Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 116759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
I could do this.
Be professional.
Reaching for my books, I snatched them up, using them to cover my stomach as I stood. Maddie had talked me into buying a cropped sweater and I’d paired it with jeans this morning. When I left the flat, I’d felt good about the outfit, but as the day wore on, I became increasingly self-conscious of the flashes of skin it revealed. I wasn’t toned to the hilt like Maddie who worked out every other day or naturally skinny like Sierra. I was what January called lush. I rode my bike everywhere, which kept me physically fit, but I was soft and curvy.
I’d been called fat a few times in my life and, unfortunately, that crap stuck to the brain like a leech.
Why, oh why, did I have to be wearing this stupid cropped top the day I met Sebastian Thorne?
Like he’d ever be interested in you, the snotty voice of my low self-esteem taunted me as I led him through the library to the study room my mum had given me the key to.
Sebastian raised an eyebrow as I led him inside. “These are like gold around here. How did you manage to get one?” He dropped his books on the table of the small room.
“My mum is head librarian.” I mentally patted myself on the back for losing the stutter as I took a seat and gestured for him to do the same.
Sebastian’s brow furrowed as he sat adjacent to me. His masculine cologne hit my senses, making my belly flutter. “I think I know who you mean. You have her coloring.”
I nodded because I did have Mum’s dark hair, olive skin, and hazel eyes. My dad also had dark hair and olive skin, so it was a crapshoot which of them bestowed those on me. The hazel eyes were definitely from Mum, though.
“So … you need help in Human Personality.”
“Excuse me?” He sounded affronted.
I blinked, wondering what the hell I’d said wrong this time. “Human Personality. The course you’d like tutoring in.”
Sebastian let out a huff of laughter and rubbed his nape almost … self-consciously. “Right. Right, of course.”
Pulling on my professionalism, I gestured to my books. “Which part of the course is giving you bother?”
Those beautiful blue-green eyes of his washed over my face. As if searching for something. “Quite a bit, really.”
I frowned because I didn’t think the course was difficult to grasp. At all. Disappointment withered my attraction. Sebastian was apparently all beauty and no brains. As a sapiosexual, this was a big turnoff for me.
My disappointment turned to relief. I could relax now around him. “Okay. Is it the personality typing, theories, applications, data analysis …?”
“I … I had some personal stuff happen this year and I’ve missed nearly all the course. So, I thought you might be able to bring me up to speed since it doesn’t seem terribly taxing.”
Terribly taxing.
He smiled coaxingly, and the way his mouth curled more on one side made the butterflies in my belly go wild.
Speak, Lily!
I cleared my throat, dragging my attention off him since his face seemed to render me speechless. “It’s not … terribly taxing. But that’s a lot to catch up on. Nearly a whole year. That’s not really what I do with the tutoring sessions.” In fact, I was surprised the university was letting him continue the course rather than redo the year over. The curious, sympathetic part of me wondered what personal stuff had happened to him.
“Please.” Sebastian covered my hand with his and I blinked rapidly as goose bumps rose on my arm at the touch. His hand was huge over mine. Long fingered. Big knuckled. The kind of hands an artist might want to draw. Masculine but beautiful.
Every inch of him was.
“Please don’t let me be the first Homo sapiens to fail Human Personality. It would be rather embarrassing for me.”
Charmed, I couldn’t help my grin.
His eyes widened ever so slightly. “You have dimples,” he announced, as if it was some kind of miracle to have indents in your cheeks.
“I do.”
“They are very disarming.”
Was he flirting with me?
No.
He couldn’t be.
Right?
I cleared my throat, my palms sweating as I flipped open the textbook. “Okay. Let’s start at the beginning, then. Personality types.”
“What personality type are you?”
His eyes roamed my face again, like he found me truly fascinating. His intensity up close was discombobulating. If I was going to make it through this session, I needed to get his focus off me. “The type that has another tutoring session in an hour, so I need you to pay attention.”
Sebastian’s lips twitched. He saluted me. “Yes, ma’am.”
My own trembled with laughter. “Is that paying attention?”
“It’s very difficult when you’re this adorable.”
My cheeks caught fire. I was so glad he couldn’t tell. “Pay attention,” I insisted, even though I was squirming inside with delight.