Val had spent the night again. At this point, I couldn't even bring myself to say, "Go home, Val," without feeling like the world's biggest villain. Not with everything going on at her place. The thought of her walking back into that house—back into all that tension with Lucien—sat wrong with me. So I let her stay. No questions, no pushback.
So, another night. Another morning. And now, another day walking into campus with her attached to my side like she belonged there.
Her hand looped through my arm, grip light but possessive. She always walked like she didn't care about the people around us, like the entire campus was her personal runway. I should've been used to it by now, but sometimes I still caught myself noticing the looks we got—admiration, jealousy, whispers I didn't bother tuning into.
We'd barely made it past the main entrance when a familiar voice cut through the noise.
