A Taste of Temptation (Love Spectrum Romance) by Reneé Alexis Page A

some ideas, but that’s another story. I’m glad you came so we can get started on your paper. You want anything to drink, coffee maybe?”
    “No thanks, I just want to get this paper over with.”
    “You sure you’re up to it? After yesterday…”
    “I don’t know what was wrong yesterday, but thank God it’s over.”
    “Fine. Let me see the thesis.” He removed the lid from the Starbucks foam cup and began sipping his coffee. “Glad you like Defoe as much as I do.”
    “I don’t, not really, but I did enjoy Moll Flanders .”
    He surveyed the text briefly. “The thesis is general. Maybe you can concentrate more on what aspects you liked about the book and character. You centered more on the book itself—like a synopsis of it. That’s not what I wanted.”
    “I really didn’t understand what you wanted. I thought I did when I sat down to write the paper.”
    “Why didn’t you tell me? You know I would have gone over anything you were having problems with.”
    “I know, but I just didn’t want to impose.” Or be close to a man who would have nothing to do with me.
    Brandi picked up the paper, sighing. “I don’t know what to do with this, Tim.”
    “I think it would be good if you decide what you want to focus on, character or plot.”
    “I like characterization.”
    “Male dominated. Let’s go with that. What do you really know about Moll Flanders ?”
    “Well, the book is generally about a woman’s survival in late-17th century England. It was mostly a capitalistic society. Because of that she took to drastic measures just to survive.”
    “Right. So center on the person. Moll herself was way ahead of her time. She had to be exceptional; think of the measures she took. She was a complex character who adored having all the things women yearn for.”
    “You really love this period, don’t you?”
    “It really gets me going. I like it, studied it a great deal. Same can be true for you. You’re smart and you know a lot about literature, Brandi. You simply need to fashion your papers to meet your professors’ expectations.”
    “I’ve never been fond of 16th and 17th century fiction. Can you skip me to 18th century?”
    “You’re extremely smart; I know you can do this. If I let you skip ahead, others will want to, and they may not be as ready as you are. You don’t want me doing extra work, do you?”
    ”No, I don’t.” Only for me, with me.
    “Think about your point of view for the paper.”
    As she thought, Tim’s mind wandered. He thought about what they did after dancing the night away at The Entrapment. He hated thinking about her, but couldn’t help himself. Brandi’s body was off-limits to him, and the sooner he got that through his head, the better off he knew he would be.
    Her voice intruded, bringing him back to reality, a Moll Flanders reality. “There were struggles; she was complex, as you said.”
    “You seem to like her complex aspects as much as I do. As you know, Moll was orphaned, forced to fend for herself at a very young age.” Moll’s life made him think about his own young life, and what he had to do to survive in foster homes. Thinking of what happened in one of those homes caused him to go off track.
    “Are you okay, Tim?”
    “Sure. Why?”
    “You zoned out for a minute; like you went somewhere else.”
    He straightened in his chair, disgusted that his past still haunted him. “No, I was trying to get a better feel for the character.”
    “Are you sure? We can reschedule?”
    “Really, I’m fine.”
    Naturally you are. Tim represented a whole different side of her brain that she still wanted to explore, but didn’t feel comfortable doing so. He was that large gray area that she had no control over.
    As she listened to him rattle off the complexities of Moll’s life, her mind wandered, too. He was so incredibly knowledgeable to be as young as he was. He would be hard to get over, and constantly reliving that evening with him didn’t help. His