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to the library and study hall, where students lounged in recliners, highlighting notes or typing away on laptops.
    I hadn’t noticed the students before, but now that I did, I couldn’t look away. A few looked unremarkable, but there was a sharpness about them that made me think of the phrase “a wolf in sheep’s clothing.” 
    And the rest — they were perfect. They had beautiful faces, sculpted bodies, and stylish outfits. Some looked younger than me, but most looked my age. I didn’t see anyone who appeared much older than me.
    Debbie patted my arm. “I’ll save the introductions for tomorrow. C’mon, I’ll show you the gym, and then I’ll let you get settled in.”
    The term “gym” was a bit of a misnomer. Connected to the main facility by a hallway, one of the satellite buildings was full of nothing but rooms equipped for a plethora of activities. We began on the third floor, which contained basketball and volleyball courts as well as a dance studio.
    On the second floor were two weight rooms — one with machines and the other full of benches and free weights. But most of this floor was taken up by an open room covered in mats.
    When we arrived on the ground floor, the air tasted musty. I could hear splashing before Debbie held the door open for me. Inside was an Olympic sized pool, and in it was a single occupant swimming up and down the length of it.
    Like all the other rooms, I assumed I’d take a cursory look and then we’d move on. So it surprised me when Debbie left my side and approached the edge of the pool. She dipped her hand into the water and waved it back and forth. By the looks of it, she was trying to get the swimmer’s attention.
    As soon as the swimmer began to slow down, she stepped back. He swam to the wall and placed his hands on the concrete lip of the pool.
    I tried not to stare as he pushed himself out, the muscles in his arms and shoulders bunching and straining.  Water slicked back his golden hair and dripped down his torso.
    Caden Hawthorne. It was a shock to see him here.
    He pushed himself out of the pool in one fluid movement, every bit of exposed skin just as tanned and toned as I thought it might be. “Deb-bie!” He scooped her into a wet hug and she squealed. “I didn’t know that was you.”
    “Caden, stop it,” she said, but even from here I could hear the laughter in her voice. “I brought your pair here to meet you — again.”
    I was moving before she’d even finished the words. My shock had morphed to anger. This was the cocky prick who’d foiled my escape and rubbed it in my face.
    Caden broke off the hug and turned to face me just as I closed the distance between the two of us.
    I threw my arms in front of me and shoved him hard. His eyes widened for a split second. And then he caught my wrists as he fell.
    I yelped and tried to pull away, but Caden’s hold on my wrists didn’t ease up. I felt my body propel forward along with his.
    Cuffed, groped, and now dunked underwater. This guy knew exactly how to humiliate me.
    Together we hit the water, and only then did he release my wrists. Chilly water enveloped me and I kicked away from him, gasping up for air and swimming to the wall.
    Above us Debbie called out, “It looks like you two are going to get along just fine. Caden take care of Ember; this is going to be a tough time for her.” She spoke as though I weren’t in the room.
    “Yes, ma’am,” Caden said.
    “I’ll see you two in Professional Profiling later this week,” she said, and then the sound of her footfalls gradually quieted.
    “ Hi princess,” he said, turning to me in the water, his hazel eyes intense.
    “Screw you.”
    The corner of his mouth lifted. “Feisty as ever, I see.”
    “Don’t pretend you know me,” I said, struggling to pull myself out of the water.
    Caden swam to the wall, and easily lifted himself out of the water.
    He turned to face me, and this close to him, I caught sight of crisscrossing white lines and