Out of My League (2 page)

But he refused to use that as an excuse. The paper had been close to completion when he was called in. People burning to death always took precedence over a paper. By the time he got home this morning, he had been too bleary-eyed to think, so he’d crashed for a few hours. He had finished the paper when he got up that afternoon.

He knew she wouldn’t have them graded by the end of the day. She zipped her jacket in one smooth motion. Tugging at the strap to her bag, she tipped it from the chair to thump on the floor. He winced as she lifted the strap over her head to settle on her opposite shoulder. Poor woman was going to be grading papers when she should be spending time with her family. Or her boyfriend. Someone as beautiful and intelligent as Mia had to be taken. That was why he’d asked Oasis for a look-alike. Even if she was single, there was no way in hell Mia was interested in him. He wasn’t close to being her type. That didn’t stop him from dreaming about the possibilities.

She flipped her head back, jutting out her chin and setting her ponytail in motion. “I didn’t make a mistake.” Spots of anger stained her cheeks.

Kaelen leaned forward to hide the growing problem in his pants. He caught a whiff of spring freshness mixed with feminine heat, and he had to fight the urge to bury his face in her neck and inhale. “I didn’t say you did.”

“No, but you want me to take the heat so you can get away with turning in a late paper. He knows you weren’t in class. I could lose my job for that.”

He wanted to lay her across the desk, lift her dress, and paddle her until she begged for release. It had absolutely nothing to do with the paper or the don’t-fuck-with-me-attitude he found infinitely attractive and everything to do with the fantasies he had about her almost every night. In thirty-six hours, he would have approximately what he wanted. That gift certificate for Oasis had seemed like a joke at first.

Now, looking forward to paddling the ass of a woman who was supposed to look a lot like Mia kept him from acting on that impulse. Standing this close, he realized how short she was. He had nearly a foot on her. If he pulled her close, she could rest her cheek against his chest, and he could rest his chin on the top of her head. He could push her back a little and kiss her forehead. He could push her back a little more, tip up her chin, and taste those rosy lips.

Shaking the fanciful thoughts away, he forced himself to look in her eyes. She inhaled sharply, her eyes widened, and she seemed somehow softer. “You won’t lose your job for this. He won’t even know.”

The shock fell away, and that glazed look, a bit of passion unleashed, faded. He longed to grip her tightly and force her to stay where he wanted while he finally sampled her kiss. Would she respond by letting loose that passion, or would she kick him in the nuts?

“I’ll know.” She looked him up and down, not quite hiding the shades of hurt he hadn’t intended to make her feel.

Damn. He’d never get it right when it came to Mia. If she looked at him with longing and vulnerability just once, he would be putty in her hands. He’d completely forget about the damn paper as he drowned in her bliss.

The door slammed shut behind her. He leaned against her desk and clenched his fists around nothingness.

Chapter Two

Mia sat in the used Malibu she had managed to buy her sophomore year of college and stared at the cabin in front of her. The vinyl siding made it look a little more modern. She hoped it would be warm inside.

The cabin wasn’t in the UP, but it was less than an hour from the airport near school. Though she hadn’t expected it, the package from Oasis had included a plane ticket and two nights at a time-share in the Bahamas. When she returned late Sunday night, she wouldn’t be far from home.

For the bargain-basement price she paid to make this fantasy happen, she would be surprised if the inside had modern plumbing. This was not one of their more expensive packages.

The shiver that ran up her spine when she climbed out of her car had nothing to do with the near-freezing temperatures and everything to do with nerves and anticipation. In her entire life, she’d never done anything remotely risky, and now she was about to let a stranger spank and fuck her. And then there was some secretary-slut fantasy of his that would round out their time in the cabin. She’d agreed to be his sex slave for most of the day. Eight hours. Just another day at the office, and then she would be off to enjoy a relaxing day and a half in the sun.

Since she would only be at the cabin until five, and it was barely eight now, she elected to leave her suitcase in the car. Oasis had sent an outfit with the welcome package that reiterated all the rules and guidelines to which she’d agreed.

As if that weren’t enough, another set of the rules was laminated and taped to the front door. No names were there, as both she and her mystery man had elected to be anonymous. His fantasy included spanking an administrative assistant. Hers was to be spanked. She didn’t care about the secretary part. It worked out.

She wondered how much he’d look like Kaelen, and how disappointed he would be when he found plain old Mia sitting at the desk, waiting for him. The chances of them finding someone exactly six-two who had the same build and coloring as Kaelen were slim. She’d take shorter, but he had to have those smoking-hot eyes and that heart-stopping smile.

His outline had specified she wear her dark hair in a ponytail. The instructions actually called for dark brown hair, which was good because Mia wasn’t willing to dye it or wear a wig. It allowed for very little makeup. Mascara and lip gloss, but only if she insisted. No powders, no eyeliner, no lipstick. He didn’t want to see earrings, piercings, or a necklace, but a bracelet or an anklet was okay.

That was fine. Mia occasionally wore bracelets and anklets, and she only trotted out necklaces for special events. Her ears weren’t pierced, and neither was any other part of her body.

SHE PUSHED OPEN the door and looked around curiously. There were four rooms. The main room, which could have been a living room, contained the bare bones of an office set. One desk sat in the middle of the room. Armoires were arranged against one wall. Two windows faced a small clearing in the back. Looking out, she couldn’t see how it was different from the front. A line of trees blocked her view past the clearing. Since it was late autumn, most of the leaves had already fallen to the ground. They would be brown and soggy from the rain they’d been having.

She wandered through the doorway to the left and found a kitchen. The cupboards were full of cookware, plates, glasses, and flatware, but no food. It didn’t matter. They wouldn’t be there for long. She had eaten a good breakfast, and she could grab a quick dinner on her way to the airport.

Two closed doors greeted her on the other side of the room. One had to be a bathroom. The other was probably a bedroom.

She’d waited until she got there to open the box containing the outfit she was supposed to wear. It wasn’t very different from what she normally wore. She would have worn her own clothes, but this outfit had weak seams that would allow him to rip it off. She’d fantasized about Kaelen ripping off her dresses. In this fantasy, he had agreed to be Kaelen for her. Maybe he didn’t know the name of her secret crush, but he knew he was playing a role, just as she knew she was playing a role for him.

It made her feel better to know he was using her the same way she was using him. And she didn’t feel all that weird about the fact she’d have sex with a stranger in an hour or less. It appealed to a decadent side she’d kept hidden, a part of her that wanted to throw off society’s constraints and her parents’ expectations and live on the wild side for just a little while.

Of course, given the background checks and the sex safety classes Oasis had made her attend for the past six weeks, she had complete faith in their selection process. Their advertisement said they reserved the right to reject anyone’s fantasy for any reason. They’d chosen to accept her fantasy, and they’d even worked with her to come up with something she could afford.

She wondered why there wasn’t at least a sofa in the “office.” She guessed they’d have to make do with the desk and chair for her part the day's fantasies. She honestly hadn’t thought through what would happen beyond the spanking and fucking. That might only take a half hour. She didn’t know how quickly her fantasy partner would deliver the details.

With a sigh, she headed for the bathroom with the unopened box. She had about fifteen or twenty minutes before he was supposed to arrive, plenty of time to get ready.

The bathroom was huge. It had a walk-in shower that could fit several people and a large jetted bathtub. The massage table gave her pause, being in the bathroom and all, but she could appreciate that it might go with a fantasy about being pampered.

She closed the door and examined the steel hooks screwed into the back and the bar across the top. Restraints dangled from it. Because she didn’t know the man she was meeting, she hadn’t consented to bondage. If she had, this door would definitely have been in her fantasy.

Ripping open the box, she peeked inside. The black polyester mass was a shapeless dress that would cover from her chest to the middle of her calves. The straps over the shoulders fastened like a jumpsuit.

Reaching back inside, she pulled out a knit sweater to wear over the top of the dress. Patent leather shoes, the utilitarian kind, and crew socks were the only items left inside. She dumped the box upside down just to make sure there wasn’t anything extra. She hadn’t asked for the shoes or the socks, but they were a nice touch.

A scrap of paper fell out. It looked like the fortune found in a Chinese cookie.
Do not wear underclothing
. She squinted at the note, puzzled at the command. But then she shrugged. It made sense to forgo a bra and panties.

Five minutes later, Mia surveyed her costumed appearance in the bathroom mirror. It only showed her top half, but she didn’t need to see the rest. She had a couple dresses like this in her closet at home, and the sweater looked like one she wore frequently because the office tended to be a little cold.

Her hair was already in the requested ponytail. She headed to her desk, which had some papers stacked on it, waiting for her to grade them. Nothing felt different. Even the lack of panties and bra didn’t make her feel naughty or decadent. She picked up the contract to read it one last time.

* * * *

Kaelen followed the long, winding drive to a little cabin that didn’t look at all like what he had specified in his fantasy. An older-model Malibu was parked outside. He started, a little surprised at that level of detail. He hoped the woman inside had those same simmering chocolate eyes and the same rich chestnut hair as Mia. His fingers itched to free those long tresses and comb through them. That kind of detail mattered to him more than her driving the same make and model of car that Mia drove.

He wondered what she would think about the outfit he’d chosen for her to wear, and he wondered what she expected from him, exactly. Oasis had been very open about the fact they were fulfilling one another’s fantasies.

Spanking a woman turned him on like nothing else, except maybe watching her climax. Lingerie and cleavage were nice, but a pink ass made his cock stand up and take notice. He wanted to hear those kittenish moans of pleasure from Mia, but this woman who had agreed to be her stand-in would have to suffice.

If anyone asked him to describe the perfect woman, he would describe Mia. He suspected she hid a sexy body behind those shapeless sack dresses and baggy shirts she always seemed to be wearing. The little blushes that darkened her cheeks whenever he asked for a favor made his jeans become uncomfortably tight.

The first time he’d seen her, she’d stood in when Brindley had to leave campus unexpectedly. She’d talked about the importance of independent variables, and she’d cited successful and flawed studies in her examples. When he’d read about the topic before class, it hadn’t seemed all that interesting. But Mia brought a passion to her lecture that infected every single person in that room.

Her eyes had sparkled, and her hands had moved expressively. She had walked around the room, sitting in the back when she showed charts and diagrams through the data projector.

She’d settled into the empty seat next to him as she talked through the data. Her cinnamon and vanilla scent had tickled his senses, but the excitement she didn’t attempt to hide had captivated him. That day, he had sought her out at Brindley’s office, inventing some long-forgotten excuse just to see her.

That passionate woman had vanished, replaced with someone professional and cordial. He’d tried talking with her about variables, but her reception had been cool at best. Then he'd tried to move the conversation forward, guiding it toward topics that would spark that passion he'd so loved about her. He'd been about to ask after her course of study, but Brindley had poked his head out of his office and told her to get back to work. Her gaze had fallen to the pile of papers on her desk, and she’d told him to see Dr. Brindley if he had any questions about the content of the class.

He had recognized her humiliation. She was the kind of woman who went out of her way to please people. She didn’t handle harshness or being reprimanded very well. He wanted to punch Brindley for making her feel that way.

After that, she had quickly withdrawn from any attempt he made at interaction. Women usually fell over themselves to clamor for his attention. He had never developed the skills to break through this wallflower’s defenses.

He made it up the steps, but he paused with his hand on the door. Going in, he knew it wouldn’t be enough. Playacting with a stranger couldn’t sate his longing to feel Mia’s lips moving under his, her soft moans growing louder as he held her down and ripped off her clothes.

With a groan, he adjusted his cock, which had automatically hardened at the thought of seeing Mia. At least this woman had asked him to wear something he found comfortable. Jeans, work boots, and a flannel shirt under his fleece jacket. It was his standard fare, and it did nothing to further the fantasy element or feed his sense of anticipation. It was too familiar to be sexy. Oasis had offered to send him the outfit, but he’d declined, preferring to wear his own clothes.