Forbidden Lecture: My Professor's Secret Craving

Chapter Eight

Jason woke up before his alarm, like he always did. The bedroom was dark and cool, the faint hum of the city seeping through the double-glazed windows. He turned to look at the digital clock that glowed in soft blue on the bedside table. 5:42 AM. For a moment, he lay still on his back, staring at the ceiling, listening to the sound of his breathing and the quiet, even breaths from the other side of the bed.

Victoria lay with her back to him, her long brunette hair spilling across the pillow. Even asleep, she seemed composed; her side of the bed was neat, her phone faced down on the nightstand with a glass of lemon water, still half full. The space between their bodies was a practiced distance.

It’s been five years of sharing a house and this bed, and he could count on one hand the number of times they’d accidentally brushed against each other in the night.

He dragged a hand over his face as his mind flashed to Aria, pulling him back to that fateful night weeks ago, the one that had shattered his carefully crafted life. He was only there to clear his mind after a fight with Victoria and had spotted Aria across the crowded club. Their eyes locked through the haze of the strobe lights, and just like that, the pull was magnetic.

Their bodies grinding on the dance, her ass pressing back against his growing erection, teasing him just enough. Their frenzied kiss as he pinned her to the wall in the hotel while his hands yanked up her dress. Her p***y was so swollen and wet, and when she sucked him… God, the way she had gagged just a little, her eyes watering as she begged for more.

He shifted in the bed as the memories flooded, his c**k now twitching under the sheets as Victoria stirred slightly beside him.

The s*x that night was everything he had dreamed of. He could still hear her screams as he slammed into her from behind. And then, at the office. f**k, that had been torture. Her weak protests had only fueled him. She melted as he kissed her mouth while his hands dove under her dress to rub her c**t. She was completely soaked. He knew she couldn’t resist him much as he couldn’t resist her. He would have f****d her right there and then, had they not been disturbed.

Now, as if the universe conspired against him, she had been assigned as his second T.A. for the rest of the school year. Every seminar, every late-night grading session, she’d be right there, close enough to touch, to taste. He had different scenarios of what he could do if they were left alone. f**k their deal. It was the only way he could keep himself in check, but now…

“Stop thinking about her,” he muttered. He glanced down and saw his erection already tenting the sheet, throbbing with need. s**t!

Quietly, he slid out of bed, his feet touching the cold hardwood. In the bathroom, he flicked on the light, splashed cold water on his face, and squinted at his reflection. Thirty-five, little lines crooked at the corners of his eyes. His disheveled dark hair had just started to silver at the temples if you looked close. The kind of face students found “intimidating” and that Victoria had called “solid” at their engagement dinner, in front of her parents.

“Solid is good for a professor only,” she had said, her lips brushing his cheek like a compliment.

He brushed his teeth, ignoring the way his mind kept replaying the feel of Aria’s mouth on his, the moans she made when he’d pressed her against the bookshelf. How small and perfect she had felt under his hands and how big the guilt had been once the adrenaline wore off.

He showered hotter than he needed to, letting the water scald his skin in a way that almost felt like penance. By the time he came out with a towel wrapped around his waist, Victoria was awake. She sat propped against the headboard, her silk robe tied neatly as she scrolled through her phone.

“Morning,” she said, eyes flicking up briefly. “You’re up early.”

“Lecture at nine,” he replied, crossing the room to his dresser. He picked out a pale blue shirt and a charcoal suit. Professional. Controlled. The opposite of whatever chaos lived under his ribs now.

“You always have a lecture at nine.” Her tone was light, but her gaze lingered a second longer than usual. “You’ve been… distracted this past few weeks.”

Here we go.

He slipped the shirt on, buttoning the cuffs with efficiency. “It’s a new term, which means new students. Plus, the Dean is handing me more responsibility.” That, at least, wasn’t a lie.

“Mm.” She put her phone down and watched him knot his tie. “I heard about the new teaching assistant. assignment.”

Of course, she had. Victoria’s family donated enough to the university that gossip traveled fast.

“A second T.A.,” she said slowly. “That’s… unusual.”

“That was the Dean's idea,” Jason said, trying to keep his voice neutral. “He wants his scholars to get more experience.”

“Aria… that’s her name, right?” she said the name so carefully, like she was tasting it. “Working class background. The one with that feminist essay everyone forwarded around last year.”

He froze momentarily. “Yes. That one.”

“She’s very pretty.”

That sounded more like an observation rather than a compliment.

Victoria tilted her head. “Ambitious, too. That combination can either make a career… or ruin one.”

Jason met her eyes in the dresser mirror. There was something there. Curiosity? Maybe calculation? But it wasn’t jealousy. Not really. They had never promised each other that.

“Anyways,” Victoria said as she stood up, smoothing her robe. I’ll be home late. My mother’s charity event is tonight. You don’t need to come.”

“Right,” he said. “I’ll probably be grading anyway.”

“Of course you will.” She picked up her phone and moved past him, stopping to press a quick, dry kiss to his cheek. “Good luck with your new T.A., Professor.”

With that, she left the room.

He quickly finished dressing, grabbed his briefcase, and made coffee in the sleek, steel kitchen. Aria flashed in his mind again, her wet lips, the sounds she makes. He cursed under his breath, threw back the coffee, and headed out.

- - -

The campus was already alive when he arrived. Students crossed the quad in clusters, clutching travel mugs, their scarves wrapped tight against the wind.

He walked the familiar path to his office, nodding at colleagues, barely registering their small talk. His mind was already in the room ahead, seeing it how Aria would see it today: shelves, desk, chair, the memory of her body on the big mahogany desk like a stain only he could feel.

Just as he was getting settled, the door opened.

“Good morning, Prof,” Ethan greeted as he walked in with his laptop. He carried a stack of assignments beside him. “I got to school early to organize the tutorials.”

“Morning,” Jason said, setting his briefcase down. “How’s the schedule?”

“Full. Both sections are over-enrolled.” Ethan grinned. “Your fan club is strong.”

Jason grunted. “They’re here for the grades, not for me.”

Ethan snorted, but didn’t argue. “So, I met Aria yesterday.” His tone was casual. “She seems… smart.”

“She is,” Jason said. “She’s a scholarship kid. Got good head on her shoulders.”

“And pretty too,” Ethan added lightly.

Before Jason could respond, there was a soft knock at the door, and his throat immediately went dry.

“Come in,” he called, clearing his throat.

Aria stepped inside, clutching a notebook to her chest like a shield. Her dark waves were pulled into a loose ponytail, with a few strands escaping to frame her face. She wore dark jeans and a simple sweater under her coat, but he noticed the little silver ring on her finger that she toyed with, signaling that she was nervous.

“Good morning,” she said softly. “Professor. Ethan.”

“Hey,” Ethan said, flashing her a friendly grin. “Ready for T.A. initiation?”

She smiled back, more relaxed with him than with Jason. “As I’ll ever be.”

“Miss Jenkins,” Jason said, forcing his tone into professional shape. “We were just going over the tutorial structure.”

He gestured toward the chair beside Ethan’s. She crossed the room and sat; the faint scent of her shampoo, soft and clean, reached him. He focused on the screen.

“We have two tutorial groups per section,” Jason began. “Ethan’s been handling both, but now you’ll take one from each. He’ll show you how we structure them. You’ll also share office hours with us. Students will come to you with questions before they come to me.”

“Okay,” Aria said, jotting the instructions down. “I’m sorry. Will we be co-leading any sessions?”

“Yes,” Ethan chimed in. “First week or two, we’ll double up so you can see how we run things. After that, we’ll trade off. And if you have ideas for activities or discussion prompts, throw them in. Prof actually likes when we’re not boring.”

Jason shot him a look.

As they talked, Jason watched Aria out of the corner of his eye. She asked smart questions, thought about fairness, and worried aloud about being too harsh or too lenient. Nothing about her at that moment said “student he’d had his hands all over.” She was his teaching assistant. Nothing more, but still…

When Ethan stepped out to grab printouts, the room fell into a sudden hush.

Aria tapped her notebook with her pen. “So,” she said softly, not looking at him, “this is us… being cordial.”

Jason exhaled slowly. “Yes. Trying as best as we can.”

Her eyes lifted, meeting his. “Is it working for you?”

He didn’t reply but something flickered in his gaze, hungry.

The door handle jiggled and they both jumped as Ethan returned, oblivious to the tension in the air. Jason cleared his throat, picking up the next stack of papers.

“We’ll go over the first plan now,” he said firmly. “We’ve got plenty to cover.”

He could feel Aria’s eyes on him as they worked through the rest of the hour, every brush of fingers over the same page a reminder that their deal had already cracked.

And this was only day 1 of their working relationship.