Page 68 of Break Points and Face Offs

I try for a laugh, but it comes out weird. “I’m fine.”

I hold his gaze—despite how hard it is—until he looks away first.

“Okay. Well, if you ever need to talk….”

“Sure,” I mutter.

He takes a big bite of his burger, getting sauce all over his mouth. He grins at me before wiping his face. I bite my tongue to stop from laughing.

“Pig.”

He closes his eyes and makes more of those ridiculous noises around his food.

I spot Will the second I step foot in the library. He’s set up on one of the long tables in the center of the room.

Books spread out around him, laptop open, head down focusing on something on the screen. I spot the cover of the book I took that first day and smile to myself. I must be smiling still when he looks up and spots me because his expression mirrors mine.

“Rosie,” he says, greeting me when I take the seat opposite his.

“William.”

We study for two hours in a companiable silence. I could be imagining it, but I can’t help but notice that when Will studies, his intensity matches my own. It helps to spur me on and I remind myself that good rivals make you better. Stop you from languishing in the wastelands of ‘good enough.’

When he gets up to leave, I ask him where he’s going.

“Work.”

“Oh, right.”

“Were you feeding off my life force or something, Rosie? Need me to be within ten feet for the dark magic to work?”

“Ha.”

He flashes me an attractive grin before he heads out. I spend the rest of my study session trying not to think about how good his ass looked in those jeans as he walked away.

I’m positively jittery before our next class. It could be the three cups of coffee I drank this morning after finding it impossible to sleep last night.

I consider sitting somewhere else, but when I walk into the classroom and find the seat next to Will not only empty but saved for me, I have no choice but to take it.

“Morning, Rosie.”

“Good morning, William.”

“How’d you sleep?” he asks.

“Fine,” I lie. “You?”

“Like a baby.”

When I sneak a glance in his direction, he really does look well rested. His warm, brown eyes are free of dark circles or unsightly bags. His light skin is annoyingly clear and bright. It only makes it worse that I lost sleep over our past interactions and he didn’t.

Thankfully, Professor Moreno walks into the room before he can ask me any awkward questions.

I find myself slipping into the background. Professor Moreno glances at me curiously a few times, as if waiting for me to jump in with something like usual. But I’m not in the mood to try and impress her. I spy my name at number two in both leaderboards and feel my heart sink.

Pull yourself together. You’re a Rosenthal, Rosenthals do not give up. They do not settle for number two.

I’m so relieved when Professor Moreno calls time on the class, I actually sigh.