“Haven’t you?” she challenged.

“Yes,” I said.

“And yet you’re allowed to be here and I’m not?” There was a tease in her tone, but I held my hands up.

“Not what I meant.”

She popped her hip to the side, which only drew my attention to the sexy black jeans she wore tucked into a pair of silver Converse. I hadn’t seen her outside of school that much, but when I did? Damn, I couldn’t get enough of those glimpses of the real her—the pixie not buried underneath the school’s uniform.

“You seem to do that a lot,” she said, and I snapped my eyes back up to hers.

“What?”

“Say one thing and mean another.”

I shook my head. “Now you’re just twisting things.”

She shrugged. “I call it how I see it.”

“That’s not—”

“Dean,” Tessa cut me off. “Can you let the girl get her food on?”

I cut my sister a glare before glancing back at Amber. “Of course,” I said. “I’ll have what she’s having, but make the order for here.”

Amber smiled before forcing those pink lips into a line. “I’ve got to get home.”

“Why?” I cocked a brow at her. “Working late again in an attempt to beat me?”

Tessa hissed. “You didn’t get into a bet with him, did you?” she asked Amber, pity in her eyes.

Amber tipped her chin, her gaze churning with a sliver of light. Something I only now realized hadn’t been present for the past five minutes.

“Where did you come from?” I asked before she could answer my sister.

She tilted her head, ignoring me. “Yes, I did,” she said to Tessa. “And I’m going to kick his ass.” The bite in her tone made my insides all kinds of hot, and I laughed.

Tessa grinned, reaching over the counter to give Amber a fist bump. “Nice,” she said. “If there’s anything I can help with to take him down, let me know.” She leaned farther over, lowering her voice. “I’ve got tons of dirt on him.”

I gaped at her. “I’ll take that mocha back now.”

“No take-backs.” She punched in our orders.

I rolled my eyes, returning focus to Amber, who was pulling out her wallet. “Stop,” I said. “I’ve got this.”

“I told you earlier, flattery won’t throw me off my game.”

“No games. I just want to buy you some food. The least you can do is sit and eat with me.”

She chewed on the corner of her lip, a habit I wasn’t even sure she was aware of. I held my breath, wondering why whatever her answer would be was so damn important to me. I’d see her tomorrow. We’d already established that. So why was I dying for another hour?

Maybe it’s that look in her eyes.