Evan half hauls me up from the couch by grabbing the back of my elbow. “Yeah, but that was before.”
“Before what? Before you two decided I’m not capable of functioning like an adult?” I look down at his hand, which is still on my arm as if he needs to guide me someplace.
Face completely serious, Evan leans forward and whispers, “You’re an adult?” in mock outrage.
I roll my eyes, but I can’t help smiling at him. He’s just too damn cute for his own good. “Are you taking me to get food or not?”
“We could call and have them bring something up,” Griffin offers. “What do you want?”
“We couldalsojust go down and see what’s available,” I counter. Josie mentioned that orders needed to be placed earlier in the day. I’m not going to call down looking for room service this late.
Griffin narrows his eyes a bit as if he’s curious about me wanting to go down to the cafeteria, but he doesn’t argue.
I head over to the door, slide my flats back on, and then feel for the lanyard around my neck that holds my keycard. When I find it missing, my eyes go to the small table near the entry. After only a few days of staying with the guys, I’m already more comfortable here than I was in my own little apartment. It’s slightly surreal.
“Ready?” Griffin floats his gaze over me, and I like the way his eyes linger.
“Should I grab it?” My fingers hover over the cord to my badge. For some reason, it feels presumptuous not to bring it with me, yet I can’t explain why.
“You don’t need it,” Evan replies and pulls the door open, holding it so I can step out before him. It strikes me as odd, considering Griffin always seems to look out before we leave his room.
As we make our way down the empty hall, I turn my head and peer at Griffin. “Can I ask you something?”
“Anything.” He returns my gaze.
“When you would come to my room, why did it always feel like you were hiding it, like you didn’t want anyone to know you were there?” I push my hair back behind my ear, a little self-conscious that I felt the need to ask the question, but also a little proud that I went through with it.
Griffin keeps walking, but I notice the slightest change in his gait, as if I’ve thrown him with the question. “I didn’t want anyone knowing I was in your room.” Now it’s my turn to cover my falter. “But not for the reasons you think,” he continues.
“Then why?” We pass the elevator, and Evan leads us farther down the hall to the stairs.
Griffin stops and turns to face me. “That is a question I would rather answer when we have more time and I know our conversation will not be overheard,” he tells me, watching my face for a reaction.
As much as I want to know, I can at least respect his answer. I jerk my chin in a nod. “Okay, another time,” I agree, “but I’m going to hold you to that.”
“I would expect nothing less, Ms. Shaw.” Griffin gives me a minute smile, but his expression is no longer relaxed.
The cafeteria is still fairly busy when we enter. I purposely ignore the way the noise level drops a little and head right over to the buffet line. Griffin stays near my side, blocking me from view. You’d think it would help me feel hidden, but he draws even more attention than I do, so it feels almost counterproductive.
Evan is behind me, chatting easily with the servers in the line and piling his plate full of more food than I could eat in a day, let alone a single meal. I pause when I reach the end of the line, not sure if I should find a table or if we’re heading back to the room. Evan removes my lingering doubt when he motions to a table to the left. “Isn’t that your friend?”
I look up to see Ally. Her lips are spread in a wide grin, and the moment she notices me looking, she waves me over. “Great,” I mutter under my breath when I see who else is at the table.
“Do you mind?” I glance over my shoulder, looking to Griffin.
“By all means,” he says, but his voice is tight. I follow his gaze to the table where his eyes are trained. He’s giving Noah the evil eye.
I slowly start to move forward, but under my breath, I comment, “You look like you just ate a bad lemon.” Evan doesn’t try to cover his snort at my remark.
“Hey!” Ally calls, elongating the word.
“Hey back,” I reply, placing my tray on the table. I search everyone’s faces quickly before sliding a chair out to sit. Evan and Griffin take a seat on either side of me. I’m breathing kind of hard, even though I haven’t done anything to warrant it. I think it’s just adrenaline and nerves.
“Headmaster.” Millie dips her head and eyes in a greeting to Griffin. Her voice is a little breathy, almost awestruck. You’d think she’d be a little less obvious about her infatuation, considering she works for him and probably sees him almost as much as I do.
Griffin nods his head in response. I scoot my seat closer to the table and lower my gaze to my plate, feeling awkward about the exchange. Ally either doesn’t care or doesn’t pick up on the uncomfortable tension, and asks, “So, what have you guys been up to?” Her eyes are twinkling.
I clear my throat before scooping up a bite of mashed potatoes. “Not much, you?” My face feels like it’s hot, but there’s no reason it should be, which just makes me feel even more embarrassed about my reaction.
