Page 12 of Teaching Roman

Tugging off the only clothes I had to my name for the next week, I turned on the shower head and waited for the water to turn warm. Catching sight of myself in the mirror, I groaned. I was too skinny. Jillian was always complaining about her C-cups, but staring at my Bs-on-a-good-day, I wished for her curves. My blonde hair was a tangled mess from traveling and I didn't even have a comb to brush it out. Cassie told me I had sexy beach hair once, but I would have traded mine for her slick, black hair in a second. I was pale and blonde and thin which was enough for most people to consider me pretty, but I wasn't going to be winning any beauty pageants. It was a cruel joke that the best place in the world to relax—the bathroom with its showers and bathtubs—always included a goddamn mirror to make you self-conscious about getting naked.

A quick check revealed that the water was somewhere between comfortable and third-degree-burns hot which was exactly how I liked it. I stepped in and let it stream through my hair. It beaded on my skin and as I unwrapped the complimentary bar of soap, Roman darted into my mind.

It wasn't exactly the first time I’d thought about him outside the classroom, but I'd never been naked before when I did. And in those other moments, he looked like Roman the graduate instructor with his button-downs and loafers. The Roman currently infiltrating my thoughts wore low-slung jeans and a fitted T-shirt. He didn't have the carefully controlled hair or the briefcase. I bit my lip as I imagined slinging my fingers into the waistband of his jeans and pulling him toward me. Usually Cassie had a better imagination than me, but I had no problem picturing what was inside his pants or under his shirt. I'd seen the outline of his six-pack on the plane today and I didn't doubt the rest of him was similarly ripped and…prominent.

I lathered my body and rinsed it off. What would it be like to be here with him? How would it feel to have him pressed hard against me? The more I thought about it the more intense the pulse grew between my legs until my fingers slipped down and found the spot that was calling for my attention. My fingers rubbed appeasing circles as I imagined Roman's lips on mine and the feel of his chest against my breasts. After what he was wearing today, I knew he worked out. If he wanted to, he could lift me against the glass door of the shower and press his hot...

“You finding everything you need in there,” Cassie said from the doorway.

I jumped, clutching my chest.

“It's called knocking!” I yelled, water trickling down my forehead and stinging my eyes.

“You left the door open,” she said.

“The shower was running.”

“So? I've seen you naked before,” she reminded me.

I couldn’t see her between the water in my eyes and the steam lingering in the room, but I could hear the smug grin in her voice. “When you're done flicking the bean, can we go to dinner? I'm starving.”

“I'll be out in a minute,” I said through gritted teeth. At least she’s talking to me again. I only had to embarrass myself to break the tension.

Cassie left, laughing, and I fell back against the tile. Embarrassing didn't quite cover that. Mortifying. Humiliating. I'd need a thesaurus before I found the word that best described what had just happened. A few minutes later, I trudged reluctantly into the living room, wrapped in a fluffy, white towel. Try as I might, I couldn't bring myself to meet Cassie's eyes.

“All clean, dirty girl?” she asked me.

“Shut up.”

“Are you ready to eat? We need food and booze,” she said, “and batteries.”

I frowned. “What on earth do we need batteries for?”

“I thought I would loan you my vibrator. It seems like you need it more than I do.”

“Oh my god,” I said, shaking my head. “You're the one who walked in on me. You should be at least as embarrassed as I am.”

“And yet, I'm not.” Cassie flashed me a wide smile. “Or maybe I should just call Roman to help you out.”

My cheeks reddened immediately. Probably since he'd been on my mind when she'd caught me living out my personal fantasy in the shower.

“It's really nothing to be embarrassed about,” she said. “Everyone does it.”

“Can I borrow something to wear?” I asked, eager to change the subject.

“Shit, I forgot.” Cassie skipped back to her room and came out with a stack of clothes. The tiny red bikini on top.

“All of this?”

“Yours,” she said. “I over packed. Look, I'm sorry if I flipped out earlier. You're right. I should drop the joking about Roman.”

“But you aren't going to?” I guessed.

“Oh, hell no, but I’ll keep in mind that I might piss you off if I do.”

“I’m sorry, too,” I said. “I overreacted.”

“No, you didn’t. I just…don’t like Brett.”

Part of me wanted to pour my heart out to her. I wanted to tell her that Brett asked me to marry him and I wished he’d never asked and I could go back to my safe, boring life where I wasn’t masturbating in the shower at the thought of my off-limits professor. But I’d already stuck my foot in it once. I wasn’t sure how Cassie would react to finding out Brett had proposed to me on the night that Trevor had cheated on her.

Instead I said, “Noted.”

“Get dressed.” Cassie swatted my ass. “I’m starving and I want a drink.”

That made two of us.