The Professor Next Door (Cider Bar Sisters Book 3) Read online

  This was easily explained: when he’d met Steph’s parents, it hadn’t gone well, and the issues with her parents had ultimately been a major reason their marriage had ended.

  He exhaled and reminded himself that Nicole wasn’t his girlfriend. However, that thought didn’t exactly make him feel good.

  And that reaction made him feel even worse.

  He was supposed to control his feelings for her!

  Perhaps he wasn’t in the best state of mind for this social event.

  “You must be Cam,” he said to the person he’d seen in Nicole’s photograph. “Nice to meet you.” They were wearing jeans, a short-sleeve buttoned shirt, hoop earrings, and glasses with thick frames. They had short brown hair—the same color as Nicole’s—that was longer on top.

  They shook his hand.

  Next, Nicole’s father, Scott.

  Scott’s handshake was extra firm and maybe a little threatening?

  Or possibly David was reading too much into the handshake.

  Nicole made some tea, and they sat down at her little dining room table. He and Nicole usually ate in the kitchen; he’d never sat here before. He helped himself to a cookie and tried to remain calm, even if he was as anxious as the first time he’d taught a class.

  “I hear you’re a professor,” Cam said. “Which subject?”

  They talked about his job for a bit, as well as Cam’s—they were an architect—and he started to feel less jittery.

  “If you’ve got tenure,” Scott said, “I suspect you’re a little older than Nicole.”

  “Yes, I’m forty.”

  “You don’t look it,” Tammy said, “but at least you don’t look way younger than your age. I could pass for a teenager until my late thirties, and it was awkward.”

  “People gave us dirty looks,” Scott said, “even though I’m only a year older than her.”

  “But why are you single at forty?” Tammy asked.

  “Mom!” Nicole and Cam said in unison.

  “I just want to know if there’s something wrong with him. Calvin was the same age, and as we learned, there was a reason he was dating a twenty-two-year-old.”

  “But I’m not twenty-two anymore. And we’re not dating.” Nicole sounded exasperated.

  “I’m divorced,” David said.

  Maybe it would have been easier to lie, but lies could come back to bite you later. Sure, he might not see Nicole’s parents again, but what if...

  Nicole’s family members all looked at each other, and Nicole put her head in her hands.

  “Why are you divorced?” Tammy asked.

  “It’s none of your business,” Nicole said, angrily grabbing a cookie. “He’s told me a little about it, but he doesn’t owe you details.”

  “Hmm,” Scott said. “He really must be a special friend if he’s told you.” He and Tammy shared a meaningful look.

  David noticed that many of Nicole’s features were in between those of her parents. She had her mother’s skin tone and eye color, but the shape of her eyes, her nose...those were a combination.

  “David?”

  Oh, shit. Someone must have asked him a question.

  “Sorry,” he said. “Could you repeat that?”

  “I think he got lost in her eyes,” Tammy said, then gave him a gentle shove.

  “Mom,” Nicole said. “Don’t harass my so-called special friend!”

  They were all laughing, except Nicole. She looked like she was on the verge of laughter but was trying to control herself.

  “We should get going.” Tammy patted Nicole’s shoulder. “I’m sure you and David have better things to do than entertain us.”

  “Mom! Stop it!”

  This may not be how David had intended to spend the afternoon, but he hadn’t minded. Even though it had been a little uncomfortable, it was certainly an improvement over the last time he’d met a woman’s parents.

  * * *

  “Oh my God.” Nicole wanted to tear out her hair. “I’m so sorry you were subjected to that. You could have made up an excuse and declined.” She would have defended him if he hadn’t wanted to meet her parents.

  He sat beside her on the couch. “It’s fine. Truly.”

  “You can go now. I’m sure you’re busy.” She wouldn’t let on that she didn’t want him to leave. No, she would not.

  “There are more fun things to do than mark exams.”

  He pulled her into his lap; she hadn’t been expecting it, and she let out a giggle, which turned to a moan as he started kissing his way down her neck.

  She arched into him. “Make me forget about what just happened.”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  He pulled her shirt over her head and tossed it on the couch, followed by her bra. Then he lavished attention on her nipples. He sucked one into his mouth and rolled his tongue over the peak, just the way she liked it.

  But...

  “I need it rough today,” she said as she tore off his shirt.

  “That can be arranged.”

  David turned her so she was facing away from him and helped her remove her yoga pants and underwear. He covered her breast with one hand, and the other slid between her legs. She could hear the sound of her moisture as he fucked her hard with his fingers. The sight of his fingers inside her was unbearably erotic, and she made an unintelligible sound as he started kissing her neck and overwhelming her with all he could make her feel.

  “Nicole,” he murmured. “Ride my hand.”

  She did as he commanded, and when he touched his thumb to her clit, she jerked in surprise and shuddered as she came.

  “I love watching you come,” he whispered. “Now, let’s go to the bedroom.”

  As soon as they were in her bedroom, she undressed him. Then she lay back in bed, her legs spread, and he crawled on top of her. And before he kissed her, he looked at her like...

  To be honest, she didn’t want to think about it too much.

  Instead, she shut her eyes as they kissed, and somehow, his kisses seemed deeper than before. Deeper than they did with anyone else, even though that didn’t make sense.

  She squirmed impatiently, and he chuckled before he returned to kissing her.

  She reached for his cock, thick and heavy between his legs. He hissed out a breath when she touched him, as well as when she flicked her other hand over his nipple; she knew his body better now, and she could anticipate how he’d react.

  For the past several years, she’d rarely slept with a man more than half a dozen times, but David was different. She’d been in bed with him many times now, and the familiarity was nice.

  But that didn’t mean the sex was any less exciting. Unlike with Calvin.

  Why was she comparing David to Calvin? It wasn’t like David was her boyfriend.

  She needed these thoughts out of her mind, and as if knowing that, David’s hand was between her legs again, while his other hand fumbled with the drawer of her night table. He tossed a bunch of toys on the bed.

  When his hand left her body, it was to pick up the largest of the dildos. He took his time coating it with lube, and she couldn’t help writhing on the bed as she waited.

  “God, I love how much you want it,” he said.

  And she loved when he talked to her like this.

  He ran the toy over her slit before pushing it inside. Her body accepted it easily.

  “Yes, that’s pretty,” he breathed as he maneuvered it inside her.

  He swirled his tongue over her clit, and it didn’t take long before she was coming again for him.

  He left her sensitive clit alone as he slid up her body to kiss her lips, but he kept the toy inside her. Kept her full. She stroked his cock as he kissed her, desperately needing to touch him.

  Then he slid down to kiss her pussy again, and with his talented tongue, he brought her to yet another orgasm before crawling back up her body.

  He repeated this two more times, and she was practically a quivering mess.

  “I want
to suck you,” she said.

  “In a moment. But first...” He held up her anal plug and raised his eyebrows.

  She nodded, and he drizzled lube on the toy and worked it into her ass.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “I’m going to fuck your mouth now, alright?”

  He didn’t swear outside of the bedroom, and that made it all the better when she heard those words fall from his lips, still in the politest of ways, always checking in with her.

  He held his cock to her lips. She opened for him, and he put one hand on the back of her head and fucked her mouth, as promised.

  As she shifted on the bed, the toys moved inside her and she groaned around his cock. The different sensations were driving her wild. She’d already come five times, but it wasn’t enough. Nowhere near enough.

  He pulled out of her mouth and started thrusting the dildo inside her again.

  “I’d like you to wear the anal plug while I’m inside you,” he said. “What do you think? Would you want that?”

  As soon as she nodded, he pulled the dildo out of her pussy. It glistened with her moisture. He slid it between her lips and left it there as he rolled on a condom. She bent her legs and lifted them as he sank inside her.

  God, that was good.

  He pulled the dick out of her mouth and set it aside.

  “Does it feel different for you?” he asked.

  Or something like that. She couldn’t fully process words right now, because it felt so overwhelming. She’d never done it quite like this before, and God, she liked being stretched.

  And then she saw him pick up a vibrator.

  This was it. She was going to die.

  He turned it on at the lowest speed and pressed it to her clit. She came immediately. She hardly knew what was going on anymore.

  He let her recover for a minute before he turned it on once more.

  “No. It’s too much. I can’t take it,” she sobbed.

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah.”

  He didn’t use the vibrator again, but he continued to fuck her with gusto, and she was a trembling mess. When he picked up his pace and came inside her, she cried out but didn’t come—at least she didn’t think she did, but she hardly knew what way was up.

  Afterward, he eased the anal plug out of her. “I’ll wash the toys.”

  She collapsed on top of the blankets and tried to recover.

  He joined her a little while later.

  “You good?” he asked.

  “Mmm. Don’t make me talk.”

  He didn’t say anything for a few minutes, just wrapped his naked body around hers and held her close. With the fluffy pillow and the soft blankets... She could lie here forever.

  “I love how you’re not shy about sex at all,” he said. “It’s hot.”

  She flicked her gaze toward the closet and thought about the painting she’d hidden there. The one no one else had ever seen.

  But instead of mentioning it, she murmured, “Yeah, I’m a good time.”

  As she spoke those words, her boneless feeling started to fade.

  She was the kind of woman whom men enjoyed in bed, but they didn’t fall in love with her. Didn’t imagine settling down with her. Despite her outward confidence, that had started to bother her more in the past few months.

  Now she was beginning to wish David would fall in love with her, and the scary thing was that she definitely didn’t want to break his heart. She couldn’t bear the thought of hurting him, and she was bothered by her strong feelings.

  Yet, as she lay here with David and he pressed kisses to her neck, it was such a perfect moment that she was—mostly—able to enjoy it for what it was.

  She’d save the worrying for another day.

  Chapter 21

  That Wednesday, David was loading up his dishwasher when there was a knock on the door. He smiled. It was likely Nicole, and she’d drag him to the bedroom. Usually, her visits were planned, though on occasion she stopped by unexpectedly.

  But when he opened the door, it wasn’t Nicole who greeted him.

  It was her grandmother and cousin.

  “Did something happen to Nicole?” The words rushed out of him.

  “No, she is fine,” Po Po said. “Far as I know. But I came to see you. This is a secret from her, okay?”

  “I’m really sorry about this,” Kelsey said, wringing her hands.

  “First of all.” Po Po jabbed a finger in his chest then stepped inside. Kelsey helped her take off her shoes. “You and Nicole are not dating?”

  “That’s correct.”

  “You cannot fool me. I am eighty-six years old. Lots of life experience. Very smart.”

  “Yeah, sure,” Kelsey said. “That’s why you—”

  “Silence!” Po Po held up a hand. “I am very smart, and that’s why I know that you”—she pointed at David—“have feelings for Nicole.”

  David was alarmed. What had Nicole’s grandmother noticed? Had she seen him looking at Nicole like he wanted to get her naked?

  “No.” The word felt thick and wrong in his throat, but he had to say it. Because who knew what Po Po would say to Nicole.

  “You are lying!” She tried to get up in his face, but this didn’t work very well, seeing as she was a foot shorter than him.

  “Po Po,” Kelsey said, “this isn’t the reason you gave me for wanting to see David. You tricked me! Let’s leave his feelings alone.”

  “Ah, so you can see it, too,” Po Po said.

  “Yes, but clearly he doesn’t want to talk about it.”

  “That’s why I must make him. I want another wedding in the family. David, you must tell me the truth, then you must tell Nicole.”

  He didn’t say anything.

  “Come on!” Po Po shouted, and now he was worried Nicole might hear, given the thin walls. “Do not make me sad! Have you seen my videos? I post so many videos about how to win arguments—”

  “Two,” Kelsey interrupted. “There have been two.”

  Po Po waved this off. “I shall prevail!”

  Kelsey started laughing.

  “If you don’t admit your feelings,” Po Po said, “maybe I will have medical emergency. Will it be fake? You don’t know. Then you will feel bad. Come on, tell me!”

  “Okay, okay,” David said, holding up his hands. “Yes, I like Nicole romantically.”

  “I’m not sure that was an honest confession,” Kelsey said. “You basically forced him into it, Po Po. Maybe he just said it to shut you up.”

  “Wah, what are you saying?” Po Po asked.

  David hadn’t wanted to admit his feelings to Nicole’s grandmother when he already struggled to admit them to himself. Since Nicole had made it clear she didn’t want a relationship, he’d been trying to pretend he didn’t want more.

  But lately, that had become close to impossible. And he hated the fact that Po Po and Kelsey would think he’d lied about his feelings under coercion from an elderly woman.

  “I’m being honest,” he said. “I have romantic feelings for her, but I don’t think she feels the same way. She’s had some bad experiences in the past, and I understand.”

  “Ah, she is a silly girl,” Po Po said, “but the next part of my plan will help you win her over.”

  Hope sprang in his chest, and he immediately tamped it down.

  “You will appear in TikTok videos with me!” Po Po announced.

  “See, this is the reason I was given for our visit,” Kelsey said.

  “Um.” He didn’t want to be rude; he just had no idea how to respond.

  “In some videos, I show off my cooking skills,” Po Po said. “We will make a video where you show me how to cook something Korean, okay?”

  “You can say no,” Kelsey said. “It’s really okay.”

  “No, it’s not okay!” Po Po exclaimed. “This is the perfect idea. It will kill two birds with one rock. You will show Nicole how you are so kind to her grandma, and
also that you can cook.”

  She did make a good point.

  “And what do you get out of this?” he inquired.

  “I learn to make Korean food, and I help you and Nicole get together.” She nodded decisively. “It is a very good situation for me.”

  “Tell him the other reason, Po Po,” Kelsey said.

  “Because having a handsome man in my videos will make me more popular! People love handsome men in cooking videos. It will be best if you take off your shirt.”

  Okay, David really didn’t know how to respond to that.

  He wished Nicole were here to run interference.

  “Nicole has seen you without a shirt, hasn’t she?” Po Po asked.

  Dealing with a lecture hall full of nineteen-year-olds would be much easier than this.

  “Po Po!” Kelsey said. “You’re embarrassing him.”

  “It is not that I want to see you shirtless,” Po Po continued. “It is just for my viewers. All for their sake. That is why I made the difficult decision to ask you. They enjoy the videos where I rate famous men, so I think they will like this.”

  “Are you going to rate me?”

  “No, I will just say you are granddaughter’s boyfriend.”

  “Please don’t,” he said, much as he enjoyed hearing himself referred to as Nicole’s boyfriend. “Nicole won’t like it.”

  “Fine. I will just say you are her special friend and wiggle eyebrows, okay?”

  She seemed to take the fact that he was stunned into speechlessness—yet again—as acquiescence.

  “Great!” she said. “We will make so many videos together.”

  “So many?”

  “Yes, I think we should start today. We will go out for bungeoppang and Kelsey will film it. What do you think? When you come to my place tomorrow—”

  “David might have plans,” Kelsey said. “He has a job, you know.”

  “He can come after his job.”

  David nodded. “Tomorrow evening is fine, but I’m not taking off my shirt.”

  “Okay,” Po Po said. “I will drink lots of coffee tomorrow so I can stay up late to make new content for TikTok.”

  “No,” Kelsey said. “Last time you drank lots of coffee, you had a bad reaction.”

  Po Po gave her a dismissive look. “David, you will bring snacks from H-Mart and explain them to me, okay?”