“Chance William?”
“The very same,” she smiled. “I have to say, that picture we saw does not do him justice. He is tie-him-to-the-bed hot!”
I laughed. “Where do you come up with these expressions?”
Missy ignored me. “And that body!” she went on. “He was so obviously ripped underneath that blazer.”
I nodded, suppressing a longing sigh.
“And, there’s something about the way he holds himself,” she continued. “It’s like he doesn’t give a shit about anyone or anything. It’s so…”
“Confident?” I offered.
“Confident, bordering on arrogant,” Missy nodded. “And yet it’s far from a turn-off. In fact, it actually makes him more attractive.”
“I know,” I said, and this time I couldn’t suppress the longing sigh that escaped me. Missy noticed it and looked at me curiously.
“You really like him, don’t you?”
“I don’t even know him,” I said. “I’m just a little…preoccupied with his looks, I suppose.”
“It’s called lust, my dear, sweet Nat,” Missy said, wrapping her arm around my shoulders as we approached the library. “And I think you’ve been hit big time.”
“I don’t know about that,” I said uncertainly.
“Do you think about him every day?” she asked, suddenly all business.
“Umm… I guess.”
“Do you fantasize about him?”
“Yes,” I admitted, blushing slightly.
“Do you look forward to his lectures each week?”
“Yes,” I said. “But maybe that’s just because I enjoy Econ 401.”
She laughed. “Do you think that’s likely?”
“What’s your point?” I asked, glaring at her.
She smiled smugly. “My point is that you have got the serious hots for Professor William. You are, as they say, in lust with him.”
I sighed. “Just my luck, too,” I complained. “I’ve never felt this way about any other guy I’ve seen.”
“Maybe because you’re surrounded by boys and what you were really interested in was a man,” Missy suggested.
“Except the man is off limits,” I pointed out. “Not that I’d have had much of a chance even if he wasn’t my teacher…”
“You’re still allowed to fantasize about him,” Missy reminded me.
I shrugged, but secretly I thought how utterly unsatisfying fantasies tended to be. They were just frustrated hopes, after all, and I was starting to realize that I wanted more than just a vivid fantasy to experience.
I knew I needed to put Chance William from my mind and focus on achievable goals. Mooning over him would only distract me from boys who actually might be interested in me.
“In other news, I’ve picked out the place for your twenty-first,” Missy informed me.
I raised my eyebrows. “Should I be scared?”