“I told you I was looking for a number.” The big fat lie pours from my lips.

“What number?” His jaw clenches.

“A friend?” I don’t mean for it to sound like a question, but dammit, it does.

“Whose name is…?” He waits, his eyes darkening.

“Ana,” I blurt without thinking.

He doesn’t say a word, and the conflict between us only gets thicker. I’m too proud to admit I was rifling through his office in search of evidence of his affection for another woman. Any other woman. I wanted to find something to bolster my campaign of not letting him back in. Something to fuel my ire and prove that he’s a jerk of a liar just like me. But I found nothing. Not a single goddamned thing. And even though that doesn’t mean he can be trusted, it means holding on to my anger is becoming increasingly difficult.

“Who the fuck is Ana?” he growls.

My eyes snap back to his, and I give him the pathetic excuse I hope won’t rouse his suspicion. “She’s my aerial instructor. I just wanted to tell her I’m sorry I haven’t been to class. That’s all.”

Judge doesn’t quite look like he believes that, but something of an amused twitch curls his lip as the car comes to a stop unexpectedly.

“Funny you mention it.” He nods to the familiar street outside. “You can tell her today.”

My mouth falls open, and I stare at him in disbelief. “You’re taking me… to class?”

He glances at his watch to hide his discomfort at the excitement in my voice. “You better hurry. You’re going to be late.”

“Okay, this is weird,” Solana mumbles from her position on the silks beside me, eyeing the four guards standing on the street outside the studio before her gaze drifts back to Judge.

He’s currently parked against the wall, his eyes on me as I shimmy farther up the aerial silk and then twist my body into an inverted bow pose. God, that feels good.

“Why does he look like he’s about to have a heart attack?” Solana asks.

“Probably because he is.” I smirk, flipping my body back upright and transitioning to splits.

Judge doesn’t do well with situations he can’t control, and it’s obvious by the stiff expression on his face now, that’s exactly what’s happening. It hasn’t escaped my attention that he’s been inching closer and closer since class began, trying to appear a casual observer although he’s clearly ready to spring into action at any moment should I slip.

For a minute, I amuse myself with thoughts of pretending to do just that, slipping down the silk and watching him jump to my rescue. But those thoughts are quickly doused with the reality he’d probably never let me come back to class again.