The professional meetings were nothing short of painful... hours of enduring long-winded dinosaurs ferociously guarding the ancient rituals of higher education from their pedestals in nondescript two-star hotels' conference rooms. You couldn't blame a woman for her mind wandering under these conditions!
Perhaps it was the taboo of him being a married man, or the inappropriateness of having lusty thoughts about her colleague, or maybe it was just because he was so damn attractive - physically and intellectually - but every single time she was at these meetings, all she could think about was him... in lots of compromising ways. During the gaps between meetings she could easily (and very rationally) put him out of her mind and fool herself into thinking the passing fancy had passed, but then they were thrust together again at one of the meetings and then rational thought failed her and she realized she was intensely (and irrationally) attracted to him.
She had a heightened awareness of him when they were in the sane building. She could feel him when he came into the room, sense when he was looking at her. Trying to ignore him only resulted in her thinking more about him. Her thoughts started out innocently enough... maybe he'll text me or we'll say a brief "hi" in passing... but those thoughts quickly took a deeply erotic turn. In the midst of the dinosaurs' mournful bleating, she found her wandering mind analyzing his ass (was it his actual ass that looked so good or just really well-cut pants working some magic?) which led to thoughts of taking off his pants to get to the bottom of that question... which led to thoughts of his cock. Once she began thinking of his cock, she might as well have locked herself away in her hotel room for the rest of the meeting because her mind - and pussy - flooded with fantasies that were totally distracting and she'd have little to contribute to the meeting's agenda items as a result. Her lusty internal reactions happened without even talking to him, so she knew it would be best to keep her distance.
She was a smart gal, but sometimes smart people do stupid things. So even though she knew that she should keep her distance, instead she plotted for a way for them to get closer without their closeness being suspicious. In the past, there had been close calls with colleagues nearby - absent too long together during a meeting, chatting together with disregard the group conversation that was underway, him grabbing her ass or breast in the hall while demanding kisses from her as his cock swelled. It was evident a cover story was needed for them to be able to connect more privately so they could explore their attraction. She wanted to spend time with him, and she needed that time to be uninterrupted.
Then she realized: they could publish together! On what, exactly, it didn't really matter, but becoming writing partners was a totally legitimate reason for them to connect in their professional world. There were enough phases to the research and writing process that there'd be cover stories for many meetings to come. She pitched this idea to him over text, and he seemed nonplussed. However, when they next saw each other and she leaned in say hello and to ask him if he'd reconsidered writing together, he saw the rosy flush of her lips as she smiled at him, caught a glimpse of her cleavage, and smelled the perfume of her that he'd noticed the first time they met - and suddenly scholarship with her seemed like a fantastic idea.