College Professor Blossoms Pt. 01

"Oh really, God huh? Aren't you an atheist?"

I stood up facing her and took her all in and turned to Jasmine. "What on earth did you do with my best friend, this woman is beautiful?"

I looked back at Rylen and asked, "May I kiss you?"

"I was afraid you'd never ask."

I leaned forward and gave her a short, soft kiss on the lips, pulled back for a second and looked at her in the eyes and as I was pulling her in for a hug I said, "Oh my God you're beautiful," before leaning back in for a better kiss.

I felt my tongue briefly touch her lips before they parted and suddenly our tongues were together, our lips were locked and I'm not sure I'd ever felt like this ever before. My best friend had suddenly transformed into an alluring, sexy, beautiful woman. I don't know how long our kiss lasted, but my brain finally registered clapping and after a few more seconds of that blissful kiss we finally broke apart, but I didn't want to let go of her hand for fear that I'd suddenly awake from a dream and she'd be just a figment of my imagination.

Finally, the clapping subsided, and we both sat down and then Jasmine could have killed me with a feather when she said, "Andrea, I'd like to introduce you to your date, Rylen."

As my throat clogged up and my heart fell into my stomach, he reached out for her hand and said, "Ciao Rylen, e un piacere incontrarti"

As he then kissed her hand, she said, "E un piacere conoscerla anche gentile signore."

I looked at them like a spectator at a horror tennis match. I felt like I'd been stabbed in the gut. Holy shit, I didn't want Rylen to be his date, I wanted her to be my date.

All I wanted was to leave this nightmare, but I knew I had to somehow suck it up and I had to force every word out of my throat when I said to Andrea, "I guess we should switch seats."

"Oh my God, Anson," Jasmine said, "If I'd known you were so easy to fuck with, I'd have done it years ago. Don't have a stroke."

She turned her eyes to Andrea and said, "I'm so sorry you got dragged into this hilarious mess but if you'll have me, I'm actually your date for the evening. This one here," she said, pointing to Rylen, "Is in love with this clod here," she said, pointing to me.

"And if this dunce here," she said pointing to me, "would get his head out of his ass, he'd realize he loved her too. I mean seriously, I thought he was going to have a heart attack there for a minute. God, why didn't I know you were so easy to fuck with?" She asked as she turned to me.

"Of course, beautiful Jasmine, I'd be delighted and honored to be your date," Andrea said.

Turning back to Rylen who had a huge smile seeing my discomfort, I again said, "My God you are beautiful. And how much Italian do you know. And what did you say to each other?"

Rylen looked at Andrea and said, "è divertente quando è agitato, vero?"

Turning to me, she said, "He said it was a pleasure to meet me and I said it was a pleasure to meet him too, and then I said, 'It's funny when he's agitated, right?'"

"Okay, now you're messing with me, am I going to need a translator on our dates? How long have you known Italian?"

"Dates? You've never asked me out on a date, much less dates. I had to get my friend here to set me up with you. Dates implies that there will be more, I thought I was too conservative for you! I've been fluent in Italian for years, but wait, I thought you knew everything about me, my deepest darkest secrets, even sexual ones?"

Andrea turned to me and said, "Buddy, I get the feeling you've said some of the wrong things and you should shut up and quit before you get pummeled even more."

I turned back to Rylen and saw a huge smile on her face, and I said, "Ah, shit, now you're fucking with me too."

"Yeah, kind of, but I wish you'd at least given me a chance. Every date I've been on for the last year, the whole time I was wishing it was you."

"Wait a minute, let's back up a bit here," I said looking at Jasmine, "You said she loves me."

"Jesus you can be dense sometimes, I told you that what five or six months ago, but you said, 'No, I was on crack.' What did you do, fail women 101? In the last six months, this one," she said pointing at Rylen, "has been to the gym almost every day, taken dance lessons, taken pole dancing classes, gotten some incredibly sexy clothes, learned to walk in heels, and has even gotten laid more than once. And what have you been doing besides being a hermit and giving me some mind-blowing sex, what, once or twice a month?"

Feeling I had to at least defend myself regardless of what Andrea said about shutting up, I said, "I told you I didn't want her to change for me, I didn't want her to feel pressured to be someone she wasn't."

"Didn't you feel I had the right to decide that myself," Rylen asked. "I like who I am now, I like feeling sexy, I love it when men look at me and desire me. Yes, I'll say it, I love you. Not because you were my knight in shining armor but for the kind, great man you are. I know what you did today, how many guys would give up their weekends to help others?

Like you, I thought I knew everything about you, but Jasmine told me there is so much you haven't shared with me. You're like me, you're so afraid of getting hurt you won't give your true self to anyone, including me, your supposed best friend. Yes, I know what your last name is, and boy did that sting when I found out you've kept that little gem from me."

Turning to Andrea she asked, "Do you know what his last name is? I mean you're pretty good friends, aren't you?"

"Ah, yeah, it's Franklin, what did he tell you it was?"

Turning back to me she asked, "My God, does anyone really know the whole real you? I mean between Jasmine and me we may know most of you but I'm supposedly your best friend."

Again, speaking to Andrea, she said, "His last name is really Anderson. I am sure that doesn't mean anything to you but everyone at the college knows his name. Well, knows THE name. We have this beautiful building for the music department and other disciplines that was just finished a couple of years ago. The main concert area is supposedly this perfect, acoustically designed place. Do you know what the name of it is? It's Anderson Hall. Apparently, some rich guy gave a bunch of money to the college with the stipulation that it was to be used for that particular building and then the college decided they should name it after him."

Looking at me she said, "Do you know how much he gave? I mean I'll bet if we asked his best friend she'd know, wouldn't she? But no, apparently, he didn't tell anyone, it's this big dark secret. How much do you think he gave; I mean seriously, I'd like to know. What do you think? Maybe 10 grand? Or a hundred grand? Or hey, maybe even a million dollars, I don't know how much it takes to get a building named after you. I mean, come on, I love you with all my heart, couldn't you even tell me that? I mean look at me, I bet I could fuck almost any guy in this place and all I want is you, not the money you, the real you. Sure, I understand why you don't want everyone to know..."

"Ten million."

"...but at least... WHAT?" She screamed. And now of course everyone around was looking at us again.

"Ten million dollars"

I looked at all three of them and they were staring at me with their mouths open like I'd just said the Pope was converting to Islam. Of course, I felt like a real heel, this was not the way I saw this evening going at all.

"Seriously," Rylen asked, "You gave ten million dollars to the college?"

I just nodded my head.

"And you didn't want anyone to know that?"

I shook my head no.

"Would you have ever told me?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"I don't know. At first, I didn't want to tell you for the same reason I don't want everyone else to know. But then after I got to know you, I couldn't figure out a way to tell you without you being hurt for my withholding something like that. You are my best friend and I'm sorry for not telling you. I'm sorry I didn't trust you to tell you the truth. And I'm sorry for not being honest with you and letting you know why I'd never asked you out. I always swore that I'd never expect someone to change for me and I didn't realize you would want to change on your own.

I never thought I had a jealous bone in my body, but tonight when Jasmine said you were actually Andrea's date, it felt like she'd stuck a dagger in my heart. This is going to sound stupid but when we got back from summer break and you said you'd been on a few dates and it felt like somebody yanked my heart out of my chest and stomped on it, but I knew I didn't have a right to feel that way, especially because I'd tried to be sure to keep that distance between us.

And then, seeing you here tonight, looking like the sexiest woman in the world, if someone told me I had to choose between this you and my best friend you, I don't know what I'd do. I wouldn't want to have to make that choice."

"Oh honey, come here," she said as she stood up and waited for me to give her a hug.

After we broke the hug and kiss that came with it she looked at me and said, "Really, ten million dollars?"

"Yeah."

"Who all knows about this?"

"Well, obviously Dean Collins, the Chancellor, and the members of the board, as far as I know, that should be it. Well, okay, the IRS also. It was very clearly stipulated in the agreement that my name was to be kept out of it and I was really pissed when I heard they were going to name it after me.

"Where the hell did you get ten million dollars, I mean, not that I'm concerned but do you have anything left?"

"Well you know the story about my parents not changing their will to write me out of it. What I never mentioned was that they were very wealthy. Also, you know about my patents, and I've got a guy that takes care of my money and he's done very well for me. Yes, I've got plenty left, but I easily live on my salary from the school.

Now it's my turn for questions. Okay?"

"Okay..." she tentatively said.

"Okay, what the hell did you do with my best friend, the quiet, conservative college professor. Not that I don't absolutely love this look." I said, gesturing at her face and body. "I mean oh my God, what are you, a dual personality? And where are your glasses? I've never seen you without them. You look completely different without them; they always hid your eyes a bit. My God, you've got gorgeous eyes, they look like liquid pools of topaz, they're stunning but I've never seen you without your glasses. And Wowzers, that outfit, do you own more of the same style, and whoa, I feel like an idiot you've got some amazing cleavage, you've always hidden that too."

"First of all, I guess I should explain my eyes. I've always hidden them because they are an unusual color. People used to always stare at them and with my parents so religious, they always encouraged me to be more plain so I always wore glasses to hide them. I wear transition lenses and my conservative attire at work to keep the wolves at bay but yes, the contacts are new to me and I'm just getting used to them. My eye doctor says I'm a perfect candidate for Lasik surgery but the thought of surgery on my eyes scares the crap out of me."

Yes, I guess I am a bit of a dual personality but from what Jasmine has told me, you are too. She's told me a few of the things you guys have done, and while the thought of it scares the crap out of me, I can hardly wait to try it. I guess I've done a few things, but she says there are several things you've done that even she won't do. I want to do those things with you, I want us both to live out every fantasy we've ever had. But yes, I do want to keep little miss conservative at work. I don't know if you like that idea or not, but I don't want to have to fight off horny college guys all day, I get enough of that as is, I can't imagine what it would be like if I dressed like this there.

I have a several other outfits along this line, but obviously I don't wear them around the campus. I want to have mostly good memories with my special clothes but some of them don't have great memories. What I'd like is for us to go shopping to pick out things we'll both like. I'd also like you to surprise me with a few outfits also. Maybe something you think I wouldn't wear; Jaz has helped me realize that I also seem to have an exhibitionist streak in me.

The waitress interrupted our conversation, asking all of us if we wanted drinks, and after taking our orders and passing out menus to everyone, she left and we resumed our conversations, now between the four of us. Andrea was sort of the odd man out because I was the only person he knew but with his gregarious personality, it seemed like the four of us were old friends. Along with Rylen and I flirting with each other, I saw Andrea and Jasmine very blatantly flirting and it seemed like every fourth word with then was turned into sexual innuendo.

I knew that when Rylen was expelled from the church, she had repudiated a lot of her religious views, so I wasn't surprised when she ordered a cocktail before dinner but was quite surprised when she picked out a bottle of wine for all of us for dinner. When I asked her about that, she admitted with a laugh that she'd looked up their wine menu online and had done a bunch of research to find the one with the highest ratings and reviews.

We all had a fantastic dinner with great stimulating conversation, all the while I could barely keep my eyes off Rylen. I realized years ago that I'm a visually oriented person and I very much like it when the woman I'm with is a tease or an exhibitionist. I was in a quandary, because emotionally and in my heart, I knew I had very strong feelings for her, and when I thought about it, I felt I could trust her with any part of me. However, upon analyzing it, I realized I was a hypocrite because I'd obviously kept so much of myself from her. I still couldn't fathom the leap from where she was appearance wise before and how she was at work, to this apparition before me. I never imagined that she'd be comfortable being out in public in the outfit she was currently wearing but if I really looked at it, I realized that she wasn't dressed in anything I hadn't seen Jasmine wearing and that never took anything away from her professionalism at the hospital.

I'd gotten pretty quiet at one point and Rylen asked me what was going through my head, and I explained that I was embarrassed about not really trusting her because she really was my best friend. "I know this is going to sound stupid, but you really are my world." Jasmine and Andrea had also stopped talking and were listening to us but I kept looking at Rylen and I continued, "No offense to you Jasmine but when I go home, or when I have a quiet moment, you Rylen, are the person I think of. I never really realized it before but when I first get home, or when I'm sitting down to eat by myself, or when I am getting ready to go to bed and when I finally get into bed, I do think of you. You've crept into my mind and heart so silently that until now that I never even realized it, but thinking of it here tonight, it finally came to me. Even if you don't dress like this, I want you there. I want to eat dinner with you every night. I want to go to bed with you every night. I want to see you at your best and your worst, when you first wake up, when you get out of the shower, when we're dressed up for a black-tie event, and like you are right now, the hottest, most beautiful woman in the building."

By the time I finished, both women had smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes and Rylen and I both stood up and hugged each other in almost a death grip. We finally leaned our heads back and had a couple of brief kisses and Rylen said, "Every date I went on, I was wishing it was you. At the end of each date but one, the man gave me a goodnight kiss on the lips and each time I felt like I was cheating on you. We've never even had a romantic kiss and still I felt like I was cheating."

I guess you could say it was just spur of the moment or I was just caught up an unstoppable wave, but when I got down on one knee I knew exactly what I was doing and was 100 percent sincere when I said, "Rylen, like a fool it's taken me too long to realize it but you're the love of my life and I'd be a fool to let you go. Will you marry me?"

As soon as I dropped to one knee, I could tell that Jasmine and Rylen were completely surprised because they both had shocked looks on their faces with their mouths open and their hands covering them and then with a big smile, Rylen started saying, "Oh my God. Oh my God..." and when I finally asked if she'd marry me, she squealed, "Of course, yes, yes, yes!"

She pulled me up and pulled us together and forcefully started one of the most passionate kisses I'd ever had. Feeling the softness of her mouth and tongue against mine, we were both lightly moaning, and I was sure she could feel my arousal against her front. As we broke our first ever sensual kiss, I felt her hot breath on me, and I knew I never wanted to sleep without her again.

The manager approached our table and asked what all the commotion was about and when Jasmine said I'd just proposed and Rylen said yes, he said he'd send over a complimentary bottle of champagne. We all thanked him and when the waitress brought the champagne, to my delight we all toasted out upcoming nuptials.

After we all settled down and started talking, I noticed that the DJ was still setting up so I excused myself from everyone and walked over to him and handed him a fifty-dollar bill and asked if he could start out the night with Elvis Presley's version of Unchained Melody which I knew was Rylen's favorite song. He said he'd be glad to, and I also asked if he could give me a heads up, so Rylen and I could already be on the dance floor when the song started.

When I returned to the table everyone asked me what I'd said to him, and I told a little white lie and said I just wanted to see what kind of equipment he used and talked audio for a bit. I saw that Rylen bought my little fib, but Jasmine was by no means fooled. We all resumed our conversations but about 15 minutes later our waitress came up to me and whispered in my ear that the DJ was ready to start playing for the night and it was time for Rylen and me to get out onto the floor.

I stood and took Rylen's hand and led her to where we stood in the middle of the dance floor, then with a questioning look on her face I put her hands around my neck and mine around her waist. As I got my hands around her waist, I leaned down and initiated a kiss just before the song started. As the first measure finished, she broke our kiss and looked at me and said, "Oh my God, Anson, I love you so much," and then resumed our kiss. Soon, I noticed that Jasmine and Andrea had joined us and the four of us swayed to the song until the end.

When the song finished the DJ said, "So tonight, we're going to start out differently. For the first little bit here, we'll play some love songs in honor of our newly engaged couple. I'd like to invite all those in love or those who hope to be there, to join our soon to be man and wife on the dance floor.

Within seconds, the dance floor was crowded with couples as Whitney Houston's version of I Will Always Love You started. Rylen and I didn't move much from where we were, just swaying to the music, relishing finally being together. I did have to smile and whisper into Rylen's ear, questioning if the DJ had ever listened to the lyrics of the song because the song was really about losing someone you love.

She smiled at me and said, "Anson, that's what I love about you, your logical mind. I'm sure everyone else here just hears the words 'I Will Always Love You' and think it's a happy song but you don't do anything to pierce the bubble of their happiness."