“Alec…Alec…”
The next thing I knew, Ms. Benton had returned and was calling my name.
I lifted my head.
“I’m sorry, sweetie,” she said, in a soft voice. “It’s closing time.”
“What?”
“You fell asleep, hun.” She watched me, compassion plain in her expression.
“Ahh, fuck! Oh no, I’m sorry.” I rushed to apologize for cursing. My ears heated. I looked around. Everyone else had already vacated the premises.
“All these wonderful tomes full of decent words…” She dragged a long red perfectly manicured fingernail over the page of the book open in front of me. I watched the path it took, and my skin prickled as if she were running that nail over my flesh. “…and you choose to use profanity,” she concluded.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.” I wanted to stand up like a gentleman and apologize on my feet, but there was nothing gentlemanly going on below the tabletop. I was once again sporting a boner, compliments of the bangin’ Ms. Benton.
“I’m not offended.” She bent slightly, affording me a nice view down her shirt. Then she perched her perfect backside on the edge of the table. “Often there is a time and place for such crudity. But there are so many better words in the English language. An intelligent man such as yourself needn’t resort to it in order to make his point.”
“No, you’re absolutely right.” Sufficiently chastised, I started to gather my books and tuck them into my satchel.
She picked up one of the hardbound textbooks and handed it to me.
“Thank you.”
“So polite. Too bad you have a potty mouth.” She grinned, teasing me.
“Sorry about that, I just, I’ve lost hours of studying time by falling asleep. I can’t afford to squander my time like that.” I pushed the chair back and stood.
“I’m sure you’ll do fine, Alec. You’re in here at least three times a week, if not more. It’s more than I can say for your friends, even during the regular semester. I’ve never seen them in here before. I guarantee out of the four of you, you have the best marks.”
“I wish.” I shrugged. “It’s easy for them. Not so much for me.”
“I’ve watched you in the quiet room.” She glanced toward the glassed-in area.
I couldn’t hold her gaze. I stared at the surface of the table. I didn’t want her to know I wasn’t as intelligent as she seemed to think I was.
I didn’t want to add her to the long line of chicks who were nice to my face, then shit-talked me behind my back. It took me a bit longer to learn, so what.
Ms. Benton plucked at the rubber band around my study cards.
“The flashcards. The lists. The fidget gadget. You get up and walk around, then get back to work. I’ve seen you at the coffee shop, studying. So you try and change up your atmosphere, depending on your day. Sometimes it’s the noise you need, and sometimes you need to rid yourself of all distraction.”
Well, not all distraction. My eyes worked independently of my brain and before I realized what I was doing my attention was affixed to her voluptuous bosom.
“You’re working all the correct strategies,” she added, in a low voice.
“Am I that obvious?”
All of a sudden, she tucked her finger under my chin.
Stunned by the unexpected touch, I raised my gaze to hers.
The soft look in her eyes and the small smile that hooked her plump lips made my heart rate double. “Takes one to know one,” she said.
My stomach clenched. “You?”
Ever so slowly, she blinked. “You’re looking at the poster child for ADHD and impulsivity.” She quirked her head. “At least, that’s the clinical diagnosis.” She added the air quotes.
The statement made me think she wasn’t as convinced by the medical analysis. I chucked. “Isn’t that a given? Symptom, I mean. Poor impulse control?”
“Probably.” She nodded and returned my grin. “You know, I feel bad about letting you sleep. I debated waking you, but if you’re like me, sleep is a limited commodity. I figured you must have needed the rest.
Besides, you looked so cute.” Her gaze dropped to my lips.
My mouth actually prickled under her perusal.
“I didn’t have the heart,” she finished.
I blinked several times. Cute? Was I hearing right?
“I have a few minutes,” she continued. “I heard one of your less studious counterparts offer to quiz you. I could do that for you, if you like? Maybe make up for some of the time you’ve lost.”
“Really?” I asked, looking into her gorgeous light blue eyes, fringed by long lashes tinted cobalt by a touch of mascara. “You’d do that for me?”
“I’d be happy to. Just let me lock the door, so we don’t get any stragglers trying to get in after hours disturbing us.”
I watched as she strutted across the room. Her nude high heels clunked against the hardwood floor. Man, she had nice legs. She had nice everything.
I sat back down quickly as my traitorous body reacted once more to her magnificent form.
In an attempt to be chivalrous, I pulled out the chair next to me, but she declined.
“Why don’t you get up? Walk around. There’s lots of space to move. I can fire questions at you, and you can simply answer from wherever you are. The acoustics are exceptional. I’ll hear you.”
“Oh, okay. We can give that a try, I guess.”
Ms. Benton picked up my cue cards, and for about half an hour we strolled through the rows of bookshelves before I got totally frustrated. I did nothing but spit and sputter. Even with her help and patience, I couldn’t seem to get anything right. She was making me nervous. And the last thing I wanted to do was seem like a complete fucking idiot in front of her.
“Maybe we should just call it a night, Ms. Benton.” I raked my hand through my hair as she came around the end of a large display case, to face me. “Thank you for your help, but the material is not staying in my thick head. I’m sure you must have somewhere better to be. Or someone waiting for you.” There had to be some lucky fucker expecting her.
“I don’t have anywhere to be. And you will get it. Repetitiveness works. What do you normally do before a test?”
“The cards. Reading it over and over—though I never get very far with that before my mind wanders. Sometimes I write the pertinent points down. My sister bought me an e-reader, and if I’m lucky enough to be able to purchase the course book and download it, I put in my ear buds and activate the voice mode. You know, then it reads it to me. Too bad they don’t make audio textbooks.”
“Mmm, that’s an excellent idea. There are a few, but not very many. Perhaps we should look into providing that around here. More audios would be an incredible addition, not to mention a fantastic resource for people like you and me. Yet I could see students who are able to multitask using them, too, more as a time saver.” She headed back toward my worktable, and I followed.
Once more, she leaned on the tabletop as I drew close to her. With the corner of my flashcards, she stabbed at my shoulder. “What about the reward system? Was that ever a stratagem that worked for you in the past?”
“Sure, at one time,” I answered as she lowered the stack of notes. This time she ran the corner of my prompts through the vee of her blouse, skimming the lucky piece of cardboard through her cleavage.
I wet my lips, finding them suddenly dry.
“Well how about we give that a go?” she asked.
I pried my hungry gaze from her curves and met her direct stare.
An all-knowing smirk crossed her lips. “I’m up here.” She pointed to her lovely face.
“Uh, yeah. Sorry. Distractions.” Two of ’em.
“Rewards?” she prompted.
It was my turn to grin. “Let me guess. You have a bag of goldfish-shaped crackers, hidden in your desk over there, for the good little boys.”
“That may have worked when you were a child, but you’re all man now. I was thinking of more adult type incentives.”
That certainly tweaked my interest. “Oh?” I took a step closer.
“And higher stakes.”
Holy shit!
“What’d you have in mind?” My voice sounded lower, even to me.
“I want you to study what’s on this card.” She held the top flashcard, chest height.
“Okay.” I tried to concentrate on my messy scrawl and not the way her breasts rose and fell, as she inhaled then exhaled.
“Let me know when you have it,” she said.
I shrugged. “Probably as good as it’s going to get.”
Ms. Benton lowered the index card. “What does it say?”
“Something about how exchange rates are determined, I think.”
“And they are?” Expectantly, she widened her eyes.
“Um.” I shook my head. “Price inflation. Interest rates and uhhh…market psychology.”
I was proud of myself until she said, “Define those three factors.”
Well, fuck! I tried to imagine the notations in my head. I recited what I could remember.
“No, tell me, in your own words.” Frustrated, I shook my head.
She brought the notes back up. “Read it again.”
“I can’t do this. You’re too distracting.”
“Don’t you want to know what your reward will be?”
“Sure, I do, but I…”
“Well, since you seem to be so fascinated by the girls here—” She gestured to her voluptuous breasts.
My mouth fell open, and my gaze dropped to the girls.
“Once you can tell me what’s on the card, in your own words, you can touch me.”
Hope you enjoyed the teaser!
Happy Reading!
