JESSICA'S POV
The library carrel was supposed to be my safe place. A tiny wooden cube where I could hide from the world and pretend my life wasn't the main topic of campus gossip. I had my textbook open, but the words blurred on the page. I couldn't focus. Not when my skin was still buzzing from Julian's almost-touch and I could feel Cassian's watchful presence like a ghost in the room.
Two girls slipped into the carrel next to mine. Their voices were low but I could hear them clearly through the thin divider.
"...no, I'm serious, Chloe. I heard it from Amanda, who heard it from her roommate in Professor Vale's advanced lit class. She said the tension between him and the new girl is so thick you could cut it with a knife."
I froze, my pen hovering above my notebook. The new girl. That
