Pushing the Limits (17 page)

His lips softly kiss mine, slower now, almost torturous. “I’ve wondered what it’d be like to kiss you.” His voice is smooth, genuine, my breathing speeding up at how hard my heart is pounding in my chest.

He releases my lips for one short moment before wrapping a hand around my throat and pulling me closer once again, his eyes intense and greedy.

“And now that I’ve found out, I can’t stop.” The corner of his lips tilt, flashing one of his deep dimples.

“Do you normally go around kissing your students?” I tease, breaking away just enough to see the eagerness in his eyes, hungry and desperate.

“Just the ones I
really
like.” He winks and a soft chuckle releases from my throat.

“Good to know.”

He presses another soft kiss on my lips before standing up and holding his hand out for mine. I place it in his and stand up so we’re chest to chest.

“And for the record, I’ve never kissed a student of mine before.” His finger rubs along my cheekbone, brushing the hair back behind my ear.

I smile, loving the way his hand feels against my flushed skin. “I’ve never kissed one of my professors before. But then again, none of them had ever looked like you either,” I taunt, earning a pleased smile in return.

“Good to know.”

The sound of easy chatter grabs our attention as it becomes apparent people are coming this way.

“I should go—”

“I’m going to—”

We both say at the same time. I laugh at how nervous I am, how nervous he makes me when just a moment ago, his body and lips were all over mine.

“We’ll talk later, okay? I’m going to help Aunt Mel finish up.” He places a soft kiss on my forehead before sliding his hand down my arm and giving my hand a quick squeeze.

I watch as he walks away, my mind spinning at what just happened. I bring my fingers up to my lips, swollen and warm, my body still humming at the way it felt to have him pressed against me.

I smooth my hands down my shirt and stand up straighter before heading back to the front of the gallery as if nothing had happened.

MORGAN

Kissing Aspen is something I’ve fantasized about for weeks.

I know I shouldn’t have, considering she’s my student and the consequences could really screw me, but the moment she opened up to me, I couldn’t stop myself. She walks into my classroom, so strong and confident in her work, but there’s so much she’s covering up on the inside.  The force I feel to be near her is undeniable.

I hate that I had to leave her after that, but I don’t intend on staying away for long.

Aunt Mel and I go through the rest of her to-do list for the event. Going over and over the same things I already know, but I amuse her and listen anyway. I know talking about it aloud helps her mentally organize everything.

We go over the catering instructions, the wine list, the guest list, and itinerary. She repeats herself so much, I start filling in her words for her.

“Morgan!” she scowls.

I laugh. “Well, you’ve told me the list three times now, Aunt Mel. I got it.” I kiss her cheek. “It’s going to be amazing. Stop worrying.”

“All right. Fine.” She smiles with a sigh. “I’ll be relieved when it’s over. Let’s just say that.”

“Yes, but all your hard work will pay off. I’m sure of it.”

It’s after seven before I finally get out of there. I know Natalia is going to be mad, but I’m hoping the sleepover she’s planned for this weekend puts her back in a good mood.

I arrive back home with Natalia half asleep in the passenger seat. My mom said she’d been quiet all night and couldn’t get anything out of her. So I plan to fix that.

“Wanna talk?” I ask as soon as I kill the engine.

“About what?”

“Whatever you want.”

She furrows her brows. “Nothing in particular comes to mind.”

“Natalia, c’mon. How dense do you think I am?”

“Well, going by your Ralph Lauren slacks, button-up shirt, and slicked back hair, I’d say it’s a safe bet.”

“You have way too much time on your hands if you know the brand names of my clothes.”

“I have good fashion sense, so sue me.” She grips the handle and lets herself out.

“What’s wrong with my pants?” I chase behind her, but she ignores my question. “We can order pizza and binge on ice cream,” I offer, unlocking the door. “But you have to talk.”

I push the front door open and she steps in. “Fine. Let’s talk about why you hated my father.”

My breath hitches, and I swear I hear a pin drop the moment her words hit me. But I know she’s not stupid. Of course, she knows something was up between us considering I never called or visited.

I just wasn’t planning to have this conversation for at least a few more years.

We settle in with a cheese pizza and a quart of chocolate ice cream on the couch. I know I can’t tell her everything, but it’s only fair she know I didn’t hate him. I was mad, sure, but I’ve always loved my brother.

“Okay, so spill. I’m eating, aren’t I?”

I narrow my eyes at her snarky tone. “I didn’t hate him, Natalia. I shouldn’t have gone so long without talking to him. I’ll regret that for the rest of my life.”

“Why’d you stop talking to him?” she asks, taking a bite.

I don’t want anything I say to change how she feels for her dad, so I sugarcoat it the best I can. “We had a disagreement. I was mad and hurt for a really long time and instead of mending our relationship, I let it stew.”

“Are you still mad?” she asks.

“Yes. But not at him.”

“Then who?”

“Myself. I’m mad about our last interaction. I’m mad I didn’t come back before it was too late.”

“Being mad is a lot of work,” she admits.

“It is,” I agree.

“Do you think God punishes people?”

Her question catches me off guard and it takes me a moment to really grasp what she’s asked. “I can’t say for sure.”

“Yeah, me either.”

“Do you think you’re being punished?”

She shrugs and lowers her eyes. “Sometimes, I guess. It’s hard not to feel that way when you lose both of your parents before they even get to see you graduate middle school. I miss him so much.”

I wrap my arm around her and pull her closer. “I do, too, Shorty. But I do know one thing…” She looks up at me with those hopeful and bright blue eyes. “He loved you so very much. He’d want you to be happy.”

“I feel guilty.”

“For moving on?” She nods. “Yeah, I know that feeling, too.”

“How do you get over it?”

I wish I knew the answer to that. “That’s something we’re going to have to figure out together.”

She smiles and leans her head on my shoulder. I kiss the top of her head and let her lay there until she passes out. I carry her into bed and tuck her in as quietly as I can without waking her. I put the pizza and ice cream away and then finish cleaning up the rest of the living room.

I sit down on the couch with a thud and stare up at the ceiling. Thoughts of Ryan and me come to my mind. Thoughts of how close we were, how much I looked up to him, how much we had in common.

I should’ve known he’d had a thing for Jennifer, but I ignored all the signs. I didn’t want to think that my own brother would go after someone I was dating and planning to marry. Even though I was enraged, I wish I would’ve given him a second chance. A second chance to explain, apologize, admit he loved her—anything.

I wish I had given our relationship a second chance before it was too late.

I try to hold back the tears like all the other times, but this time, I let them fall. I let them fall so I can relieve the pain inside.

“Morgan?” I hear Nat’s voice, and I quickly rub both hands over my face.

“Yes?” I stand up and find her leaning on the doorframe.

She flashes a sweet smile and says, “He’d want you to be happy, too.”

Natalia’s words repeat over and over in my head all night long. I try and sleep, but sleep never comes. I think of all the things we used to do as kids, the way we’d mess with each other, and spend every Saturday outside.

There was a time we were inseparable. That was all before Jen, of course. He went off to college before me, but once I met her, our time together became less and less. There were holidays and special occasions, but it wasn’t nearly the same. We lost contact somewhere in between, and I have no one to blame but myself.

Natalia was born and just a few years after, his wife, Lena, passed away. It was hard on all of us, but it destroyed him. Ryan was alive, but he was hardly living. It was obvious he was taking Lena’s unexpected death hard.

She was driving to work one day when an elderly woman hit her straight on and was killed instantly. I tried my hardest to get closer to him after that. Raising a child on his own and feeling lost, he started drinking. I’m not exactly sure when he started to fall for Jen, but I know I hadn’t seen it coming. Although I should’ve, I was too invested in my own little world to really see what was happening around me.

Natalia would stay with my parents a lot. I’d help by picking her up and taking her out to do fun things. She was just a toddler, so we’d go to the pool or park, anything to keep her out of the house while Ryan drank himself to near a coma.

I tried to help, get him into counseling, but he refused. My mother cried daily, wanting to help and send him to rehab, but again, he refused.

Perhaps it was Jen’s psychology background, but she managed to get him talking. She’d spend hours over there, trying to get him to express the pain he was feeling. I can’t say I blame him for falling in love with her. She was easy to fall for with her sweet southern belle personality. I figured she was finally getting through to him, finally helping him sober up, but she was just helping him replace a void that ended up ruining all of our lives.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

ASPEN

After Thursday’s class with Professor Hampton, I’m more nervous than ever for the gala tonight. I could hardly keep eye contact with him, but he hadn’t made it easy. Every time I looked up from my canvas, he’d be staring at me with that stupid crooked grin of his with his tone arms crossed over his broad chest. I had to remind myself not to drool and to keep my head down.

But I hadn’t been successful in trying to act normal since Ellie kept looking at me out of the corner of her eye. I could tell she was suspicious considering how much attention he’d given me the past six weeks and especially since she made a few comments about us hooking up a while ago. I can’t say I blame her, though—the way he looks at me would make a blind man suspicious.

However, I know we have to act normally when people are around. As hard as it sounds, it’s also kind of hot. It’s like this little secret that only he and I know…a secret everyone would die to hear about.

By Saturday morning, I’m antsy as hell.

Ms. Jones has been blowing my phone up all morning, double and triple checking everything. I’m scheduled to help assist anyone with the paintings and hopefully talk them up and into buying. There’ll be several of us walking around to help interpret the paintings for anyone who asks, but Ms. Jones knows I’ve done this the most out of all the other girls.

On top of all that, I have to fit into a gown, do my hair and makeup and find shoes that match. I’m normally on top of it all, but lately my brain has been preoccupied with other things.

Things like Professor Hampton.

And his hands.

And his eyes.

And his perfect lips.

And basically anything to do with him, which has made me unable to really function at anything else since he kissed me Wednesday night.

And speaking of that kiss, I can’t get the taste and feel of his lips out of my mind. I replay it over and over in my head just so I won’t forget it. I’ve kissed numerous guys in the past, but his was different. It was so much more than just a kiss.

I hear knocking on my door and yell for them to come in. I know it’s Kendall. We’re supposed to head to the gallery together, but I know she’s going to ream my ass for not being ready yet.

“Aspen!”

“In here!” I call from my bathroom. I hear her walk down the hall and see her as soon as she comes through the door. “What in the hell?” I crack out in laughter. “Why aren’t you dressed?”

“That’s because I can’t get the damn dress over my ass.” She scowls. “It fit me a few weeks ago.”

“Maybe you’re just bloated?” I spin her around and pull the dress up over her chest and around her back. “Okay, start sucking in.” I pull it tighter, but it doesn’t reach just yet. “When I count to three, inhale as deep as you can and hold it in.” She does as I say, and I yank the zipper up, just barely getting it to zip all the way. “There.”

She turns around with a frown. “I can’t even breathe.”

“Shit,” I mutter. “Do you have another one?”

“If I had another one, I wouldn’t be trying to squeeze into this!”

“All right. Let me unzip it and you can wear one of my dresses.”

“Are you kidding? Your stuff is even tighter than mine.”

“Not all of it!” I counter. “Just come on.” I drag her into my room and open the closet doors. “There has to be something in here that’ll work.”

Forty-two minutes later…

“I look like a stripper,” Kendall complains, staring at herself in the mirror.

“Silver is totally in,” I say unconvincingly. “You look fine.”

“I’m not an idiot, Aspen. I make one wrong move and it’ll rip in half, giving everyone a free show.”

“Well, at least it’d help sell lots of paintings,” I tease, laughing at her dramatics. “But just to be safe, don’t bend over.” I wink.

“That’s it. No more Taco Bell runs.” She rubs a hand over her waistline as if she were pregnant. “Mama needs to get rid of this food baby.”

I burst out in laughter, hardly able to keep it together to slide my shoes on. “Come on, Little Mama. Hair time.”

“Maybe if I dye it pink and puff it up like an eighties hairstyle gone bad, it’ll direct everyone away from the fact that this dress is two sizes too small.”

“I don’t see what you’re fussing about. It really accents your ass and chest.”

“The only time I actually have a chest and it’ll be while I’m at work,” she whines, flailing her arms against her sides.

“Well, as a newly single girl, you can use this opportunity to network with potential dates.”

The glare she shoots at me tells me she’s not amused. “Just finish your hair,” she groans.

My lips tilt up in a knowing smirk at her silly remark. I decide to leave my hair half down and pin the rest up with a red and silver clip. I complete the look by curling the ends and hair spraying it. I apply my makeup as usual—smoky eyes and red lips.

“Ready?” she asks, leaning up against the wall. I try to hide the smile that’s forming on my face at the fact that she can’t sit. She’s been standing there waiting for me for at least a half hour.

“All ready.”

“Finally. I was about to pass out.”

“Are you sure you want to wear that?”

She checks the time on her phone. “Even if I did want to change, there’s no time. We have to be there in five minutes.”

I grab my clutch off the table and follow her out. The event is from six to ten, but Ms. Jones wants us there an hour early.

“It’ll be a miracle if I last all night in these heels.” She sighs, cautiously stepping down the staircase.

“You get used to them.”

“Oh, I’m sure people who have long, tone legs and petite feet really have to struggle with wearing heels.”

I groan at her bad attitude and remark. “That’s it…we’re hitting the open bar first.”

“Now we’re talking.”

I know Professor Hampton is going to be at the event, but nothing could’ve prepared me for how I’d feel the moment I first saw him in his sleek, black tuxedo, crisp white shirt, and smooth black tie. He looks flawless, and I find it hard to not fantasize about running my hands down his chest just to see what he’d do.

Butterflies build in my stomach as I clench my thighs together at the thought of his lips on mine again. His hair is combed back, the sides trimmed short. He looks like he came straight out of a GQ magazine, and I want to subscribe to every issue.

I pretend that I’m not looking at him or memorizing every inch of his solid body. I keep my eyes low and my head slanted just enough to keep him in my peripheral vision. He’s talking with one of the bartenders, laughing and already holding a drink in his hand.

A drink. That’s exactly what I need.

“Aspen!”

Or not.

I turn around and see Ms. Jones speed walking with her arms flailing right toward me, Christine chasing after her with a frazzled look on her face. “Hi!” I smile at the pair. Ms. Jones is a walking, talking bundle of nerves, and poor Christine looks like she’s just trying to hold on for dear life

“Thank goodness you’re here.”

“Everything okay?”

She’s panting, and I can tell she’s about to have a nervous breakdown. “No. I mean, yes. Well, kind of. I’m just freaking out a little.”

Christine stares pointedly at me, eyes wide while she mouths
a little
? It takes everything I have not to giggle, tamping down the humor I give Ms. Jones my undivided attention.

“Okay, well, what can I do to help?”

“I just need you two to make sure everyone is doing what they’re supposed to be doing.”

“Well, of course, we will.”

“We have some very important people from the community coming and everything needs to be perfect.”

I place my hands on her shoulders and look her straight in the eyes. “It will be, okay? Everything is planned to the last detail. Christine and I have it under control. This is
your
event. Enjoy it.”

She takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. “Right. Okay, thank you.”

I release her shoulders and smile. “Anytime.” I wink before she walks off, Christine trailing behind her, my words going right over her head.

Kendall walks over to me with two drinks in her hand and a sly smirk on her lips. “What’s that look?” I ask.

She hands me a glass of champagne. “Nothing.” She lowers her eyes as takes a sip, and I know she’s full of shit.

I glance behind her and notice the other bartender that’s setting up is staring right at her ass. “Nothing…
right
,” I drawl with an over-exaggerated tone. “So are you ready to schmooze for the next four hours?”

She sighs. “As long as there’s a drink in my hand at all times.”

I purse my lips together and finally realize the issue. “You miss him,” I say softly.

She shrugs, avoiding eye contact with me. It’s been two weeks since Kellan broke up with her, and I’ve been so busy with my own drama that I haven’t even been paying attention to the pain she was feeling from it.

“Tonight, we drink away our inhibitions.” I clink my glass with hers. “Tomorrow, we pay for it.” I smile when I finally get a laugh out of her.

“Deal.”

I finish my glass and set it back down. The doors are going to open soon, and I need to get my head into the game. I’ll be the attendant in the America in the Thirties Exhibit. Each exhibit has an attendant available to help push sales and be ready to answer questions about the paintings.

Kendall isn’t as familiar with the exhibits, so she’s placed by the front doors, welcoming everyone to the event and directing them to the silent auction, bar, and food.

I decide to use the restroom quickly before the doors open. My heart races as I walk down the hall, and I know if I don’t take a few minutes to breathe it out, I’ll only feel worse as the night goes on. I usually live for these events. I love talking to other people about art and hearing their interpretations on the pieces. It’s these events that make juggling school and work worth it. But having Professor Hampton here is making me more nervous than usual.

“Aspen…” I hear his deep hoarse voice before I see him. I spin around and face him as he walks toward me.

“Hi, Professor Hampton.” I nervously chew my lip. “You look great. Black suits you.” I grin.

His lips form into a shy smile as he brushes his fingers over the stubble covering his jawline. He steps closer. “What did I say about calling me that outside of the classroom?” His eyes travel from my eyes to my lips and my body shivers in anticipation of feeling his hands on me again.

“Oh, right.” I swallow. “Sorry…I’m just… you make me a little nervous,” I admit and wish I could stop rambling.

His hand reaches out and caresses my cheek. I press my face into his palm and my eyes flutter closed. I feel his other hand wrap around my waist and close the gap between us.

My eyes open just as I feel his breath against my lips. “You make me more than nervous, Aspen Evans.” He leans down and brushes his lips softly against mine. “You look absolutely breathtaking, by the way. Simply gorgeous. It’s going to be impossible to keep my eyes off you all night.”

“Then don’t.” I press my lips to his, craving just a taste of him. I know we’re alone in the hallway, but I a part of me still feels anxious at the thought of getting caught.

Although it makes kissing my professor that much more exciting.

He takes a step forward, making me take a step back. He takes another and another and soon my back is pressed firmly against the wall. His mouth moves more aggressively, pulling my lower lip in between his and sucking it lightly before pressing his tongue against mine. I wrap my arms around him, feeling his taut muscles against my fingers.

I moan into his mouth and as soon as he hears it, his hips grind against me and pin me to the wall in a blistering hot kiss.

“Morgan…” I say on a soft whimper.

“Say it again,” he demands against my lips.

“Morgan,” I whisper. He grabs my wrists and lifts my arms over my head against the wall.

He moves his mouth down my jaw and lands on my neck. My arms tighten around him, feeling his arousal against my lower stomach. I fight the urge to reach down and wrap my fingers around him. My body shivers, both in excitement and nerves. His lips travel up to my ear and he sweetly pulls it in between his lips.

“If you kiss my neck and suck on my ear, your pants are coming off.” The words come out of me without permission, but the moment they release from my lips, he nips my neck.

“
Jesus Christ
…” he growls in my ear.

I feel his lips form into a knowing grin as he presses one last kiss against the flesh of my neck. “Just when I was trying to talk myself out of taking advantage of you, I’m reminded that you may be the one taking advantage of me.”

“No one said willpower was easy.” I wink and he lets out a soft laugh.