That was too grim a thought, so I quickly shoved it out of my mind. Dwelling on that would do me no good.
Despite Spencer's amazing ability to infuriate me, he had been protecting me. More than that, he had been caring for me. Feeding me, the blankets, even the healthy food, had been his own misguided way of looking out for me.
Even if he made me want to murder him.
“Oh, and you’re back in class starting tomorrow. I worked it out with Chase and Bear. We’ve got a schedule in place. Someone will be with you at all times.”
I gaped at him as he grinned. For once, I didn’t want to smack that satisfied smile off his face.
“You could have led with that!” I exclaimed.
He shrugged. “Oh, well. Be ready for class. Economics at noon, right? I’ll be escorting you.”
Chapter 30
Flora
Going to class was surprisingly easy. Spencer’s presence wasn’t overwhelming, like I had worried. In fact… it was kind of pleasant.
I had been a little anxious, but he had kept his distance. He was always close, though—a quick glance at the back of the room or out the window always assured me of that. He would either be sitting in the back row with a baseball cap on or standing just outside the room, acting like he was playing with his phone when, in reality, I knew he was paying attention to his surroundings.
During the short walk to my first class, a student in a black sweatshirt passed me, and for a moment, my steps faltered. Was ithim? Was he going to take me? The thoughts that ran through my mind were laced with sheer panic.
“It’s not them,” a deep, rich voice soothed behind me.
My body reacted to Spencer’s voice instinctively. My muscles relaxed as I took in a deep lungful of air, my blurred vision easing. For a brief moment, his hand touched my lower back before he vanished into the throng of students once again.
He was there, though.
From then on, it was like a constant reassurance that I wasn't alone. No matter what happened, I would be safe because Spencer was nearby, and I knew he would do whatever it took to protect me.
After that, the day just… flowed. My mind sank into old routines, and I was able to get through the rest of my classes without incident.
Lunch was odd, knowing Spencer was close but not joining me. He had warned me ahead of time that he wouldn’t be interacting with me because it could draw negative attention. He wanted to focus on the big picture in case my psychotic follower was lurking.
So I sat alone, eating my lunch.
“Hey, we’re in the same econ class, aren’t we?” a masculine voice said as an alpha sat in the cafeteria chair beside me. His blond hair was messy and tousled, and he was wearing some sort of sports shirt.
“I wouldn’t know,” I mumbled, hardly looking away from my food. I was trying to enjoy a quiet lunch in one of the many food halls on campus, but he was disturbing my tranquility. Spencer probably wasn't very happy with his appearance, either.
“Well, I was hoping you’d be able to give me your notes from class, ’cause you’re always scribbling them down. You see, I’m on a crunch, man. We’ve been so busy lately, and I just haven’t been able to get my notes organized.”
“Sorry, no can do,” I replied, only looking briefly at him.
I didn’t know why he assumed I would just hand over my notes, but I had no interest in doing that. This alpha had never said two words to me before, and now he wanted something from me?
An arm wrapped around my shoulder, and I cringed. His scent was dull, like printer toner. How any omega was going to put up with that was beyond me.
“Come on, you’re so smart. You’re always getting top grades. Surely you can help me,” he insisted in that weedy, weaseling voice.
My skin crawled from being so close to him. I wanted nothing more than to slap his hand away and flee. We were in a crowded cafeteria, though, and that would only draw attention. And if there was anything I hated more than confrontation, it was attention.
Glancing behind me, I stilled when I noticed Spencer approaching, a look of what I could only describe as utter hatred twisting his features.
This idiot was about to die if I didn’t do something. Subtly, I shook my head at Spencer, but he kept stalking forward.
“Alec, do us all a favor and buzz off,” a sweet voice growled as an omega slid into the chair across from me, glowering at the alpha.
