Page 126 of Dare To Live

Eli’s intense gaze slides to mine. “Do you care about me, Arabella Gray?”

My cheeks flush with warmth. “I’ve never said I didn’t, Eli Travers.”

“If I can have your attention.” The booming voice of Principal Warren sends a hush through the room. “The school tour starts in ten minutes. If you would like to join us outside the cafeteria, we will break you into three groups to show you around.”

“Well, that’s my cue,” Miles discards his drink and rises from his chair. “I better go and get Ivan. He was interested in having a look around.”

“I thinking I’m going to sit this one out.” Garrett rakes a hand through his hair. “I’d rather explore alone than in a crowd.”

My attention turns to Eli. “It looks like it’s just you and me.”

His tongue snakes out to flick his lip ring. “You want to go on the tour?”

“Why not? It will be interesting to see what they’ve done. How things have changed.”

“If that’s what you want to do, then that’s our plan.”

Leaving our mugs on the table, we head out with the rest of the crowd. Principal Warren splits everyone into three groups. He guides one while two other teachers take the rest. Miles and Ivan end up with Mr. Bellamy. Eli and I are assigned to Miss Winters. Linda, Bret, and Jace are also in our party.

Eli takes my hand, threading his fingers through mine. “Why did you sneak away this morning?”

I hesitate for a second before answering. “Because I didn’t want you to think I was there for sex.”

Even though I’d just seduced you out in the dark on the bench by the cemetery. Even though I’d dared you to make yourself come. I don’t want you to know how aroused I’d been watching the video of you getting off afterward.

Eli frowns. “It never crossed my mind.”

I roll my eyes. “Sure, it didn’t.”

His expression doesn’t change. “For clarity, you’re saying you don’t want to have sex with me?”

My pulse speeds up, and I study his expression. “You’re very forward for someone I’ve just met, Mr. Travers.”

“I’m just wondering if I have a shot with you, Miss Gray.”

“Oh, I never said you didn’t.”

“If you would like to come this way, we’ll start with the library,” Miss Winters calls, her long red skirts swirling around her ankle boots as she moves. “We’ve made some improvements since you were last here.”

Everyone follows her, but we hang back, waiting until the rest of the group has gone ahead of us before walking behind them. Eli keeps a firm grip on my hand, and unlike yesterday, I don’t think it’s for support or reassurance.

“Do you think they know about the tunnels?”

He pulls me into his side as we walk across the grass. “I never mentioned them to anyone during the interviews and interrogations after. There seemed little point.”

“Neither did I. But they might have found them when they were restoring the place.”

Eli shrugs. “It’s possible.”

Did they discover the hidden door in the closet on my floor? The thought piques my curiosity for a moment, but I push it aside. Even if it is still there, do I want to go blindly sneaking around in the dark? Especially as it leads all the way to the tomb.

To my delight, the library hasn’t been as modernized as I’d feared. It still holds an old worldliness that captured my imagination when I was eighteen. There are rows and rows of dark wooden bookcases you could get lost in. The study area has been moved closer to the windows, and another space is clustered with leather chairs. A spiral staircase leads up to the second floor, which is full of more bookcases. It’s a bookworm’s wet dream.

As we pass one of the tables, Eli stops to pluck one of the bright, colorful flowers from a glass vase. He lifts it to his nose, then looks at me and smiles.

“What are you doing?”

With gentle fingers, he tucks the flower behind my ear. “There.”

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