Teacher's Pets [Unlikely Bedfellows 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (10 page)

He didn’t move. “I hope I didn’t cut things short when I came home the other night.”

She slung her bag over her shoulder and picked up the briefcase, which felt now like it weighed a ton. Walking toward him she tried not to look at his face but found she couldn’t avoid it. How could she have stared into those eyes last week and not known immediately who he was? At one time, she’d thought the world spun only because he spoke to her and the stars twinkled in the sky because he took time to laugh with her. That was all before the night of the frat house party and lying in his bed, a place she never should have been.

“You didn’t disturb us. We were finished with what I’d come over to do. I’m sure Beau told you all about it.”

“You’re wrong. Beau told me nothing except—” He pursed his lips and glanced away.

“Except what?”

“Never mind. It’s not for me to say. But you should know that he didn’t kiss and tell.”

“Unlike you, then.”

His brows wrinkled. “What are you talking about?”

She didn’t
want
to talk to him. And the feeling of neutrality she had vowed to project would never last if she discussed that night. Still, she couldn’t help herself. “I’m talking about the way you shared with your fraternity brothers that I spent the night in your bed.”

Shaking his head he said, “I didn’t tell anyone.”

Liar!
She tried to get past him but he blocked her way. “Then how did people find out? Several of the girls in my dorm mentioned that they’d heard I’d lost my cherry at the frat party and how lucky I was to have lost it to you. How would anyone have known I was there with you if you didn’t share the news?”

“Leah, I swear to you, I did
not
tell a soul.” He stared at her as though waiting for her to agree that yes, he was decent and good and pure of heart. “Look. Don’t you remember? Even Beau didn’t know about you. He didn’t know that we were friends or that you were at the party until last week. And
he
was a frat brother as well as my best friend. If I was going to tell anyone about what happened, it would have been him, wouldn’t it?”

He looked sincere. And he was right—Beau had been surprised to find she and Steve knew each other. “I don’t believe you.”

“You were my
friend
, Leah.”

Had she been wrong? God help her, she believed him. Her mouth was dry. She could barely speak. “If not you, then who?”

“I don’t know. Maybe someone who saw you run out the next morning? I’m pretty sure you were carrying your shoes and maybe your blouse wasn’t totally done…?” He heaved a sigh. “I wouldn’t have done anything to hurt you.”

Her shoulders slumped. For years she’d been righteous in her anger against him. Now it came back on her. She should have talked to him when he came to explain. But she’d been hurt. Hurt and dismissed by him that morning in his room. His words rang in her mind.
What are you doing here? God, Leah, you’re the last woman in the world I would fuck.
“But you did hurt me.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. If I could take the whole night back, God knows I would. Can you ever forgive me?”

The sun had risen and set with Steve Hardin. She’d created fantasies that he could someday love her as she did him. And then he’d driven a stake through her heart. Metaphorically, but it hurt just as much. “I’m not sure,” she said.

“I’ll just keep my fingers crossed,” he said. And then he left.

* * * *

Leah walked to her 240Z, stunned. All these years she had blamed Steve for the trouble that came after that night at the frat house. It had only made sense. She hadn’t seen anyone on her way out of the house or running into her own dorm. Who else could have known where she had run from?

There were two types of girls in the ‘60s, good girls and girls who had fun. She had never been part of the fun group. Until Steve, she hadn’t minded too much. But later that day, when everyone assumed she had casually spread her legs for him, attitudes changed. Several girls had looked at her with admiration, but they weren’t the ones she hung out with, not the group she felt comfortable with. The people whose opinions she cared about looked at her with disappointment.

For a guy on campus who wanted sex, there were lots of girls willing to accommodate. But she had
values
.

Liar. You would have stayed in bed with him all day if he’d been willing to make love with you.

But only because I loved him!

Never would she have gone to a man’s bed with only a casual desire for sex. She’d thought she loved Steve. But once the rumors circulated, no one had believed that.

If only he
had
made love with her, damn him. She could have dealt with the humiliation then, even if he’d only pretended to have feelings for her. But his rejection isolated her. She couldn’t join the legions of his conquests knowing the rumor was a lie, and she couldn’t slide back into her own group because no one believed she was one of them any longer.

What had been
wrong
with her, anyway? Why had she not been good enough for him? Somehow, though he pretended to like her, he must have seen what everyone else, including her family saw—that she didn’t have what it took to
be
somebody. She didn’t have the personality, the looks, the drive, the intelligence, the…something magical that she recognized in others but no one saw in her.

“That’s old baggage. What do I do about Steve
now
?” She placed her briefcase on the backseat and then climbed behind the wheel. Key in the ignition, she sat staring out the windshield, trying to determine if he had spoken one word of truth back in her classroom. He’d sounded sincere. He’d looked sincere. Maybe he’d told someone without really meaning to, without trying to cause her harm. But what besides guilt could have made him run over with a mouth full of apologies and arms full of flowers? No innocent person did that.

A movement from the side of her eye had her turning her head just before Beau knocked on her window. He smiled and made a circular motion with his finger. She rolled down the window.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hello.”

“I wondered if you want to have dinner tonight. At a restaurant,” he said quickly. “Not in bed.”

It was sweet of him to make the distinction. “Eating in bed was wonderful. And don’t be nervous. Sex is the whole reason for this relationship.”

A cloud passed over his face, and then he smiled again. “That doesn’t mean we can’t go out, does it? I mean”—he waggled his brows—”we can always go home afterward and have our dirty way with each other.”

She couldn’t help laughing, “As tempting as that sounds—and it does—I have to divide my time between you and Charles. I don’t see him until Wednesday.”

Beau frowned. “So he just reminded me when I saw him crossing the quad. Everyone within earshot heard that you and he were spending the night in Charlottesville.”

“What?”
I’ll kill him.

“I thought being seen in public with me, having dinner tonight, might counteract whatever trouble he’s stirring up.”

“I’ll take care of Charles. And I will have dinner with you. Where would you like to meet?”

“I’ll pick you up. Say about seven?”

She shook her head. “I’ll meet you. I’m inviting Charles, too, and”—she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The only way to get to the bottom of whether or not Steve told the truth was to see more of him. God help her, she’d have to get to know him again—”I’d like you to ask Steve to join us.”

The look of surprise on Beau’s face couldn’t be described. “Okay, I’ll ask. Shall we go to Rowlands?”

“I’ll be there at seven.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. He straightened and started to turn.

“Beau?” He faced her, head tilted. She said, “I’m looking forward to seeing you again, too.”

He winked and left her there.

“If only there was a simple way to call someone without having to find a phone,” she grumbled. She’d have to go back to her office or call Charles from home. Leah opted to head for her house.

How interesting that Charles had made a spectacle pointing out that they would be sharing the night so that Beau would know. “Even more interesting that he would screw around with my reputation by making sure others heard about Wednesday night, too.” Yes, she could use this in the book.

And yes, she was sleeping with two men and writing a book about their reactions, but
she
was being discreet. Now students knew that Charles thought she would be with him for a night and could infer that he was making a point to Beau. It took little extra effort to leap to the assumption that she had been with Beau, too. The whole situation was eerily similar to what had happened with Steve years ago. Rumors, well planted, often took root.

By the time she reached her home, tucked away at the end of a long drive that wound up Massanutten Mountain, she was beyond angry. She dropped her case and tossed her purse onto the couch before stomping to the kitchen and the wall phone. Dialing Charles’s number, she tapped her foot, wanting to hear the excuse he would come up with.

“Hello?”

Good thing there was no such thing as video phone. If he had seen her expression ahead of time, he never would have answered. “Charles, how could you? I thought we were friends.”

“Leah. Hello. What are you talking about?”

“You know what. How could you announce that we are spending the night in Charlottesville in front of students? Don’t you care what people think of me?”

“Students?” He sounded genuinely perplexed. “I made sure that mass murderer knew, but I don’t know about any students.”

“Charles, you were on the quad! Every student within half an acre probably heard you.”

He was silent. “Leah, I’m so sorry. I saw that man and became so angry, I just never thought about where we were.”

That was so like Charles. Most often he was easy to get along with, but he had a stubborn streak that led him into trouble at times.

She sighed. What else could she do? They had been friends for years. She rubbed her forehead, trying to quell a headache that had just started. Why had she included Charles in this project, again? Right. Because he was such a contrast to Beau. Now there seemed too much of a contrast.

“Leah,” he said quietly. “Why are you doing this? Why are you planning to have sex with two men? And why me? We’ve been friends a long time and you’ve never shown the slightest interest in a sexual relationship, even knowing how I feel about you.”

Guilt welled up inside. Was she using his feelings for her in order to forward herself?

“Okay, I’ll tell you, but only if you promise to keep it to yourself and do nothing with it.”

“I promise. What is it?”

“I’m writing a book.” There was silence on the other end of the line. “It’s about the male psyche and how men react when sharing a woman. You know, sexually.”

“You’re writing a
book?
And you’re using
me
in it?”

“Not by name, of course. Your identity will be well hidden.” Panic replaced the guilt she’d felt a moment ago. He was balking, not understanding. Any moment he might back out if she didn’t do something. “I needed two men who were opposites. Who would have conflict with each other and would let that build as they had to share time with a woman.”

“And that woman was to be you.”

Was to be?
She was deep in shit. How had he turned the tables on her? She had called pissed off with
him
.

“
Is
me. And you and Beau are the two men. Do you see? There’s no reason to be upset because the relationship won’t last—it was never intended to last. And after the book is finished, you and I can still be friends, just like always.”

He sighed. “This isn’t going to work, Leah.”

She clutched the receiver with her right hand and twisted her left index finger in the coils of the cord. “No! It will work. It has to. We can make it work.”

“I never should have let that man get under my skin.” He stayed quiet for a few seconds. “But to tell the truth, I’m not sure I could have…you know.”

What was he saying? He couldn’t have performed? What could she say to that?

“I’ve just thought about what it would be like for so long, and now faced with the opportunity, I just don’t know if I could have gone through with it.”

While the sentiment was sweet, what was she to do now? She’d already started the book with Charles. She’d counted on him.

“I mean,” he continued, “that you had the chance to sleep with
me
and you also chose to sleep with someone so antithetical to our values. The whole thing has been a disappointment to me.”

Hold up!
He was saying that sex with her wouldn’t work because he found her sleeping with Beau so disgusting? He was putting this back on
her
?

“So you are no longer interested in having sex with me?”