LAUREN'S POV

Tessa leaned in closer, her sharp gaze studying me with a seriousness that made me instinctively shift back in my chair. Her eyes narrowed, scanning my face as if searching for something beneath the surface, some hidden truth I wasn’t saying out loud. Then, before I could even form a sentence, her hand shot up and pressed lightly against my neck, testing my temperature like a worried mother.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm, though her ...