This is dangerous.

_

Harper's POV

I sat on the edge of the bed, completely still, staring at the floor.

The hunger I felt earlier was gone, replaced with a hot and uncomfortable feeling.

I grabbed my pillow and screamed into it.

I took a few seconds to calm down.

Then wondered when she had gotten there.

Like the universe decided there wasn't enough barrier between me and Jace Carter's personal life.

I had to see his butt!

I threw the sheets over my head to avoid hearing anything, but the image replayed instantly.

Goodness, he is so disgusting.

I pressed the pillow harder over my face, trying to block out the memory, to no avail.

I shot up from the bed, frustrated.

"This is stupid."

I rushed downstairs, grabbing a glass of water just to distract myself.

I remained in the living room until ten, falling asleep on the couch before heading back to my room.

She should be gone by now.

I heaved, climbing back into bed, and closed my eyes.

But my sleep was filled with nightmares and horrible sights of Jace.

Dreams of being in his room, lying on the same rumpled sheets.

What was worse was that I was the girl in his arms.

I woke up at five in the morning with my heart hammering and my cheeks burning, staring at the ceiling.

I lay there for a long time, refusing to move.

It was just a nightmare.

It meant absolutely nothing.

By seven, I looked like I had been personally victimized by life.

Dark circles and messy hair.

It's Sunday.

I dragged myself downstairs, preparing myself for the disaster that would soon become my new routine.

"Good morning, Harper!" Marla chirped from the kitchen.

My eyes lit up at the sight of her and I almost jumped into her arms but restrained myself.

"Morning," I mumbled, dropping into a seat.

She had already made breakfast. Pancakes, eggs and fruit.

I blinked at it, surprised by how beautiful the meal looked.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked.

I hesitated, debating whether I should tell her that her son was a nocturnal menace.

"No," a voice answered behind me.

I froze as Jace walked in like he owned the place. Which, technically, he did.

His hair was damp from a shower and he was wearing a black hoodie and sweats like some kind of effortlessly put-together nightmare.

"She didn't," he added, grabbing a glass of water.

I turned slowly.

"Excuse me?"

He didn't even look at me. "She must have dreamed about me all night. Just like every other girl," he smirked.

My saliva went down the wrong pipe and I coughed really hard, my face turning a deep red instantly. Marla rushed to my side, worried, and grabbed the glass of water from Jace and offered it to me.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

I took the glass and gulped a little water, my gaze flickering to Jace who held his smirk, enjoying every bit of my pain. He had done that on purpose and was probably mocking me right now.

"I'm fine, Marla. Thank you," I said, already thinking of a comeback.

She let go of me and turned to Jace who was about to stroll back to his room.

"Why don't you and Jason have your first session today? I believe you don't have any plans," Marla said, halting him.

The smirk on his face disappeared, replaced with a distasteful one. Like he had just been offered broccoli.

My heart also skipped a beat, anxiously. I didn't want to be in a locked room with him, not right now, not after what I saw and the stupid dream I had.

I turned to Marla quickly.

"No rush. I still need to plan the lessons, draft out a schedule…" I said.

She smiled calmly.

"Jace is having a test tomorrow at school. I don't trust him to do it by himself," she said, her gaze shifting to him.

"Seriously?" I heard him scoff.

I moved close to Marla and grabbed her hands in comfort, putting on a serious face.

"I will try my very best," I said, like a good girl.

I didn't expect Marla's next reaction as she pulled me in and hugged me tight.

"We are so lucky to have you here," she said aloud. I could imagine the angry scowl on Jace's face as I hugged her back.

I finished my breakfast and headed to his room, my glasses in place. I gave a loud knock this time and waited. No response.

After two minutes counted in my head, I knocked again. When it seemed he wouldn't answer, I took a deep inhale and exhaled quickly, and then at the top of my lungs, I yelled.

"Marla…!"

The door came open in a second. I was grabbed and pulled in, the door slamming shut. He pushed me against the wall, annoyance resting on his face.

"What the fuck are you trying to do, freak?" he said under his breath.

My eyes widened at his naked chest. He was too close.

I could feel my cheeks heating up, a stupid thought about running my hand across his body flooding my brain for a second. I immediately turned my gaze away to avoid getting caught in my thoughts.

"Number one rule, wear a shirt whenever we are having a lesson," I let out, more boldly than I thought I would be.

But the devil leaned in, his breath fell on me and my body froze. I clenched the notebook in my hand and turned to him, pretending I wasn't faltering.

Pretending that right there, my heart wasn't pounding so loud in my ears.

"About last night," he said in a low voice.

"Tell my parents, and you're dead," his eyes caught mine.

"Then you shouldn't have brought a girl home and…" I swallowed my words and looked away carefully.

I heard him smirk immediately.

"What? Fuck her?" he asked.

My cheeks turned tomato red again, too hot. I almost couldn't resist the urge to fan myself. The nasty scene came back to me and I squirmed. Unable to take it anymore, I tried to push him off but he suddenly grabbed my hand and pinned it against the wall.

I let out a sharp gasp.

"What are you doing? Let go of me," I shouted.

There was a frightening tease in his eyes as he stared at me, like he was about to do something evil.

I struggled, trying to free my feeble arm from his hold, but it only made him grip harder, so hard it was starting to hurt.

"Your face is so red, freak."

He moved his face closer, his cheek brushing mine as he whispered into my ear. "You don't happen to have a crush on me, do you?"

My whole body seemed to fire up at the question. I couldn't look at him. I bit my lip slowly and forced a low inhale.

His breath fell on my neck and I clenched harder onto my notebook.

"This is dangerous!" my heart screamed.

Really dangerous. I hadn't even started tutoring and I was already losing my freaking mind!

The feel of his hot breath… the beautiful naked chest…

Can I survive this?!