Sebastian Sinclair is stalking me.

Not really, but what he is doing is intrusive enough into my life for me. I like being invisible, but he made me noticeable to everyone today. Amber was already speculating with her friends about why he chose to sit beside me in class, and then he made it worse when he planted himself at my table during lunch. Considering that the only other occupants are two boys, he might as well have put a neon sign over my head.

"So, Jade," he starts conversationally, "you haven't told me about your summer yet."

"That's because I'm not planning to," I reply and take a bite of my fresh grilled panini. This cafeteria is amazing, and wasted on most of the permanently dieting girls who go here.

"Why not?" Sebastian asks. He has three slices of pepperoni pizza piled on his plate.

"Why are you talking to me?" I question as I glance at Will and Owen, who are engrossed in the chess game they are playing on their phones and not paying any attention to us.

"I want to get to know you," Sebastian answers. "We've been going to school together for years, but I don't know you."

"Pick some other girl," I tell him. "I don't want this."

"What is this?" he enquires. "I'm only talking to you. Why don't you want to talk to me?"

He has put me on the spot with his direct question. It would be rude to refuse to talk to him for no reason. He wasn't saying anything inappropriate or even trying to flirt with me, but I had never seen him overtly flirting with anyone. Whatever his intentions are, they are always hidden.

"Okay," I relent, because it has been ingrained in me not to be rude to people. "What do you want to talk about?"

He smiles, and it is such a casually satisfied smile that I could almost be fooled into thinking that Sebastian can be summed up with that smile. He seems to have a casual attitude about everything, and he can effortlessly appear to be in a mood of mild satisfaction. To anyone who's not paying close attention, it can easily seem like he's contentedly coasting through his life without any real concern about anything. I, however, have noticed that his expression is often inscrutable, which makes me wonder what he is thinking. Maybe I'm just imagining that there is a hidden depth to him though.

"I would like to talk about you," he replies. "I asked about your summer, but you can tell me anything you want about yourself."

"I worked over the summer," I tell him.

"Doing what?" he asks.

"Working as a cashier at a store," I answer, wondering how long it will take him to get bored with my ordinary life. "What did you do this summer?"

"I went to a cattle ranch with my dad, and I visited relatives with my mom. Did you like your job?" he enquires.

"A ranch?" I question in surprise.

"In Montana," he elaborates. "It's called a working ranch vacation, and it's for people who want to live out their cowboy fantasies. I got to work on the ranch for two weeks, and I learned a lot about taking care of cattle."

"You had a job?" I query in disbelief.

"Actually, we paid them to let us work," he answers with a wry smile. "Well, I worked. My dad mostly just laughed at my attempts to keep up with the real cowboys, and he took video of me to laugh at in the future."

I'm openly gaping at him now. Never in a million years would I have expected him to have cowboy fantasies. Rock star fantasies I could believe, because he already looked like he could be one. "You rode a horse?"

"I've ridden one before," he informs me. "I used to go to camp every summer, and we had horseback riding there. Roping cows was a new experience though, and my dad has the video to prove it."

I am stunned. This rich boy went to summer camp? That's not even something that I envy.

"We are spending too much time talking about me. I want to hear about you," he insists. "Did you like your job?"

"It was okay," I reply distractedly. "Did the ranch live up to your cowboy fantasies? Was the reality as fun as you expected it to be?"

"Those are insightful questions," he remarks, "but I'd like to talk about you first. You said it was just okay? I would think you'd enjoy a job like that considering how much you like to people watch."

I freeze at that comment, and he responds to the surprise that must be evident on my face. "You observe people constantly," he explains. "I've seen it."

I am astonished that he has noticed that about me. I thought I was so stealthy, but maybe I have gotten careless after flying under the radar for so long. I scramble to explain myself. "Oh, uh, I want to be a profiler for the FBI," I make up triumphantly, glad to find a reason that doesn't sound pathetic. "That's why I observe people."

Surprise shows in his eyes before a flash of amusement appears and disappears, and then his expression becomes neutral. "I'm curious about your profile on me. May I see your notes?"

A riot of butterflies is suddenly fluttering frantically in my stomach. "Notes?" I echo lightheadedly.

"The ones you take when you observe…people."

All the blood drains from my face as he watches me intently. That pause sounded so…deliberate. Did he mean when I observe him? Does he suspect that I have a crush on him?

Amber saves me from having to reply. She talks to him and completely ignores me. I'm relieved to feel invisible again. "Hey, Sebastian," she greets him. "Don't forget about our tradition. You'll be there tonight, right?"

"If Jade wants to go," he replies and shifts his gaze from her to me. "Do you want to go to the bonfire, Jade?"

I knew about my class's tradition of having a bonfire on the beach every year on the first day of school and on the last, but I had never gone to it. Although it would have been an opportunity to observe my classmates outside of school, I hadn't wanted to give the few boys who had tried to flirt with me at school more opportunity to do so in a social situation. I certainly didn't want to go with Sebastian when he had unnerved me so much. Also, Amber was suddenly emanating distinctly unfriendly vibes toward me.

"No, thank you," I reply politely.

"We're not going," Sebastian tells Amber.

"But it's our last year," she protests. "You don't want to miss one of the last ones." Her eyes cut to me, and her unspoken blame is clear. Because of her, she implies with her contemptuous glare. She's looking at me like I am deliberately preventing Sebastian from going.

"You should come to it, Jade," he tells me. "You haven't been to any of them, and you don't want to miss all of them."

My eyes snap to his in surprise. He noticed I wasn't there for the past three years? I'm so flustered that I immediately look away again.

Amber huffs out an exasperated breath. "Just come already so Sebastian won't miss it too."

"Okay," I relent.

"Great!" Sebastian exclaims and smiles at Amber. "We'll be there."

Her smile is dimmer than his, obviously due to having me tag along. "See you there," she says, speaking only to him.

Her presence has distracted Will and Owen away from their game, and they both turn to watch her walk away. Beautiful girl beats chess game, I mentally note and start imagining the two of them vying for her affections. Sebastian's voice startles me out of my drifting thoughts.

"What are you daydreaming about, Jade?"

I turn toward the sound of his voice and refocus on him. "Huh?"

He's watching me with a sexy half-smile. "You had such a dreamy look on your face. What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing," I answer quickly. "What time is the bonfire?"

"I'll pick you up at seven," he tells me.

"I'll drive myself," I retort.

"Okay," he easily agrees, easing my worry that he considers this a date.

Maybe he really is just curious about me. It occurs to me that I'm in a position to finally find out what he does when he shows an interest in a girl. I'll be able to observe him up close this time, since I'm apparently this year's girl.

"I'll need your number so we can find each other there," he says. "I'll give you mine too."

His demeanor is so casual right now, and he makes it sound like a given that we should exchange numbers. I don't point out that there is no real reason for us to be together at the bonfire. I'm more than a little curious about what he's doing, and this is my chance to find out.