Broken Horse

Chapter 12 - Jacey

Reaching for his phone, he shook his head as his eyes tightened on the test in front of him. Taking his time going through the answers, he let out a loud hiss straightening up with his jaw throbbing from the pressure of his teeth being pressed together.

Sergei: What is the distraction?

Me: I will fix it. I promise. I don't want you to have failing students.

Sitting back, I slipped my phone into my pocket and went for the box of minerals we were working on. I had to finish this lab today or I would be behind for the next one. And I was already one lab behind.

Getting close to Sergei like this was another issue. He was just a good guy and I was the one jumping in to a fantasy of being something more to him. How could he even like a woman like me, one who smelled of work all day and played with horses instead of chasing men? Not to count, if there was any kind of friendship that would develop, my grade would fake considering that I was his friend and he would feel as if he had to bend my scores. And he just really seemed like the type of man who would skew my test scores just so I didn't fail, and that was not what I wanted at all.

Sergei: I cannot help you to get the grade up. There will be students who fail. I do not want to see YOU fail.

Me: Do you worry about the others like this?

His jaw tightened as he raked his hand through his black hair before marking up the test full of red pen. Damn if he didn't look absolutely gorgeous doing that. The stress was thickening around his eyes and a few wrinkles were sneaking in the corners of his eyes, but that man... just his smile, I was a moth who was drawn right to the flame.

He started typing on his phone, but gritted his teeth erasing it. Then, he typed again only to erase that also. Finally, a text had come through.

Sergei: The others are not of my concern. YOU take care of my horse. I spent money on the animal.

I laughed feeling the eyes boring into me. He wasn't happy about it. Heat burned my face as I tipped my head and typed back keeping my phone under the table as the warning signs began to flash in my mind. I needed to stop before this got out of hand.

He was my teacher, my Geology teacher and there would be no way I would ever want to get him in trouble. I wasn't one who would accept a better grade without proof. And if I ended up with a better grade because I was flirting with him, then I was no better than my sister. I wasn't my sister.

Me: I would always take care of your horse, no matter what. He has my heart.

Sergei: And no one else has your heart?

I bit my lip reading his message again. My heart fluttered uncontrollably in my chest. Yesterday, he asked me if I was dating Tobey, but when he did, it was almost as if he were growling under his breath. Why, though? Tobey was a good guy and a hard worker.

I typed out my message, erased what I wrote. I couldn't tell him that he was my distraction. He was the reason why I hadn't listened to a word he's said in the past few classes. After yesterday, I couldn't stop thinking about him. How he picked me up and swung me around, held me against him, and those tender blues looking at me. Our class would be over with in a little over a month and then what? Nothing. I wouldn't see him again.

Well, his horse was living at the house now so I would see him actually. As my sister had always told me, never just let something you want go. If you do, then you deserve to be without it. But was that just the type of guy he was or was this for real? Did he really feel something for me?