Page 79 of Darkest Obsession

“Really?”

“You touched me, Thomas,” she snaps, searching for my weapon. I slip my pencil into my pocket before she snatches it away from me and makes another attempt on my life.

“We’re doing a horrible job of getting work done,” I mutter, because I don’t want to talk about the things I did to her or how fucking hard it’s been to go so long without sex. I’m not obsessed, but fuck, I miss… touch.

“You’re right,” Clover says. “Let’s stay focused.”

We keep at it for a while, putting the finishing touches on the project and chatting solely about work. When we finish for the night, we both linger as we pack our things, neither of us saying anything. I have to do something.

“You don’t have to be alone tonight,” I tell her.

She gives me a look halfway between annoyed and flattered, the sort of look that only someone like Clover Robinson could master.

“I won’t be alone.”

“Right. You have Molly.”

She sighs. “I don’t, actually. She’s sick again. Spending the night in the health center with influenza. Or something.”

“I see.”

I can’t take my eyes off her and she keeps my gaze for a minute before her better instincts take over. Clover bites down on her lower lip and then squeezes her eyes shut. “I’m probably going to regret this but… you can sleep over. Platonically.”

“Platonically?”

“On the floor.”

“And here I was thinking Americans were known for their hospitality.”

Clover rolls her eyes and shrugs. “Take it or leave it, Thomas.”

“I’ll take it.”

“Great. I’ll sleep with my cricket bat and watch your back too.”

I chuckle. “So far, this spicy freak hasn’t touched me yet. It’s you I worry about.”

Clover quips back immediately. “You should worry about controlling your creepy ass urges.”

“You trust me to control them tonight, don’t you?”

She bites on her lip again and it takes everything for me not to lean over and kiss her, putting an end to this strange dance we keep engaging in.

“That’s why I have my cricket bat.”

“Cheers.”

“I’m not keeping this from Sylvia,” Clover says. “I’m going to tell her that… we’re friends. Or whatever. And that we’re doing homework.”

“That’s still lying.”

“I don’t want her freaking out about the blackmail,” Clover says. “I’m not lying to hurt her. She has enough going on.”

“Right,” Thomas said. “We’ll stop by her room and confess everything.”

“Don’t say confess,” Clover corrects sharply. “That makes it sound like we’re doing something wrong. Which we’re not.”

“Right. I’m innocently sleeping on your floor. Naked.”