Wrong For Me

“I just … it’s not like your dad warned you, and I didn’t want to freak you out. You were so pumped for start, I didn’t wanna ruin it. I know how much you hate him.”

“My dad not telling me is another story. And I don’t hate him. He’s just … difficult to be around.”

Rowan’s hands find my upper arms, and he spins me to face him, his caramel eyes weary and flitting between mine. “How so?”

A laugh bubbles out of me. “How so? Seriously? Row, all he ever does is try to make me feel like a fool. If he does that here, tries to undermine me in front of everyone, the other instructors might start to question my abilities. I won’t have that. The staff respects me—and not because of my dad. I earned it. I don’t want his perception of me to ruin that.”

“So, avoid him,” he tells me, his forehead pinched.

“How exactly do you expect me to do that? Apparently, he replaced Reff, meaning he and I are basically partners.”

“Partners?”

My brows lift slightly, and I nod.

“Shit.” He licks his lips and glances away and then back.

I eye him. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He nods, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, I’m good.”

With a small smile, I tilt my head, placing my hand on his chest. “Spill it, Row. What’s going on?”

The hard thud of the door hitting the wall has our heads turning in that direction, finding Alec standing there with a blank expression.

He looks from me to my hand on Rowan’s chest and back, his eyes taking on a hardened glare. With his jaw set tight, his hands form fists at his sides.

I didn’t notice, but Rowan must have moved closer because when I try to pull my hand back, I find it’s stuck between us.

I lift my gaze to Rowan, finding his eyes tight around the edges, his focus on the other man in the room.

I feel like I’m missing something here …

As if I spoke it out loud, Alec breaks his frozen state and drops a large file on my desk, one I didn’t even realize he’d taken. “There’s no date next to the signature on this guy’s clearance papers. He shouldn’t have been allowed to start today.”

“That’s not possible.” With a shake of my head, I squeeze past Rowan, flipping open the folder to the page in question. “I triple-checked every … shit.”

Alec scoffs, “If you’re too distracted with other things, perhaps this job isn’t for you.”

I turn my scowl on him.

Who the hell does he think he is? Where the hell does he think he is?

Blaze or not, this is my zone. He just happens to be standing in it.

“I’m great at what I do. And you know good and well, admin isn’t in my job descrip—”

“Isn’t it?” he cuts me off, raising a brow. “Your signature’s all over these forms.”

Fuming, I stand tall. “Like any professional trying to run an advanced program, I like order. To get it, I oversee as much as possible, as precaution, to smooth shit out, so I can focus on other things, like the success of the recruits. So, yes, you will see my name all over because I refuse to allow this academy to lack in any area. We’re highly sought out for a reason.”

He stares, those green of his eyes burning into me. My cheeks heat, but I refuse to look away. His tricks are getting old.

After a few moments, he gives a doubtful, “We’ll see.”

“Don’t be a dick, Alec,” Rowan spits out, speaking for the first time.

Alec’s gaze slices to him, anger rolling off him, but he doesn’t say a word.

There’s crazy tension between these two, and while I wish I knew why, time’s ticking.

“Rowan”—I look to him—“you should go.”

He turns his glare on me. “You’re not coming?”

“We talked about this. Day one, remember?”

His frown deepens, and he licks his lips, nodding. “Right.”

“Did you … need something?” I ask him.

He stares at me for a moment and then laughs lightly. “Nah. I’m good. Call me tonight.”

I nod, my eyes widening when his lips land at the corner of my mouth rather than on my cheek, like normal.

Too stunned to react, I nod again.

He walks backward toward the door, shifting his eyes to Alec. “See you around, Teach.”

Still, Alec doesn’t respond. He just watches as the door shuts behind Rowan.

Now that we’re alone, I spin to face him. “How dare you question me and my rank.”

“What rank? You’re here, wasting away your hard work—”

“Don’t act like you know shit about what I’m doing!”

He takes a step closer, and my spine straightens.

“I don’t see you taking jobs, like a true Blaze would.”

“Don’t push me, Alec, or I might just push back.”

A slow smirk stretches across his lips. “Bettin’ on it, Oakley. Bettin’ on it.”It’s eight before I see him again.