Page 22 of Sunflower Persona
“But they seem close.”
“Oh, they are, but not like that. Which brings me back to him watching you.”
“He wasn’t watching me.”
“Sure, and I’m not—”
“Hey, Kor,” Gage cuts in as we step off the mat. After a second, he adds, “Evelyn,” but he doesn’t glance in her direction.
Maybe she was on to something, because I could burn alive from the heat in his gaze.
“Have fun, girl. I’ll catch you in striking Thursday,” my new friend says as she scurries away.
“So what did you think?” he asks once we’re alone.
“It was…”
“You hated it, didn’t you?” His brow furrows and his lips purse into a scowl.
“No. I didn’t hate it,” I say in a rush. It’s a lie, but I’ll say anything to get that unguarded look back on his face.
“But…”
“It wasn’t what I was expecting. Warm-up sucked, but the rest wasn’t so bad.”
“‘Wasn’t so bad’ isn’t the same as enjoying it.”
“I liked Evelyn.”
“But that’s the only thing,” he concludes.
“Yeah,” I say with a defeated sigh.
I wanted to love this place like he does.So much for finding a common interest.
“You aren’t going to offend me if you decide this isn’t for you.”
“But—”
“Seriously. No hard feelings. And if you like Evelyn, you should come to Cutter’s tonight. I’m working, but the whole crew is coming out for a few drinks.”
Nervous energy dances under my skin, begging me to claw at it for some relief. Evelyn, I can deal with. But the whole crew? That means Karis will be there. And the other man from before—the one with the flirty smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. And those are only the ones I know. He could have a dozen more friends, and I doubt they want anything to do with me.
“I’m not sure.” I run a hand over my other arm, pinching and twisting the flesh with each pass to help ground me.
“Hey,” he says and catches my hand in his massive one before it can do any more damage.
The all-encompassing heat soothes the swarming nerves into a dull buzz. His thumb runs along the back of my hands, straightening out my tense fingers one at a time until they relax back into their neutral state.
“No pressure. Think about it, all right? I’m sure Evelyn would be thrilled if you came.”
“Okay.” I can at least promise to think about it.
The corner of his lips curls in the smallest hint of a smile before he drops my hand.
“Let me walk you out.”
All I can do is nod. If I open my mouth, I’ll say something stupid and ruin whatever this is. He stays a step behind me as he walks me to the door, too far to touch, but close enough my whole body tingles with awareness.
