Jared wasn't looking at her. He was looking at Lydia. His eyes lingered on the woman in a way that made Jerica's stomach twist with discomfort. He wasn't just admiring her like everyone else. His gaze was too focused, too intense.
Jerica's heart pounded in her chest, a deep ache spreading through her. She held her breath, praying, just for a moment, that he would look at her, that he would see her standing there, waiting for him. She locked eyes with him across the room, willing him to come to her, to close the distance between them.
But Jared looked away. Deliberately.
He turned his back on her, not just physically but emotionally, as though he couldn't bear to acknowledge her existence. He shifted his position, placing himself behind a group of people, obscuring her view. Jerica felt the sting of rejection cut through her like a knife.
