Lumberjack Love Read online

  “I’ve missed you so damn much. I know things were strange at Starbucks last time we met but that’s only because I have to tell you…” She held her hand up as if to tell me to stop.

  “I’ve been your friend for three years, Ava. I don’t need an explanation for your behavior… As long as you’re okay, then I’m fine.” She spoke with confidence as if she didn’t care, but there was a sadness in her eyes. I couldn’t lie to her, even if she expected me to.

  “I wanted to tell you that Professor Caldwell is giving me the A.” My cheeks burned and I wrung my hands together, knowing that I was about to tell her the biggest secret ever.

  “O.M.G., Ava. That’s so great!” She gushed, clearly as happy as I was about the passing grade.

  “There’s more though…” I skirted around how to tell her. Should I just say I slept with him, or that we were now an item? Then again, were we really? Last I spoke to him, things were short and straight to the point.

  “Oh fuck, tell me more.” She begged, eager to know the rest.

  “Well, we struck a deal, more like I gave into my raging hormones and let him fuck me.” I exhaled a breath with the rest of the words, a sudden peace settling into my bones.

  Finally , someone else knew.

  Carrie’s facial expressions were wild, going from shocked to excited and then back to shock. I wasn’t sure if she wanted to high five me, or slap me across the face for making such a bad choice.

  I forced a smile, trying to ease into this conversation slowly, knowing it could only go one of two ways.

  “You let him fuck you. You let uptight asshole stick his cock inside you?” Her eyes were as big as saucers.

  I gulped, “I mean now that you put it like that, yes. At first, it was for a grade, because I was desperate to pass, Carrie. But now things have changed. I thought it would happen once and we would be done, but then it happened again, and again, and he met my family yesterday and I’m pretty sure he is the one, Carrie.” My belly was in a nervous knot, and my hands started to sweat. Maybe I had told her too much, too soon?

  She lifted a hand to her head, as if this was all too much for her right now. “You love him? Is that what you’re saying?” There was an angry bite to her words.

  I nodded my head up and down, “I never meant to fall for him, Carrie. I just started to get to know him more and I know he’s our professor, and I’m his student and it’s against the rules but…”

  “You fucked him, and now you’re in love with him, Ava.” A crazy cat lady laugh erupted from her throat. “I’m going to have to admit that I’m a little bit jealous that he gave you the D more than once.” A smile appeared on her face a second later, and I knew then I had been sweating it for no reason. Carrie didn’t care, just as I knew she wouldn’t. All that mattered was that I was happy.

  “Tell me everything. I want to know if he’s good in bed? Did he make you call him Master?” She wiggled her eyebrows at me causing a bubble of laughter to escape. I rolled my eyes, popping a chip into my mouth.

  “No, he didn’t. He’s dirty though, and knows just how to work my body over. I’ve never felt so secure with a man in my entire life. When he’s around, it’s like everything fades away and all that matters is him and I.” I couldn’t believe I was spilling my guts out to my best friend about my professor a man I shouldn’t even be lusting after, let alone falling in love with.

  Carrie tipped her head at me, her blonde locks spilling over her shoulder. “I cannot believe you, you dirty little tramp.” Her amusement at all of this calmed my nerves even more, making it much easier to relax. She didn’t seem to care, not even a smidge of what I thought she would.

  “I’m addicted, girl. I crave his touch, his kisses, his cock.” I blushed again, the word not really something I said every single day.

  “Oh yeah, you’re fucked. What are you going to do? I mean if anyone else finds out, he’s going to lose his job and probably his teaching license. I mean, is it worth it? I’m not trying to change your mind or anything, you know that, Ava. I just want you to know that if anyone else discovers you guys messing around, that shit is going to go downhill fast.”

  I didn’t like looking at what could happen to Andrew if anyone else found out about us, because that was like looking down the barrel of a shotgun. It was unimaginable, the amount of pain, and chaos it would cause. Therefore, it was easier to ignore it until that day came. That is, until Carrie brought it up just now.

  “I know. We know. I’ve tried telling myself it’s wrong, but when two people want each other as badly as we do, well, there’s no changing things. I was attracted to him long before I made a move, and from what he told me he’d been lusting after me since the start of the school year.” I admitted, without thought.

  Carrie grabbed one of my hands in hers and I gazed down at them. She was the only one I could trust with this secret.

  “I don’t want to change your mind, girl. I just want you to be happy, even if it is with one of the hottest professor’s I’ve ever met.” There was a tinge of jealousy in her words as she spoke.

  “We will work something out. I just wanted to tell you because it was eating away at me from the inside out.” I released her hand, and wrapped my arms around her, engulfing her small frame in a hug. I was so fucking blessed to have such an amazing friend. Now all I needed to do was get things with Andrew squared away, and everything would be peachy.

  “So, this is why you’ve been distant and why you acted like someone threw a grenade at you when we were at Starbucks together?” I nodded my head yes in defeat, feeling like a joke for not coming clean sooner.

  She made grabby hands for the Sour Patch candy bag, opening it and popping a few in. I took the moment to respond.

  “I’m sorry. I should’ve told you sooner, but I didn’t want to tell anyone unless I thought something was going to come from it. We didn’t expect to even like each other, but then we fucked, and we did it again and now… now I can’t stand not seeing him.” I knew I had already said that once, but I wanted to make it known the way he made me feel.

  “No. No more sorry. No more Professor Caldwell. Tonight is going to be about us from here on out. I don’t want to hear another peep about it, okay. You did nothing wrong…” She winked. “Except not share him. I mean, I’m kidding.” She joked, well, kind-of.

  “Good. Then let’s put this DVD in and chill out for the rest of the night. It seems like forever since we had a girl’s night.” I admitted , trying to think back to the last time we had done this.

  I got up from the floor, taking the DVD with me, and putting it into the player. As I did so I glanced over my shoulder, taking notice of the intent look on Carrie’s face as she looked at her phone. Had she met someone, too? She never looked at her phone like she was right now.

  “Who ya talking to?” I smiled, all my teeth showing. Her eyes darted up to mine as she slid the phone into the front pocket of her jeans right away. There was a look of anger mixed with sadness in her eyes, and I wasn’t sure why.

  “Oh, no one. Just this guy I met. He’s a total tool though, so I totally won’t be going out on another date with him.” That explained her sudden mood change and from that second on I vowed to make this night one of the best. We would watch movies, eat popcorn, snuggle, and talk gossip for the rest of the night, and not once would I bring up Andrew, or any of the anxiety I was feeling about him and I.

  I shoved all my emotions to the back burner and ignored my phone for hours, as Carrie and I basked in the glory of happiness with copious amounts of wine, and laughs so many so that I was sure I was going to pee my pants.

  “I have to pee like a damn race horse. All the wine.” I snickered. “I’ll be back in a few.” I assured her, slipping from the room and heading down the hall to the women’s bathroom.

  As soon as I made it inside the stall, a low humming sound came from my pants. My cell had been vibrating all night, but I refused to look at it, knowing it would do nothing but deter me furthe
r from spending the evening emotionally free.

  Against my better judgement, I plucked the vibrating iPhone from my pocket and looked through the texts and missed calls. Two missed calls from Andrew and one from my mom, along with a dozen or so text messages.

  I scrolled through them all, stopping on the one that stood out the most to me, the last one that Andrew had sent.

  Andrew: We need to talk. It’s important. Meet at the diner on eleven tomorrow at one.

  My stomach churned and the contents inside it threatened to come up. Was he breaking up with me, or did he just want to meet up and talk things over? I blinked, tears forming in my eyes because of the unknown. Had I fallen for a man that I couldn’t keep?

  I swallowed, forcing air into my lungs and finished up going to the bathroom. Slipping my phone into my front pocket, I washed my hands and wiped away a couple stray tears, knowing if I didn’t Carrie would know right away what was going on, and I refused to let her know I had made a bad choice.

  Putting my mask back in place, I headed back to the dorm room. Professor Caldwell would be the only thing on my mind tonight.

  Chapter Eight

  Andrew

  Me: I know it’s you Carrie, and if you think you’ll get away with telling rumors to people that you have no proof of, then I will be sure to have you removed from my class.

  I sent the message knowing what would come from all of this. Carrie. Ava’s best friend was the one behind all of this. The person who refused to let us have our very own happily ever after.

  With some research, and a whole lot of Vodka, I discovered just who it was and honestly, I wasn’t all that surprised. I’m smart, a professor, not smart enough not to sleep with his students, but smart enough to know when another student has jealousy issues. And Carrie is jealous very fucking jealous.

  Carrie: I don’t need the grade as bad as Ava, but I might be willing to strike a deal with you. It’s going to involve your eight-inch cock, though. If you fuck me, I’ll keep my mouth shut. If you don’t, I’m going to tell every single person that will listen.

  My teeth ground together. You know what I hated more than a cheating student, a really shitty friend and that’s what Carrie was. I took a moment to digest the message and then shot a text over to Ava telling her to meet at one of the local diners. I didn’t know what she was doing tonight and hadn’t heard from her all day, but I was sure she knew how deep my feelings ran for her.

  She had to know, that even though times were stressful between us, that I would do anything I could to make things right for us. She was my everything now, and I would do whatever was needed to protect her, us.

  I glanced down at the text Carrie sent, knowing damn well I wouldn’t ever betray Ava like she wanted me to. The only woman who would be getting my cock was the woman I loved.

  Me: I will not fuck you, Carrie. Not now. Not ever.

  I hit send and the message flew out into the unknown. I could always forward the message to my boss and let him know that there was a student that wanted to fuck me and that was why I was resigning. Either way, I was going to be resigning from the school. It was the one thing I could do to protect my future with Ava from being destroyed. She had worked so hard for her degree. I wasn’t going to let it all be ripped away because she decided to sleep with me.

  Fuck. I needed to let off some steam but had no real way of doing so. I could go for a jog or down to the gym, I suppose. A smirk pulled at my lips as I realized what kind of release I needed.

  Ava was busy. I was pissed. But I had a hand, and no one knew me quite like I did myself. Gripping the waistband of my sweatpants, I shoved them down over my cock, letting the fucker spring free.

  I licked my lips in anticipation, my fingers wrapping around my stiff cock. A warmth that only sexual need could give me filled my belly. Oh, how I wished it was Ava’s small hand gripping my length.

  “Fuck!” I hissed out, my grip almost painful, as I stroked my length up and down. I was fucking turned on, and so angry, all at the same time. Having been with Ava the night before just wasn’t enough. I needed her every night, every day, every second. I squeezed my cock harder, forcing my release. Tingles of pleasure shot up and down my spine and I sat for a moment, letting the peacefulness I felt from my release wash over me.

  I fucking loved Ava. It was true. I could feel it in my soul. It was a raw feeling, foreign and almost painful but it was there, and if I touched the spot in my chest just right I could feel the love she felt for me too.

  “Sweet, sweet, Ava. What did I ever do to get so lucky… ” I whispered to myself, while wiping away the cum that pooled at my waist. My eyes blinked closed for a moment, an image of Ava looking up at me while she sucked me off. There was sureness in her eyes, and I should’ve known then that I wanted her for more than just a fuck buddy.

  Pulling out my phone, I screenshot the message that Carrie sent me, and then I told my boss that I was resigning and that it would be effective as of tomorrow. I didn’t care if Ava was upset about it. She would have to understand that it was the best thing for both of us. I could find a job anywhere in the city. I couldn’t find another her, though.

  I clicked send on the email and leaned back onto my pillows. Sleep was just within reach, the only thing that would make it better was having the woman I loved right beside me.

  ***

  I knew the moment that Ava stepped foot in the diner, because her sweet scent filled my nostrils. I took in her small form as she walked over to the booth I had gotten us. I figured this diner was far enough away from the city and college that we might go unnoticed by anyone, giving us a little time to ourselves.

  My body hummed with a need I didn’t quite understand how to feed. Ava was beautiful as always, wearing a dark plum dress that hung mid-thigh on her with a pair of white heels. I was salivating by the time she took her seat next to me.

  “You look absolutely delectable. I should slip underneath this table right now, and eat you out.” I grinned at her, completely ready to do just as I said. Her cheeks grew red, and I knew she wanted me just as bad as I wanted her.

  “Before we get to that…” I could feel tension rising between us. “Are you breaking up with me? I mean, are we even an item? We never discussed it, but I’m assuming we are… or were…” She trailed off, slipping some hair behind her ear nervously. It seemed like every time we were alone a nervousness came out in her.

  I reached under the table, my fingers slipping underneath her dress, and lingering against her thigh.

  “I never would’ve fucked you, and risked a lot more than my job, if I didn’t want this with you. Shit’s been going on. Shit that we need to talk about. Just know that never, not even once, have I thought of leaving you or anything that we’ve worked up to. I want you.” I squeezed her thigh hard. “I want your pussy, your kisses, your moans of pleasure. I fucking want you. Understand?” I narrowed my eyes making sure she understood every word that I was saying.

  “I understand…” She trailed off, the tension in her seeming to evaporate instantly. Had she been holding that in this whole time? Suddenly, the diner seemed too formal of a place for us to be discussing things. The need to get her alone was consuming me. I wanted to ravage every inch of her body if need be. I needed to be able to prove myself to her at any second, and I couldn’t do that here.

  “Let’s go.” I ordered. She looked at me with a bewildered expression before moving out of the booth. My fingers connected with hers, and I pulled us out of the diner and out to my car.

  As soon as we were both inside I was on her, like a man starved of oxygen. My lips pressed against hers harshly, a deep moan escaping both of us.

  “I have to tell you something…” She panted pushing a hand against my chest. I forced myself to pull away so that she could talk. She stared at me with fuck me eyes, and I gripped the center console forcing my hands to remain there.

  Deep breaths . It was taking serious restraint not to shove her dress up and rip those lace pa
nties from her pussy.

  “I told Carrie about us. I didn’t want to but it’s just… She’s my best friend and I knew if there was anyone that I could trust it would be her.” I was taken aback by her admission. I never expected her to come out and tell Carrie everything. This changed things, at least a little bit. It meant that Carrie knew how serious Ava and I were. It also meant she was an even shittier friend than I had suspected.

  As badly as I didn’t want to tell her about the things her so called best friend was doing behind her back, I felt a need to be open and honest with her, especially about this. Everything that I was about to say killed the mood for me, as I’m sure it was going to do for Ava.

  “I need you to look at me, baby…” I sighed, wondering if she was going to assume I had taken Carrie up on her offer. Ava’s emotions were fragile and I didn’t want her running from me when she had nothing to run from.

  “I’m sorry, Andrew. I’m sorry…” Tears swam in her eyes and I had to stop the pain. I had to stop the tears from falling.

  “Shhh. Don’t cry. None of this is worth crying over, none of it. I didn’t want to ruin seeing you by telling you something so shitty, but the other night at dinner at your family’s house, I got a text message from someone.” I inhaled a breath, watching her facial features to make sure she was still with me. “The text said something along the lines of she knew I was fucking you, and that she was going to tell the school board, which lead to another text message where I confronted her on who she was…” I paused.

  “Well, who the fuck is the bitch?” Ava’s mood had changed. She went from emotionally distressed to pissed in two seconds and I fucking loved it. I smirked at her briefly, living in the moment of chaos with her.