**(Kayden's Perspective)**
Seeing Leah run after that Windsor guy the moment class ended made my skin crawl. After some half-hearted chatter with Mike, I slipped away, unconsciously tracking her scent in the air—a hint of antiseptic from the nurse's office mixed with her own wild-strawberry sweetness. It was easy to find her curled up in the stairwell alcove, looking like a drenched kitten.
"Hey," I said, leaning against the wall opposite her. "Chat with His Highness not go well?"
She looked up, eyes slightly red but defiant. "None of your business."
That wounded look hit me right in the chest. **Screw it.** I walked over, crouched down to her eye level. "Leah Miller. I like you. I'm not joking. I knew you were different from the moment you bumped into me on the first day of school."
