LOGINLily POV
The world fell away. There was no Kai, no mate bond, no pack politics or complicated feelings. There was just this moment, this man, this kiss that made me feel wanted and valued and cherished in a way I hadn't felt in so long.
Nathan's kiss was slow and deep and thorough, like he was trying to memorize every detail. When his tongue traced my bottom lip, I opened for him without hesitation. The taste of him – coffee and mint and something uniquely Nathan – made me dizzy with want.
Lily POVThe world fell away. There was no Kai, no mate bond, no pack politics or complicated feelings. There was just this moment, this man, this kiss that made me feel wanted and valued and cherished in a way I hadn't felt in so long.Nathan's kiss was slow and deep and thorough, like he was trying to memorize every detail. When his tongue traced my bottom lip, I opened for him without hesitation. The taste of him – coffee and mint and something uniquely Nathan – made me dizzy with want.
Lily POV"Yes, it was," I whispered."I know," Nathan said. "And I know that saying I'm sorry doesn't erase what I did. But I need you to understand that I never meant to hurt you. I never wanted to be another source of pain in your life."A tear slipped down my cheek, followed by another. I tried to wipe them away, but they kept coming.
Lily POV"That's not—" Nathan started, but I wasn't finished."You said you liked me," I continued, my emotions finally spilling over. "You said you'd liked me for a long time. But the moment I couldn't give you what you wanted, the moment I stepped back from your kiss, you turned cold and professional and threatened to kick me out of your class. Is that what your affection looks like, Professor? Because it feels an awful lot like manipulation to me."
Lily POVI sat back down on the bench and pulled out my phone, staring at the dark screen. I had several missed calls from numbers I didn't recognize and a few text messages from classmates asking if I was okay. Nothing from Kai, of course. Why would there be? We cannot communicate with each other.Still, shouldn’t he still defile that rule made by his mother? Love was chivalrous, I should be getting treatment like that every day from him to remind me how very much I still mean to him but of course, his tongue was jammed in the throat of that pretty woman. He'd made his feelings perfectly clear.I smacked my head, cursing internally. I’d forgotten to ask Liam about Isabella the woman Kai had been kissing last night too. It was only fair for me to know at least. Now that it seems like I have a competition. The sun was starting to sink lower in the sky, painting everything in shades of gold and orange. It would have been beautiful if I'd been in any state to appreciate it. Instead, I j
Lily POVI stopped in my tracks, my hand still gripping my bag strap. "I don't feel well, Professor. I can't take today's class."Nathan scoffed, actually scoffed, and I felt my face burn with embarrassment as the other students started filing into the classroom. "You don't feel well? And you expect me to believe that after you just sat through an entire private lesson with me this morning?"I went silent, not knowing what to say. He was right, of course. I'd been fine during our lesson. This was just me trying to escape the mess of emotions I couldn't handle."Let me make something very clear," Nathan continued, his voice cold and professional in a way that hurt more than it should have. "If you walk out of this classroom right now, don't bother attending any of my lectures for the rest of the semester. Is that understood?"The ultimatum hung in the air between us. Part of me wanted to call his bluff, to walk out anyway and deal with the consequences later. But the rational part of m
Lily POVI walked out of Nathan's office in a daze, my mind spinning with everything that had just happened. My feet carried me across campus while my thoughts went in circles, replaying Nathan's words over and over again. The way he'd looked at me when he said he liked me. The way his hand had felt against my cheek. The way he'd almost kissed me.The sadness felt like a weight pressing down on my chest, making it hard to breathe. I wasn't sure what I was even sad about anymore. Was it Kai's rejection? Nathan's confession? The mess I'd made of everything? All of it seemed to blend together into one terrible knot of emotions that I couldn't untangle.By the time I reached my classroom, I felt completely drained. I slid into my usual seat and let my bag drop to the floor beside me, staring blankly at the empty whiteboard at the front of the room."Lily?"I looked up to see Jason standing beside my desk, holding a bouquet of pink roses and wearing an expression that looked somewhere bet







