Jared's POV
I stabbed my fork into the half-eaten piece of chicken on my plate, barely hearing the chatter around me. My eyes kept flicking to the stairs, my leg bouncing under the table. Zina had been gone for too long.
"She probably fell asleep up there," Trina said, her voice cutting through the noise in my head. She smirked as she sipped her drink. "Or maybe she's just hiding from everyone. Wouldn't blame her."
I gritted my teeth, trying not to snap at her. Zina wasn't hiding. She wouldn't do that.
Would she?
I pushed back my chair suddenly, making it scrape against the floor.
"Where are you going?" Trina asked, her eyebrows raised.
"To check on Zina," I muttered, already halfway to the stairs.
"Oh, how adorable," she called after me. "Playing the protective puppy, are we?"
I ignored her and took the stairs two at a time, the sound of her snide laugh fading behind me.
