"You don't have to do this, Jace," I said, my voice barely cutting through the heavy rumble of the rain slacking against the glass doors.
"I'm not letting you walk across campus alone in a freezing downpour, Violet," he muttered, his voice dropping into that low, gravelly register that always managed to bypass my defenses. He pushed the heavy glass door open, holding a massive black golf umbrella over us the exact second the icy air hit our faces. "Come here. Closer, so you don't get soaked."
I hesitated for a fraction of a second before stepping into his space. The sheer size of him completely blocked out the wind. Walking under the umbrella meant our shoulders were locked together, our arms brushing with every single step. The clean, sharp scent of his soap mixed with the petrichor of
