Free Break Your Heart by Rhonda Helms

across in a while. Don’t let this knock you off your goals.”
    The sincerity in his eyes ate away at me. “I’m not sure I can get past throwing myself at you,” I admitted, knowing my mortification was thick in my voice. I looked down at my lap, trying to regain my cool. “That was so not like me. I feel terrible. I put you in a bad position, and I’m very sorry about that. I can’t tell you enough how sorry.”
    “Megan.” My name was a whispered caress that made me look up. The warmth in his eyes startled me, and I couldn’t look away. “That wasn’t your fault. You weren’t the one in the wrong here.”
    “But I misread—”
    “No, you didn’t.” The admission seemed to tear out of him. He sucked in a deep breath and continued, “I wanted to kiss you. I wanted to keep kissing you, actually. But I had to stop because I can’t let myself be attracted to you. Not when we both have so much at stake.”
    All the air whooshed out of my lungs. I stared at him for a moment in shock. His words echoed in my head.
    He was attracted to me too.
    He wanted to kiss me.
    I was no longer embarrassed. It hadn’t been all in my imagination.
    “Stopping that kiss was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” he admitted. There was a molten heat in his eyes that reinforced his words. “But it was the right thing.”
    My lips parted, and I found my gaze drawn to his mouth. Remembering how good he tasted. I blinked and shook it off. If I was going to stay in his class, I had to keep these feelings to myself.
    I straightened my back. Nodded. As strange as it sounded, knowing I wasn’t alone in this attraction somehow made it easier. I didn’t have to feel awkward. I hadn’t just thrown myself at him—okay, yeah, I kinda had, but it hadn’t been unwelcome.
    I could be the adult I professed myself to be. I could shelve this. As my mom and dad told me, when I got out there in the “real world,” I’d be forced to deal with situations that were difficult. Surely this qualified as one of those times.
    “Okay. If you’re sure you’re fine with this, I won’t quit,” I said.
    His body seemed to relax with my words, and he gave me a grateful smile. It made me realize that as much guilt as I’d been carrying around, he probably had too. Feeling like it was his fault that I wanted to change my plans. That understanding softened my heart some. I appreciated his not taking the easy, convenient path—he could have signed the slip and not had to deal with me anymore.
    But he hadn’t.
    “So what now?” I asked him.
    “Now you find the lecture notes from another student and get caught up. You have an assignment due tomorrow.” Dr. Muramoto was back, but his smile and wink put me at ease.
    “I appreciate your giving me another chance,” I told him. I tossed my bag over my shoulder and grabbed my forgotten cup of coffee, probably now long cold.
    “I’m glad you’re not going,” he said in a husky tone. “And if you need any help getting caught up, just let me know. We’ll figure something out.” He paused, seemed to want to say something else but shook his head instead. “Anyway. I’d better go too. I have a class in a few minutes.”
    I nodded and left his office. The walk back to the lounge was light. Students passed me, but I barely noticed. I couldn’t stop thinking about what he’d told me. That I was smart and promising.
    And that he’d wanted to keep kissing me.
    Suddenly I was glad he’d had better willpower than I’d had, given my new understanding of the situation. Was Casey’s advice right—should I just give it the semester and see what happened after that? We’d both be in different spots at that point. He wouldn’t be my prof. The line would be a lot less fuzzy.
    It would be so hard sitting in his class, remembering how he tasted, how turned on he’d made me. But I would do it. I had to do it; after all, there was no guarantee I’d find another suitable class in the