Chapter 55: The Self-Control Test

Chapter 55: Chapter 55: The Self-Control Test

The party ended soon after the dance, once the guests had finished presenting their gifts to Tessa, of course. Apparently, birthday parties weren’t officially over until everyone had handed the birthday girl something expensive enough to justify being invited.

By then, the music had quieted down, and guests were beginning to leave in small groups.

I was standing beside one of the tables with a glass of sparkling apple juice, watching Nicole say goodbye to Rebecca, Tessa, and two other girls whose names I’d already forgotten. Not that I’d ever known them well enough to remember in the first place.

She’d told me she’d say goodbye to them, and then we could leave. I’d already said mine, but apparently, my goodbye had an expiration date, and hers required a whole separate ceremony. Not that I was complaining. They were her friends, after all, and it wasn’t like I had somewhere else to be.

Still, I was starting to think I should’ve brought a book. At this rate, I might finish a whole Chapter before Nicole was done saying goodbye.

I took a sip of my drink, keeping an eye on Nicole, when someone stopped beside me.

"Nathan, was it?"

I turned to find Alessandro standing there with a glass of something blue in his hand.

I gave him a nod. Because that’s what you do.

He stood beside me, and for a while, neither of us said anything. We watched Nicole and the girls talking and laughing about something we couldn’t hear from where we stood. Whatever it was, it seemed hilarious.

"You know," Alessandro eventually said, taking a sip from his glass, "Nicole and I have known each other since she was nineteen."

I nodded. "Since sophomore year." Then I turned to face him. "She told me."

I gave him a polite smile and turned back to the girls, taking a sip of my sparkling apple juice. For some strange, inconceivable reason, it tasted better than it had a moment ago. Must be the atmosphere.

Alessandro turned his attention back to the girls too, but I caught the slight tightening of his jaw out of the corner of my eye.

"She’ll get bored sooner or later," he said, taking another sip from his glass.

I smirked. "I doubt that."

Nicole pulled Tessa into a hug, saying something that made her laugh before finally letting her go. They exchanged a few more words before Nicole turned and started making her way towards us.

I noticed Alessandro’s jaw relax as soon as she did. By the time she reached us, he was smiling again.

Nicole stopped in front of us, glancing between the two of us with an amused smile. "What have you two been talking about?"

"Football," Alessandro replied.

"And club loyalty," I added.

Nicole looked between us for another moment before making a face. "Men and their sports. Honestly."

Her attention shifted to the glass in my hand, and she tilted her head slightly. "You’re going to finish that?"

I looked down at my drink, then at Nicole. She was already giving me a small, almost pleading pout, wiggling her fingers at me expectantly.

I couldn’t help smiling and shaking my head at her before handing over my drink.

Nicole took it without hesitation and downed the rest in one go before setting the empty glass on the table. Then she slipped her hand into the crook of my arm, settling against my side as though she’d been waiting for an excuse to do so.

"Don’t let Tessa get drunk," she told Alessandro, glancing in the direction of her friend. "Brandon can’t exactly keep an eye on her all night, so I’m trusting you to make sure she doesn’t overdo it."

Alessandro gave her a small nod. "I’ll keep an eye on her. Don’t worry."

Nicole smiled at him. "Goodnight, Alex."

"Goodnight, Nicole." He returned her smile before turning to me. "You too, Nathan."

I gave him a nod. "Goodnight."

Nicole looked up at me, her hand still tucked comfortably around my arm. "Let’s go."

I let her lead me away from the table and towards the exit, leaving Alessandro behind with his drink and, presumably, a few things to think about.

—

The drive back to Nicole’s place was surprisingly smooth.

I’d had my doubts about attending the party even before we left for it. Spending an evening surrounded by people I barely knew, making small talk and pretending to be interested in conversations I would forget five minutes later, hadn’t exactly sounded appealing.

Thankfully, it turned out I’d had very little to worry about.

Nicole spent almost the entire drive talking about the party, particularly how Tessa had told the girls about the advice I’d given her regarding Brandon. Apparently, my suggestion that she hear him out if he made a genuine effort had impressed them, and the part about putting him on eBay had earned me an unreasonable amount of praise.

I wasn’t sure what that said about their standards for men, but I decided not to question a development that seemed to be working in my favour.

She also had plenty to say about the birthday cake, which she’d apparently found disappointingly bland. According to her, the one she’d bake for my birthday would be WAY better. The emphasis was hers, and she seemed personally offended by the possibility that anyone might doubt her baking abilities.

I had no intention of doubting them. Not when she looked that determined to prove a point, and certainly not when I was the one who stood to benefit from it.

By the time we reached her apartment building, I’d come to a rather pleasant conclusion. The party hadn’t been nearly as dreadful as I’d expected. In fact, between Nicole’s company, the unexpected approval of her friends, and a certain dance I’d been thinking about more than I cared to admit, I was rather glad I’d gone.

I pulled up in front of her house and switched off the engine.

Nicole took off her seatbelt and turned to face me with a bright smile. I turned towards her as well, already suspicious of that expression.

"I don’t want tonight to end yet," she said.

I raised an eyebrow. "I wonder why."

She giggled, looking almost delighted by my response. "You’re so mean."

"That’s a serious accusation. I’m going to need evidence."

"Oh, I have plenty." She leaned a little closer, her smile turning mischievous. "Would you like me to show you?"

I tried to lean back, but my seatbelt stopped me halfway. I hadn’t even taken the thing off yet.

Nicole, meanwhile, had moved close enough that I could see the brightness in her eyes without having to look very hard. She seemed rather pleased with herself, which was never a reassuring sign.

Then her smile softened, and her voice dropped a little. "Did you enjoy the dance?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but nothing came out.

I knew exactly what she was doing, which should have made it easier to deal with. Unfortunately, knowing Nicole was trying to get a reaction out of me did very little to stop my mind from supplying increasingly unhelpful thoughts.

I needed to get a grip. We were still professor and student, regardless of what had happened between us so far, and someone had to remember that before I let myself get carried away.

The problem was that the longer she looked at me like that, the harder it became to remember why I was supposed to be the sensible one.

"How do you do it, though?" she asked, still looking amused, her eyes practically sparkling with mischief.

"Do what?" I managed, doing my best to sound unaffected despite the fact that my self-control was currently hanging on by a thread.

"Stop yourself." She leaned a little closer, and her smile widened when she noticed I hadn’t moved away. "Your self-control is really hot."

She paused for a moment, as if she’d just thought of something. "Even though it’s kinda annoying." Then that mischievous smile returned. "But still..."

She leaned closer until our lips were only inches apart, her eyes flicking briefly towards my mouth. "It makes me just want to poke it sometimes."

For a moment, neither of us said anything.

Then she tilted her head slightly. "Can I poke it?" she asked softly. "Just a little."

I looked into her eyes.

There was something in them that made me pause. I couldn’t quite tell what it was, but whatever she saw in my expression seemed to answer her question, because her smile softened before she leaned in.

And then she kissed me. Properly, her lips pressing against mine with a confidence that suggested she had no intention of wasting the opportunity.

I was caught off guard for all of half a second. Then I kissed her back.

My hand settled on her waist as I leaned closer, kissing her back with enough enthusiasm that my usual list of reasons to behave myself was quickly becoming an afterthought. I was so caught up in her that I barely registered her hand moving down from my chest until it reached my stomach.

Then it kept going.

My eyes snapped open just as her fingers reached the waistband of my trousers, and I immediately caught her hand.

I pulled back, turning my face away from hers as I held her hand in place, suddenly very aware of just how far we’d nearly gone.

Nicole stopped moving as well.

For a moment, neither of us said anything. Then she let out a small, distinctly unhappy whine.

I turned back to her, still holding her hand, and stared at her in disbelief. She was looking straight into my eyes, her lips pulled into a pout that somehow managed to look halfway between a glare and a complaint.

"You can let go now," she said, her voice carrying a pointed edge. "I won’t tempt you anymore."

There was a particular emphasis on tempt that made it abundantly clear she was not pleased with me.

I released her hand.

Nicole immediately pulled away and settled back into her seat, folding her arms as she turned her face from me.

For a few seconds, neither of us said anything.

I glanced at her, but she made no effort to look at me. Her arms remained folded, and she seemed quite determined to keep her attention on anything other than me.

I turned a little more towards her. "Nicole—"

She turned to face me. "You always act like I’m trying to ruin your life whenever I try to kiss you, and you’re always waiting for me to make the first move." She paused. "You haven’t even given me a nickname yet!"

She turned her face away again, pouting as she added, "I only pretended I’d forgotten, you know. I haven’t."

I kept staring at Nicole, but she remained turned away from me, her arms still folded. I couldn’t tell if she had anything else to say, but she certainly didn’t seem interested in hearing anything from me.

I sat there for a while, thinking about what she’d said.

I’d been so caught up in worrying about what this relationship could cost me that I’d barely stopped to consider what she was risking. And unlike me, she had a career and a professional reputation to protect, things she’d worked hard to build long before I came along.

"I... I didn’t mean it like that," I said quietly.

She didn’t respond.

I looked at her for another moment before letting out a breath. "I’m sorry, Nicole."

That got her attention. She immediately turned to face me, her expression still decidedly unhappy.

"Then make it up to me."

I blinked. "How?"

"Spend the night at my place." She paused, then added, "With me. In the same room."

I stared at her.

Of all the things I’d expected her to say, that hadn’t even made the list.

Nicole continued looking at me, her arms still folded and her lips pressed into a pout. She didn’t look remotely interested in taking the offer back.

"Sure," I finally said.

Nicole nodded. "Good."

She reached for the door handle and stepped out of the car, apparently satisfied with my answer.

I watched her close the door before letting out a long breath of my own. Then I got out, too.