Chapter Six
I crossed my jean clad legs and adjusted my black V-neck top as I sat in my usual seat near the window. Drumming my fingers nervously against my notebook, I glanced up at the door every time someone walked in the room.
“Okay class we’re going to go ahead and get started,” Professor White began, cueing up a video. “We’re going to watch this clip. Pay close attention to everything, but particularly the heroine’s characterization.”
As the video started, I started taking notes on the woman knocking things off the desk and kicking chairs over. I was so caught up in scribbling my analysis of her character that I didn’t notice Aiden until he was halfway across the room. My stomach knotted.
“Hey,” he greeted me as he took the seat next to me.
“Hey,” I whispered back.
The clip ended and the class launched in a group discussion after a short lecture. I kept watching Aiden from the corner of my eye, but there weren’t any chances for me to really talk to him. Usually we workshopped our writing and worked in teams or groups, so the fact that we hadn’t had that opportunity yet was stressing me out.
“Everything you just did as a class is what you’re going to do in pairs. Please pull out your character sketches,” Professor White announced. “You’re going to partner up with the person next to you and take turns doing a full analysis of each other’s character sketches. Go through the entire assignment. If we run out of time after the first person’s assessment, we will pick this back up first thing next week, so the other person also receives feedback.”
Finally.
I turned my body slightly, so I was facing Aiden. I opened my mouth to ask him if he talked to the police, but he started before I could.
“I like your hair like that,” he stated, eyeing the high puff ponytail that sat atop my head. “Looks dope.”
My lips curled into a slow smile at the compliment. “Thank you.”
“It’s like a crown.” His eyes shifted back to mine. “Which is fitting.” He licked his lips and then shifted toward me “Can we talk for a minute?”
I nodded, noticing his cologne. I inhaled deeply. He smelled expensive. “Yeah.”
“I just have to get something off my chest before we get started.”
Uncrossing my legs, I scooted my chair closer to his. My knee bumped his and I ignored the thrill it gave me. “Okay…?”
His elbows rested on his thighs as he leaned into my personal space. “I’ve been thinking about you,” he whispered, the back of his hand grazing my knee. “The way you smile when you like what you’re hearing. The way your face lights up when you’re happy. And the way your skin looks like copper when the sun is setting is one of my favorite things to see.”
My stomach fluttered. I didn’t see that coming.
“Spending time with you this weekend made me realize that I didn’t just want to see you on Wednesdays and Fridays in class,” he continued. “And when you didn’t show up to class on Wednesday, I knew I couldn’t just play it cool. So here I am… asking for your number.”
I bit my bottom lip to keep from smiling too hard. “Sure,” I replied before rattling off the number for him.
He pulled out his phone and quickly typed it in. My phone vibrated in my bag a few seconds later.
“And now you have mine,” he returned.
I grabbed my phone out of my bag and saved his contact. “And just so you know, I thought about you a few times too. Between the conversation and the kiss, I was quite pleased. That was one hell of a kiss.”
His tongue ran from one corner of his delicious mouth to the other. “Yes, it was. And being this close to you now is making it hard to not kiss you again.” He sat back, putting some space between us. “I would love to take you on a proper date.”
Oh. My. God.
“I would like that,” I replied, not letting it be known that I was internally freaking out.
“Are you free for dinner this weekend?”
“I have makeup work that I have to do this weekend.” I blinked rapidly as I remembered what I needed to ask him and the heaviness of what I was dealing with. I got so lost in his eyes and his compliments that I’d completely forgotten everything else for a minute. “And I’m trying to lay low.”
“Oh!” His eyebrows shot up as if he just remembered too. “Yes, that’s right. I’m sorry.” His body language changed immediately, and he awkwardly grabbed his papers and shuffled them. “I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry. The one who… that was the one you were telling me about right? Your ex-best friend?”
I studied his profile. “Yes. She was—that was her.”
When his eyes met mine again, they were full of sympathy. “You’re not like them at all so I forgot you were a cheer—I forgot you were on the team. I apologize for—”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. I accept your apology,” I interrupted. I tried to give him a little smile. “For a few minutes everything felt normal in my life again so that was nice.”
His lips lifted in an attempt at a smile, but the rest of his face didn’t look convinced. “We should probably get started on the assignment.”
“Well, before we jump into that, I have a question. Have you talked to the police yet?”
“No. And I hope to God I don’t have to.”
My eyebrows furrowed. “I thought they were questioning all the PROs.”
“They’ve been questioning everyone that lives at the house. I don’t live there. If they come to me, I’m just going to defer to my lawyer anyway.”
“Defer to your lawyer?” My head tilted questioningly.
