Chapter 48 48
Sofía remained standing beside her desk until every last student filtered out of the classroom.
She noticed it then how Lucía didn’t glare at her this time. Didn’t even look her way.
When the final student stepped out, the door shut behind him with a muted click, sealing them inside.
“What happened to Miguel?”
Her voice sounded steadier than she felt. Maybe because they were still inside the classroom. Maybe because some part of her believed he wouldn’t cross a line here.
Fernando arched a brow, his expression unreadable. He didn’t answer.
That silence emboldened her.
She walked closer. “Are you behind his condition?” she asked seriously.
The question clearly irritated him.
“What would you do if I said yes?” he asked, eyes narrowing as she swallowed.
She didn’t need confirmation.
Sofía was certain he was responsible. Yet the way Miguel had avoided her not Fernando told her something else. Miguel didn’t know who had hurt him. All he knew was that someone had punished him for bullying her.
A strange, heavy emotion clenched her heart.
He was protecting her.
Maybe for sinful reasons. Maybe for reasons she didn’t understand. But one thing was undeniable
He was protecting her.
The thought squeezed her chest, butterflies fluttering wildly in her stomach.
After her parents’ death… after that soul-shattering incident… she had been alone in the world. Alfonso had always been there, yes but she had never allowed him into the darkest corners of her pain.
And now here stood this man. Her math professor. Obsessive. Dangerous. Inserting himself into her life like a man on a mission determined to unearth her wounds and deal with them in his own twisted way.
Yet all she could focus on was this:
He was shielding her.
He had even saved her from those thugs.
Where he could have taken whatever he wanted from her, he hadn’t gone beyond a kiss.
She remembered how he had asked her to stop him. She had been drowning in desire, lost in the haze but he had pulled back.
Why?
Because he cared?
Or because her mind was clinging to whatever illusion it wanted to believe?
“Why are you protecting me?” The question slipped from her lips before she could stop it.
His gaze locked onto her, intense and consuming.
Why was he protecting her? Because she was his mate that was the truth he never voiced. But even he knew it ran deeper than that.
“Because you’re mine.”
The words came out rough, possessive and her heart responded with an involuntary purr.
She didn’t understand why he affected her like this. Why her body betrayed her so easily.
She said nothing.
Silence stretched between them.
“Come here,” he finally said.
And like a submissive little angel, she obeyed slow steps carrying her toward him.
She stopped once she was within reach, eyes flicking nervously to the desk beside him.
A startled squeal escaped her lips when he suddenly grabbed her waist and lifted her onto the table.
Before she could react, his large hands closed around her knees, spreading her legs as he stepped between them.
Sofía stared at him, horrified.
Her gaze flew to the door, her big blue eyes wide with fear.
“W-what are y-you d-doing?” she stammered.
Fernando tilted his head slowly, savoring every shift of expression on her innocent face.
“What does it look like I’m doing?” he rasped, fingers brushing a stray black strand behind her ear.
She shuddered.
“S-someone will s-see,” she whispered, placing her hand on his shoulder, trying to push him back so she could slide off the table.
Her spine was rigid, anxiety freezing her from the inside out. Fear still lived in her chest potent and real even as her body reacted to him in ways she didn’t understand.
That clash fear and desire tangled together sent adrenaline rushing through her veins.
And slowly… his words began to make sense.
The more forbidden it was, the more intoxicating it became.
“Mmh,” he hummed as his lips brushed her cheek, sparks exploding under her skin.
What made her jolt was his calloused hand settling on her right thigh.
“P-please…” Her breaths turned shallow, chest rising and falling rapidly as his masculine scent surrounded her.
“I love your scent,” he growled, licking the shell of her ear.
She trembled, barely holding back a moan.
“S-stop… s-someone w-will see,” she whispered as he kissed along her jaw, burying his nose into the crook of her neck, inhaling her like he needed her to breathe.
“What’s wrong with that?” he murmured, drinking in her disheveled state.
God knew how he was restraining himself from claiming her right there.
Sofía gasped and grabbed a fistful of his hair, yanking his head back as she glared at him.
“You are my professor,” she snapped. “Remember? This is forbidden. You can’t do this here.”
The words rushed out all at once.
Fernando stilled.
Then his arm wrapped around her waist, and he yanked her flush against him.
Her eyes flew wide when she felt his hardness pressed directly against her core.
She jolted, trying to pull back but he hauled her closer, crushing her soft curves against his solid chest.
“So,” he said coolly, “you’re suggesting we do this at home?”
Her jaw dropped.
She shook her head frantically, pushing at his shoulder.
“N-no…” she whispered.
She looked exactly like a doll big blue eyes, flushed cheeks, button nose, and those plump, luscious lips she nervously bit down on.
The sight made something feral twist inside him.
“Fucking stop biting them,” he growled.