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I’m still standing in the same spot as the revs of their engines echo around us and they take off. “Who did you say is the one with hearts in their eyes?” Shift muses, tapping his fingers on his arm as he assesses me. I stick my middle finger up at him, giving him a fuck you smile, and Emily chuckles, linking her arm through mine.
“Can we talk about this later?” she asks quietly, leaving me confused, but when she nods at Shift, I understand.
“Whenever and wherever you want,” I reassure, and she relaxes beside me.
She leads the way to class, and I panic when I realize I didn’t grab my backpack when we were leaving the SUV, but I spot it on Shift's shoulder with Emily’s perched on the other.
“I’m not ready for this class today,” I admit, and Emily shakes her head.
“You’re going to be fine.”
“The only time I’ve ever had a needle and cotton in my hands is to stitch up a wound. Creating beautiful clothing isn’t the same as that. Like at all.” Uncertainty flusters me, but I trust in her as we make our way to the building.
Making our way through the crowd, I keep glancing around at everyone, hating the vulnerability from the masses, just as I do every time we’re here. A flash of black catches my attention in the distance to the far left. Familiar dark and twisted eyes, combined with swept back hair and a leather cut flicker in my peripheral vision, making me pause.
Kincaid.
People continue to pass around me as I stand taller, but when I focus on the spot I was sure I saw him in, I come up blank. Not a hint of leather in sight.
“What’s up? Is everything okay?” Shift asks, sensing the unsettling inside of me.
I nod, but it still takes me another moment to glance at him. “I could have sworn I just saw Kincaid,” I mutter, making Shift’s eyes widen.
“Where?”
“Over there.” I point where the movement caught my attention, but clearly I was imagining it because there’s definitely no one there except students walking by.
“I’ll have some prospects sent over to scan the area.” Shift pulls his cell phone out and starts tapping away.
“Is that necessary?” I ask. “I could have just been seeing things with all the pent-up worry going on in my head,” I admit, not wanting to cause a stir for no reason.
“To protect the two of you, everything and anything is necessary.”
* * *
It wasall in my fucking head as expected. I guess it’s better to be on high alert as opposed to being too relaxed, but I hate that I caused an issue and had the prospects trailing campus for no reason.
No one else other than those in Ruthless Brothers’ leather has been seen wearing a cut. Emily’s right; I need to get some damn sleep.
Thankfully, the design class was all about research and we could work in pairs, so I let Emily lead the way, helping with what I could so she didn’t feel like she was carrying dead weight. We had a two-hour break for lunch, which was spent at my favorite bagel spot, and now, we have the fun of business class to enjoy this afternoon. Once I get through this, we have one more class and then we can head home and pass the fuck out.
I wasn’t prepared for how busy this would feel. It’s keeping me on my toes in an entirely different way than the rest of my life, but it’s worth it to see Emily be so engrossed in it all. Shit, even I may have enjoyed myself this morning. Not that I’m going to admit that just yet. Not before I get through this god-awful class at least.
“Ryker’s agreed to me waiting outside of the classroom doors,” Shift states as we take the steps up to the business building.
“Every day you get to take a step further back, huh?” I reply with a grin. “It feels like a fun game for us to enjoy and to make your life hell.”
Emily giggles between us. She’s barely been able to look at Shift all day since this morning’s revelations, but I guess it’s going to take her a minute. He doesn’t push her, not once, but I do spot him tapping away on his cell phone a few times, and Emily’s cheeks turn pink as she gets a text message.
It’s cute as hell and totally what he deserves. I’m more excited for her to finally talk to me about it so I can give him the warning talk. It has me all kinds of excited.
“Don’t push or I’ll just come and sit inside anyways,” he grumbles as we reach the doors to the classroom.
I roll my eyes at him as I step inside, not missing the way their fingers brush before Emily follows after me. She takes her usual seat at the front, and I get comfortable at the back. My lips purse when I notice the person sitting directly in front of me.
Joshua.
Great.
