bustling, crowded hallways, but the object of his desire was nowhere to be found.
He’s avoiding me
.

Ben sulked on his drive home, then sulked more when he found his apartment empty and quiet. It was Friday night. Normally Dom would be getting home about now, offering him beer and chattering about his day. He grabbed a bottle of juice from the fridge, then ran himself a hot bath, hoping it would sooth his depression and ease away the tension. As he soaked, his sadness only grew worse. He was graduating soon. He should be happy. It was what he’d worked and strived for, and now it was within his grasp. He was going to earn his degree and make his way in the world. Tammy Albert had already spoken to two CEOs about jobs for Ben. He should be daydreaming about his future.

But all he could imagine was hot breath on his lips, dark blue eyes gazing into his as Peter Coyle gripped his chin.
Look at me, Benjamin
.

After drying himself and dressing, he tried calling Dominick. He’d promised to stay away, give him time, but he was so lonely. Dominick didn’t answer his phone. Examining the scrap of paper he’d written his new address on, he struggled with indecision.
To hell with it, I’m going over
. Dom couldn’t blame him for stopping by, could he? Just to see he was settling in okay?

On his way to Dominick’s apartment he stopped at a florist and bought a small, potted plant. Carrying the plant, he climbed the steps of the apartment building, located Dominick’s buzzer and pressed it. When no one came to the door, he hit it again. After a while he gave up, and left the plant next to the front door with a note.

The sky was darkening, and Ben sat in his car outside of Dom’s apartment for a long while, hoping he’d come home. The gravity of how pathetic he’d become made him irritable. But he didn’t want to go home and be alone. On a whim, he pulled onto the road and headed out of town toward Stiffies, a gay bar he’d been to twice before. He wasn’t looking for sex. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to talk to anyone. He just wanted to be with people, to have other heartbeats around him.

When he sat down at the bar, a tattooed woman approached. “What can I get you, gorgeous?”

He smiled. “Something slightly sweet. Subdued. Just a bit fruity.”

She sighed. “Can you be more specific? I’ve got a lot of customers.”

“Sorry. Strawberry daiquiri. Thanks.”

When his drink came, he swiveled in his stool, absentmindedly watching a group of men play pool. A man approached and asked him to dance. Then another. Then another. He declined them all. Then his eyes caught a flash of red hair, and he looked over and saw Dominick standing by the stage, his arms around a young blond guy. Ben started to climb off his seat, then paused. Would Dominick think he was stalking him? Following him around? He’d been accused of stalking once already this week. So he hesitated, watching as the blond leaned in for a kiss, stroking a lock of Dom’s hair. Good for him, he thought. If this helped Dom be happy, then he was happy.

Then suddenly, he recognized the other guy. He looked leaner in jeans and a black tee shirt. Of course the last time he’d seen the guy, he’d been naked. In the pool, with Dr. Peter Coyle licking his chest. “No way,” he said softly.

Anger blazed through him. What the hell was Dom doing with
him
? Did Dominick even recognize him from the party? Irrational, heated jealousy blew through Ben, though he wasn’t sure what its target was. The blond kid had had Peter, he’d seen it with his own eyes, so that was grounds enough for hating him. But now he was with Dominick.
His
Dominick, his best friend, who’d walked out and left him lonely and forgotten.

As he glared over, Dominick suddenly turned, as though sensing eyes on him. Dom murmured something in his little friend’s ear, then excused himself and made his way over to the bar. “Hey!” He sat next to Ben, swiveling his stool to face him. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Didn’t expect to be here,” he said. “What are you doing with that guy?”

Dom’s lips tightened into a straight line. He shrugged. “I was lonely. He started talking to me. You have a problem with that?”

Ben glanced over at the blond, who spoke to another man by the stage, but kept stealing glances over at him and Dom. He had a cute, boyish grin, and gray eyes with heavy lids. But something about him looked less young and fresh than his dewy appearance suggested. Something shifty in his gaze, a seediness about him. Or perhaps Ben was simply applying the qualities he wanted to see there. “He’s a total slut,” Ben said. “You can do better than that.”

Dominick laughed, shaking his head. “And why do you think he’s a slut, Ben? Because he’s with me, or because he was with your teacher boyfriend?”

Ben met his eyes. “So you did recognize him.”

“Well, yeah. He’s kind of hard to forget. He’s a nice guy, you should come over and meet him.”

Ben snorted. “No, thanks. Don’t want to catch anything. He’s probably crawling with bacteria.”

Dom nodded. “I see. Well, you’re being...pleasant tonight. I’m gonna go take a piss. Have a good night, Ben.”

Ben scowled at Dominick as he retreated to the men’s room. Sipping his drink, he turned and faced the bar. Well, that did nothing to improve his mood. He shouldn’t have come here. He should have just stayed at home and brooded, where no one could see his pain.

“Hi, there.”

Ben was stunned to see Dominick’s blond friend had taken the seat beside him. His gray eyes were pretty and framed with dark lashes and eyebrows, though he had smudgy circles beneath them, like he hadn’t slept well. Ben wondered if he was a natural blond or if he dyed it, guessing it was the latter. “What’s up,” he said, and faced the bar again.

“Saw you talking to Dominick. You look familiar. Have we met?”

Ben huffed. “Don’t think so.”

“Oh.” He sounded hurt. “Sorry.”

He’d never been very good at rudeness, so he turned to face the guy. “I might have seen you last week, at Thorn’s party. But I can’t really remember.”

His face lit with a smile. “Ah, you probably did, I was there. You go with Damien? He said he was there too.”

Ben frowned. “Who’s Damien?”

“Oh, I mean Dominick. I’m bad with names.”

“Yeah. I was with Damien.” Ben rolled his eyes.

The kid’s eyebrows pinched in a frown. “I’m Scotty, by the way. Um, I’m not stepping on your toes here, am I?”

Ben scowled. “What do you mean?”

“With Dominick. I really like him. Are you two...together?”

Ben laughed, shaking his head. “No. We’re just good friends. He’s all yours.”

Scotty grinned, and it made him look younger, softening that hardness in his eyes. “Oh, good. He seems really nice. It’s
so
hard to meet nice guys. So sick of the bullshit, you know?”

Ben glanced toward the bathroom, and saw Dom in conversation with a brawny guy who wore work boots and a black tee shirt under a leather vest. He recognized him as one of Dom’s construction worker buddies, and pondered how many more beefcake builders were gay. Dom caught his eye, then his gaze shifted to Scotty. He lifted a finger, giving Scotty a ‘
be right there’
, and turned back to his friend.

Great
, Ben thought.
Now even Dom’s ignoring me
. Ben sure knew how to alienate the men in his life. He turned back to Scotty, who’d ordered a beer, and was taking slugs from the bottle. “Dominick is a great guy,” Ben said. “One of the best. You don’t have to worry about him being an asshole.”