They were all watching me, and I picked up my toast, slipping into a chair on the other side of Levi when my phone buzzed. I hit the screen.
Eight: No one is allowed to make you feel bad. No. One.
“He’s not wrong, you know.” Levi had read it over my shoulder.
“Get back.”
“Who’s not wrong? Is that your boyfriend? What’s he not wrong about?” Marshall raised his voice. There was an ugliness to him this morning.
Creighton was the alpha of all alphas, and sometimes guys who weren’t used to being shut down so effectively and put in their place as swiftly as Creighton’s mere presence tended to do, sometimes they didn’t react the best way. Was that what was going on?
I caught the time and cursed. “I have to go if I’m going to make my class on time.”
“You need a ride?”
I gave Levi a considering look. “Did he tell you to be another guard for me?”
“Guard?” Marshall echoed.
Levi happily beamed at me, fluttering his eyelashes a couple times. “Not officially, but he told me to stick around, and I don’t mind giving you a ride.”
“Your truck is here?”
“Uh. A vehicle is here. I don’t know if it’s my particular truck or not, but you know as well as I do that one of Creight’s guys has some kind of vehicle close by.”
One of. That meant there was more than the one usual watcher Creighton had assigned to me. Levi was here. How many others? I shook my head at Levi. “No. I’m good without a ride considering campus is just on the other side of the building.”
“What?” He stared at me, blankly.
Palma snickered. “We live on campus.”
“Oh.” Levi considered that before grunting. “Good to know.”
I really had to go. Creighton had brought my backpack down with him, and I spotted it on the floor in the living room. I went to grab it. As I returned through the kitchen, Heath held out a thermos for me. “Coffee.”
I grabbed it. “Thanks.” I tossed him a grin over my shoulder.
He gave me a small nod, before jerking his head in Marshall’s direction, who was now glowering down at his hands that were in his lap. He’d gone back to lightly kicking against the counter underneath him. Heath commented, “I’ll talk to him.”
“Huh?” Marshall’s head jerked up.
I only lifted up a shoulder in my response. “If you want, or I’ll try again later.”
I didn’t catch what Heath’s reaction was, instead being distracted as Palma stood up abruptly. She had been chewing on her top lip. “I have to go for a meeting this morning. I’ll walk with you. Uh, one second though. I need to grab my stuff. You can wait for me outside, if you want. I won’t be long.” She took off, pounding up the stairs a second later.
Marshall had gone back to glowering at his lap. Heath resumed cooking. And Levi was unabashedly watching me. He waved another piece of French toast at me. “I’ll watch over these idiots. I’ll let you know if Boss comes to, you know, shoothim.”
Marshall’s look skewered him. “You’re enjoying this too much.”
Levi only tipped his head back, his grin never diminishing. “You’re a delight.”
Footsteps pounded back down the stairs and Palma rushed into the kitchen, her cheeks red and her eyes a little frantic. “I’m here. I’m ready. Let’s go.” She breezed right past me, opening the door first and stepping outside.
I shared one last look with Levi, who waved at me. “I got it covered here. Don’t worry.”
That did not reassure me.
I had just pulled the door shut before Palma pounced. “I think I made a big mistake.”
