Page 44 of The Burning Shadow (Origin 2)

Jensen smiles knowingly, to which I raise a brow, the heat in my cheeks rising. Oh, my god… did they talk? Of course they did. They’re practically brothers. I know the detail Foxy and I go into, so surely the beans are spilled.

Disregard it, that is not important.What he just said about Riggs is what deserves my attention.

“I’m sorry, what?” I ask, directing my body towards my next class, creative writing, where I’ll see Riggs. He wasn’t in physics this morning. He sent me a text saying he wasn’t feeling the best, but he would be here this afternoon. It bummed me out, to say the least, but not because he wasn’t there. I wanted to be there by his side to help him through his panic attack, to be the one he called for help.Baby steps.I remind myself. He was doing so well lately. I couldn’t get upset because he’d called Jensen first. One day, sure, but right now, no. I texted him as much as I could until he finally told me he was fine and went to lie down.

“Yeah. I mean, I’ll let him tell you, but I just wanted to say thank you for not giving up on him. I know it’s hard.”

“I don’t know if I could ever give up on him, even if I wanted to.” Jensen’s stop is abrupt as he pulls me into his arms. Trapped with my arms around my books, I can’t hug him back, so I’m awkwardly stuffed into his massive chest. It’s a nice chest, no argument there. He doesn’t linger long, then backs away and I tilt my head back to level his eyes.

Jensen is one of those people that is a pillar of strength, always. He loves hard for the people around him and never asks for anything in return, the one who remembers everyone’s birthdays, even if they have no clue when his is. If anything bothers him, he never lets it show. But before I look away, his stormy gray eyes flicker with emotion. I’m not sure which, maybe a mix of sad admiration and appreciation. I hate that Riggs’ life has been so hard that my love makes his friend feel some kind of way.

It’s sad, really.

“He needs people in his life. I just wish he wasn’t so damn stubborn and would let us in,” he remarks, falling into step with me. Jensen’s long stride quickly sets the pace we take as we make our way down the hallway.

“Give it time,” I say, my confident words surprising me. “I think he will be okay.”

Jensen watches me out of the corner of his eye as if he is unsure of what I just said. “He’s been a work in progress for a long time…”

“Haven’t we all?”

He huffs an agreeing laugh. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Right about what?” a sexy but tired voice says as a rather fresh-faced Riggs approaches us. My instinct is to deposit myself in front of him and wrap my arms around him, but I’m still in a phase where I don’t know what I’m going to get with him. A phase we need to work through soon because I’m not sure how long I can hold myself back. Riggs and Jensen pound fists and when he turns his icy blue gaze on me, it isn’t icy at all.

It’s warm and inviting, and for him, I hope his troubles have stepped out for the moment. Hell, I even get a little tingly inside, thinking that I could be the reason for his clarity. A girl can hope, right?

The words he whispers next give me a chill and I fight a shudder. “I know how much you hate this place, but have I ever told you how much this uniform makes me want to find a supply closet?”

“Riggs,” I murmur, suddenly feeling shy and a bit exposed. I smooth my hands down my obnoxious skirt. Now that I know how Riggs views it, it might not be that annoying.

Jensen mumbles his goodbye that is loaded with amusement and continues down the hall.

“What? I’m just being honest. Honesty is the best policy, no?” My hand slaps his shoulder playfully, and he gives an exaggerated flinch. “Come here.”

For the second time today, familiar arms sweep me up. His sweet candy scent invades me and I melt into him. His lips find mine, sending a thrill through my body. If this is our hello ritual, I’m down.

We keep the kiss classy, though. Eyes are all around us and I’m sure they’d like a show, but I’m not trying to draw unnecessary attention to us with Jonas’ sort of psycho walking around.

“For real, want to sneak away and find a supply closet?” I fake being appalled when really this frisky side to Riggs has me heated.

“Class, Jester. Now.” I click my fingers and point down the hall.

His expression flattens and his shoulders slump, but he links his hand with mine and leads the way to class. I may or may not have lagged a bit just to see the way his hips sway with his drawn out, lazy gait. “Wait, where’s your jacket and gloves?”

Why is everything about him so yummy?

“Hitched a ride with Kaiser.”

“Kaiser,” I snicker. “He’s gonna kill you for calling him that.”

“When he stops calling me Riggsy, then I’ll stop calling him Kaiser.” When he glances over his shoulder, the mischief in his eyes barely conceals his grief. Riggsy was what Gramma called him.

“Fair enough.”

Five seconds later, I’m shoved through a doorway into darkness. Riggs pulls his phone out and turns the flashlight on, then sets it with the light facing up on a shelf to our left. His eyes find me in the dim, hazy light. He’s wearing a smile.

“Riggs, what are you doing?”