he was dressed in jeans

He was dressed in jeans, boots, a black t-shirt that hugged his chest, and his customary sunglasses.

My heart leapt. I was so happy to see him that my whole body buzzed with anticipation –

But a second after my heart jumped in my chest, it seized with fear.

Our previous encounter last night in my room – temporarily forgotten because of Riley’s antics – reared up in my memory like some monstrous shadow.

Derek seemed to have no such qualms, though. He just ambled over to the table, sat down between Riley and Ryan, and reached for a plate.

He didn’t even look at me.

It was like a punch to the gut.

“I’m assuming that chick out in the hallway was yours, Riley,” he said as he piled on eggs and bacon.

“Whose else would it be?” she snorted. “Nobody else in here gets any pussy.”

“Jesus, Riley,” Ryan groaned, “I’m eating.”

“See? He’s too much of a pussy to even talk about pussy. And don’t even get me started on Mary Jane over there.”

She was obviously referring to Killian. He ignored her and k