Quarterback Leap (Taking the Leap Book 10) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Quarterback Leap

  Copyright

  Thank You!

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  About the Author

  Books by Brynn Paulin

  Quarterback Leap

  Taking the Leap

  By Brynn Paulin

  Supernova Indie Publishing Services, LLC

  www.supernovaindie.com

  Powered by Your Imagination

  Quarterback Leap

  by

  Brynn Paulin

  My teacher is hot AF, and unlike anyone else I’ve met, she cares. She’s sent me to detention more times than I’d like to count, but it only makes me want her more.

  Yeah, she’s my teacher.

  Yeah, there’s an age gap.

  Yeah, she thinks I’m nothing but a bully.

  She’s right on two of three. And that bully thing? Well, I might just have to bully her into being mine. But I’ll make sure she never regrets it.

  Copyright

  © 2020, Brynn Paulin

  Quarterback Leap

  Cover Art and Formatting by Supernova Indie Publishing Services, LLC

  Electronic Format ISBN: 978-1-62344-344-3

  Published by: Supernova Indie Publishing Services, LLC

  Warning: All rights reserved. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and occurrences are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, places or occurrences, is purely coincidental.

  Thank You!

  Thank you for your purchase of Quarterback Leap.

  I hope you enjoy the story and will consider leaving a review or telling a friend about the book.

  I love hearing from readers! To keep in touch and follow my news, please visit me on my website at www.brynnpaulin.com.

  Dedication

  For Mercedes,

  who claimed Kyler the second

  I introduced her to him in November.

  Thank you for helping me

  sort three ideas into one.

  Chapter One

  ~ Whitney ~

  Kyler Lewis had been staring at me for an hour straight. Not in an I’m your student and I’m absorbing everything you say way. No, it was more of a calculating, dark gaze that caused a shiver inside me. I tried to ignore that reaction. God’s gift to teenage girls, Kyler was my student, a football player and a great big jerk. I’d seen him in action more than once. Hell, I’d given him a detention and a stern warning just last week when I’d caught him bullying one of the underclassmen.

  And ever since then, I’d gotten the stare. This eyeballing that devoured me and probed all my secrets.

  Secret number one: I’d thought about this completely off-limits student when I was at home. It didn’t matter that he was built like an athlete, with sleek muscles upon muscles, with strange dark, blue eyes, perfect bone structure and thick dark hair that called for my fingers to shove into it. I shouldn’t ever let him enter my mind. But I did. And no one could know that, for so many reasons.

  Reason number one: I liked my job, and I looked terrible in orange. I’d be fired and go to jail for even entertaining the idea of that underage boy. Okay, that was two reasons.

  Reason number two—no, three: Kyler Lewis was a grade-A jerk. A bully. A big Man on Campus with a chip on his shoulder as large as the moon.

  Any of those were excellent motivation to ignore my illicit, unreasonable attraction to him. No way was I making national news for this…this…child. Twenty-seven year old teacher in scandalous affair with underage student. Film at eleven.

  Gah! No.

  The bell rang—Thank you, Jesus—and my class scrambled to gather their things and hightail it out of school for the day.

  “Don’t forget, essays are due on my desk at the beginning of class on Friday,” I called, but half of them were already racing out the door. Less than thirty seconds later, the hallway was filled with chatter and all my pupils were gone.

  All but one.

  Fuck me.

  No. No. Not fuck me. Geez!

  “Mr. Lewis,” I said. “Did you have a question? I hope you plan to actually turn in this paper on time. Your coach has been checking with me about your grade.”

  “Yeah,” he replied, the word cut off and dismissive.

  “Yes to which part of what I said?”

  He cocked his head, one side of his mouth lifting. “Both.”

  “Well, good. How can I help you then? Do you have a question about Romeo and Juliet?”

  “Besides why they’re fucking idiots and people think the play is a romance? No.” He shrugged, and I forced my eyes from his wide shoulders and the way his thermal stretched across a chest and abs no teenager should possess.

  “Is that the topic for your paper?”

  “Maybe, guess I’ll find out.”

  “You haven’t started it?”

  “Fuck, it’s Tuesday. I’ve got time.”

  “Language.”

  “Whatever the fuck,” he muttered. His hand shoved into his pocket.

  “If it’s not about the assignment, then what?” Because I need you to leave before I do something inappropriate.

  It was really time to break out the dating app my coworker had been raving about. Maybe, if I had a steady man in my life—any man really—I wouldn’t have inappropriate thoughts about a student. Not just any student. This student.

  “I’ve seen how you look at me.”

  What the… No, he hadn’t! “As in…you’re my student? Newsflash, in here, you are.”

  “Nice try. I can see you want me.”

  I lowered my chin and made a scoffing face. “Um, no,” I replied, both words firm and determined, my tone saying, Buddy, you’re high.

  His hand came out of his pocket, his wallet in his fingers, and my gaze followed the movement. I winced inside as I inadvertently eyed the generous bulge right next to that pocket. With the denim stretched tight before he pulled out his hand, I spied the clear outline of a generous dick.

  My hand clenched on my lap. “If that’s all, you should get to practice. I’ll see you tomorrow in class.”

  Kyler shook his head, opening his wallet and pulling something out of it. He snapped the object against the wood as he placed it flat on the surface of my desk. Then he slid the plastic-laminated card toward me. I realized it was his license as he tapped the place where his birthdate was printed.

  “Eighteen almost nineteen. This cock is nice and legal for you.”

  My eyes widened. I couldn’t help it. I mean…What. The. Hell? I couldn’t believe his balls. Fuck, don’t think about his balls, Whit!

  I stared at him aghast. “Get. Out.”

  His jaw tightened then that smirk, that fucking smirk. He gave a half-shrug accompanied by a huff of amusement. Pivoting away, he marched toward the classroom door.

  My relief weakened me, and I let out a cleansing breath. Battle won. Victory goes to Ms. Whitney James. Ready to be done with my day, now that Kyler was leaving, I stood and started gathering my things.

  I should have been paying attention. />
  I should have been on my guard.

  I should have…well, about a hundred things.

  Because first the door shut, then I heard the distinctive clunk of a lock tumbler. It seemed to thunder through the classroom. A knot tightened in my lower belly as I stared at the man slowly striding back toward me. I backed away, breathing hard.

  “You need to leave,” I tried, struggling to inject authority into my tone.

  That smirk still in place, he shook his head and kept walking toward me. I kept backing away. Until I couldn’t. My spine hit the whiteboard, the marker tray on the bottom jabbing into my hips.

  Maintain authority, Whit, I demanded of myself.

  “Kyler, you need to leave. Go to practice or whatever it is you do after school.”

  “I’m thinking I want to do you. Right up against your board there. Or maybe, spread out across your desk.”

  I struggled to keep any reaction from showing on my face, despite my panties getting inappropriately wet. Kyler was the hottest person I’d ever met, no joke. But…this? What was happening? This was a joke. Something he’d laugh about with his football buddies.

  “This isn’t funny. You want another detention?”

  He huffed another laugh. “You’re not giving me a detention.” His hand slipped behind my neck, and his fingers speared into my hair. “You’re not telling anyone.”

  Then his lips, his firm but soft lips were on mine, and I was on fire. I gasped, and it gave him just enough entrance that his tongue slipped into my mouth and pushed along my own. He groaned and pulled me tighter to him. I struggled not to react, not to give in, but at the feel of him, so much bigger than me, the press of his hard body… I melted. Just for a second. The sweetest, warm pleasure washed through me. It was everything I’d desired—someone to love and cherish me. Someone to really care.

  But Kyler didn’t care about me. This was… I didn’t actually know what this was. A bet? A conquest? A challenge? Whatever it was, I couldn’t fall for with it.

  On fire with conviction, I struggled out of his grasp. Apparently, I took him by surprise, because I knew in my heart that if he’d wanted to he could have kept me trapped there until he was good and ready to let me go. The man was that much bigger, that much stronger than me. I wanted to believe he’d never hurt me, but I’d seen him in action. Kyler Lewis got what he wanted, even if it might make him a bully.

  I was around the desk before he reacted.

  “Don’t you ever do that again.”

  He grinned, wiping his knuckle along his bottom lip. “I plan to do that many, many times, Whitney. Get used to it. You’re mine.”

  My thighs clenched, and I crossed my arms over my chest, glaring at him. My nipples were not hard, aching points. They weren’t! And I wasn’t his.

  “You’re ridiculous.”

  “No, I’m dead serious, and I’m staking my claim.”

  Why? It was the loudest thing blaring through my thoughts, almost drowning out a much quieter assertion of No, way. Don’t even think about it. Danger, danger! This is a student.

  A student bent on proving he was very much a man. I mean technically, he was an adult. But technicalities meant little in the grand scheme of things when it came to teachers and students.

  “No, you’re not,” I replied, calmly. After a lifetime of foster homes and hiding my emotions when I was moved every few months, sometimes every few weeks, I knew how to conceal what I felt. The rule of the game was never to let them see a weakness or know you cared—hell, you never let anyone know you had feelings at all. “Now, I’m sure this has all been a fun game for you,” I said, heading for the door, “but—”

  I sensed him before I felt him. Then his hands clamped on my waist and his hard, strong body pressed to my back. His hot breath tickled along my neck as he bent to my ear. “It’s not a game. And no isn’t really an option, Ms. James. This is what’s going to happen, Whitney.”

  I knew he was saying my name to either get a rise out of me or to assert his position—though whether it was as an adult or as an equal, I didn’t know.

  “What?” I bit out. “Enlighten me.” Because I had no intention of following any plan.

  “You know, I’ve always been curious about spanking,” he commented, and my breath caught. Everything in me clenched. “Wouldn’t that be interesting? The naughty teacher over my knee?”

  “In your dreams,” I growled then kicked myself because I shouldn’t have reacted.

  “Oh trust me, you’re there often. Now, as I was saying. This is what’s going to happen. I’m going to practice, then you’re going to meet me at my house at seven. My parents are gone on a trip, and we’ll have the place to ourselves. I’ll cook us something and we can…get to know each other.”

  I closed my eyes, my face squinching as I fought away the possibilities that floated instantly through my mind. Stepping away without a word, I opened the door then held it open for him. Thankfully, there was no one in the hallway who might question why I’d been alone with a male student in a closed classroom. “Have a good practice, Mr. Lewis. Make sure you work on that paper.”

  He smirked and walked out. I closed the door and immediately sank against it. What the actual fuck?

  Chapter Two

  ~ Kyler ~

  I had no doubt Whitney wouldn’t show up at my house. Still, I waited around at my place with the insane hope that she might. I’d showered, taken some pain relievers and rubbed salve into my new bruises from practice. All the while I thought of her and the sensation of her tiny little body pressed up against me, her soft sweet lips on mine. For the briefest of moments, I’d felt her sink into the feelings and let herself go, and I intended to make that instance of time expand into forever.

  Soon enough, she’d know just how serious I was. This was between her and I and no one needed to know. Not right now. I mean eventually, I’d make her my wife. Then the secret would be out. But that would be after I graduated.

  My hand snaked down to rub over my dick as I thought about her. The first time I saw her, she hadn’t been my teacher. Not yet. That was last spring. She’d been walking across the cafeteria, and I’d thought she was a student. Lightning had hit me in the center of my chest.

  The one.

  My one.

  I was on my feet before I realized I was moving. Then I’d seen her standing next to another teacher, one of the male staff, and I’d seen red. What the fuck was he doing with her, a student?

  Yeah, I know. Ironic, considering how I was going after her, a teacher.

  I didn’t take my eyes off her the entire twenty minutes, and after the bell, I’d followed her. My height had been an advantage in the crowded hallway, letting me keep her tiny form in my sights. Of course, students parting before me like the Red Sea had helped, too. I’d trailed her right to her classroom and watched from the doorway as she’d gone to her desk.

  I’d stood there, thunderstruck. My woman was a teacher? A teacher? Fuck.

  She’d looked up with a slight smile and tilted her head. If I hadn’t been gone already, that would have ended me.

  “Can I help you?” she’d asked.

  I shook my head. “Not yet.”

  I’d had plans to make.

  All right, truthfully, mostly my plans had been waiting, fantasizing about her and taking myself in hand practically every night. Okay, every night. And watching her. Observing. I’d done my best to become an expert in Whitney James.

  It wasn’t really stalking—at least, that’s what I told myself. But I needed to equip myself with the info I needed to make my claim. It was no different from how I studied opposing teams before each game. You had to prepare if you wanted to win, and I intended to be the champion here.

  One thing I knew for sure, I wouldn’t have stood a chance last year. There was no way, as a junior, I could have convinced her she’s mine. I’d still be cooling my heels until graduation, but yesterday, I overheard a conversation that enraged every primal instinct inside me. She
and the math teacher across the hall had been talking about a dating app.

  It had been after school, and I’m sure they thought no one was around. If I hadn’t forgotten something I needed for practice, I certainly wouldn’t have been. It was by sheer stroke of luck I’d been there, that I’d heard my woman say, “Email me the link. If I don’t get back out there soon, I never will.”

  A—I wanted to know who the fuck she’d been “out there” with. Obviously, she’d been in a relationship before and was ready to get back on the horse. Well, this horse was waiting and hard as nails with need for her to ride him.

  B—There was no way in hell I’d stand by and let her start dating some asshole. She was mine, whether she knew it or not.

  I’d thought of nothing else since yesterday afternoon. I’d almost gone to her house to take care of things. Okay, well, I’d almost banged on her door. I’d been there for a long while, just like always. Yeah, I know. A little stalkery. If she wasn’t mine, I’d never do it. And if I approached her and she truly had no interest, well, I’d be fucked, but I’d leave her alone.

  But I did see interest in her eyes. She wanted me; she just didn’t think she could have me. It wasn’t my imagination how her gaze occasionally lingered and her teeth unconsciously sank into her bottom lip. Her hands trembled ever so slightly when I spoke with her, a pulse throbbing in her neck and a slight flush showing at the open neck of her blouse. And today, she’d melted into me today. As brief as it had been, the feel of her lithe, tiny body so pliant against me about had me coming in my jeans.

  Grabbing my jacket, I headed for the door. This dance of avoidance ended tonight.

  My adrenaline was pumping, my fingers tapping on the steering wheel as I drove in silence to her house, rehearsing what I’d say to her. It was just shy of a forty-five minute drive since she didn’t actually live in the same suburb as our school. Instead she was in a town on the other side of the city. Personally, I thought that was great. There was less of an opportunity for someone to chance a glimpse of us together.

  Still, it was far enough that I was even more worked up by the time I got to her place. I sat outside for a few minutes, watching for movement. Nothing.