EXTRACT FOR
The Missing Submissive
(Amber Cove)

It had been over six months since Allison finished my class. She was a brilliant young woman and I was sorry to see her go. On the last day of class, when everyone else had gone - heading to the campus pub to celebrate the end of the semester, no doubt - Allison gave me a kiss on the cheek with a charming blush and thanked me for all I had taught her. She promised to keep in touch.



And she did. Last night, Allison called me.



I was sitting back on my leather sofa, enjoying a glass of ruby-colored wine before bed. Outside, the sky was dark and the maple trees in the backyard danced in the cold winter wind. Pewter clouds traced wispy patterns over the silver disc of the moon. It was the end of another semester at the university, a time always full of relief and a pang of sadness at watching another group of students depart. Some of them I would never see again. Others might return to try for a passing grade, or a more advanced course. Or...



The phone rang and I picked it up.



"Good evening," I answered.



"Miss Robinson?"



I recognized Allison's voice at once. It sent a sharp thrill through my body. I set down my glass and ran my fingers over my short satin robe. It was the same color as the wine. The smooth cloth slithered over my skin.



"Allison. How are you?"



"I'm... well, good. Mostly." Allison cleared her throat. A brilliant girl, but still nervous as ever. "I've got an internship with the city police this semester. I'm working with a couple of the detectives."



I wasn't surprised, but I was pleased. Allison's sharp and agile mind was perfect for detective work. "You will be well suited to it. But I'm a psychology professor; you didn't call me for a pat on the back."



"No, Miss Robinson. I'm just support for the case. Mostly just research and paperwork... nothing terribly important."



Always humble. Allison was perceptive, and attuned with herself enough to know that she was smart, but shy and humble enough not to know just how smart. Or gorgeous... I slipped my fingers under my red robe and felt my nipples already hard. My unbound brown hair spilled across the leather couch and I let my head fall back into the cushions. My glasses slipped down my nose a little.



"Miss Robinson, I think the detectives I'm working under... I think they're missing something."