“Being with you…Spending time with you, Belle, has really made me think about my situation,” Jackson said hoarsely. “I was horrible before. I was a miser – I was cruel, and I know I shouldn’t have ever considered not giving your mom any money.”
My heart sank. “So this is about my mom?”
“No!” Jackson dropped down to one knee. “Belle, this is about you. This is about us. I love you, Belle. I’m so sorry for all of the times I treated you badly. I’m sorry for saying everything and for hurting you. I never thought I could love anyone, Belle, but when I woke up and saw that you were gone…” His voice was choked with genuine emotion. “It hurt so much.”
I swallowed hard.
“And I’ve fallen in love with you, your kindness, your goodness...” Jackson trailed off. “Your willingness to do anything for your family. I’ve never seen that before. I never even thought people like that existed.” He ran a hand through his hair. “But they do. You do, Belle. You’re too good to be real.”
“I don’t know what to say,” I said softly.
“Say you’ll be with me.” Jackson pulled a box out of his pocket and I gasped. Just as I was about to slap his hand away, he grinned. “This isn’t a ring,” he said, opening the familiar, robin’s egg blue box. Inside, a sparkling diamond bracelet was sitting on a pad of velvet. “This is a present for you. I want you to be able to look down and see how much I love you, even when we’re apart.”
The tears began to drip down my cheeks and I blushed as I tried frantically to wipe them away. My heart was beating like a drum and I had no idea what to say or do. Finally, Jackson climbed to his feet and pulled me into his arms.
“I love you, Belle,” Jackson whispered huskily into my ear. “And I want to be with you forever. Being around you has changed me.”
I stared at him. “I…. I don’t know what to say,” I said softly. My breath was coming in rapid little bursts and for a horrible moment, I thought I was going to hyperventilate.
“Say what you feel,” Jackson said slowly. He looked into my eyes and I shivered.
“I love you,” I said softly. “I love you, Jackson Rhodes.”
As our lips met, I melted against Jackson’s body and threw my arms around his neck. He pulled me close, crushing the flowers between us. But I didn’t even care – I knew that I had something better in my arms. Somehow, my love had changed Jackson…and somehow, that made things even better than they would have been if he’d always been kind and willing to love.
“I love you so much,” Jackson said quietly. “Thank you for showing me how, Belle.”
I blushed softly as he kissed my cheek. “My pleasure,” I whispered huskily. “I love you, too.”
Jackson smirked his trademark smirk. “Come on,” he said playfully, linking his arm through mine. “Let’s go get warm.”
I raised my eyebrows and blushed. “I’m still sore from last night,” I whispered softly.
Jackson grinned and I blushed even harder. “Trust me,” he said, winking. “I’ll make you all better as soon as we’re alone.”
As we left the Alfred train station together, I knew that I’d finally found what I’d always wanted.
BOOK 4: TEACH ME, PROFESSOR
Freshmen and upperclassmen alike scurried along the tree-lined street that ran through the campus separating the on-campus dorms from the campus buildings where classes were held. Girls wore skirts and dresses; guys wore shorts and short-sleeves as everyone attempted to enjoy the last warm days of a summer past before the cool temperature drop of autumn set in. Although we no longer lived in the on-campus dorms, we had a lot of friends who did and on a small campus like Greenville University, one was more likely to run into a familiar face than not. Today was a hot beautiful day for the first day of classes and it set the tone for a great semester. Since my best friend, Gemma, and I were now sharing an off-campus apartment together, we had decided to walk to campus together although we would be parting ways soon to go to separate classes in different buildings. Gemma and I were both enrolled in the Education Program which came with its own required core classes in addition to the ones that the university mandated and the classes for our chosen majors. I was an Art major and Gemma was an English major. Art had always been my favorite class in school and ever since I was a little girl, I had always wanted to be a teacher.
A cool breeze gently caressed my face and bare legs. I wore a yellow floral off the shoulder dress that was fitted over my small breasts and flat stomach then fanned out over my round hips and bubble butt. It came down just above my knees, showing off my summer tan and toned calves. I wore a pair of pink sandals with bows on them that matched the flowers on my dress, the headband in my hair and my nail polish. My long blonde curls blew softly in the wind. It felt good to be on campus, and I was all smiles even though I had been here all summer finishing up my general core classes. When we reached the building where Gemma's class was, we stopped walking.
"So, I'll meet you after class at our usual spot?" Gemma asked me.
"Yea," I answered with a smile.
Gemma returned the smile before saying "ok, see you soon!"
She gave a small wave with her manicured hand and headed into the building with all the other students who had 9 o'clock classes. I watched her walk into the building before I started walking again. My class was held in the building right beside hers. I could feel excited butterflies fluttering in my stomach as I neared the creative arts building. My first class of the semester was Figure Drawing 101. This class intrigued me the most because I had heard that we would be drawing real live nude models. I bit my lip at the thought, hoping that they would be hot. The class was held on the fourth floor so I would have to take the elevator. Luckily, I got to board and ride the elevator alone because I’ve always hated how awkward sharing an elevator with other people can be.
My sandals slapped against the linoleum floor as I got off the elevator and began walking the halls in search of my class. I was looking for room 402. I passed 400, then 401, and when I reached 402, the door was closed. I pulled the door open and walked in. What I saw when I entered that class room made me choke on my spit and I had to immediately step back out so that no one in the class could see me sputtering and struggling to breathe like an idiot. I could feel my face heating up and knew that it was all red and flushed. With one hand, I searched my bag for my water bottle. Once I found it, I hurriedly twisted it open and drank until I could breathe normally. I returned the water to my bag and wiped my face. My eyes had started tearing up and I felt like a hot mess! I fanned my face and tried to calm down. Clearly, I was not as mentally prepared for this as I had otherwise thought. Again, I grabbed the door handle and took a deep breath before pulling open the door and stepping inside the large, high-ceilinged room. There were stools and drawing tables arranged in a letter 'C.' Perched upon a stool in the heart of the 'C' was a Greek God of a man, naked wearing nothing but a towel. Facing the door, a chalkboard on wheels sitting at the opening of the 'C' read:
I am your professor and model Professor Moore. Welcome to Figure Drawing 101!
Please have a seat anywhere and begin sketching.
I took a good look at this mature Thor poised like the Thinking Man atop a stool and wondered if he used to play football because he was built like a retired line-bac