I was still at the gate when I spotted Megan’s wide grin as she waved at me. She quickly ran up and hooked her arm through mine the moment she reached me.

“Guess what,” she began, and we started walking together toward the university.

“What?”

“Our new professor… I mean our new young professor. Word is, he’s extremely decent and well-respected,” she gushed.

I frowned, watching the male students we passed who let their gazes linger on me. Fortunately, I was already used to this kind of behavior from men.

“So? What’s so special about him? You seem interested,” I remarked, since she’d been bringing him up for days.

Megan waved to someone she knew before answering.

“I’m just curious. They say he’s handsome, too. Aren’t you curious?” she shot back.

I’m not.

Well, I wasn’t.

I’m not the type to quickly take interest in men. I’m a slut—yes, I admit that. Everyone calls me “a woman for everyone,” “fuck girl,” “whore,” and whatever else they can think of. But in all my experiences, it’s always the men who take interest in me first. Never me.

Not until now.

“Sit, Ms. Valoria. You’re twenty minutes late,” he said coldly the moment I stepped into the classroom.

The room fell silent. Even I was caught off guard, my gaze chasing after this man who introduced himself as our professor for the afternoon.

My eyes sought out Megan, and I found her gaping at him from her seat. The reason I’d been late was because Eros had pulled me into the restroom for a quickie. He’d said the professor wouldn’t arrive until later, so I hadn’t thought much of it.

Most professors here favor me anyway—my grades are high, and I can hold my own in anything academic.

This was the first time a professor had ever called me out—right in front of my classmates.

“Are you going to stand there the whole class?”

My ears burned. I stared at him. I hadn’t even taken in his face or posture because of the irritation surging through me. The only things that caught my attention were his cold eyes and the way his jaw tightened over and over, as though I had done something terrible to him.

I was just late!

I swallowed hard, my footsteps heavy as I made my way to my seat beside Megan. Dropping into the chair with deliberate haste, I fixed my eyes straight on the professor.

“Don’t you have anything to say?” he asked.

I frowned, crossing my arms over my chest. Megan had been right—he did look young, probably only three or four years older than us.

“What exactly do you want me to say, sir?”

“Why are you late?” Again, his jaw tightened. His Adam’s apple moved sharply, and my eyes lingered on it for a second before I looked back into his eyes.

I arched my brow. “Just because, sir. Isn’t that a valid reason? Because I’m sure you wouldn’t want to hear the real one.”

“Try me, Ms. Valoria,” he challenged.

The whole class fell silent again. Even Megan beside me drew in a breath before clamping her mouth shut. It was as if everyone was waiting—watching—to see what I would say next, and what would happen after.

A smirk curved my lips. I didn’t break our stare. His eyes still held no emotion—just coldness. His face, too, was blank.

“Well, sir, I was in the third-floor bathroom doing a quickie with one of the students here. His name’s Eros. I was on my way to class, but he suddenly pulled me in and kissed me—”

“Enough,” he cut in firmly.

“Again, sir?” I teased.

He quickly averted his gaze, turned his back on me, and pretended to write something on the blackboard. The next thing I heard was the muffled laughter of the class. My eyes stayed fixed on his broad back. Now it’s your turn to shut up, sir.

“That was insane. If he fails you…” Megan whispered.

I shrugged. “Then let him. He’s a coward anyway.”

“A sexy, Greek-god-looking, young and hot coward professor, you mean?” Megan joked.

I glanced at her briefly, then turned my eyes back to the professor. Only now did I really take in the rest of him. He still had his back to us. When he finally faced the class again, his expression seemed calm—composed.

Megan was right. I hadn’t noticed it earlier because my head had been clouded with irritation, but this man… ah, no. I feel like I’m staring at a god. His features are no joke. The word “handsome” wouldn’t even come close to doing him justice. He’s tall, with warm bronze skin. Clean-cut, his button-down shirt clings perfectly to a well-sculpted body. I have a feeling that if he ever took it off, anyone in the room would have their jaw—and probably their drool—hit the floor.

And yeah, his manhood—there’s no way it isn’t big.

“Interesting…” I muttered under my breath.

The day ended with me still in a foul mood. I told Megan to go home ahead of me and canceled my evening meet-up with Clark. I just wasn’t in the mood anymore.

I didn’t even know why.

“Eris, Professor wants to see you in the faculty room.”

I turned toward the voice—our class president.

“Huh? Professor?”

“Yeah. He’s calling you to the faculty,” he repeated.

I frowned. Instead of asking questions, I headed straight there. When I arrived, I was greeted by the professor’s face, lit softly by the room’s light. He was alone.

“Are you going to scold me again, sir?” I asked the moment I sat down across from him.

He glanced at me briefly. Not a flicker of interest crossed his face before he looked away, as though avoiding even the sight of me. Damn this man.

“I want to apologize for what happened earlier. I shouldn’t have called you out in front of your classmates,” he said in a calm, low voice.

I froze, one brow arched. Was he serious?

“Just don’t make a joke like that in front of everyone again,” he added.

A smirk played on my lips. “So… you think what I said was a joke, sir?”

This time, he hesitated. His eyes flicked to mine, only to dart away again. I caught the quick flush coloring his ears, and my smirk deepened.

“I wasn’t joking, sir…” I paused, glancing at his nameplate. “Griffin… nice name. I wasn’t joking. I really was making out with one of the students here. So, I apologize for the… confusion, sir.”

“You may leave, Ms. Valoria. See you tomorrow in class,” he said quickly, and I almost burst out laughing.

I sighed as I stood. “See you, Sir Griffin. Or… do you prefer I call you by your first name?”

He just stared straight into my eyes, so I flashed him a grin.

And for the first time, I caught the faintest flicker of interest in his.

In my entire life, I had never encountered a man who, whenever he looked at me, showed no interest at all. Every man I had met was either interested in me in a sexual way, or they were looking for a serious relationship—which I wasn’t capable of giving them.

But this professor—Griffin—was different.

My eyes followed his every move at the front as he taught seriously. He didn’t even glance at me, no matter what I did to get his attention, as if he did it on purpose. When I tried raising my hand for recitation, he didn’t call on me, even though only two of us had our hands up. He chose a classmate I didn’t even know over me.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you dressing like that?” Megan criticized me.

I just stared at her and unbuttoned three buttons of my blouse until the curve of my chest was fully visible.

“Let’s see if he still won’t notice me,” I thought.

Just as the bell rang, signaling the end of class, I quickly approached his table while he was putting away his things.

“Hi, sir…” I deliberately leaned forward in front of him so he could see my chest.

I saw him glance down at my chest, and immediately his forehead furrowed. He seemed suddenly irritable before lifting his gaze back to me.

“Do you need something, Ms. Valoria?” he asked coldly. There wasn’t a hint of emotion on his face, which made me purse my lips.

“I just wanted to know if you’ve really forgiven me about last time, sir… Because if not…” I paused and leaned even closer to his table. “I know what to do about it.”

His forehead furrowed even more. His cold gaze was still fixed on me as he packed up his lesson plan, then suddenly stood up.

“You’re forgiven, Ms. Valoria. Fix your blouse, or else I’ll bring you to the guidance office with your parents,” he said strictly, then walked straight out of the classroom.

I felt the heat of embarrassment crawling up my neck and spreading across my entire face. My mouth fell open as I stared blankly at the door he had just exited.

What the fuck? Did he just turn me down?

“Yeah, he turned you down. The one and only Lilith Eris, rejected by a man for the first time in her life,” Megan said mockingly from behind me, still patting my back.

Annoyed, I turned to glare at her. She glanced at my chest before bursting into laughter.

“Didn’t even enjoy it? Weird,” she said, pinching my chest again, so I smacked her hand away and adjusted the buttons of my blouse.

Yeah, weird. Is he really that decent not to give in? Or maybe he’s just playing hard to get? Maybe if I suddenly pulled his pants down and just sucked the life out of him, he’d give in.

We were sent home early that day. Megan had her own plans with her brother Axel, so our idea of going to the bar never happened.

When I got home, I found a Montero Sport parked in front of our gate. It was the first time I had seen a car in the garage besides Erika’s, my mom’s. Who could the visitor be?

Even before I reached the door, I could hear Erika laughing in the living room along with a man’s voice. When I peeked inside, I saw a large man sitting next to Erika. He was obviously tall even while seated. His side profile made it clear he was handsome—sharp nose, perfectly shaped lips, and a strong jawline.

“Eris! There you are. Come here,” Erika called as soon as she saw me.

I quietly approached them. The man finally turned his head to face me, and I gasped at the sight of his perfect face. He was probably in his mid-forties. Even in a simple short-sleeve polo, he radiated presence.

“This is my friend, Hugo. Hugo, this is my daughter Eris,” Erika introduced me.

I raised my eyebrows as her smile widened while she looked at the man called Hugo.

“Nice to meet you, Eris,” he said, extending his hand toward me.

I just looked at it and then glanced at Erika. She seemed excited, though I wasn’t sure why.

“Nice to meet you too, Mister. I’ll be heading up. I have plans tonight,” I said, walking over to Erika and kissing her on the cheek. “He’s not your friend,” I added.

She just tapped me on the arm before I left them there.

I know her too well. Out of all the friends she’s ever introduced me to and brought home, this was the first time she brought a man to our house. She’s too carefree and easy to read, so I’m certain that man isn’t really her friend. Even if my suspicion is right, I’ll still support her. Especially if I can tell she’s happy.

My mom deserves to be happy too, after everything she went through when she was pregnant with me.

The bass was already shaking the walls as I slipped into the crowded club, but I knew I didn’t need the music to draw attention. Tonight, my outfit did that for me. A silk slip dress clung to my skin like it had been painted on—short enough to tease, low-backed enough to tempt. The straps kissed my shoulders, while a slit along one thigh gave each step a rhythm of its own. I paired it with strappy heels that added a few inches to my height.

“Eris! Nice to see you again. Lucky your mom let you out,” Gino teased as I sat on the high chair at the bar counter.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not a kid anymore, Gino, and you know that. Give me the usual.”

He just laughed and began mixing the drink I always had here. I let my eyes wander. The club was packed, some people already on the dance floor. When I looked up, my gaze met a man across the room, whiskey glass in hand, watching me. I could see the lust and desire in his eyes, so I smirked back.

A few moments later, he made his way over and immediately sat next to me. The first thing I noticed was the tattoo peeking from the rolled-up sleeve of his polo. I guessed it covered his chest and wrapped around to his neck.

“Are you alone?” he asked in a full, deep voice.

I felt heat rise through me as I stared at him. His appeal was almost too much for me to handle. Handsome, tall, and by my guess, around my age.

I smiled when I noticed him sneaking glances at my legs spread out in front of him.

“Earlier, maybe… but not anymore,” I answered meaningfully.

He bit his lower lip. “Mind if I join you here?” he asked.

I nodded and took a sip of the drink Gino handed me.

His hand brushed against my leg, and I caught my breath at the sudden closeness.

“While I do this to you…?” he whispered to my ears as he suddenly slid his hand under my dress. In just one swept, his fingers slid into my womanhood. A soft gasp escaped my mouth.

Things escalated so fast that suddenly we were alone in his car, the space between us electric with anticipation while I moved on top of him feeling his big cock inside of me.

“Finally got the taste of the great Lilith Eris,” the man uttered in his hoarse voice between sucking my breast.

I can honestly say that was the best one-night stand I’ve ever had in my life. That stranger was… different. After starting things in his car that night, we ended up the next morning at a hotel near the bar.

And even now, I can’t stop thinking about who that man was.

“Shit. What if you get pregnant? Did you really forget to tell him to use protection since you’re still a student, or did you do it on purpose because he was just too good?” Megan scolded me as we headed home that afternoon after I told her what had happened.

I bit my lower lip. Before I could even process it all, I remembered at home that we hadn’t used protection—but I was confident I wouldn’t get pregnant since I was on the pill.

I shook my head. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Professor Griffin walking as if he was heading home.

“I’m not going to get pregnant,” I insisted.

Megan laughed. “How can you say that?”

“I’m on the pill, Megan. You know that. Focus on your stuff for now. See you later at Carlo’s place,” I said, waving goodbye.

There was a drinking session at Carlo’s, our blockmate, and everyone was invited because it was his birthday. I had heard they tried to invite Sir Griffin too, since they were close, but apparently, he didn’t respond.

So here I am, following him to try to invite him again. When I saw him walk into the library near the university, I immediately trailed behind him.

“You like this kind of thing, sir?” I teased when I saw him reading the blurb of a dark romance book, grinning to myself.

He looked surprised and immediately turned to face me. He put the book back on the shelf, which made me smile.

“I was just curious. What are you doing here? The dismissal was a while ago,” he said, avoiding my gaze and then marching toward the literature section.

I glanced at the dark romance book he had been holding earlier and couldn’t help but grin when I saw what it was about.

A book about student-professor affairs. Interesting, huh?

When I looked up at him again, he was already heading for the exit, so I hurried to catch up.

“Sir, can I ask you something? What’s your opinion about student-professor affairs?”

I saw him pause for a moment but he kept walking without even glancing at me. I matched his pace, wondering if he would answer or just ignore me.

“Is it really taboo for everyone? What if they truly love each other? What if they were in love before one of them even became a professor? Is it really necessary to sacrifice a relationship for the sake of a career?” I continued.

By now, we were outside the library building, walking across the university’s wide open field. There weren’t many students around since most stayed inside the main library building. Only a few came out here when they couldn’t find the book they were looking for.

“I’m not against how they love each other, but the law says otherwise.”

I was momentarily surprised by his sudden answer. I glanced at his expression to see if he was serious, and was even more surprised to find it completely neutral—not cold, not blank. Just neutral.

I smirked. “So, if it’s not against the law, you’d be willing to have an affair with one of your students?”

Sir Griffin’s brows creased as he looked at me. “Yes… if it’s not against—”

“But don’t you know how to break rules?” I interrupted before he could finish his sentence.