Morning“Wake up sleepy head.”His voice startled her into wakefulness. Her eyes blinked against the intense blue sky beyond her windows.“Huh,” she mumbled, struggling to remember where she was and why she was being forced to wake up from such a wonderfully comfortable bed.Then it all came rushing back to her. She clapped the sheet against her, sitting up in bed. “I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I fell asleep like that last n...

InterludeErik glanced over from his driving to see that Melissa was still scrolling through the songs on his phone. The drive back home had settled into a companionable silence. When they were leaving the city, she had asked to see his musical taste and he had handed over his phone. She played bits and pieces over the car’s speakers, occasionally smiling in amusement or nodding in agreement.Suddenly, she burst out loud la...

DinnerErik looked up as she entered the main part of the house. He had a black dishtowel draped over one shoulder and had been stirring something in a pan. She noticed that he had changed. He wore black leather jeans and a pressed white button-down cotton shirt.She wasn’t sure at first that his jeans were leather because the material looked softer and less shiny than what she had seen before. They actually looked comforta...

Showing Up for WorkThe late afternoon sun slanted down into the courtyard. She stopped her car and looked around. The scene looked familiar from her first visit, but, at the same time, felt foreign and scary.After texting back and forth, they had agreed she would come on Sunday evening, so she could settle in before ‘work’ began the next morning. Unfastening her seatbelt, she turned to look at her suitcase laying on the b...

Decision“So we didn’t say anything more. We got back to his house, and I didn’t really say goodbye or anything. I just kept on walking up to where I’d left my car and drove away.” Melissa looked up from her unfinished bottle of beer, which had grown warm while she told Malcolm about her day with Erik. Shame and sadness tempered her voice. She did feel a little lighter, now that she had finished. It had been a relief to te...

InterludeErik pulled out of the parking lot, absently noting the traffic conditions as he reviewed the morning’s events. The meeting with Gavin had gone about as he expected. She wasn’t going to turn down the money. He know that what made his offer irresistible was his willingness to fund something risky that nobody else would touch. Every professor worth their PhD was certain have some secret passion, some long shot that...

A New BeginningMelissa slipped into the departmental office, her feet feeling sticky and sweaty in the pumps she had hastily shoved on. She looked around and saw the visitors’ chairs were empty. Then Professor Gavin’s office door opened and the departmental admin stepped out. When he saw Melissa, he nodded back to the office and whispered, “They just went in.” He held the door open and motioned to her, “Go ahead.”Melissa...

A New ResolutionShe threw back the covers and scrambled out of bed. “Oh crap! The goddamn big-deal donor is coming this morning.” She rushed towards her bathroom, dodging piles of books and clothes on the floor. Yanking on the shower faucets, she sat down to use the toilet, while waiting for the hot water to make its way up from the basement.“Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap.” Part of her university grant money was based on taki...

Tall, Dark, HandsomeThe sudden screech of an alarm clock filled the small room. Melissa’s arm flopped out from under the covers. She swung her hand in a well-practiced arc, slapping the snooze button into silence. Satisfied, she snuggled deeper into bed.Sleep, unfortunately, proved elusive. A nagging feeling itched at the edge of her awareness. When all her determined attempts to ignore the feeling failed, she finally pus...