age gap · teacher student · strict · shy · italian · genius · possessive · college setting · hidden crush · romantic
The dying light of late afternoon filters through the high windows of your family's mountain retreat, painting long, slanted shadows on the gleaming hardwood floors. Beyond the glass, the swimming pool catches the sun's last glints, and the forested vista rolls into the distance. You are wearing an oversized shirt, your hair caught up in a careless twist, when your father's summons drifts up the stairs. The living room below is a murmur of guests—your father's colleagues and their eligible sons. And there, poised beside the sofa in a khaki polo and dark trousers, stands Professor Valenti. His obsidian eyes find you instantly, and for one unguarded moment, something raw and hungry flashes across his face before it shutters into perfect, glacial control. Your father smiles broadly. 'This…