Page 103 of Satanic Shadow

A smile tugs at Dane’s lips, and he turns his back to me. “I had a great teacher. I was never as good as her, but I was fine with listening instead of playing.”

“Sounds like you had a crush on your piano teacher.”

“You could say that,” he replies, turning to me. “She knew how to play every instrument beautifully. I was mesmerized by her.”

I press my lips together. “Lovely.”

“Who’s the jealous one now?”

I grimace and move towards the small desk in the corner of my room, checking my phone for a reply from Poppy. She said she’d let me know tonight if she found me a date, and a part of me is glad my notification bar is empty.

“The curse hasn’t spread much,” I say, showing him my hands. “A little on my palms, but none of it hurts like usual. This is agood thing, right? You won’t need to come here twice a day to siphon it if it stops. It’s a win-win.”

That sounds terrible, but the words are out before I can stop them.

Dane stares at me, emotionless.

“I just mean because you obviously risk a lot coming here. And it hurts you.”

“Stop the backtracking. We both know you don’t want me here.”

“You don’t exactly want to be here either,” I reply quietly.

“Great. Can you get dressed? I can’t dance with you while you’re wearing…” He points at my sleep shorts, which barely hide my ass cheeks.

“You did teleport in here near midnight. I don’t know why you expected me to be in my uniform. I’m about to go to bed. Can’t we do this tomorrow?”

“No.”

I wait for him to say something else, but all he does is lean against my dresser, staring me down.

I tut and head towards him. I see it the moment he thinks I’m closing the distance to him, and his breath hitches as he clears his throat. But then I move him with my shoulder, shifting him aside to get into my dresser.

I go into the bathroom with something more Dane appropriate. Once I fix my breasts into a bra and smooth down the dress that reaches mid-thigh, I finish brushing my hair and braid it to the side.

He patiently waits as I apply some mascara and lip balm. My cheeks are a little flush from… well, I guess because Dane looks the way he does. I hate that I’m attracted to him and my body has no idea how to not react to his close proximity.

And why does he need to smell so good? He sleeps in a dungeon, for crying out loud.

Hurry up,his voice comes.

Screw you,I fire back.

I check myself over once more before exiting the bathroom, stopping in my tracks when I see Dane having a silent discussion with one of the shadows on my walls. He and the little girl seem to be staring at one another, and she jumps in the air in excitement as the corners of Dane’s lips curl.

He chuckles as she shows him a stone she finds on the ground.

“Do you know her?” I ask, breaking his concentration.

Silence, and then Dane drops his head. “No,” he says without looking at me. “She’s alone, so I was keeping her company until her protector returned.”

He lifts his head and nods to the large mass as it takes the girl’s hand—then they both vanish into the crack of the wall.

“She’s sweet,” I say, fidgeting with my hair. “She always plays with the dog and waves at me.”

“Hmm.”

Crickets could fill the silence that stretches between us, if they existed on this island. Dane keeps his eyes on the wall, chewing on the inside of his cheek, seemingly lost in his head.