[3]

“Hey, Bookworm!”

I closed my eyes for a second, biting back a groan. That voice—of course was hers. Daniella Johansen. The campus queen with a smile sweet enough for professors but sharp as glass for anyone she deemed beneath her.

I quickened my pace, head down, clutching my bag tighter. Every few steps, I pushed my glasses back up my nose, praying they wouldn’t fall. But the clicking of her heels grew louder, joined by the giggles of her two ever-present shadows.

“Don’t pretend you can’t hear me, Leah Bennett,” she drawled, her voice dripping with faux sweetness. “I just wanted to check in on the most diligent girl in the department. Still busy writing down every word the professors say?”

I didn’t look back. “Please, Daniella. I don’t want any trouble.”

“Oh?” She laughed softly, then gave my shoulder a little tap. “Trouble finds you even when you don’t ask for it, sweetheart.”

I sighed, exasperated. “What do you want?”

“Just a little help from you, Bookworm. What else?”

Her friends snickered behind her.

I bit the inside of my cheek, forcing myself to stay calm. But then one of them caught my wrist. “Look at her outfit, Dan. She looks like a lost high schooler.”

Their laughter echoed through the hallway. Daniella, meanwhile, extended a stack of papers toward me—paperwork I recognized immediately. The submission deadline was coming up. We shared a few classes, and she often “asked” me to do her assignments for her.

“I’m sure you know exactly what kind of help I mean,” she said with that too-bright smile, eyes gleaming with condescension.

I looked from the papers to her, silent, unwilling to play that game again.

“Come on, don’t make me wai—”

“Let her go.”

The voice cut clean through the noise. All of us turned. Ethan stood at the end of the corridor, face shadowed, stride purposefully. His hair was slightly tousled, his messenger bag slung over one shoulder—but the air around him was sharp enough to still the room.

“Hey, Ethan!” Daniella greeted her with forced brightness. “It’s been a while since we—”

“What do you think you’re doing?”

His tone was cold, his eyes narrowing at her.

“I wasn’t doing anything,” she said quickly, her confidence faltering.

Ethan didn’t buy it. He snatched the paperwork from my hand. “No one touches Leah,” he said evenly. “She works for me.”

Silence fell—heavy and immediate. His words dropped like stones in water. I froze. Works for him?

Daniella blinked, trying to recover. “Oh really? Since when?”

Ethan’s gaze hardened. “You talk too much, Daniella. Leave.”

That was all it took. She flushed, embarrassed, and turned on her heel, dragging her friends with her. But not before shooting me a glare full of venom.

When they disappeared around the corner, I spun toward Ethan.

“Works for you?” I crossed my arms, glaring. “Do you have any idea how that sounded?”

He raised a brow. “I just saved you.”

“By humiliating me in front of everyone?”

He took a step closer, slow and deliberate. “At least they won’t mess with you again.”

“I can handle myself, Ethan.”

He snorted softly. “Oh, that was obvious back there.”

I shot him for a look. “Thank you for the sarcasm.”

His expression cooled, eyes steady on mine. “You should be careful. People like them love finding easy targets.”

“And you just made me look easier than before,” I snapped.

A crooked smile tugged at his lips. “You really have a unique way of saying thank you, Leah.”

I rolled my eyes and turned to leave, but he caught my wrist.

“Hey—what now?”

“Talk. Just for a second.”

Before I could protest, he guided me down the hall and into the quiet of the library.

“Ethan, let go! I’m going to be late for class!”

But he didn’t listen. He kept walking, his grip firm and unrelenting. Honestly—what was this guy’s problem?

We turned down the corridor leading to the library, and he shoved the door open a little too roughly. At this hour, of course, the place was empty—silent except for the echo of our footsteps.

I nearly stumbled into a bookshelf when he stopped abruptly. He stood too close—so close I could feel the heat of his breath brushing against my skin.

“Ethan!” I tried to step back, but my shoulders hit the shelf behind me.

“Listen carefully, Leah,” he said quietly. His voice was low, almost a whisper, but edged with steel. “Don’t let anyone know you’re staying at my house. Understand?”

I blinked at him, confused. “Do you really think I want everyone to know?”

He gave a crooked smile, but it never reached his eyes. “You never know. People talk. You’ve heard my reputation.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh, please. Relax, Mr. Campus Celebrity. I have no intention of telling anyone that, as of last night, I happen to be living under your roof.”

My words wiped the smirk right off his face. His eyes darkened—not angry, exactly, but something close. Something that pressed against my chest and made it hard to breathe.

“If you’re done talking—”

Before I could finish, his hand shot forward. In one swift motion, he snatched the glasses off my face.

“Ethan!” I reached for them, but he held them just out of reach, studying me with sharp, unreadable eyes. I bit my lip and tried again, but instead of giving them back, he reached up and tugged loose the tie in my hair.

My hair fell over my shoulders in a slow, soft wave—and Ethan froze.

The air between us shifted, thick and electric. His gaze changed; the teasing was gone, replaced by something quieter, deeper. Confusion flickered there… and something else I couldn’t name.

Then his fingers brushed my cheek—tentative, trembling slightly—and every nerve in me went rigid. His eyes didn’t waver, didn’t stray, as if memorizing every inch of my face.

When his hand slid to the back of my neck, I could feel him pulling me closer. His breath fanned across my lips, warm and uneven. Standing there, I felt completely bare—as if his eyes alone could strip away every layer of me.

He leaned in, voice a whisper against my mouth. “So this is what you look like without your glasses, Leah.”

That broke whatever spell I was under. I snatched the glasses from his hand and glared at him. “Satisfied now?”

He didn’t answer. He just looked at me—speechless, like the words had left him.

I straightened my posture, forcing calm into my voice as I pushed him gently away and smoothed my hair. “For as long as I’m living in your house, I promise you won’t have to see me. Not once.” My heart was pounding, but I kept my tone steady. “Now go home, Ethan. Your mom probably worried about you.”

Then I turned and practically ran out of the library. My face was burning, though I wasn’t sure why—no, I knew why. Ethan and his reckless way of talking, of looking at me. What on earth had gotten into him?

But…

“Ah, Leah,” I muttered to myself as I leaned against the wall outside, slowing my steps down the staircase. There was no point hurrying to class now; I’d missed it anyway. And I desperately needed a moment to breathe.

“You must stay away from Ethan. No matter what. He’s too dangerous,” I warned myself under my breath.

Then again… who could honestly stay away from someone who looked like him?