I pull my phone halfway out of my pocket.
Blair clamps her hand on my wrist, squeezing hard. “No!” When I hum, she blows out a breath. “Jesus.”
She releases me and rubs her forehead. Her gaze bounces around the hall. One of her locker neighbors a few spots down makes her gulp.
I pretend to check my non-existent watch again. “Tick tock, Davis. Don’t want to be late for homeroom, remember? Should I mark you absent when I go to the office?” I tsk disapprovingly. “Too many absent days will increase your demerits, you know. Could put your scholarship status at risk.”
“Shut up,” Blair snaps.
I shift to block her between me and the locker, bracing my hands on either side of her head. A cold expression settles on my face. “Watch it, little bug. With that attitude, you’re making me want to squash you under my heel.”
Blair’s jaw clenches as she makes herself as small as possible, keeping a few inches of space between us. She doesn’t want a repeat of what happened the other day.
“Do as the note says, or it’s game over.”
I trace her neck with a delicate touch, then press into the soft spot under her chin, driving her face to angle up to mine. Blair’s throat works as she swallows. Her glare is mutinous, shooting acidic poison at me with her rich whiskey-colored eyes.
Blair is an uncontrollable flame that I want to touch whether it burns me or not as I tame it under my control.
I stare into her eyes, pinching her chin between my thumb and forefinger. My attention drops to those full, pouty lips. They’re chapped today, like she licks them too often. Shifting my thumb, I brush the edge of her lower lip with my thumb.
Blair pushes out a harsh breath, breaking my concentration on her mouth. She wraps her fingers around my wrist and digs her short nails in, almost hard enough to break the skin. The sting spurs on the urge to pin her against the locker and take her mouth as mine.
I shove the desire down and lock it away with the rest of my real emotions. Everything is compartmentalized, buried deep under layers of fake smiles and flirting. By pushing it all down, I don’t have to care. I can remain numb, my heart protected in my ironclad fortress.
“Get the hell off.” Blair bares her teeth and shakes damp, partly dry tendrils of hair from her face. “I’ll wear it. You better pay up.”
Plastering my signature cocky mask on my face, I grin at my feisty little toy. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
Blair makes an angry, muffled sound and shoves away from me. She snatches the bag from her locker, slamming the door shut with a loud bang that draws the attention of the students lingering in the hall before school begins. They all look between Blair and I with interest.
The devious school king and the school pariah? It’s a juicy show.
The chatter dies down as Blair stomps away in the direction of the bathroom, flipping me off the entire way.
A slow, genuine smile unfurls on my mouth.
I hide the secret expression behind my hand until I get myself under control. With my social armor in place, I amble down the hall in the opposite direction with a lazy swagger in my step.
Anticipation sings in my veins for our English class.
Fifteen
Devlin
The uniform is a perfect fit compared to the oversized shirt and ill-fitting skirt Blair had before.
I follow behind her on the way to English, keeping far enough back that people don’t mistake us for arriving together. The skirt fits like a glove over her small waist, flaring over her hips. Without meaning to, my eyes fall to her ass as she glides down the hall toward the classroom.
Blair’s hand keeps flying to her neck. The self-consciousness has me fighting back amused enjoyment.
People give her double-takes as she passes by. No one is used to seeing her in the full uniform. She looks hot.
A guy on the basketball team eyes Blair up and down with his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth. He catcalls her. “Damn, girl! You can come right on over here, baby.”
Blair ignores him, and the other wolf whistles that assault her as she enters the class ahead.
Something dark slithers through me. Gritting my teeth, it’s a struggle not to stop and punch the guy. Blair belongs to me.