She made it to the end of the corridor before her calm resolve drained away. Her legs began to feel shaky and weak and the tears welled up, making the stairway shimmer before her. She made her way down the stairs as quickly as she could, holding tight to the railing and making for the large double sets of doors that would take her out onto the bright sunlit lawn and to the sparkling ocean that lay just beyond. Her head was down, her hand on the bar when the door swung open and she looked up, startled.

“Hey,” Zack said, his face breaking into a broad grin. “I was just coming to meet you at dad’s office, maybe see if you wanted to get something to eat. I thought I’d be early.”

Janie took a deep breath and tried to smile. “Y…yes,” she stammered. “It didn’t take as long as I thought…let’s just go, okay?”

Zack led her out outside and when the salty breeze hit her face, she breathed deeply two or three times. “What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes clouded with concern. He scowled and shook his head. “That son of a bitch. He said he wasn’t going to take this out on you, but I should have known.”

“What are you talking about?”

“When I got home last night, he was really mad.”

“Mad? He seemed okay when I left.”

“Seething.”

Janie felt her hands begin to shake a little again and she clasped them together tightly. “He talked to you about our meeting?” she asked, wondering how much Zack knew—or suspected.

“Not really. He never talks much about students. But in your case, he holds me responsible for luring you out of class and made it quite clear that not only would he not tolerate me missing my own classes, but it was unacceptable for me to cause you to miss classes. I don’t know how he guessed you were missing class to hang out at the beach, though.”

“He didn’t guess. He’s my academic advisor. He knows exactly when I have class and he checks with my instructors to make sure I show up for all of them.”

Zack let out an exasperated sigh. “I told you he’s a control freak.”

Janie put a hand on his arm. “It’s okay. I’m still struggling to bring my grades up to the point where I can graduate on time and he’s been making sure that happens. I knew he’d be pissed and it was wrong of me to skip class. I should have told you then.” She smiled. “But the prospect of spending the afternoon in the sun and the sand with you was too much of a temptation. It was my fault, not yours.”

Some of the anger slipped from Zack’s face, but his eyes were still cold. “I hope he wasn’t too rough on you.”

Janie felt her cheeks grow hot as the image of Dr. Gilbert’s hard cock flashed in her mind, and she recalled the look on his face as she said Zack’s name; he was rough, and he took her in anger. Zack’s cold eyes in the warm sun—father and son both angry—at her, at each other, probably even about things that had nothing to do with her at all. She felt a twinge of guilt at the complication. Zack was sweet and kind and gentle, and so easy to be with. He deserved her full attention, and she didn’t know if she could give it to him.

Why did it have to be his father? Her teacher and advisor—Janie knew it was wrong. He was wrong to cross that line. She’d been wrong to offer. She didn’t think he had any feelings for her besides lust, and she was pretty certain she had none for him, save a powerful attraction that distracted her at inopportune moments. She didn’t know what she wanted from him and had no idea what he expected of her. She felt all at loose ends. It was complicated.

“Jane?” Zacks’ voice cut through her thoughts. She focused on him again, and heard the hard edge in his voice.

She tried to smile, but could feel Dr. Gilbert’s semen seeping out of her. She felt the tears well up again, and before she could stop it, one escaped down her cheek.

“Oh, man,” Zack said, putting his arms around her. “I’m sorry. And hey, here’s the the thing about Dad: he’s a control freak and full of very specific ideas of how things should be, but at the end of the day…well, I know he rides my ass because he cares about me, and if he came down hard on you, he probably likes you quite a lot.” He wiped her tear away gently with his fingers and smiled softly at her. “I doubt he’d have been that angry if he didn’t care.”

Janie felt a cold chill run through the very center of her. As long as it was purely physical, it was complicated, but so far it was also worth the complications. The anger he’d shown: was it jealousy? Oh, that was going to make things way too messy.

“So listen,” he continued, taking a deep breath as if he was uncharacteristically worried about his ability to get his words out. “I was thinking of asking you something and I’m not sure how you’ll feel about it. It’s about last night.” He lapsed into a moment of his usual thoughtful silence. “We moved kind of fast, I think. I wanted you to know that I’m not like that.”

“Like what?”

He blushed slightly and Janie smiled. “I swear, I’m not one of ‘those guys.’ You know? I’m not a dog. I don’t want you to think that I’m all about notches in my bedpost, or that I’m just after sex. I mean, we got carried away and that was amazing and all…” He ran his hand through his hair and his cheeks turned a deeper red. “I would like to slow things down a bit and maybe spend some time…together. You know. Not just jumping all over each other at once. I’d like to take my time working towards…”

“Intercourse?” Janie blurted, and Zack blushed a deeper shade of red, causing her to laugh despite herself. “I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you.”

“It’s stupid, isn’t it? Shutting the gate after the cows have already been in the corn and all that…”

Janie hugged him with grateful relief. “Not at all. It’s sweet. Really.”

“What I mean is, I want to do it again—well, that did make me sound like I’m after all the sex, didn’t it?” Janie laughed. “I’m making a mess of this.” He took a deep breath. “What I’m trying to say is that my dad is going away for the weekend and I was wondering if you’d like to come over. While he’s gone. Spend some time just the two of us. Maybe spend the night? With me. I mean.”

Janie smiled. “Sure.”

Zack broke into a pleased grin. “Cool.”

Janie looked out at the ocean and back to Zack. His face was open and earnest and she couldn’t help but smile back. He definitely deserved her full attention and she realized a couple of days in his company without any other distractions would be just what she needed to help sort things out with Dr. Gilbert. She slipped her hand in his and they walked back towards the dining hall. “So, where’s your dad off to this weekend?” she asked, making small talk and pushing the events of the meeting to the back recesses of her mind.

“He’ll be at the Cape with his girlfriend.”

Zack’s words hit her like a cold blast of air.

“Girlfriend?” As soon as the word left her lips, she knew there was far more shock in her voice than surprise and way more than just casual interest, and quickly she added, as nonchalantly as she could, “Oh. I didn’t realize he was seeing anyone.”

Zack looked at her with surprise of his own. “Why would you?”

“Um, I guess I just never thought of him ‘with’ someone, you know?” Zack looked confused and Janie tried to smooth over her surprise. “I mean, you never think of teachers as having lives outside of class, right? Silly, I know.” She forced a laugh.

He nodded in agreement. “Oh, I get it. I guess I forget that his students see him differently than I do.”

“Exactly,” she said, exhaling with relief. Her mind didn’t stop processing the new information, though. “So, who does he date? Is she from around here?”

“No. I think she used to live here but moved up to the Cape a few years back.”

“Oh. Is it serious?” Again, she realized how intense she sounded so she injected some levity into her words. “I mean, are you going to be getting a step-mother that I should know about?”

Zack shrugged. “I doubt it. I’ve only met her once. He doesn’t bring her home.” He was quiet for a minute. “If he sees anyone locally, he doesn’t talk about it.”

“That’s…odd.”

Zack shrugged again. “Not really. It’s how he is. He’s very private. He never talks about anything personal to him. Hell, he could be dating someone right under my nose and I doubt I’d know about it. You want to cut through the grove?” Zack gestured to a thickly wooded stand of ancient trees that stood directly in the center of campus.

Janie nodded, fixing her features into a mask. Cutting through the grove and its prize collection of carefully tended trees from exotic lands was the sure way for students to incur the wrath of the head of the grounds crew and usually resulted in a dressing down from the Dean of Students, but the shade was tempting on a hot day and it was the fastest route between points A and B. Squeezing through a narrow break in the privet hedge that surrounded the grove, Janie and Zack moved quickly into the deep shade. The air was much cooler out of the direct sun, and bits of golden light shone through the thick canopy and dappled their skin. She shivered slightly at the sudden temperature change. “He sounds kind of cold.”

“Not really. He’s private, but very caring. He’s different when he’s in teacher mode than he is with me, and I assume with other people he’s close to. I know he and my mother were very close at one time. And I know she still loves him.”

“Huh.” Janie considered his words carefully.

Zack stopped walking. “Why the interest in my dad?”

It was Janie’s turn to shrug. “No reason,” she lied. “It’s interesting that I know him one way and you know him in a completely different way. I’m just trying to figure out how they fit together, I guess.”

Zack smiled. “I know it’s presumptuous of me, but I hope that means you plan on being part of my life. For awhile, anyway.”

Janie smiled and slipped her arms around his waist. “Yeah, I think so,” she said, kissing him. “If only because I love the way you talk.”

“I don’t see what was so odd about the way I said that,” he replied, nuzzling her neck. Goosebumps rose on her arms as he murmured into the soft, slightly salty skin. “How else would you say it?”

Janie laughed lightly and tipped her head, enjoying the feel of his lips on her. “Mmm, let’s see. Maybe you would ask me if I wanted to go out with you.”

He looked up at her, his eyes smiling. “Yeah, that’s what I said. I like you. Be my girlfriend? No wait—do you like me too? Check yes or no.”

Janie laughed. “Yes, I like you too. Silly.” She kissed him again, wrapping her hands around his neck.

His mouth was on hers, more insistent. Again, he smiled at her. “So, you wanna be my girlfriend or something?”

She answered him with her lips, but not with words. The encounter in Dr. Gilbert’s office swirled together with the reality of Zack here with her, now. She sifted out the images of a pristine office and angry blue eyes from the fluttering leaves and the sweet, boyish smiles of real affection. She knew what mattered now was the man she was with, and the way her body responded to his kisses.

His reticence told of his intentions, of his mind’s struggle to control the urges of his body. She could feel him holding back and it reminded her of his dad—touching her, tasting her, bringing her to orgasm on his own whim, not letting her take control or command. Not letting her give him pleasure, only taking it. She pressed her body to his with every intention of stowing and securing those loose, unfiltered thoughts away. “You don’t have to prove to me that your intentions are honorable,” she said, needing again to have Zack in her control, if only by making him lose his. “We’ll have plenty of time to take it slow this weekend, but right now, I really need you.”

She kissed him deeply, running her hands down his chest and to the waistband of his pants. She touched him lightly through the fabric, feeling his hard cock leap at her touch. “Right here?” he said, looking around them.

“Right now,” she added, leaning away and unbuttoning the front of her thin sundress. He watched as the little white buttons slipped free of their holes and the fabric parted to show him her full, firm breasts. He pressed his lips to where the soft globes of flesh overflowed the lace cups, pulling the stretchy fabric down and sucking a hard nipple into his mouth. She gasped with pleasure, leaning back against a massive chestnut tree and wrapping her leg around him. His hand slid up her bare leg, over the soft skin of her thigh to the round curve of her ass, pressing his hard cock against her.

She could feel him, hard and ready and she pushed him away enough to get her hands between them, opening his fly and reaching for him even as he slid her skirt up, exposing her panties to the slight breeze that rustled the leaves all around them.

She could feel the dampness between her thighs, and even as her hands found Zack’s hard flesh, stroking the shaft and smearing the first drops of pre-cum over the head, she smelled the funky, slightly bitter smell of semen. Her face flushed and her cheeks burned as she tried to put her leg down before Zack could touch her any further.

“What’s the matter,” he said, feeling her shrink from him.

“Nothing,” she said, bringing her legs together. She couldn’t let him find out the truth yet, and certainly not by discovering the remains of a torrid, tawdry display of power. Yet even as she closed herself to him, she felt that surge of power course through her again. She had made the great man lose control of himself, and a part of her she wasn’t proud of needed to feel it again. She had tasted the rush and she wanted more. She reached behind her back and snapped her bra open with a flick of her fingers, slipping the straps off her arms and letting her breasts tumble free. She ran her hands over them, lightly stroking her hard nipples and smiling at Zack.

Gracefully, she knelt in the leaf litter, flicking a sharp twig out from under her leg before sliding both hands over his cock. She kissed the head, running her lips over the sensitive skin and teasing it with her tongue. His hands were in her hair, tangling in her curls as she took him in her mouth, gasping with the pleasure of it.

Zack moaned as she sucked his cock, and she looked up at him, watching his face as he looked down at her. Her pussy throbbed with the thought of what she must look like to him, of seeing his cock slide between her willing lips, her bare breasts creamy and rosy-tipped. She ran her hands up his arms, guiding his hands to her bare breasts and pushing them together. She used her own hand to slide his wet cock in between them, making him moan anew at the sight and sensation.

She found herself considering the heat and pulsing desire in him, the hardness of his shaft engulfed in her own soft tits and surrounded by her gentle hands and welcoming mouth. His physical power and strength was no match for her soft ministrations, and as he thrust against her, the knowledge that his pleasure and release was in her hands was making her cunt ache and throb.

She watched him put his head back and close his eyes, his hips rocking as she brought him closer and closer to his climax. His breathing was shallow, catching in the back of his throat with each thrust, with every exhalation. She wanted to make him come, to taste his hot, salty seed, and she took him deep, running her tongue along his shaft as she increased the suction, drawing a moan from deep in his throat.

Janie heard the sound of footsteps behind Zack before he did.

“What are you two doing in here?”

Zack jumped and pulled his pants up, struggling to put his cock away before turning around. Janie covered her breasts and sat back on her heels. “Nothing.”

The security officer looked at both of them and took in their disheveled clothes and flushed faces and sighed with disgust, and, Janie thought, probably a bit of weariness at finding undergraduates in various states of undress in its secluded shadows. “This grove is off limits to students. It’s clearly posted. Now give me your ID’s.”

They did as they were told. Janie held the front of her dress closed with one hand while she fished for her student card in her bag, and Zack looked down at the ground while the officer recorded their names. As he looked at Zack’s card, his face sparked with a glimmer of recognition, but it passed as he scribbled on his pad and tucked it in his jacket. “Now out of here,” he said, hustling them through the large trees and over well-tended undergrowth until they came out the other side nearest the dining hall. Janie buttoned herself up and wriggled back into her bra as they walked, stealing sidelong glances and sharing embarrassed smiles with Zack as their diligent shepherd made sure they wouldn’t disappear back into the forbidden grove.

When he was out of earshot, Janie giggled, “We have a knack for getting interrupted, don’t we?”

“God, I can’t wait for this weekend,” he said, exasperated, the look of sheer discomfort written all over his face.

Janie laughed out loud, taking his hand and squeezing it. “Me either.”