The Dead List by Jennifer L. Armentrout Page A

Carver?”
    “What? No.” I picked up my pizza. “Why would I do that?”
    “I can think of a few good reasons,” she said dryly.
    I coughed out a laugh. Heidi didn’t know about my history with Jensen and, as much as I loved the girl, I was so not going there. “Whatever. I mean, he is good looking—okay, he’s more than good looking and you know, very few girls or guys would kick him out of their beds, but eye-screwing?”
    Her gaze flicked over my shoulder. “Uh, Ella—”
    “If I’m going to eye-screw someone, it would not take place in the cafeteria. That just seems unsanitary.”
    “Um—”
    “I would eye-screw in class,” I decided, winging my pizza around. “Like in biology. While we’re dissecting frogs, I’d eye-screw the hell of him then, but he’s not in the class and that also seems unsanitary, so I guess I’m not eye-screwing—”
    “Me?”
    I swallowed the mouthful of pizza as I squeezed my eyes shut. He was not standing there. He was so not standing there. Oh no, no, no, no.
    The chuckle that came next was too familiar, and I forced my eyes open. He dropped in the next seat, angling his body toward Heidi and me as he propped his chin on his palm. “I have bio after lunch, but you tell me when your class is, and I’d do all kinds of terrible things to get my class changed.”
    Oh, my God, even the tips of my ears burned.
    Heidi took a hefty drink of her all natural root tea or whatever gross concoction was mixed in her plastic bottle. “Well, we now know that Jensen is a fan of eye-screwing.”
    His eyes darkened to a blue on a bright sunny day. “That I am.”
    I wanted to crawl under the table and die.
    Stretching his leg out, he knocked his knee against mine. “So I hear you had a little run in with Wendy this morning.”
    Heidi placed her bottle on the table, frowning. “You did?”
    I sighed. “I didn’t think it was a big enough deal that anyone would hear about it.”
    “She was regaling the entire table with tales of your viciousness,” he added, eyes glimmering.
    “Me?” Forgetting about my whole eye-screwing thing, I twisted toward him, which caused his knee to slide against the inside of my leg. My breath caught in my throat, and our gazes locked. I waited for him to pull back, but he didn’t. Neither did I. The grin on his face went up a notch.
    His lashes lowered. “You.”
    For a moment I had no idea what he was talking about. Something to do with….ah, yes. Bitchiness. “Wendy said I needed to cover up my face.”
    The corners of his lips turned down. “She said what?”
    I pointed at the strawberry mark. “Said I was grossing her out.”
    “Well, that’s rude.” Heidi stuck out her lower lip. “It’s not like you could help it.”
    “She’s a charmer,” Jensen murmured.
    “And you dated her.” I grinned when his lips thinned a bit. “Just saying.”
    He shifted in the seat, dragging his leg alongside mine, and I thanked God and Buddha that Heidi couldn’t see it, because I was convinced that Jensen was leg-screwing me. “I wouldn’t say I dated her.”
    My skin prickled. Wasn’t jealousy. Absolutely not. “That’s nice.”
    He shrugged his shoulder as he glanced over at Heidi, who watched us like she needed a bowl of popcorn in front of her. “So Ella was eye-screwing me?”
    “Oh my God!” I shot her a death glare when she started to respond. “I was not eye-screwing anyone. What are you doing over here anyway? This is not your table.”
    “We have assigned tables?” he asked.
    Heidi pursed her lips. “I don’t think we do.”
    I rolled my eyes. “You have always sat with them since you came back.”
    His eyes had regained that playful, lazy quality. “So.”
    “So?” I took a drink of my water. “You’re here.”
    “I am.” He knocked his knee off mine again. “I wanted to visit you.”
    Heidi made a cooing sound. “Aw, that’s so sweet.”
    Fingers curling along the edge of the table, I shot her another