𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲𝐧 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 is far from perfect. Before starting her senior year of college, she's already guaranteed her position as the black sheep of her once prestigious family. To make matters worse, she took up bedding the rival family's eldest...
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𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒚𝒏'𝒔 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒔 𝒔𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒅 and started to claw viciously at her chest to escape. But she couldn't let them out. She couldn't move. Not her eyes and nor the rest of her body as she stood there, staring at Vivian until Vivian noticed by shifting her gaze from Michael. Watching it all occur felt as though someone had thrown a weight at her rib cage.
They'd locked eyes like this before. Vivian's eyes were bright, shining rounds of olive-toned hazel containing that same impression of bewilderment that Evelyn had seen during their first encounter in Jackie's office that fateful day. The difference now was that Jackie's relationship with Vivian was pushed far from the forefront of her mind. All Evelyn was thinking of was Michael. Her Michael. So why was this all happening again now?
She felt crazed. Hell, she probably looked it because seconds later, Vivian broke the stare and dropped her gaze, pretending to search for something in the handbag clutched to her side. Paranoia was still ringing loudly and shrilly in her head. She couldn't even swallow on account of the paralyzing swirl of emotion. Michael touched her arm, and desperately, she forced herself to revisit her date with him earlier in the week. How she'd accused him then almost let it become their end. He didn't deserve that now, or ever. And yet, her heart was hammering away in the tune of her suspicion as more questions started to crowd her thoughts, each one more hysterical.
"Evelyn," Michael said gently from behind her. She felt his grip on her wrist grow more firm. "Look at me."
With great effort, she drew in a breath and blinked, reluctantly pivoting to look back at him. He was frowning, those sweet, beguiling eyes alight with apparent concern. Beguiling seemed to be the quality of them that she was stuck on.
"You aren't with Jackie anymore," he told her. "You don't need to worry about Vivian or anyone else when you're with me."
Evelyn had no intent to, but she ignored him and found herself stealing another glance over at Vivian. Vivian was leaning against the wall beside Professor Taylor's office, studying the gold watch over her wrist, her other hand resting over her lower stomach. Evelyn's nerves began to set off that shrill alarm again. Did she always stand like that? What was she waiting for?
This time, Michael commanded all her attention. Both his hands seized her by the waist and pulled at it until she was turning to face him and back inside the tempting trap of his arms. She set her hands over his chest and tried to blink away the burn of upset that glossed her eyes. He seemed to notice and searched them intently. "C'mon, Eve," he pressed in a murmur. "Are you still worried about what people are gonna say about me if they see us together?"
"No." She forced a laugh then a lightness to her voice. "But you holdin' me like this in front of everybody right now means your reputation's through. So good luck backing out of this now."
"Right," he said in a playful huff and nodded, awarding her with a hint of his smile. It was only seconds before his features relaxed into seriousness again. "Really, what's the matter?"
