"It wasn't that hard," I mutter. The bartender comes over to us and I place our order for four more beers. "Please don't do anything else to—"
"Nelson?" The familiar voice is right behind me. I take a deep breath before turning around and plastering on a smile.
"Hey, Bennett."
"First name basis with the professor?" Paul says. I shoot him a look, but Bennett is the one that laughs.
"I insisted on it. Professor is too formal for me. I only use it when it benefits me in networking situations."
"Well, if my new employee gives me some sarcastic one liners, I'll know he learned it from the teacher." Paul holds out his hand. "I'm Paul, also a friend of Nelson's and his wing man tonight."
"You are not my wing man," I grumble. "I don't need help picking anyone up."
"This is my friend, Vishal. He's visiting here this weekend before heading back to India for a while." We share pleasantries and shake hands. Vishal is the same height as Bennett, just as thin as well. He's attractive, but I clock the ring on his hand. Not that I'd be interested, but the guys have it in my head now. I'd already planned on hitting up the bar after this dinner.
"I'm also his wing man," Vishal says as he shakes hands with Paul. I see Bennett elbow him in the side and the two self-appointed wing men laugh.
The beers are set on the bar top in front of us and we take two each. Paul speaks up just as I'm stepping away. "You two should join us for a couple of rounds. If you want to, that is."
Bennett and Vishal share a look and I shoot daggers at Paul who just winks at me. The two men agree and we all head back tothe table. It isn't a formal place, so finding extra seats to add to the table isn't an issue. Bennett ends up next to me, through the work of my good friends who will be dead to me after tonight. I have six more weeks of this guy being my professor.
"So,Bennett,please enlighten us as to what type of student our dear Nelson is." Paul says. He folds his hands under his chin and looks around the table.
"Wait," Kevin says. "This is your professor? Oh, that's perfect!"
The three of them laugh, even Vishal joins in.
"I am so sorry," I mutter under my breath only loud enough for Bennett to hear. "Feel free to leave at any point. They might look like fully grown men, but I think they've been possessed by teenagers tonight."
Bennett swipes a fingertip around the edge of his glass and shrugs. "It's fine. I'm no strangers to teenagers. Worked at the high school, remember?"
"You worked at the high school?" Kevin says. "Oh, I have a kid that goes there. What grade did you teach?"
The conversation thankfully focuses on Bennett's job and not the fact that they were trying to hook me up with someone tonight. Both him and Vishal fit into our group easily, joking and laughing as the subjects continue to jump this way and that. I finish up my beer within the next twenty minutes between either defending myself from what one of the guys said or giving them a hard time.
"I'm hitting the head," I announce to the table when the last of my beer is gone. "And then I think I'm calling it a night."
"Boo!" Kevin says. "It's not even eight yet."
"Some of us have to be up at five in the morning to feed animals." I can see the grimaces on all of their faces. It's comical. I toss a twenty on the table for my share of the bill and wave to all of them at once. I can hear one of them saying we'll have to do this again sometime soon. It's been nice tonight, and it isstill early. Early enough that I could probably find the slightly older gay crowd at the bar before it's overrun by the younger generation. If that doesn't show my age, I don't know what will.
I'm washing my hands in the bathroom when the door swings open and none other than Bennett walks in. I catch his eye in the mirror and give a small smile. I'm surprised when he doesn't head straight for the toilet or urinal. Instead, he leans against the sink beside me, going into his usual stance.
"Your friends are fun," he says with a smile. "I hope it wasn't overstepping that we joined you tonight."
"Not at all," I say quickly. "And feel free to join us next time, too. We can get a bit wild, but it's always in good fun."
"I can tell." I move to step around Bennett to grab a paper towel. This close to him, I hear his breath hitch and stop in my tracks. I feel the heat of his hand on my hip after a second and look down between our bodies. We're close, only inches apart. I lift my chin to look into his eyes. "Are you really heading home this early?"
"I was planning on hitting up the bar down the street for a bit," I answer honestly. "Saturday mornings are actually my time off from the farm."
"So no bedtime?" Bennett's eyes flick from my eyes to my lips and back. I'm instantly hard at the way he bites his bottom lip. He's at least three inches shorter than me, my chin even with his forehead.
The smallest brush of his lips against mine is interrupted by the door opening. We step apart quickly and turn to face the door. Vishal is standing there with a smirk. "If you two are going to hook up, can I have the key to your place at least so I don't have to book a last minute hotel?"
Chapter Seven
"Youweretotallyaboutto hook up with him," Vishal says as we walk to my car. The air tonight is cool, but sticky. The humidity this time of year is gross. I ignore the teasing comment and unlock my car. "There can't be anything wrong with it. He's definitely old enough to consent and it isn't like he's fresh out of high school where you possibly would have taught him."
