Learning the Hard Way Read online

  Learning the Hard Way

  Bridget Midway

  Learning new things can be exciting.

  After a humiliating breakup with a former student, the last thing Professor Ava Kushnell wants to think about is dating again. Deciding to focus on the department head position up for grabs, she’s confident she can stay the course...until she meets one of her new students.

  Troy Whitten is starting to feel old, outdated, and out of touch until he sees a sexy African-American woman dancing around in the office of one of his professors. Fresh from a breakup, he asks out this smoking hot, intelligent woman. Too bad she has a rule against dating her students, and as an ethics professor, he knows she's going to stick to her guns.

  Since he can't get the woman of his dreams, Troy does a friend a favor and covers his position at an escort service, but he certainly won't take it to a physical level. That is, until he discovers Ava is his first client. When sparks fly and lines are crossed, will Ava go with her head or her heart, using ethics as her guide?

  eBooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement of the copyright of this work.

  LEARNING THE HARD WAY

  Bound To Be Naughty Series

  Copyright © 2015 BRIDGET MIDWAY

  ISBN: 978-1-943576-46-3

  All Romance eBooks, LLC Palm Harbor, Florida 34684 www.allromanceebooks.com

  This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or business establishments, events, or locales is coincidental.

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever with out written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  First All Romance eBooks publication: December 2015

  Dedication

  I originally wrote “Learning the Hard Way” seven or eight years ago. It was supposed to be part of a larger project with two other authors. Sadly, the project never got off the ground, but I kept the story.

  I liked the story then but it was missing something. Fast forward years later and some research, I figured out what my alpha hero needed…a whip.

  I hope readers enjoy Troy and Ava’s story. I had a blast reimagining this story and adding layers to it.

  Thank you to all readers for inspiring me and trusting that I will get you there in my stories. And thank you to my real-life hero, The Jimmy. I love you.

  Chapter One

  “She’s doing it again.” Ava Kushnell’s friend, Dina, nodded toward her.

  Sitting in Soothe, her favorite coffeehouse, always eased Ava’s jangled nerves. Months ago, just smelling the sweet scents of the pastries and cookies along with the heavenly aroma of the rich coffees with cinnamon and nutmeg gave her a feeling of being home again. Now, even with her new confidantes by her side, her nerves couldn’t be shaken.

  With the news of Richard’s demise, she found it hard to relax or even stay focused at work. She hadn’t killed the man. Richard’s lecherous lifestyle caused him to cross paths with another woman he’d wronged, a woman strong enough to let him know beyond words and ignored phone calls that when he cheated, he paid.

  Ava had decided to take the high road. Her mature stance didn’t mean his infidelity had hurt her pride any less. With Dina’s careful focus on Ava’s new mood, she felt a knot grow between her shoulder blades.

  “What do you mean? What do you think I’m doing now?” Ava blinked rapidly and tried to stare at Dina, an impossible feat.

  “Wringing your hands.” Dina shook her head. “I’m a cop. It’s a habit that I notice changes in behavior.”

  “I’m not a suspect.” Ava pressed her hands flat on the table. She peered up, wondering now if the overhead lighting under the white oblong glass shade had always been that intense.

  “Miss Thursday, get a grip.” Vonda sat a small plate of cookies in front of her.

  Chocolate chip. For only knowing her a few months, Vonda knew Ava’s favorites. How fitting since they had all ended up with the same man.

  “Don’t call me that.” Ava pushed up her invisible-frame glasses on her nose. “Miss Thursday. Sounds like a stripper’s name, or maybe even a centerfold. One thing I’m not is staple-in-the-navel material.” She laughed and a snort sounded in between the laughter.

  At least Ava kept her sense of humor. Dating Richard, for as brief as it had lasted, and the resulting dissolution, hadn’t drained her of all of her wit.

  “You used to get a good hoot out of that name.” Vonda took a seat next to Ava and across from Dina. “None of us like to be known for the day of the week that we had Tricky Dick. By the way, why Thursdays?”

  Ava fixed her gaze on her rust-colored tea before giving her attention to her other new friend. “Richard couldn’t do weekends.”

  “We know why now.” Dina smirked.

  “And Tuesdays and Thursdays are my early days at the university.”

  “So why not Tuesday then?” Vonda dipped a honey stick into her hot tea and stirred it.

  “Thursdays are close enough to the weekend so that I’m not so bogged down with work. I just had one day to worry about during our time together.”

  The arrangement had all worked out perfectly. Ava taught her ethics classes every day at East Coast University, with Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays being her longest days. If she had her choice, she would have chosen Friday or Saturday. After what they all found out later, Richard had had other plans on those days.

  Vonda kept her head down but, from the way her shoulders jiggled, it appeared she fought to suppress laughter. It didn’t help that the espresso machines hissed at the same time and sounded like it also mocked her.

  “Let me get this straight, Professor. You picked your day to be with Tricky Dick because the other days were on a school night?” Now Dina covered her mouth to conceal her amusement at Ava’s expense.

  “Ha, ha. You two are so funny.” Ava crossed her arms over her chest.

  After taking a sip of her tea, Vonda wagged her finger at Ava. “That reminds me. Don’t think you’re off the hook on talking about your new job promotion. Congratulations!”

  Dina applauded and toasted Ava with her mug of coffee and one of the delectable cookies that Ava had yet to sample.

  “Don’t break out the tickertape parade yet. I’m up for department head. That doesn’t mean I’ll get it.” Or even wanted it.

  If she listened to talk around her department, the job had her name written all over it. She should have been excited. Diving into a new project with duties related to an unknown job would have helped her forget about Richard.

  Ava chalked up her hesitant attitude to Richard. After the crushing blow of finding out that the man she had been casually dating shared his time and talents with a bevy of other women, including her two new friends at the table, Ava struggled with figuring out what her goals in life should be. This man may have let her down, but work never did.

  Glancing at her friends, Ava couldn’t help but notice the similarities in their appearance—same statuesque height, identical delicate facial features, and a similar burned-honey skin tone. No doubt about it. Richard knew what he liked and stuck to it.

  Ava also wondered if Richard, with his piercing blue eyes, large but soft hands and perfect-sized penis, had done the same things in the bedroom with them as he had with her. With her, he’d adapted to her needs. Had he been as accommodating with the other ladies?

  Ava glanced at Dina. She imagined that with her, Richard let her lead. Dina had that take-charge attitude that Ava wanted a piece of in her life.

  Probably with Vonda, he pretended to be Mr. Romance. Vonda seemed to like a man to court her, woo her.

  A
va wanted someone who fit in her life and her schedule. No fuss.

  Vonda broke Ava from her thoughts with a simple question. “So what are you doing to make sure that your job consideration becomes a reality?” She leaned back in her chair.

  To answer Vonda’s question, Ava shrugged. Ava didn’t want to tell these women that for the last few months, Richard occupied most of her thoughts. She had a feeling they already knew how she felt.

  “That’s it? You’re just leaving it up to chance?” With the shake of Dina’s head, Ava felt her full disappointment.

  “Who’s Chance now? Is that another student I’m going to have to avoid?” This time Ava did take a cookie. She bit into it just as both Dina and Vonda burst into laughter.

  “Chance isn’t a man…yet.” Dina winked. “I mean, are you going to be proactive in getting the job you want or are you going to let fate decide your outcome?”

  “I tried that proactive thing before.” Ava shook her head as she kept her gaze down. “I told Richard when he was in my class that I didn’t date my students. He dropped the course and I asked him out. That should have been a sign right there. A man who couldn’t see something all the way through.”

  “That was one thing he didn’t finish.” In the salacious style that Ava came to expect, Dina flitted her eyebrows, signaling a secret conversation between the three of them.

  In her career and at home, Ava liked to maintain control. Sex factored into that list. A typical date night consisted of Richard picking her up at her home. They would go to dinner at a restaurant she had chosen and, most times, had called ahead to make reservations. Unlike with any other man she’d been with before, Ava had felt a sexual pull with Richard that consumed her.

  Ava recalled how she would have to cross her legs when her throbbing clitoris got too much for her to handle. Her nipples would get so hard she actually had to wear outfits that didn’t require she wear a bra. The restriction of her standard bust support brushed roughly against her sensitive nipples to a painful extent. Without him having to touch her, Richard managed to get her to change her style, her behavior, and pushed her out of her comfort zone.

  Dina had a wistful look in her eye as she shook her head. “You have to admit, for a lying piece of shit he knew what to do in the bedroom.”

  “A serial dater would.” Ava finished off her cookie and chased it with her tea. The combination of sweet with something bitter appealed to her taste buds.

  “Call him what he is, a player.” Dina put her warm hand on top of Ava’s to snag her attention. “But you, young lady, you need to get your career in line, and you need to get back out there in the dating world.” She glanced at Vonda. “All of us do. Enough lamenting about poor us because we got had by Dick.”

  “In every sense of the word.” Ava pushed her glasses up her nose again.

  Vonda chuckled at Ava’s assessment. “Look, Dee is right. I might be all about my business, but don’t think I’m not out looking for the next Mr.—”

  Ava cut her off. “Fun?”

  “Okay, yeah, Richard was a prick. But not all guys are players.” Vonda leaned in closer and lowered her voice. “And not all of your male students will be like him. Don’t close off your options. Get back on your horse and ride again.” With those inspiring words, she patted Ava on her hand.

  “V is right.” Dina finished off her tea and requested a second one. “We all deserve a little excitement.”

  “But I don’t like to be, um, played.” Ava drew her black cardigan sweater over her white button-down blouse.

  She could have kicked herself for compromising her standards of her perfect man when she continued dating Richard. The man couldn’t hold a conversation to save his life. Ava remembered bringing up social and political topics to talk about during dinner. He would either ignore her or make some crass remark that she outwardly loathed but would turn her belly into a butterfly sanctuary.

  Then after dinner, he would take her home, although many times he pushed for some naughty behavior in the car ride. A hand on her thigh would find its way up her leg to her wet vagina.

  Ava wanted to chalk up her slow reaction time on stopping his curious hand on the glass of wine at dinner. Her ethical side refused to acknowledge that she enjoyed when his pinky finger brushed her clit through her panties.

  She had to stop thinking about him and, in public, talking about him. In the busy coffeehouse, she hoped beyond hope that no one overheard their conversation. A professor talking about being inappropriate with a past student and looking to score again wouldn’t bode well for her potential nomination.

  “No one likes to be played for a fool. The trick is to get them before they can trick you. I think if you come off weak, Miss Prim-and-Proper, you’re hanging a big sign on your back that says, ‘I’m a victim.’ It’s the same thing I tell women in my self-defense class that I teach.”

  During her time with Richard and what she found out afterward about him, Ava never felt like a victim. Despite Richard’s charming demeanor, Ava controlled what happened in the car ride and what they did when they got to her house. In the house, she set the pace. She undressed herself. Richard disrobed in the guest bathroom. She found that when she undressed in front of him, Richard would get too excited and rip an article or two of her clothing. When he tore a hole in her favorite cashmere sweater, she had to halt his erratic behavior.

  When they got in bed, Ava allowed Richard to take over. Even his thin lips made her body hum, the way he kissed her all over, down between her breasts, over her stomach and at the apex of her thighs. Of course there, at her pulsating clitoris, she had to monitor his oral actions. He could kiss her nether lips but no tongue inside of her. He could blow his warm breath over her, but he could not insert his finger.

  Richard seemed to like the limits, mainly because he enjoyed pushing them. After kissing her down below, she felt the tip of his tongue swiping over her hardened nub. She remembered how she twitched and moaned.

  “No, no,” she would tell him.

  Then he would massage her thighs, inching then up higher and higher until, again, he arrived at her sex. He would let his thumb drag up and down between her slit until he stopped at her opening.

  “No, no.” She would have to close her legs to prevent him from exploring any further.

  Once they had sex, she could no longer deny him. Proportionally speaking, his erect penis fit inside of her like she had designed it herself. At its length with the slight curve to it, he would always hit her G-spot.

  She would coil her legs around his. She held his shoulders. Her comparatively darker skin to his much lighter shade always made him comment on the contrast.

  “Look at how beautiful our different skin tones look together,” he had said.

  Ava never noticed. It didn’t matter to her that he was white and she was black. The feeling of his hard body on top of her soft one proved enough of a distraction to keep focused on the sexual act. His rhythmic thrusting and the way he cupped her breast always prompted her climax. Tricky Dick, as the other women had so nicknamed him, never turned down an opportunity to go again.

  After a night of sex, he would always shower and go home before the sun came up. During their relationship, Ava had assumed Richard wanted to preserve her reputation with her neighbors by not letting them see a man leaving her home at an ungodly hour. Now she just figured he had another woman to see, someone to have breakfast with when she’d awakened.

  “I don’t want to think or talk about him anymore.” Although Richard hadn’t broken Ava’s heart, he’d put a huge dent in her trust armor.

  “Too bad every decision we make, especially about who we date next, will be based on our experiences with Richard.” Vonda shook her head. “I’m trying so hard to chalk all this up as a learning lesson.”

  “Yeah, hopefully the next time, we’ll know better.” Dina nodded.

  With this embarrassing incident behind her, Ava had made up her mind. Casual dating like she had done with Ric
hard could no longer be a part of her repertoire. Ava also crossed off dating her students.

  At their initial meeting, Richard had presented himself as man pursuing knowledge with the hopes of bettering his life. The package appealed to Ava. What woman wouldn’t want a man who presented himself as a work-in-progress in a very good way?

  Too bad the smoke-and-mirror ruse just so that he could get close to her caused her to feel like a fool, like a stupid, naïve fool.

  “No, what you need to do is to shake your routine up a bit.” Like an idea hit her at that very moment, Dina’s eyes widened as she moved her wrought-iron chair closer to Ava. “This is what you should do. Go back to your office right now. It’s a Saturday; school hasn’t officially started yet for the summer semester so there’s not a whole lot of people on campus, right?”

  Ava nodded, too intrigued by what this savvy detective had in store for her.

  Dina continued. “Go to your office, blast some Beyoncé. Sexy but empowering.” She pulled at Ava’s sweater. “Take off this damn Mr. Rogers sweater and dance around your office while you start packing up your shit.”

  That last bit of advice sent Ava into a blinking fit again. “You want me to quit my job? I can’t afford to do that. I have tenure and—”

  Dina smacked the back of Ava’s hand. “For a really smart chick, you sure are a little green. No, I want you to start packing your nonessential items because I want you to show the other people in your department that you’re looking at the ultimate prize. I’m sure a department head wouldn’t keep the same office he or she has now. You should move to a bigger space, right?”

  Ava slowed down her blinking. “Right. I’ve seen it. It’s a nice corner office that overlooks the park. It’s beautiful.”

  “Yeah, and it could be yours if you show them that it’s what you really want. Show the other professors and the deciding fat cats that you know the department head job is yours for the taking. Show them that you’re so confident you’re already packing your shit in anticipation of the move, got it?” Dina winked at her.