He’s not in Onyx House.
I even got Sevan’s number from another Daggers guy and asked if Niko was with him, but Sevan said he hadn’t heard from Niko all day.
And a cold fear is starting to spread through my veins.
A feeling I’ve been trying to shove away with every passing minute, but now it’s overtaking me.
This is why I can’t trust him.
Can’t let him in.
Niko only cares about himself, which he made abundantly clear from the beginning.
Why would I think the winter formal would be any different?
It’s the reason I’ve kept my distance from him this week, like I’m locking myself into a cell so that I won’t hurt someone. But the only person I could hurt is me.
Keeping distant from him has been nearly impossible.
I want to delude myself into thinking I could enjoy him as my fake boyfriend and not get addicted to the feeling of touch, of having another body so close to mine. But I already know it feels too good to ignore, and I’ve used up every ounce of self control to not give in.
The fear inside me now is tipping me closer to a breaking point, though.
Where the fuck is he?
Dropping the ball, on the most important night.
Or…
Or something may have happened to him.
Something dangerous.
And that’s a panic far worse than any other.
I head down the stairs in Onyx House, my dress shoes making a little clicking sound on the steps. A few of the other guys are down in the entryway, putting on their jackets and scarves, ready to head across campus.
“Ollie,” Noah says, giving me a little salute. “Where’s your boy?”
“Ready to go,” a voice calls out from the side of the entryway.
As I reach the bottom of the stairs, I exhale.
Finallyhe’s there.
And it’s like a balloon finally deflates inside me.
The relief is so palpable that it’s obvious I wasn’t just worried about the formal.
I was worried about him.
Seeing him there, already dressed in a suit, I feel every thought from the past hour dissipate in my mind.
He’s in a black suit with an ice-blue tie, the color of his eyes. His hair is in a perfect windblown swoop, tousled yet intentional.
And the way the tattoo on the back of his hand comes out from under his suit sleeve…
So hot.
