“Yes. Just tired.”
She smirked. “We were the ones running and sparring. How can you be the one tired? Are you getting old, professor?”
“Older than you,” he assured her. “Also, not in the mood to play childish games.”
Grace’s eyebrows knitted together. “You’re grumpier than usual tonight. Is it because of the rain?”
“No. Vampires like dark and gloomy nights.”
“Grace, are you coming or not?” someone yelled from downstairs.
“Just a minute,” Grace shouted back before grinning at him and talking with a softer voice. “It’s too early for you to sleep.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him up. “I’m not accepting a no for an answer. You’re going to have fun tonight.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re bossy?” Noah complained as he dragged his feet behind her.
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re anti-social?”
“I’m social when I need to be,” he protested.
“You need to be tonight.”
“I have no wish to play that stupid game,” he grumbled.
“You can play something else. The teachers are playing poker, and the guys are playing darts. Some are also playing chess. If that’s more your thing. I do have to warn you, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll win against Darren. Unless you’re a genius.”
“No genius. Sorry to disappoint you.”
Grace halted abruptly, and Noah collided with her back.
He held his hands to her arms and breathed in the scent of her hair. “What’s wrong?”
“I was teasing you. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“No offense taken,” he assured her, his voice caressing her hair. She was wearing it loose that night. “I’ll play whatever you play,” he added when she didn’t move, and he noticed that her body tensed with their closeness.
She stepped forward, leaving space between her back and his chest. He released her arms. When she turned around, she had a constricted smile. It seemed the closeness between them made her feel uncomfortable.
Noah felt his chest burn. She treated him like a friend. He didn’t want to damage her trust in him.
“The body is in the library,” she informed.
He blinked in confusion. “What?”
“For the game. The victim’s body is in the library this time. We just have to join the others and choose our envelope to start. Then, we search the house for the murder weapon. The killer has all the clues in his envelope and needs to mislead the others while trying to trick everybody that he’s not the one who did it.”
“Okay. I’ll keep that in mind if I’m the killer.”
“The victim knows who the killer is, but she’ll pretend to be dead for the first part. Later, she’ll be the judge to see if no one is cheating.”
“Anything else I should know?”
Grace took his hand. “We normally play hide and seek once the game is over. Is that too childish for you?”
“Depends.” He grinned mischievously.
“Grace!”
“Coming!” Grace shouted and pushed Noah behind her as she rushed to the library.