Page 57 of Forged in Flames (Made of Steel 2)

"Fair enough," Liza said.

"I'm glad you think that's funny." V folded his arms across his chest.

"I can help you fine tune some of your security if you'd like."

"You're welcome to everything here. I can show you Athena too," V said.

"Great." Liza's cheeks turned slightly red as she pushed her glasses up her nose. "Is now a good time?"

He nodded. "Unless there's anything else we need to go over? Liza and I can do a little more digging about the mysterious Sadie Davis countdown and Mr. Crawford."

I was pretty sure I had just witnessed how Liza asked someone out on a date. V didn't seem to believe me when I told him Liza had a crush on him. But it was completely obvious to me and he had just unknowingly agreed to a date with her. Or maybe he did it knowingly. I was surprised when a small twinge of jealousy seared through me. What is wrong with me? V had already told me that we could just enjoy our borrowed time together. And I had already decided that I was putting the brakes on that. Either way, I didn't want to stick around to watch Liza flirting with him the rest of the night.

"Sounds good," Eli said. "We should probably get going anyway. I have an early class tomorrow." He stood up. "You ready to go, Summer?"

"I'm actually staying here."

Eli laughed. "Come on, I'll walk you home."

"No, I mean, I brought all my stuff. I'm staying here for the next few days. Just until we figure out what's going on with Sadie Davis." I didn't want this to turn into a fight. It wasn't that I didn't feel safe when I was with Eli or anything like that. I bit the inside of my lip. Or was that exactly the reason why I preferred staying here?

"You can just spend the night at my place. It's not a big deal."

"She's not leaving," V said. "We'll see you tomorrow, same time."

It looked like Eli was going to argue, but he immediately closed his mouth before any words came out.

I let go of the breath that I had been holding.

Eli leaned down and whispered in my ear. "Call me if you feel at all uncomfortable. I know that you trust this guy, but we don't know who he is. Just say the words and I'll be back." He placed a soft kiss against my cheek.

And for the first time, I didn't feel the flames. I wasn't sure if it was because I finally knew who

he really was or because my feelings had shifted. For some reason, though, I wasn't at all sure that it was a good thing.

"Goodnight everyone," Eli said with a wave.

"Night!" Liza said cheerily. "So, um, about the processors..." her voice trailed off as she stared at V. She ran her fingers through her hair and they got caught in the tangles halfway down and she had to awkwardly pull her hand out.

Smooth.

V turned to me. I wasn't sure if he was going to invite me to do more research with them, but I cut him off before he got a chance to say what was on his mind.

"Is it alright if I head up to the roof?"

He eyed me curiously. "Why?"

"I just...want some fresh air."

"You're welcome to join us," he said.

"Psh." Liza waved her arm. "It's just boring stuff. And we can handle the rest of the research. Right, V? Have fun on the roof!" she quickly added before V could respond.

I stood up before V could try to get me to stay, partially wondering if he even wanted me to. I shook my head to try to rid that jealous feeling that was creeping into my mind. Earlier today I had told him he should date Liza. Maybe he was following my own stupid advice.

"Have a good evening, Sadie," Athena said as I approached the exit. The window slowly rose in front of me.

"Um, thanks, you too," I said awkwardly and looked up at the speaker above my head. That was the first time she had ever been nice to me. Maybe she just took some time to adjust to people. I turned around to see if maybe V had told Athena to say that.

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