Page 58 of Pages of Amber

His arms tightened around her, encasing her in his warmth. Butterflies swarmed her stomach, a beautiful addition to the stars above their head, the fresh air in her lungs and the happiness in her heart.

“As you wish, m’lady.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

THE DOOR SLIPPED OUT of her grasp, sending a loud thud through the library’s entrance. Amber winced as Mrs. Filch popped out from behind the librarian’s desk, her glare sharp and intense through the glass of her spectacles.

“You’re in the library. Keep it down,” she hissed.

“Hi, Mrs. Filch. Sorry about that.” With an apologetic wave, Amber skittered past the table. The older woman got vicious when anyone disobeyed the library rules. A few students who snuck in snacks and drinks last year were thumped on their heads with bulky Biology textbooks when Mrs. Filch caught them. Their parents found it hard to defend their children’s behavior against Mrs. Filch’s argument of ‘degenerate and unruly children running amuck in the sanctuary of knowledge and learning.’

Amber didn’t want to be the next victim of the old librarian’s textbook beating. She turned past the aisles, easily navigating her way to the table that she, Noah, Evelyn and Emmett had shared for the past weeks. Amber had never thought she would enjoy studying, but her unlikely pairing with Noah had been more than a blessing in disguise. In the course of three weeks, she’d earned Emmett and Evelyn’s friendship, met Noah’s amazing mom, had an adventurous day at Coney Island and had been kissed in a meadow under a beautiful night sky.

Her cheeks heated fiercely at the memories. Why did the library feel hotter now? She tilted her head to see the air conditioning units were on full blast. Amber approached the table, fanning her hand across her skin.

“Everything okay?” Evelyn asked. She was seated at the table, her books open. Two bags sat at her elbow but Emmett and Noah were nowhere to be seen.

“Yeah, it’s fine,” she answered, taking a seat beside her.

“You look flustered, and you keep fanning yourself. Are you sure?”

Amber slowed the motion of her hand. She blushed deeper under Evelyn’s probing. “I’m fine, Eve,” she squeaked unconvincingly.

Evelyn shot her a puzzled look. Before she could ask anymore, Emmett strolled up the table, dropping a textbook. “Hey, Amber,” he greeted.

“Hey. What’ve you got there?”

He groaned, flipping open the book. “Mr. Tiller wants to give us a pop quiz before the midterms. I’m gonna have to study before the real exams. I don’t have the brain space for that with the football game on Saturday.”

“You don’t have the brain space for a lot of things,” Evelyn sniggered.

Emmett shot his sister a glare, but surprisingly stayed quiet. Amber dropped her notes. “Noah isn’t here yet?”

Emmett shook her head. “He got held up. Gave me his bag and said he’ll be right behind me.”

Amber nodded. “Great. I have a few questions on a topic. His tutoring has been way more helpful than I thought.” She never guessed she would be able to admit that.

“Noah said you’re both almost done working on the assignment.” Evelyn lifted her hair into a bun. The brown strands swept up gracefully creating a perfect hairstyle.

“We’re practically done. I keep forgetting to take it off my reading table and put it into my bag. I would have submitted it already.”

“Or maybe your subconscious doesn’t want you to submit it cause you’d miss us.” Emmett smirked, his eyes on the textbook as he flipped a page.

Amber’s brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

“Yeah, what do you mean?” Evelyn echoed, narrowing her gaze on her twin in a warning that completely went over his head.

“The assignment was what brought you and Noah together in the first place, right?” He began. “We never would’ve gotten to hang out with you or become friends if it wasn’t for that. An inner voice might be telling you that when you submit the assignment, there won’t be a reason to hang out with us anymore. Especially Noah, seeing as you couldn’t stand him at all before.”

An odd feeling crawled into her chest. There hadn’t been an inner voice, but suddenly there was one now. Whispering in her ear and sinking dread into her stomach.

“Plus,” Emmett continued, scratching at his chin. “You did well on your part of the deal that Noah has his plate full with student body responsibilities. Both students and teachers have been meeting with him. He’s swamped which means he probably won’t have time to argue with you. You’ll be free to avoid him.”

The sinking feeling worsened and Amber clutched at her skirt beneath the table. She wasn’t only going to lose Evelyn and Emmett, but Noah too?

“Ow.” Emmett yelped, clutching onto his ankle. “What was that for?”

“I think you’ve said enough.” Evelyn side-eyed him. “Stop trying to get into Amber’s head when you know that won’t happen. Amber is our friend now and she’s not going anywhere.”

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