Chapter 5 Knight With Conditions

LIORA

The headache was back, sharp, and vicious, like my skull was splitting in half. Another night of nightmares I couldn’t remember, only the cold dread that clung to me as I stepped out of North Hall.

I tugged uselessly at my uniform skirt, trying to keep it from riding up my thighs, and kept my head down. Another day in this prison.

The quad buzzed with laughter and chatter, but no one walked with me. No one ever did.

Those bright blue eyes from last night kept flashing in my mind. Watching me through the balcony glass. I’d woken up screaming, convinced someone had been there. But the balcony was empty.

Just stress, I told myself. Nothing more.

I turned the corner near the old oak tree—

A leg shot out.

I crashed forward, books flying, palms scraping hard against the stone path. Pain flared across my knees.

Laughter exploded around me.

“Watch where you’re going, bitch,” Damian Cross sneered, flanked by Sloane and his usual crew.

Heat flooded my face. I pushed myself up slowly, ignoring the sting, and started gathering my scattered notes. My head throbbed worse now.

Damian kicked one of my textbooks farther away. “You think sitting with Ryder makes you untouchable? You’re still nothing. One wrong move and I’ll—”

“Back off.”

The voice cut through the air like a blade.

Everything went quiet.

Ryder Russo stood a few feet away, hands in his pockets, those same intense blue eyes locked on Damian. His presence sucked all the oxygen out of the quad.

Damian straightened, bravado cracking. “This doesn’t concern you, Russo.”

“It does now.”

Ryder stepped forward, crouched down, and picked up my last notebook. When he handed it to me, his fingers brushed mine — warm, steady. That faint scent of cedarwood and vanilla wrapped around me.

Our eyes met.

For a second, it felt exactly like the balcony. Like he’d actually been there.

Ryder straightened and turned back to Damian. “Touch her again and we’ll have a problem. A real one.”

Sloane tugged Damian’s sleeve. They backed off, muttering curses. The whispers started immediately.

I clutched my books to my chest, heart hammering. “You didn’t have to do that.”

Ryder looked down at me, that half-smirk tugging at his lips. “Yeah. I did.”

He jerked his head toward the academic building. “Walk with me.”

It wasn’t a request.

I fell into step beside him, struggling to keep up with his long strides. The silence between us felt heavy.

We hadn’t gone far when he spoke, voice low.

“Pretend to date me, Liona.”

I nearly tripped. “What?”

“It’ll keep the vultures like Cross away from you. And I have my reasons.”

My stomach flipped. “Why me?”

Ryder’s gaze darkened. “Because they won’t leave you alone. And I’m the only one who can stop them.”

A cold breath ghosted across the back of my neck. I spun around.

Nothing.

When I turned back, Ryder was still watching me, waiting.

I swallowed hard. “I don’t even know you. Yesterday you treated me like garbage. Now you want to be my fake boyfriend? This has to be a joke.”

“I’m not joking.” His voice dropped even lower. “Cross and his friends won’t stop. You know that. Fake it with me and they back off. Simple.”

I stared up at him, searching his face. He was too calm. Too handsome. Too everything.

“And what do you get out of it?” I asked sharply.

He stepped closer, towering over me. “Peace. And like I said… I have my reasons.”

“That’s not an answer.”

His eyes flicked to something just over my shoulder before returning to me. “You’re different.”

My pulse raced. I opened my mouth to argue, but the warning bell rang across the quad.

Ryder didn’t move. “Think about it. The longer you walk around unprotected, the worse it gets.”

He reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers warm against my skin. The touch sent a shiver down my spine.

“See you in class, peach.”

Then he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there flushed and speechless.

I touched the spot where his fingers had been.

Peach?

This was dangerous.

And the worst part was… a small, stupid part of me was already wondering what pretending would feel like.