Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters, #1)(64)

I knew those bastards weren’t having fancy dinners. It was probably beer and poker, or whatever the supernatural god version of that was.

“I can do that,” I said with a nod. “Might lull him into a false sense of success if I don’t react to the level of restriction he’s leveled on this place.”

Angel grinned. “Oh, yes, and even better, I want you to spend those days trying to seduce Shadow himself. That way, he thinks you have turned your attention from the library to him. He’ll enjoy that little game and will miss my manipulations.”

There was something about a scheme that got my blood pumping, as I all but rubbed my hands together in delight. “Yes! I’m so here for this,” I said to her. “Just tell me what you need, and I’m going to be all over it.”

Angel patted my shoulder, her wings spreading out behind her as she got to her feet. “We’ll get you laid, my friend. Don’t even worry about it.” She turned to leave, her eyes landing on Shadow, who had apparently just walked into the room. Then, with one last small smile in my direction, she left.

Shadow walked right over to me, looking smug as fuck. Not to mention hotter than usual, his hair tousled and damp, the remnants of sweat beading his brow. He looked like he’d come straight from a workout, still in sweats, but I doubted he was pumping iron in a gym. Gods didn’t need to do that to get ripped as hell, so it was probably fighting.

I pitied whoever his poor opponent was.

“How’s today going for you?” Shadow asked, sinking into the chair Angel had just vacated. A drink appeared in his hand, a silver concoction, and once again, I was reminded of his abilities and power.

Power he was using against me, but I felt a little more confident with Angel on my side.

She had a plan, and speaking of… I smiled broadly. “It’s been great! I’ve got a ton of work done, the food is off the charts great, and I just had a chat with my friend. It’s been nice to have a chick friend on this side… Makes me miss Simone and Dannie a little less.”

Only partly a lie—I still missed my other friends horrendously.

With hooded eyes, he observed me closely. “And no other issues?”

I shook my head, retaining the same relaxed expression. “Not that I can think of.” My stare was more focused as I locked eyes with him. “How about you? Any issues in your world? Have you found another shadow creature for us to track down?”

Leaning back in his chair, he crossed his arms, broad shoulders bumping me just like Angel’s wings had. There was no pain, as was usual when he touched me. “You want to know about my issues?” he drawled, sounding like he didn’t quite believe me.

Leaning in closer, I wasn’t surprised by the suspicious eyes he kept laser-focused on me. “Yeah, I do. You’re one of the few not too busy to talk to me today”—acting dumb annoyed me, but it was a means to an end—“and I’m genuinely curious about your life. Especially the day to day of how you run the library and your lair.”

If suspicion had a look, it would be his face, but he called me on my faked interest. “Right, well, since you asked, I’ve spent the morning dealing with the Faerie contingent. The silver clan and those from the realm of emeralds are having a little battle over a plot of land that is allegedly filled with precious stones. Going through the ancient scripts to find landholding rights is more time-consuming than you’d think, and since I’m acting as the intermediary in this, I’m about ready to head to Faerie myself and dig the fucking plot up to see if any of these gems even exist.”

I was more interested than I’d like to admit in Shadow’s life, subconsciously leaning forward.

“So that’s your role here, in the library? The one who oversees everything and keeps all the visitors from other worlds from falling into chaos?”

Shadow nodded as Inky rose up to twist around him. “In a manner. I was there at the beginning of this library being formed, and from that, I’ve been the guardian of the vast array of knowledge it contains. I’ve done my best to ensure it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. My protection also extends to any who reside within these walls unless they break one of the rules. I’m called on to mediate more than I’d like, but I wouldn’t give up my power or control for anything.”

“And yet you’re willing to let Earth fall to the shadow creatures?”

He shrugged. “Earth is technically not part of the Solaris System. It’s only bonded because I decided to partake in some of the desert land’s finest beverages with Reece, and then when he challenged me to use my power to leave a lasting legacy… shifters were born.”

I snorted. “Were you in Brolder at the time?”

Shadow nodded, and it all made sense.

“We were the product of a drunken bet,” I said shaking my head. “Nice.”

Shadow dropped his still-full bottle to the table. The clunk distracted me and by the time I looked up, he’d already spun his chair toward me, reaching out to grab the arms of my chair and yank me around too. Now we were face to face, my legs trapped between his.

“What game are you playing, Sunny?”

I gasped. “No, you can’t call me that. ‘Sunshine’ is one thing, but ‘Sunny’…” I choked off, and as much as I refused to cry in front of him, hearing my father’s nickname from my captor hurt deep in my chest. Like a small cut, but each breath lengthened the wound, spilling more blood until I bled out.