Moving Forward (Completed)

Chapter Eleven

Rafael watched as Katherine tried on dress after dress, looking at herself in the mirror, sighing and then tossing the dress on her bed and slipping into a new one.

"Who's your date with?" He teased.

Katherine rolled her eyes. "You know I do this every year... For over a decade I've faced parents and new students on meet the teacher night and I always get nervous."

"New students make you nervous." He chuckled.

"Not the students, the parents...I can never decide what to wear. I want a dress that is professional, but not necessarily teachery..."

"Wouldn't want to look like a schoolmarm?" Rafael teased again.

Katherine glared at him and continued. "nothing revealing or kiddish... or geez, like I'm going out after... something age appropriate."

"You're overthinking this."

"I know that." She huffed, tugging the latest outfit off. "At my old school, we got together and started ordering school shirts to wear every year. It was great. We got to wear them with jeans, all the parents knew who the teachers were, and I didn't spend the night before stressing over what to wear."

"Maybe suggest it for next year." He smirked, wrapping his arms around her bare stomach and kissing the back of her neck.

"That's not helping..."

Rafael smiled and let her go, blocking her access to her closet as he search through what hadn't made its way on her bed. Katherine stood behind him in only her bra and panties watching, part of her wanted to move him so she could finally settle on an outfit, another curious what he'd come up with.

"Try this."

She took it from him, slipping the grey pencil skirt on first, leaving it unzipped as she pulled the light blue blouse on, tucking it into the skirt before zipping it up. The short sleeves would be cool when her room was filled with people, but they were still professional looking. The skirt was one of her longer ones, hitting a little below the knee, and while the outfit accented her figure, it wasn't overly sexy.

"I kind of hate you." Katherine smirked.

"Why because I can dress you better than you can?" He grinned.

Katherine rolled her eyes and slipped back out of the skirt and top, hanging them on her closet door for the next morning. She started to pick her jeans back up when Rafael slipped his arm around her again, kissing her shoulder.

"I have to put my clothes away." She smiled, gesturing to the pile on her bed.

"I'll help if you leave those off." He smirked, putting a dress back on a hanger and handing to her.

Katherine rolled her eyes and smiled, setting the jeans back down and taking the dress from him.

"You know this might be my favorite look for you, after that button up shirt and panties anyway." Rafael said, handing her the last dress.

"That's all I'm wearing in that photo that's on your desk." She smirked, letting him keep his arms around her this time.

"I know." He grinned.

Katherine turned in his arms, kissing him as he walked her to her bed, smacking his hands away when tried to slide her panties down.

"Mr. Barba," she said, smiling when he rolled his eyes, "you are wearing entirely too much."

"Am I?" He smirked.

"You are. I think we need to even things up a bit." Katherine smiled, pressing her lips to his before he could respond, her fingers, not even bothering with the t-shirt he was wearing, instead going straight for his jeans.