“Or something,” he mumbled back, activating the machine again to dispense one of every candy bar. Then he closed up the control panel again with his little screwdrivers before collecting his loot.
When he straightened up to his full height, I sucked in a gasp. He was huge. Maybe a full foot taller than me? Basketball tall but built solidly.
“Are you okay?” he asked with a frown as I stared, wide-eyed and stunned. “You have a bruise.” He gestured to my forehead, where my skin had turned an ugly shade of purple.
I wet my lips, trying not to stare. “Um, yeah, I got caught in that chemistry lab explosion today.”
He grimaced. “Sorry.” Then he stuffed the dozen or so candy bars in his hoodie pockets and walked away into the night. Weird guy, but…also oddly intriguing. Like I wanted to call him back and ask if we could hang out.
It was nice of him to give me free snacks, though. I grabbed a can of soda from the other vending machine, then headed back to my dorm to have my little late-night feast…and take some painkillers. That all-over body bruise was really setting in.
It was going to be a long night.
The next morning was a struggle.Thanks to my private bathroom, I was able to sit under the hot shower for the better part of an hour to loosen up my stiff, sore muscles. The blotchy bruising was a sight, but it could have been worse. A lot worse. The angry, six-month-old scar on my back was evidence to that fact.
Nina knocked at my door not long after I dressed for the day, and her grimace at my appearance told me I hadn’t put enough makeup on.
“That bad?” I asked with a groan. “I used concealer.”
She shrugged. “It’s fine. Seriously. It just looks like you’ve put concealer on a huge-ass bruise, that’s all. Wanna come get coffee with Ursa and Sven?” I’d met these friends of Nina’s once. They were a brother-sister duo from Norway who I’d have sworn were twins had they not informed me otherwise.
“Sure,” I agreed, grabbing my bag. “I’ve got an hour before Applied Microeconomics and caffeine sounds heavenly.”
Nina peppered me with questions as we walked over to the coffee shop, and when we passed the vending machines, I remembered to ask her about the argument I’d heard.
“Sounds like Connor,” she said without even a hint of surprise. “He and Andrew have basically been sworn enemies since as long as I can remember—which is ages, we’ve been at a lot of the same schools—and he’s the only one insane enough to threaten someone like Andrew with shit like that. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if that explosion was one of them trying to murder the other.”
My jaw dropped. “You’re kidding, right? And the school’s just…okay with this? Andrew’s…like…”
“Oh, I’m fully aware,” Nina laughed. “They sling a lot of insults and butt heads constantly, but they both know they can’tactuallyhurt one another. No one here can. Didn’t you read the handbook?”
I had but just assumed it was flowery wording for the stock standard “no violence” policy at all schools. The way Nina said it, though, sort of sounded like the punishment was worse than academic suspension.
Sven and Ursa were already at the coffee shop, waving us over when we entered and gushing over how awful I looked. In a nice way, but still…sometimes a white lie was nice.
I gently extracted myself, telling Nina I’d order for both of us. There was a short wait at the counter, then I rattled off our go-to drinks before fishing around in my bag for my wallet.
“I’ll get those,” a guy said, smoothly tapping his phone to pay.
Surprise saw my brows shoot up and I tipped my head back to say thanks. Then I stiffened. “Um…thanks. That wasn’t necessary, though.” My face heated at the idea he thought I couldn’t afford the coffees somehow.
His deep green eyes studied me with curiosity. “I never said it was. You’re Evelyn…right?”
I wet my lips, wondering why in the hell he knew my name. Or why he was even talking to me. “Eve,” I corrected, moving out of the way for the next customer as I waited for my drinks. “You’re Connor, right?” I was parroting him deliberately, but it didn’t have the intended effect.
“Have we already met?” he asked, tilting his head to the side and seeming genuinely confused.
Of course he didn’t remember picking up my phone last week. “I know your”—brother—“reputation.”
That seemed like a totally reasonable explanation to Connor, who just nodded his understanding, then collected his coffee when it was called a moment later.
“See you around, Evelyn,” he said with an ominous edge, then sauntered his sexy ass on out of the coffee shop without another glance. He oozed confidence in a way I couldn’t even begin to imagine and paid no attention to the looks he got as he passed but all I could think of was how he’d threatened to slit Andrew’s throat. Which then made me picture it.
I shivered, shoving the bloody thought aside. It was just an empty threat, surely.
“Um…did we just see you chatting with Connor Sullivan?” Nina asked with a sly grin as I returned with our drinks. Then I remembered how I’d never corrected her on who I’d kissed that first day in the library.
Fuck.
