Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters, #1)(45)

The abervoq let out one final mournful bellow, and then it was silent. Inky wrapped around the beast, lifting it into the air, and Shadow set off again in his overachiever walk. Meanwhile, I was in a touch of shock, trying to figure out what had just happened.

How had he used me to subdue the creature? It felt like he could have done that on his own. He was hiding something from me, and I sensed that while it still had to do with these shadow creatures, it wasn’t about me restraining them. It was something else.

I needed the library. It held answers.

“Sunshine, move your ass!” Shadow yelled without turning around.

“Don’t call me that!” I shouted back, not moving an inch, even though I felt like I was about to freeze to death standing here.

Shadow appeared before me, and how the fuck had he moved that fast?

“You don’t like ‘Sunshine’?” he queried, seeming genuinely curious. I rubbed at my neck, wondering if I was going to get whiplash from his mood swings.

I shook my head. “My dad called me ‘Sunny’ because of our family name and my hair. It was a loving nickname, and I loved when he used it. But you… you’re the asshole who kidnapped me, threatened my life, and treated me like your slave. You want me to bow to you, for fuck’s sake. You don’t get to call me cute nicknames.”

He smirked. That curve of his lips was sexy as fuck, and since I rarely saw him with anything resembling a true smile, it about knocked me on my ass. Around Shadow, it was impossible to forget he was a god; there was so much extra about him.

My breath caught as he leaned into me. “You’re this bright, bubbly, annoying creature,” he drawled, “whom I can’t seem to kill, even when I want to. So ‘Sunshine’ stays, and if you have a problem with it, too fucking bad.”

I scowled. “Why do you talk like a human, cursing and shit like that?”

His smile had vanished, but his eyes were still amused, the red and gold vibrant. “I have lived among humans many times throughout the ages, keeping an eye on my wolves. I’ve adapted to every language and age. You’ll find I am very good at adaption.”

Before the smart reply that was hovering on the edge of my tongue could emerge, he reached out and snatched me up into his arms, hauling me over his shoulder in the exact same manner he had the first time he’d captured me. This time, there was no pain or unease as warmth surrounded me, chasing the chills away. Before I could protest being carried—I hated being held like this—we were out of the cold and back in the long hallway between worlds.

“I can’t enter this realm without your help, can I?” I said, figuring it out when he dropped me to my feet.

His expression was closed off again, and whatever humor had been in his gaze before was long gone. “Keep asking the right questions…”

He turned and walked away, heading toward where Inky and the shadow creature waited for him.

“‘Sunshine and Shadow’ sounds like a cute couple’s name!” I shouted after him. “Should we go by ‘Shadowshine’ or ‘Sundow’ for short?” I caught a glimpse of flaming eyes before he disappeared from sight, taking the creature with him.





25

A fter our frozen adventures, Shadow disappeared, and I spent the next few days perusing the library, studying the directory, and sweeping the damn floors. Gaster was still a familiar, helpful, smiling face, and it almost felt as if we were growing toward being true friends.

He’d even taken to having lunch with me occasionally.

Today, he was busy with a new disaster. Someone from Bolder had given into their animal instincts, and when the female had not reciprocated, there’d been a bit of a scuffle. Apparently, in Bolder, it was touch first, ask permission later, but they were encouraged to fight if they weren’t interested. I was slowly learning the rules, and this was one I’d seen up close and personal today.

The half-horse male and half-bear female had ended up destroying about three rows of books, and now the goblins were frantically returning their sacred place to order, overseen by Gaster.

Which left me eating lunch alone.

“Why do you sweep?”

I jerked my head up, blinking at the angel-faced chick who still always sat a few places down from me. After a quick glance around to make sure she was talking to me—even though I was the only idiot sweeping a self-cleaning library—I finally answered her.

“On orders of the Shadow Bastar—I mean Beast. The Shadow Beast.”

Her lips twitched as she played with her food. I’d never seen her take an actual bite despite the fact that we sat next to each other almost every day. I’d also never seen her in the library itself. She only appeared to come to this food hall and didn’t even eat.

“He’s trying to break you.”

I snorted before going back to eating the delicious chocolate cake in front of me. “He has no idea what it would take to break me.”

Her gaze was still on me, the weight of her power solid and somewhat familiar now. And it felt like a huge step forward that she’d taken the time to speak to me. Even if it had only been two sentences.

The next few days, she wasn’t at lunch, but she was on my mind. The enigma that was angel face.

Maybe the next time she talked to me, I’d ask her some questions as well.