Jenna’s pen slipped in her fingers for the third time that morning.
She hated that it wasn’t because of nerves over the lecture itself, it was because Ryker wouldn’t stop staring at her. Every time she lifted her eyes from her notes, she caught him watching, sharp and deliberate, as though he was trying to peel back the walls she’d built since the day she walked away.
His voice carried across the hall, deep and smooth, yet threaded with something only she could hear.
“Now, as we all know, the respiratory system functions best when oxygen flows… unobstructed.” His gaze lingered a second too long. “Of course, sometimes the lungs tighten when we’re… under stress.”
Her shoulders stiffened.
“Oh, shut up,” she muttered under her breath, the words just for herself.
But of course, Ryker hear
