Page 21 of Head Under Water

I feel the burn of stares, heat that rises like flames on my skin, deepening my awareness of my breathing.

Will is watching me now. Not Banks anymore. Me.

For half a second, I don’t think he realizes he’s been caught.

I turn my head to find his eyes narrowed on me with a look of intensity I’ve never seen on his face. Brows drawn. Jaw tight. Not smiling. Not teasing. His face is completely unreadable.

He clears his throat, looking down, and reaches for his pencil. It slips from his fingers and clatters to the floor. He bends, checking to see that I’m still looking, but for once, there’s no joke. Just heavy silence I don’t fully understand.

He grabs the pencil from the floor and readjusts, rolling it between his fingers like he’s considering something. Then one corner of his mouth lifts.

Everything in me sinks. I know that look.

I glare, waiting.

He lifts a finger to his ear, like he’s receiving a message through an earpiece. “So, in a stunning new development, you’ve got a crush on a professor.” He wiggles his brows.

“He’s a teaching assistant. They’re different, and you know it.”

He pretends to wipe tears from his eyes. “What will our moms say when they learn you’re marrying a doctor? Our little girl, all grown up.”

I grind my teeth together. “Shut up, Will. We’re friends. We sit next to each other in one class. Drop it. He doesn’t like me.”

There’s a beat.

“Yeah. He does.” His words are clipped. Like he’s annoyed he’s having to spell it out.

My eyes flick up to meet Will’s without warning, and his own words seem to have caught him off guard. We just stare at each other. His eyes move slowly between mine, jaw tight.

I want to ask how he knows, if he’s sure, but I can’t make myself so vulnerable. The teasing would never end. I can physically feel the weight of Will’s thoughts buzzing a thousand miles a minute.

“But fine. I’ll stop,” he agrees, turning back toward his laptop. Under his breath, he adds, “Not a very smart doctor, anyway. What do elementary teachers even make?”

“More than you’ll make as a…what? Water slide attendant?”

He crosses his fingers without looking my way. “Only if the stripper thing falls through.”

I curl my upper lip. “Like you have the body for stripping.”

He turns toward me again and leans forward. His knee brushes mine, then lingers there. He doesn’t pull away as a wave of unexpected heat lashes at my skin. His voice is low, meant just for me. “Good to know you’ve been thinking about my body.”

I scowl, moving my knee away from his. “Mostly in science.”

His brows give a quick, sharp tug. Barely noticeable, but I see it. “Really? I’m happy to let you experiment.”

“Great. We’re doing dissections next week.”

He throws his hands behind his head with an exaggerated breath.

When he meets my eyes again, I say, “Can you just leave it alone? Why do you care if I like him? Which I don’t. But it’s not just him. It’s you. You’ve always done this. With every guy I’ve ever dated.”

He points his pencil at me. “So, to be clear, you are dating the professor?”

“Leave me alone, Will.”

“Hard to do. You’re practically obsessed with me. We’re besties now. And we’re on this project together. Remember? Besides, if anything, I helped you out.”

I refuse to look his way, but I have to know. “Helped me?”