Chapter One

My twenty-first birthday had started like any other day. I awoke alone. The house was deserted. No doubt, my Aunt who I lived with had passed out at the bar or gone home with some random stranger. I ran a brush through my long, dark hair until it lay smooth and perfectly straight down my back. I washed my face and picked out something to wear for the day. I decided on a white fitted t-shirt and blue jean shorts. It would be warm again, as was usual in Florida, so I slipped on a pair of brown sandals.

The high school bus pulled up out front and I sat in the garage waiting for it to leave and make its way down the road. I hated being stuck behind it with all of the other kids pointing and laughing at me out of the back window. Once I was sure the coast was clear I backed out of the garage in my beat up white Rabbit.

I turned on the radio and plugged my iphone into the tape deck adapter, and listened to Mozart the entire drive. Classical music had a way of calming me down. I hated going to college. I never felt like I fit in. People treated me like an alien because I had transferred from Michigan just before high school graduation. The truth was I would have given anything to be back there.

I pulled into the gym parking lot just before the eight. I was cutting it close but I did not honestly care. My grades were perfect and I could have a 4.0 without ever attending. Unfortunately, if I did not show up my scholarships could be taken away. I always began my day with a workout. I slinked into the locker room and changed into the oversized t-shirt and baggy black shorts.

Forty-five minutes later, we had finished playing a game of basketball with some girls from a sorority, to which I still do not know the rules. My team lost but I did not care either way. I changed back into my normal clothes and headed across the campus to my first class.

Everything before lunch became a giant blur. The teachers were working on things I had long learned. I sat alone at the end of a big long table in the cafeteria and nibbled at my pizza. I hated this place with a passion. I was ready to graduate and move on with my life. I knew that without my degree I would be forced to stay in this town and work a low budget job for the rest of my existence.

I grabbed my books and headed for my car to grab my history book that I had forgotten. By the time I made it to class, everyone was in their seats and waiting for the teacher to speak. I slinked in and kept my head low as I headed to the back of the classroom. I slipped into my desk and looked to the front of the class.

“Now that we’re all here I’d like to introduce myself. Ms. Gibbs will be out for a few months for medical issues. My name is Mr. Honor.” His hair was dark and just long enough to pull off the ‘just out of bed’ look. His eyes were a piercing blue that matched his button up shirt that hugged his muscular chest perfectly. The top button was undone and you could see a white wife-beater below and dark wash jeans. He was a lot younger than most of our teachers. He looked to be in his late twenties but he had the confidence of someone much older. All of the girls in the room hung on his every word. When he licked his lips, a collective gasp was heard throughout the room.

When the bell rang many of the girls lingered until Mr. Honor made it a point to move everyone along to their next period.

“You, come here for a moment.” He said pointing at me. My breath hitched in my throat as I gathered my books and walked up between the desks to him. He was leaning back casually on the top of his desk and twirling a ruler in his hand.

“Yes?” I asked, the words coming out more high pitched than I intended.

“What is your name?” he asked and for a moment, I could not remember. My cheeks burned a deep crimson as I struggled to have a coherent thought.

“Emma. Emma Townsend.” I blurted out when it finally came to me. He smiled and my heart had completely given up. I did not know how much longer I could stand in front of him before my legs gave out from nerves.

“Emma,” my name rolled off his tongue and it was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard. “Please try to make it to class on time. Lateness will not be tolerated. Next time there will be consequences.” He said as he continued to spin the ruler in his hand. I was mesmerized.

“Yes, Sir” I replied with a hint of sarcasm in my voice. His lip twitched and he looked to be holding back a smirk.

“Get to class Ms. Townsend.” His eyes locked onto mine. I was not sure what to say so I turned on my heel and made my way to my next class. The rest of the day flew by in a daze. All I could think about was Mr. Honor. I wondered what his first name was and if he was seeing anyone. Not that it mattered. I was a social pariah in this school. Part of that was my fault. I never made an effort to get to know anyone. By the time I had finished my classes, I did not even know what any of our teachers had said.

When I got home, my Aunt Judy was inside cooking something on the stove.

“That smells great.” I said, realizing I had not eaten very much today.

“Food is in the fridge. Make yourself something.” She replied coldly. I rolled my eyes and went back the hall to my bedroom. I started working on my homework but I could not concentrate on anything. My thoughts always went back to him. When the house fell silent, I went to the kitchen to fix myself something to eat. My Aunt had left food and dirty dishes strewn about the countertops, so I set to cleaning before making myself dinner. Once the dishwasher was loaded and the counters wiped off, I made myself spaghetti and sat on the couch to read a romance novel. I spent most of my free time reading. It was a great escape from reality. Unfortunately, all I could picture was Mr. Honor when it came to the hero’s big love scene so I put my book away and opted for reality television instead.

Chapter Two

I woke just after six with my phone’s alarm buzzing in my ear. I had passed out in front of the television in the living room. Luckily my Aunt never came home last night or she would have undoubtedly woke me to lecture me on how uncomfortable it made her male companions to have someone sprawled out on the floor.

I ran through the shower and slid on an old pair of torn up jeans and a tank top. My hair was damp when I left for school but it was so hot out that I did not mind. The air conditioner in my car was no better than having the windows down.

My hair was practically dry by the time I made it to school. I headed towards the gym, taking the long route so I could walk past Mr. Honor’s class. His door was closed, but through the little window I could see him sliding on his long sleeve dark grey button up shirt. I deep black tribal tattoo wrapped around his muscular shoulder and stopped just at the nape of his neck. He turned around as he shrugged the shirt closed and I ran from the window hoping he did not see me staring at him.

Working out was an absolute disaster. Today the girls decided to torture us with dodge ball, but since my mind was elsewhere, I seemed to be hit more than others were. With a fresh headache and a bruised ego, I made my way to my next class. Math was boring as usual and I spent most of the period doodling in my notebook as opposed to taking notes. It was a relief when the bell rang and I could finally get out of the classrooms. I made my way to the cafeteria. There did not seem to be anywhere for me to sit alone so I squeezed my tray on to the end of a table and did my best to avoid contact with anyone. It is not that the people here were horribly mean; I just did not like to invest myself in a relationship that would soon end. Maybe that was because we would all be going off to start our own lives, or maybe because I have a tendency to move around a lot, or maybe I was still learning to cope with the death of my parents. The reason did not matter. I preferred to be by myself. I would probably stay at home locked in my house like a dungeon if it were not for school. Technically, I could drop out at any time, but I only had a few more months left and I knew I would regret not getting my diploma.

The lunch bell rang jarring me from my thoughts. It was time for Mr. Honor’s class and I considered ditching. I was sure he had seen me gawking through the window on his classroom door and I did not want him looking at me as if I was a weirdo. I remembered his threat about being late and reluctantly I headed to class. I slipped in while other students were milling around. He never took notice to my presence and I was grateful. The girls fawned over him as if he was a rock star. He looked embarrassed but something in his expression made me think he enjoyed the attention.

“Take your seats. It’s time for a pop quiz.” He announced and the room collectively groaned. I was excited not to have to talk to anyone, so the quiz was a welcome distraction. Halfway through the period I struggled to come up with answers for half the questions on the quiz. This was unlike me, being that I had already read through most of the book in my spare time. I bit my lip and tucked my hair behind my ear. Someone dropped a textbook near the front of the class with a heavy thud. I jumped in my seat and looked up nervously. My eyes caught Mr. Honor’s as he stared back at me. My heart leaped into my throat and I bit down harder on my bottom lip. He licked his lips in that incredibly sexy way he does before breaking eye contact with me and shuffling through papers on his desk. I looked back down at my paper, but it may have well been in Greek. I wrote down some half assed answers and walked to the front of the class to turn it in just as the bell rang. I sat my paper on his desk and left the room as quickly as possible.

My heart was going a mile a minute so I ducked into the restroom and splashed cold water on my face. I heard a group of girls open the door so I slipped inside a stall to be alone until I could calm myself down. The second bell buzzed and everyone was supposed to be in his or her next class but the group of girls still lingered. I reluctantly opened the door so I could leave.

“Hey! You’re that smart girl in Mr. Nevins class aren’t you?” A girl with long curly blonde hair asked.

“I suppose that’s me.” I answered shyly. “My name is Emma.”

“I’m Claire, and this is Becka.” She replied motioning to the girl with short unnaturally red hair beside her. I smiled and nodded not knowing what to say next, so I turned for the door. “Want to get high?” Claire called after me and I stopped for a moment not sure how to answer.

“Sure.” I replied. I was already late for the next class and coming in halfway through would be worse than not showing up at all. A smile beamed across Claire’s face and she pulled a small mint tin from her bag. She opened it up and pulled out a joint. I had gotten high once before so I knew what to expect. Claire lit the joint and passed it to Becka just as she coughed and sputtered. “You okay?” I asked as her face turned beat red. She nodded and Becka shoved the joint in my face. I took a small hit and struggled to hold it in. My lungs burned from the harsh intrusion and I began to hack and cough worse than Claire had. “Here.” I said holding it out for Claire to take again. She spontaneously broke into a giggle fit. I don’t know what was so funny but her laughter was contagious and soon we were all gasping for air and laughing louder and louder as we passed the joint a few more times.

“Girls” I loud booming voice called from outside the door.

“Shh...” Claire whispered entirely too loudly.

“Come out here right now.” The voice called again and I could tell they were losing their patience.

“You go!” Claire said, shoving me towards the door.

“No!” I protested.

“I’m on probation!” Becka whispered and whoever was on the other side of the door knocked, causing us all to jump and stop talking.

“Fine, fuck it.” I muttered under my breath and the girls scurried off into a stall. I took a deep breath and pushed open the bathroom door. On the other side stood the most beautiful man I had ever laid eyes on, Mr. Honor. His jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed. He was pissed, but I could not help but laugh.

Chapter Three

“Emma? You think this is funny?” he scolded me. I tried to stifle my giggles and shake my head no, but when I held back a laugh, I also stopped breathing causing me to feel woozy. He grabbed my upper arm and squeezed entirely too tightly, pulling me down the hall towards his room. Luckily, the halls were empty and no one saw how ridiculous I was behaving.