Page 2 of Burn for You (Flirting with Forever 3)

Madison blows out a breath as she covers my hand with hers on the table. “And no one is bringing up the elephant in the room.”

“Since when is Damon an elephant?” Hadleigh giggles. “He’s more like a stud. A very sexy stud.”

“That man is like a force of nature.” Quinn eyes me carefully. “He definitely knows what he wants and goes after it.” Her lips tug up on one side in a grimace. “I hope he doesn’t railroad you out of the position.”

Zoey winces at the idea, absentmindedly playing with the locket on her necklace. “How well do you get along? I mean, your schedules are identical—you must spend your lunch and planning period together almost every single day.”

“Meh. He likes to argue.” I shake my head with a pained groan. “And he thinks he’s always right. Always knows the best course of action to take. Always knows how to fix a problem. It’s kind of frustrating most of the time.”

Sophia taps her chin with her fingertip, smiling. “You know that’s because you think you’re right.”

I wave my hands in exasperation. “Hello? That’s because I am. He’s one of those ridiculous alpha males who refuses to believe any way but their way might be right.”

Hadleigh looks to be on the verge of laughter. “Well, personally, I don’t know how you do it. I try not to look at him while I’m in the workroom with him.”

My brow furrows. “What? Why not?”

She giggle-snorts. “I’m afraid I’ll get pregnant. He seems … virile.”

I roll my eyes. “Ugh, stop. He’s such a pain in my ass right now.”

“Well, if there’s anything we can do to help you, let us know.” Sophia shrugs her slim shoulders.

Quinn sets down her coffee mug with a thump. “Well, I can’t wait to see how this all plays out.”

“I can’t believe I have a front-row seat to the whole thing right there in our workroom.” Hadleigh hides her smile with her hand, then throws me an apologetic glance.

I’m glad she’s amused. She’d better hope as the competition heats up between Damon and me that it doesn’t blow up right in our faces or she’ll get caught in the fallout.

“You’re way too giddy about it, Had. Let’s talk about something else. I’m just … done.”

From the way the quiet settles over our table, I can tell they know I’m a little thrown by the whole conversation.

Madison clears her throat. “Um. So, who wants to go try out the new barre class at the gym after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays? They’ve got a new instructor and I thought it sounded kind of fun.”

“Wait, what kind of class?” I wrinkle my nose. Bar class?

“You know, barre—like ballet for non-ballerinas.”

Multiple pairs of eyes around the table finally light with understanding.

“I used to do ballet. Sounds fun to me.” Quinn nods and sets down her mug. “I’m in.”

I squint at her, my lips pursed. “And you have the body for it, too—all tall and skinny.”

“Piper, you have a banging body. What are you moping about?” Hadleigh frowns, her forehead creasing.

Zoey pokes me in the upper arm. “Yeah, you’re adorable.”

I pout and point down at my sides. “My hips. I’ve never liked ’em. I swear, if I’d lived a century ago, I would have made, like, twenty babies.” My hands clench for a second before they release.

We all look at each other before we start snickering. Through our gales of laughter, I hear Madison whisper-shout, “She’s got birthing hips!” More giggles ensue.

Once we’ve finally calmed, Hadleigh gives me her signature naughty grin. “That’s a lot of babies, Piper. Sounds like you need to find the right man for that job.”

My hand freezes on my mug. I feel a tiny bit like a bad friend since I haven’t shared Prof.M. with them yet, but I’m just not ready. My body steadily warms as I think about the man who’s been making me laugh and smile lately, and I wonder what he’s like …

In bed.

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