MINUTES.
Ago.
And my body is still buzzing like a faulty appliance.
I pace the hallway, trying to look casual. Spoiler: I don’t.
My hair is a mess. My lips are swollen. My shirt is tucked in wrong. My pulse is so loud I’m sure the IT department can hear it.
“Oh god,” I whisper to myself. “I can’t function. I CAN’T FUNCTION.”
Someone rounds the corner.
I freeze.
It’s Evan.
OH NO.
His eyes flick over me, my flushed cheeks my hair my shirt my entire everything, and his brows pull together sharply.
“Ruby?” he asks. “You okay?”
NO. NO I AM NOT OKAY. I AM THE OPPOSITE OF OKAY.
But I smile. Badly. Awkwardly. Like someone asked me if I’m interested in joining a cult.
“Yes! Totally! Normal! Great!”
He blinks. “You’re… red.”
“It’s warm.”
“It’s freezing.”
“Oh. I, run hot?”
His eyes narrow. Suspicious. Too suspicious.
“Why are you on this floor?” he asks.
Oh god. Oh no.
I cannot tell this man I was currently melted on Jaxon’s desk like a human puddle.
“I was… returning something,” I say.
He waits.
To what? Who? Why?
My brain malfunctions.
“Paper,” I blurt out.
“Paper?”
“Yes.”
