And then I see her.
Harlow is near the hallway that leads to the backyard, half-hidden behind a tall guy in a flannel. She’s wearing an oversized sweater, hair down in pretty waves, face angled away from the room like she’s trying to soften the noise by refusing to look at it. She’s holding a cup, but she’s not drinking it. Her shoulders are too high, nearly meeting her ears, her fingers holding a death grip on the rim.
She looks like she’s balancing on the edge of something.
I don’t know why it has me wanting to race over to her, as if I can save her from whatever inner spiral is headed her way. Because I’ve seen that posture before at the dining hall and rink, the way she holds herself like the world is always one wrong sound away from being too much.
And suddenly, I can’t focus on anything else.
Weston doesn’t notice because he doesn’t notice anything unless it’s yelling at him. But I do. I notice how her eyes keep flicking toward exits. How she flinches when someone laughs too loud. How her jaw locks like she’s swallowing a feeling. My body moves before my brain can argue with it. I angle toward her.
Weston grabs my sleeve. “Where are you going?”
I peel his fingers off. “Air.”
Weston’s eyes light up, full of mischief. “I wonder who you could possibly be going to get air with?”
“Cooper,” Asher says behind him, a calm warning.
Weston turns to him, pouting. “Why are you always on Bennett’s side?”
Asher’s gaze flicks past Weston, toward Harlow, then back. “Because he’s doing something useful.”
Weston stares for a second, then his face changes. “Oh yes, very useful. Our team captain’s younger sister just happened to show up, completely alone. No one talked her into coming or anything like that.”
I keep walking, and Weston keeps talking, but I don’t hear whatever else he has to say. Harlow doesn’t notice me at first, or maybe she does and pretends she doesn’t. Either way, I slow as I get closer, making sure she feels me coming and being careful not to crowd her more.
When I’m within a few feet, she looks up, her pretty eyes meeting mine. She exhales immediately, and I’m not even sure she notices that she does. Knowing that I have that effect on her sends a small shiver down my spine, and I like it. I like it a lot.
“Hi,” I say, low enough for her to hear but not for anyone else.
“Hi.” Her gaze flicks past me, to the room, then back. “You’re here.”
“I got roped in,” I say. “I’m filing a complaint later.”
The smallest twitch of her mouth, not a full smile, but progress. My chest does something stupid knowing I was the reason for it.
I clear my throat. “Where’s Kai?”
Her fingers tighten around her cup. “He mentioned studying, so probably doing that.”
Well, at least he kept the story the same.
I nod. “You okay?”
“Yeah.”
I do my best to hide my grin that slips, knowing she’s lying. I give her an out, gesturing toward the hallway that leads outside. “I could really use some air. Come with me?”
Her eyes flick to the door like I hit a pressure release valve. She hesitates, calculating what it would mean to leave. Whether it would look rude. Whether it would start a conversation she doesn’t want. So I make it easier for her.
“I’m going outside,” I say casually, shrugging. “You can come if you want. Or you can stay and pretend this is fun. Up to you.”
Harlow exhales like she’s surrendering.
“Air,” she says.
I nod once and turn, walking at a pace that lets her follow without feeling like she has to run to keep up. We slip through the hallway and out the back door into cooler night air. The change is immediate. The bass muffles. The voices turn into background noise. The world widens.
