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I practically sprinted back to Brandon’s room and quickly slipped inside. The noise from the running sink and flushed toilet more than covered my escape.

Back beneath the sheets, I stared up at the ceiling for a long time. What I’d just seen was thrilling. Exciting. In more ways than one.

And you want it…

“No,” I tried convincing myself with a nervous chuckle. “I most certainly do not.”

But even as I pulled the pillow over my ears and rolled onto my side?

I knew I was lying.

Nine

BRANDON

My alarm split the morning silence at exactly 5:30. Way too soon. It was going to take a while to get used to it — practicing before and after classes — but it was nothing I hadn’t done before. Nothing I couldn’t—

A spike of pain shot through my back. Why the hell was I sleeping on the floor? Did I fall out of bed?

I looked up at my perfectly made bed. Too perfect. Whoever was responsible had even tucked in the corners.

Ahhhh… that’s right!

It came back to me all at once. Last night. The rainstorm. Claudia, showing up crying. It all made sense.

I checked the entire upstairs for her before heading down. Voices in the kitchen told me Colin and Hunter were both up.

“Hey,” I said, stumbling in. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Looked around.

Still no Claudia.

“Hey yourself,” Hunter said. Was there a hint of sarcasm in his voice?

Colin squinted at me suspiciously over a bowl of oatmeal. That was his daily routine: oatmeal, sometimes with fruit. Never with sugar. Never with milk. It was his way.

“You uh, got anything to tell us?”

“Yeah,” I muttered. “But coffee first.”

I reached for the coffee pot. I saw two.

“Fine,” I said. “Claudia showed up here last night and—”

A pair of hands grabbed me by my shoulders and threw me up against the kitchen wall. Hunter jammed his face forward, his nose an inch from mine.

“We saw her leave,” he growled. “She said she slept in your room!”

I knocked his hands away. It was easy, even as strong as he was.

“She did.”

His expression was all anger. Rage. Jealousy.

Jealousy?

“We talked about this!” he screamed into my face. “We all agreed we wouldn’t hit on the pretty landlord, remember? Much less—”

“I didn’t!” I cried out. “I swear!” I winced as I moved a hand up to rub at my very stiff neck. “I slept on my own floor!”