A Thin Line Between Love & Hate (Love Conquers All series) ORIGINAL VERSION

Chapter 30: "A Word Fitly Spoken"

Concentrating on his first three classes of the day proved to be a challenge for Brandon, his mind stuck on Josh and...Grace should be jealous of you. The kiss to the cheek and Josh admitting he wanted them to be friends pretty much convinced Brandon that Josh liked liked him, but that little proclamation he'd made earlier today had sealed it and since then, Brandon's heart had been in a frenzy.

His legs grew shaky as he entered Mr. Danson's class, eager to be close to Josh for the entire class period. His bubble of joy popped when he stepped through the door and spied Josh at their table—and Grace with him. Was she in this class? Brandon groaned inwardly and walked up to the table and placed his book and notepad next to Josh's. He sat on the stool and nodded at Josh. "Hey." He smiled at Grace. "Hi, I'm Brandon."

The girl looked at him dully then laced her and Josh's fingers. "I'm Grace," she said, her tone unfriendly. "Josh's girlfriend."

He nodded. "Yeah, I figured as much when I saw you two come into school this morning. So...you're in this class, too?"

Josh glanced at him and the sullen look on his face confirmed it.

"Yes, I am," Grace double-confirmed.

Mr. Danson looked their way then approached the table. "Ms. Tanner, since you were late registering for classes, I will excuse you from the current project. I'll provide you with an alternate assignment to make up the grade."

Grace's entire demeanor changed in an instant and she smiled charmingly at the teacher. "I don't mind tagging along with Josh and Brandon. I'm sure I can contribute enough to make a deserving grade."

Josh and Brandon exchanged an equally unsettled look, and waited with dread for the verdict.

"The week is almost over," Mr. Danson said. "And it wouldn't be fair to the other students to allow the three of you to work on the same project, while the others are paired in twos. I'll give you a different assignment that you can make up in your spare time." He glanced at the wall clock. "Go ahead and take your seat, class is about to begin."

Grace appeared annoyed that she hadn't been able to charm her way in. She looked dryly at Brandon and kissed Josh's cheek. "This horrible project will all be over soon, baby," she cooed. "Then it will be just us." She walked away and Josh looked physically ill.

When Mr. Danson looked at them before returning to the front of the room, Brandon mouthed the words 'thank you' and the teacher smiled and winked.

"Mr. Danson is so my favorite teacher," Brandon murmured.

Josh pursed his lips, suppressing a smile. "Mine, too." Though he was relieved not to have Grace intrude on their alone time, it was evident that her presence in the class put Josh on edge, preventing him from relaxing.

Between Wiley and Grace, they would be watched like a hawk through every second of class.

"Since tomorrow is our last day together," Brandon said quietly, dread in his gut at the thought of the project ending. "I thought you might like to go up to the campground, see what it looks like. We can get a few more samples up there. I need to make sure everything is ready for the campout this weekend anyway."

"Okay," Josh whispered without really looking at him. A faint smile played on his lips. "I'd like that." Josh reached up discreetly and rubbed his cheek where Grace had kissed him, an unpleasant look on his face.

Brandon would have gladly replaced her kiss with one of his own, but thought that might be a little too telling to their observers.

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