I sit back in my chair and scan the room. My five interns, each of them so young looking, stare at their computer screen, typing away furiously like the mundane tasks I assigned them are like life-or-death struggles.

I smile to myself. I remember sitting in rooms just like this one, industrial air conditioning still blasting despite the chill outside, fluorescent lights buzzing softly, thick plush carpet absorbing all sound. I was young back then, hotheaded, full of myself.

I ended up being right, but fucking hell. I took risks back then.

I want to take risks again.

That’s why I’m here, at the end of the day. I could easily hire a ton of professional programmers, a bunch of guys that are the top of their field, and get this project off to a serious start. I don’t need to hire a bunch of random undergrads as my interns to try and eke out some kind of half-assed application.

But that’s what I want. I want to discover new potential, to find the next generation of people that are going to change the world. I think I can do that, right here, in this room.

This group though, I don’t know. Howard and Clara show serious and exciting promise, but the other three are just bodies filling out the roster. They’re smart enough, and hell, maybe one of them will surprise me.

But I doubt it.

I lean back and watch them work. I keep glancing over at Clara, letting my eyes roam over her form. Her eyes are screwed up, her face concentrating on some problem. I can’t help but smile to myself.

She looks so fucking gorgeous like that. Hunched over a computer, one leg underneath her, her fingers tapping away at the keys. It’s like there’s nothing else in the world for her, a sign of a truly intense mind.

She glances over in my direction and I have to look away quickly. I know she saw me looking and I clench my jaw.

What the hell am I doing? Staring at my intern like that…

It’s only going to lead to trouble.

But I am here to take some risks, right? I mean, she would be a huge risk. Getting involved with a student would definitely ruin my fledgling teaching career, although I don’t much care about that.

Mostly it would tank this project and taint me. The world isn’t what it used to be, and people aren’t so quick to overlook abuses of power when it comes to relationships anymore. Too many prominent men have gone down for having relationships with younger subordinates, and for good reason.

I don’t want to suffer the same fate. More than that, I don’t want to take advantage of someone.

I need to put her out of my mind. She’s young and sexy and exciting, but that’s not why I’m here. I need to try to stick to business.

Time wears on and I keep studying my new interns. As we get closer to the end of the session, I start to notice something. The four guys are sharing notes, chatting with each other, but they’re all ignoring Clara.

She doesn’t seem to mind. At least, she doesn’t say anything about it. She doesn’t try to insert herself or offer any solutions to the problems they’re discussion. Instead, she works on her modules, ignoring what’s happening around her.

I can already tell this is going to be a problem.

I clear my throat ten minutes later. “Okay, guys,” I say, and they all look at me as if they’re waking up from a spell. I grin at them. “Forgot I was here?”

They look a little abashed. I laugh and stand up.

“Good job today. That’s it for now, you’re all dismissed.”

“Time already?” Coop says, standing up and stretching. “Man, that felt like two minutes.”

“Five minutes,” Howard corrects. “No more than that, though.”

“Time dilation,” Alan adds.

I ignore their banter as the guys grab their stuff. Clara lingers at her station, chewing her lip.

“You still working?” Howard asks her.

She glances at him. I watch them carefully from across the room.

“Yes,” she says.

“Of course you are.” He gives her a smug little smirk.

She hesitates. I can see something cross her face, something like anger. I feel annoyed on her behalf.

“Maybe you should worry more about your own mediocre work than what I’m doing, Howard.” She turns back to her screen.

His jaw works. But he shakes his head and leaves, catching up to the other guys.

I smile to myself. Good job, Clara. Clearly, she can handle herself.

I wander over to her and pull up a chair. She glances at me as I sit down next to her.

“How’s it going?” I ask.

“Fine,” she says. “I have a free block right now so I thought I’d stay and do some more work.”

“Sure, that’s fine.” I lean back in my chair and look over her shoulder at what she’s doing.

I have to admit, her work is elegant. It’s simple and clean. I can understand what she’s doing instantly, just from looking over her shoulder.

She glances back at me. “Uh, sorry. Do you mind?”

“I’m making you uncomfortable,” I say simply.

She nods a little. “Yeah. I mean, you’re just…”

“Hovering.”

“Yep.”

“Sorry.” I laugh and stand up, stretching a little. “I was just admiring you.”

She blinks and stares at me.

It takes me a second to understand my mistake.

“Your code, I mean,” I say quickly. “Your code. It’s really elegant. Simple.”

“Thanks,” she says, softening a little bit, smiling. “I’m slower than those guys, but I like to think I’m cleaner.”

“Doesn’t matter how fast you are if your code sucks.”

“That’s what I figure. But I don’t have a dick, so what do I know.”

I laugh at that. “I noticed Howard isn’t exactly a feminist.”

“That’s putting it mildly.”

“Guys like that are all over the place.”

“I know.” She sighs. “I’m used to it.”

“You shouldn’t have to be.”

She just shrugs and saves her work before turning off her screen. “I guess not, but I can’t change the world.”

“Maybe not yet.” I cock my head. “What do you think we’re doing here, though?”

She laughs and stands up. “Changing the world through VR games? I don’t know about that.”

“Games?” I grin at her. “I never mentioned games.”

She hesitates a second. I walk over to my desk and grab my bag, putting it on top of the table and resting up against it.

Clara comes wandering toward me. “What’s the point of this then?”

“To make VR run easily on cheap and simple hardware. We’re in the optimization business.”

“VR is mostly for games,” she points out.

“Yes, mostly. But not entirely. And true VR games in the future are going to be very, very different from what we know today.”

“Maybe,” she says softly, shrugging. “Doesn’t matter to me.”

“Not a gamer?”

“Not really.”

“Yeah, me neither.”

She chews her lip, still lingering nearby. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

“It’s just…” She hesitates a second. I like this awkwardness from her. She looks almost vulnerable, sexy, her full lips pursed slightly as she searches for the words.

“You’re rich and famous, right?” she says.

I grin at that. “Right.”

She smiles a little. “So why are you here, at Monray? We’re a tiny school. You could be anywhere, but you’re here.”

I cock my head. “Do you think I should be somewhere else?”

“I don’t know,” she admits. “You’d have a deeper pool of people to draw from.”

“Maybe,” I admit. “But that’s not what I’m looking for.”

“What are you looking for, Jason?”

She steps closer to me. I feel my heart beating faster as she looks into my eyes. She’s so fucking pretty, and I feel like this moment is taking a strange turn.

“I’ve had success,” I say softly. “I know what it’s like to be at the top of the world. I don’t need that anymore. I need something else.”

“What do you need?” she asks softly.

“Risk,” I say, smirking gently. “Is that what you want, Clara?”

“Risk? I don’t know. I never thought about it before.”

“Risk is everything,” I tell her. “It’s what makes us feel alive. If nothing is at stake, then nothing is worth doing. We need to risk something if we really want it to feel good.”

I stand up, stepping closer to her. She blinks and looks up at me. I can feel my pulse pounding in my chest.

This is one of those moments. I can feel it, deep in my chest. It’s one of those moments where I can make a different choice, see if my life can keep going the way it’s been going.

Or I can take a risk. Take a chance. Make myself feel alive.

Take what I fucking want.

She looks up at me. “I think I know what you mean,” she says. “Playing it safe… it’s easy. It doesn’t lead anywhere.”

“No, it doesn’t. Risk is what can make or break a person, but it’s so worth it.” I step closer to her and she doesn’t move. Her lips party slightly. “Do you want to hear something very risky?” I ask.

She nods slightly, her hair falling around her face. “Tell me.”

“I can’t stop looking at you, Clara. I know it’s wrong… I know it’s a huge risk. But I can’t help it.”

She looks surprised for a second, but tilts her chin up toward me. “I don’t mind,” she says finally.

I step closer, put my hand against her cheek, and kiss her.

I think I surprise myself just as much as I surprise Clara. I didn’t expect this to happen, not this way.

But for some reason, the moment felt right. It was a charge between the two of us, the way she stepped toward me, the way she cocked her head in my direction. I could sense what she was thinking.

We both wanted this. At least, I know I wanted it.

I kiss her full and deep, tasting her on my tongue. It’s sweet, clean, delicious. I pull her tighter against me and I feel her draw a sharp breath before putting her arms around my neck.

We kiss like that, deep and slow. I can feel my cock getting hard, my blood pumping through my veins. I love feeling her tight against me, her lips on mine.

I’ve kissed hundreds of women in my life, tasted plenty of them, but this…

It’s wrong. It’s a risk.

It’s absolutely fucking incredible.

We break apart and she’s breathing fast, her face flushed.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” I say softly.

“It’s okay,” she says quickly. “I mean, I wanted you to.”

“Good,” I say, smirking. “I thought you did.”

“But you’re right. I mean, it’s bad, right?”

“Right,” I say gently. “It’s a big risk.”

“But it feels good, right?”

I stare at her, excitement coursing through my veins.

I want her right here, right now. I want to push her down onto this table and fuck her deep and slow. I want to feel that young, tight, vibrant cunt wrapped around my big, thick cock. I want to hear her pant and moan my name.

But I can’t. I stop myself. I hold back.

I step away from her. She bites her lip.

“I’ll see you in class,” I say.

She nods once, turns, and quickly leaves. I watch her go, eyes on her ass.

“Shit,” I say softly to myself.

Truth is, as much as I want to pretend like I have control of this, I know I don’t. I know I can’t hold back, not after getting a taste of her.

That kiss…

It was fucking bliss. And I know I have to have another.

Even if it’s a risk. Even if it could shut this whole project down, even if it could impact my other businesses, taint my whole reputation, destroy me completely.

Clara’s a risk worth taking.