Page 17 of Icebound Attraction

“Emily,” he murmurs.

The sound of my first name coming out of his mouth feels like a caress on my skin. And I hate that feeling!

I clear my throat and finally look up at him. His blue gaze is intense, and I can see he's searching for his words to tell me something, but he doesn't seem to know where to start.

“Hi,” I reply simply, trying to keep my voice even, even though my heart is racing.

Why does my body react to him in such an extreme way?

“Um... I'm sorry,” he says, rubbing his face.

His words trouble me, but I look at him unimpressed.

“Sorry for what?”

A strange silence suddenly settles between us. I can feel my throat going dry and my hands are starting to sweat.

“For ignoring you,” he finally says.

My jaw nearly drops, but I recover quickly.

“Ha... I hadn't noticed,” I say as casually as possible, but my voice probably gives me away.

He gives me a puzzled look and turns on his heels without adding anything, leaving me like an idiot to watch his back as he walks away. When his footsteps are far enough away, I drop my head on the table.

What the hell was that?

I try to concentrate again, but it's impossible now. Frustrated, I gather my things and set off for my room.

Liam Scott has apologized! Because he wants another sensational article? Because the coach gave him a talking-to? Because he feels stupid given that I praised him in what I wrote? Because...

Rha... This sucks! This guy sucks!

The scene in the library keeps replaying in my mind. No one has ever had such an effect on me. Until now, I'd hoped it was just wounded pride because he was ignoring me. But now I find it hard to deny. My whole body seems to be reacting to Liam.

Crap.

I can't let him destabilize me like that. I've worked hard to get here and now I have to concentrate fully on my studies. Losing my mind over a guy doesn't really help. Not to mention that he's already been with half of the university.

The ringing of my phone pulls me out of my thoughts.

“Hey Maddie!” I say, taking the call and trying to sound ‘normal’.

“Hi, beautiful! How are you? Am I interfering with your studies?” she asks mysteriously.

“Everything's fine! And no, I'm going back to the bedroom now.”

“Oh, good, I'm outside your door!”

As I make my way back to my building and up to my floor, I catch a glimpse of her. She waves and we hang up. Then she greets me with a big kiss on the cheek.

“It's time to introduce you to New York nightlife. We're going out tonight! And I forbid you to say no!” she declares, pushing me towards the front door of my room.

“But... but Maddie... I... No! I really must...” I stammer.

“Shush! Tonight, there are no rules: we're going to have the time of our lives!”

Oh, my God! She sounds so serious when she says that that I start to panic. Where the hell is she going to drag me? No rules? Sounds like a debauched hangout to me!

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