FORBIDDEN SEDUCTION

BETWEEN THE STAR AND THE TEACHER

KAELANA

“This is ridiculous!” I yelled, shooting up from my seat, unable to control my anger.

It took me only a few seconds to realize what I'd just done as everyone's eyes alternated between me and our maths teacher, Ryan Blake.

He leaned against his desk, arms crossed, expression cold and unreadable. His sharp gray eyes locked onto me with maddening indifference… as if he had no care in the world.

"You’re giving me detention for what? Answering a question?" I yelled, my voice shaking with sheer frustration.

"You interrupted me," he enunciated.

"Because you were wrong!” I clapped back.

More gasps resounded through the room. Oh God. I’d done it now.

"Detention. After school," Ryan repeated, before turning back to continue writing out the formulas for the solution of our previous test.

My lips were beginning to quiver even as I sucked in a sharp breath. "You can’t be serious."

Jackson Sullivan straightened from his seat, staring from me to Ryan. "Come on, man," he said, giving Ryan a lazy grin. "It’s not that serious. Let her off the hook."

I watched Mr. Ryan’s jaw clench as he stared from Jackson to me, then back to the board, enunciating his earlier stance, “Miss Gregory, you’ll be staying after school. And that’s final.”

I barely had time to process before Emily burst into giggles.

"A detention? Wow, you’re really on a roll, nerd."

Her friends snickered, throwing mocking glances my way. "Guess the little teacher’s pet isn’t so perfect anymore."

My hands fisted at my sides.

Ryan didn’t even react. He just turned back to the board and kept teaching like he hadn’t just ruined my day.

I spent the rest of the class fuming and glaring deep holes into the back of Mr. Ryan's head.

If only looks could kill.

As soon as the bell signifying the ending of the period rang, I grabbed my bag and stormed out, no waiting for either June or Jackson.

“I'll wait for you at the garage, come as soon as you're done serving detention,” Jackson had told me when the bells rang for students to go home.

June had wanted to wait as well but she got a text from her mom to pick up groceries on her way home because they had visitors coming over.

Outside the door to his office, I paused when I wanted to open the door but a voice from behind startled me.

“You're late, Miss Gregory.”

When I whipped my hair to attach a face to the voice, Mr. Ryan was behind me, staring at me with a blank look.

“I wasn't supposed to be here in the first place,” I retorted, but he walked past me, opened the door and walked. I had no other choice but to follow suit.

I slammed my bag angrily on the desk, folded my hands below my breasts as I glared at him angrily.

“Sit down, Miss Gregory,” Ryan ordered, grabbing some test scripts and arranging it on his desk.

“Why are you doing this?” I began, tipping my head back a bit.

"You obviously don’t know when to keep your mouth shut," he replied smoothly, flipping a page.

"That’s not true," I retorted, stopping in front of his desk. “This has been going on since...”

I let my words hang but Ryan knew what I had intended to say. His eyes slowly net mine and he asked, “Since when?”

Pouting my lips, I looked away trying to put my thoughts in order, “Since I started talking to Jackson.”

A glint flashed in his eyes but it disappeared immediately.

"You think so?" he muttered, reaching for his pen.

"I know so," I fired back. "Every time he walks me to class, you glare at me. Every time I talk to him, your mood turns sour. Now you gave me detention for agreeing with his answer?"

I didn't see his reaction coming. He shot out of his chair, leaning closer to my face as he enunciated, "Stay Away From Jackson."

“You have got to be kidding me,” I replied with a small laugh, leaning back from him.

“It's not an order but you had better do it.”

“Or what?” I challenged him, meeting his glare squarely.

“You don’t know what he’s capable of,” Ryan said, his voice softening only a bit.

"And you do?" I demanded but he met my response with silence.

“I'm not breaking any school rules by sticking with Jackson. Besides he doesn't treat me like he doesn't know me or that we didn't share a kiss twice. He's not always quiet when I'm bullied. He's kind and caring and he's my crush…”

I didn’t get to finish before I felt soft plump lips on mine. He cupped the back of my neck, his fingers buried in my hair, but he didn't pry his way into my mouth, he simply waited for me to push him away or pull him closer.

“Darn it,” I cussed, wrapping my hands around his neck, sucking on his lips. He took the cue and slipped his tongue into mine.

His hands tightened around my waist, making me flush against him. My fingers curled into his shirt, as I relied on him for standing support.

A gasp slipped from my throat, and he took advantage of it, deepening the kiss, stealing the air from my lungs. His tongue tasted every corner of my mouth, teasing and demanding.

Suddenly, he pulled away and I raced to catch my breath, still staring in his eyes. I saw regret pass through it and immediately, he pushed me off and walked away without another word.

“W-what?” I heaved, trying to catch my breath. Confusion clouded my reasoning where I stood.

While I was trying to understand what was going on, a student came in and said, “Mr. Ryan said to tell you that detention is over. You can go home.”