Ritual: A New Adult College Romance (Palm South University Book 5)
Page 30
I smiled, but already my chest was tight, a warning sign I should have heeded. “Who’s Azra?”
“Tyler’s super secret, super gorgeous girlfriend,” Mrs. Wagner answered.
She and Morgan giggled as Mr. Wagner chimed in with something, but I couldn’t recall a word of it.
Because my eyes were locked on Tyler’s, and his were watching mine, and there wasn’t a single breath of oxygen to be had in that wide backyard.
“Oh,” I breathed.
Morgan went on about how lovely Azra was, about how she was a model and a huge Instagram influencer, how she was from Turkey, how she was “an absolute blast,” but I barely heard a word. My chest was so tight now I thought my lungs would evacuate my body for fear of being completely crushed by my rib cage.
He has a girlfriend?
Why didn’t I know that?
Why do I care?
Tyler just watched me, like he was waiting for me to react as my mind raced and whirled, my palms dampening, heart beating loud in my ears.
And with every ounce of willpower I had, I held my expression completely neutral.
“I can’t wait to meet her,” I finally managed, my gaze still holding his.
He blinked, but otherwise didn’t acknowledge that he’d even heard me.
And just like that, Morgan moved on.
I ripped my eyes from Tyler’s, but I felt him watch me for the longest time as Morgan continued going through the schedule. I managed to stay quiet and calm until she’d made it through, and then I stood, making an excuse about being jet-lagged to excuse myself for the night.
“You’re three hours behind us,” Morgan pointed out with a pout. “I thought you’d have loads of energy. I want to stay up all night and gab!”
I squeezed her arm. “I know, I think I’m just tired from the long flight. But we have tomorrow. And I promise, I won’t go to bed before midnight.”
“Pshhh, two in the morning if you’re lucky,” she said, giving me a big hug. “And, you’ll get to meet Oliver!”
I squeezed her back. “I can’t wait,” I said, genuinely.
Amanda and Robert gave me a hug, too, and Tyler stood, staring at me from across the fire.
“Goodnight, Jasmine,” he said simply, his hands in his pockets, the light from the flames dancing with the shadows on his face.
“Goodnight,” I croaked.
And then I made my way upstairs for my first sleepless night back in New Hampshire.
This was a sneak peek inside Make Me Hate You. Continue reading here!
Thank you to my fantastic beta team. If it weren’t for y’all, the Palm South University series would not be what it is today. Your feedback this round was absolutely crucial and I could never do this without you! Thank you Trish QUEEN MINTNESS, Sarah Green, Danielle Lagasse, Carly Wilson, and Kelle Fabre. I also want to give a shout out to two members of my ARC Team who offered to read Ritual early and provide additional feedback – Lindsey Barnett and Jan Cassi. Thank you!
My support system means everything when it comes to writing this series. I always refer to PSU affectionately as “my passion project” and it truly is a labor of love that wouldn’t be possible without my team holding me up. Thank you Staci Brillhart for pushing me, Jack Hamm for loving me, Sasha Whittington for believing in this series as much as me, and Momma – for always loving and supporting me no matter what.
To the angel who makes everything easier – Tina Stokes. You are a shining beacon of light in my life and I’m so fortunate to call you my friend and to have you helping me in my career, too. Thank you for all that you do.
Thank you to Elaine York of Allusion Editing & Formatting. As always, you polished this book up to shine like a gem and worked with my crazy timeline. It’s always so appreciated, and I couldn’t do this without you.
I am so honored to be with the amazing team at Valentine PR. To Nina, Mary, Angie, Christine and the rest of the team, thank you for thinking outside the box on ways to promote this book and others. Your time and attention mean the world to me.
To the Palm South University Discussion Group and Kandiland on Facebook – YOU ARE MY HEART. You are my family. My best friends. My everything. Thank you for being there for this crazy ride and for loving my books and characters as much as I do.
And to you, the reader. Palm South University is so close to my heart, and it means everything to me that you picked up these books and gave them a shot. Thank you. Let’s hang out and be friends on the interwebs, and maybe hug IRL at a book signing one day. ;-)
Kandi Steiner is a bestselling author and whiskey connoisseur living in Tampa, FL. Best known for writing “emotional rollercoaster” stories, she loves bringing flawed characters to life and writing about real, raw romance — in all its forms. No two Kandi Steiner books are the same, and if you’re a lover of angsty, emotional, and inspirational reads, she’s your gal.
An alumna of the University of Central Florida, Kandi graduated with a double major in Creative Writing and Advertising/PR with a minor in Women’s Studies. She started writing back in the 4th grade after reading the first Harry Potter installment. In 6th grade, she wrote and edited her own newspaper and distributed to her classmates. Eventually, the principal caught on and the newspaper was quickly halted, though Kandi tried fighting for her “freedom of press.” She took particular interest in writing romance after college, as she has always been a die hard hopeless romantic, and likes to highlight all the challenges of love as well as the triumphs.
When Kandi isn’t writing, you can find her reading books of all kinds, talking with her extremely vocal cat, and spending time with her friends and family. She enjoys live music, traveling, hiking, anything heavy in carbs, beach days, movie marathons, craft beer and sweet wine — not necessarily in that order.
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