Food. Glorious food. Probably the second-best part of this magical library world I’d found myself in. Food and books, could anyone ask for more?
“Do you eat like this every single day?” I enthusiastically asked the woman a few seats down from me as I shoved a large slice of rare roast beef in my mouth. At least I hoped it was beef, but whatever, it tasted good.
She turned toward me for the first time, her nose wrinkled as she stared me down. I blinked back at her. “Not much of a talker, hey?” I asked, wiping my mouth with a napkin. “Don’t stress. I can talk enough for both of us, and before you know it, we’ll be fast friends.”
Her eyes, a startling magenta color, widened as shock crossed her perfect face. It took a few more awkward staring moments for me to slot her firmly into the “Honor Meadows” world. She had that otherworldly glow of the beings from that land, and a face carved right from an angel for sure.
Clearing her throat, she stood, the dark amber-colored wings I’d missed in my first perusal springing into view. With her alabaster skin and long, mahogany hair, she was almost the complete opposite of the first woman I’d seen from Honor Meadows, but if these two were any indication, everyone from their world was tall, willowy, and perfect.
“Do you have males in your world? Or other sexes?” I asked, and again, she just stared—clearly, she had no idea what to make of me. She and Shadow could probably start a support group. “I’m just curious. I think it’s awesome if you only have one or no defined genders. Labels are annoying anyway, right? And, seriously, whatever you’re doing, keep doing it because you’re hot as hell.”
No doubt she now thought the half-starved shifter was not only crazy but also hitting on her. If only. The fact that I couldn’t experience a true sexual attraction toward women when men were such assholes was one of my greatest laments.
Another blink, and then she spun, hightailing it out of the room.
With a shrug, I went back to eating.
Gaster had dropped me at the dining hall about twenty minutes ago—approximately, since I was just guessing time at this stage—and when I sat, small robotic creatures buzzed around, asking for my order. About the same height as Gaster, they didn’t have faces, and were more like mini phone booths on wheels. I added them to my list of creatures to learn about—the never-ending list.
Now that the beautiful woman from the Honor Meadows was gone, there were only a few other beings in the room, along with the robot-servers. The dining hall itself wasn’t that remarkable, mostly filled with long, wood tables, running in rows with ten or so feet between each bench. It’d sit at least a few hundred in here at full capacity, but that was its only claim to fame.
For the rest of my time there, no one came near me, and I wondered if Angel Face had already spread the word about my incessant chattering. Whatever. Like I needed more supernatural friends who would probably stab me in the back. Simone and Dannie had always been enough for me, and I just wished they were here, exploring this world and having an adventure with me.
Then again, this adventure was likely to get me killed, so maybe it was best that I was discovering it alone. The world needed more shifters like my best friends, and I’d have to be permanently sedated if anything happened to them.
Just as I reached out for a slice of cake—caramel with a banana cream frosting by the looks of it—a hush fell over the room. I mean, there were about eight of us in here, so it wasn’t that noticeable, but teaming it with the hairs on my arms standing up and a tingling sensation down my spine, I knew that there was only one explanation.
Shadow. And he was standing right behind me.
Part of me wanted to cower, and since that pissed me off, I forced myself to take a bite of the cake, letting the rich—definitely not banana—flavors dance across my tongue.
It was delicious with hints of caramel and… rose? More importantly, the hit of sugar was helpful in calming my frazzled nerves.
Heat scorched along my body, any exposed skin tingling like I’d been dancing a little too close to a fire.
I still didn’t turn.
Seriously, though, why was I playing dominance games with a god? There was literally not one good reason, but I couldn’t make myself stop.
The second bite of cake was even better than the first, and an involuntary moan escaped from between my lips. Jesus, Mary, and thank fuck for sweets.
Honestly, I hadn’t even realized I was a foodie until this moment, because I’d never been given the opportunity to really indulge myself.
“Are you done?”
His low growl of words stopped me right in my tracks, his energy rendering me powerless to move or continue eating.
“Not. Quite,” I managed to choke out.
His next growl came from deep in his chest, flames crashing in the air around us, and just like that, the room was empty. No doubt about it, the Shadow Beast was both feared and respected to almost ridiculous levels. For good reason.
Some of the hold on my body lessened, and I decided to stop fucking around as I turned toward him. “Oh, hey,” I said casually. “Didn’t see you there.”
Actual smoke escaped his nostrils. Like… fucking smoke. Come on, dude, could you be any more of a demon cliché? Flames erupted in those stunning eyes of his, and there he went, stepping up the cliché just a touch more.
“Yeah, yeah. I get it. You’re perpetually pissed off. Did you need something from me? Or am I just late to my next useless cleaning session?”
In all honesty, if I didn’t get sleep soon, I was probably going to collapse into a puddle of wolf.
“I’ve tracked a shadow creature down,” he said, those plump lips and perfect white teeth capturing my attention as he spoke. He distracted me in the worst way, and I wanted to hate myself for that weakness, but… he was darkly delicious, and I was only human…ish.
He was staring at me, no doubt waiting for my response, and I’d forgotten what he’d even said.
“Uh, you…” Creature, right? “A shadow creature! Oh, great. You tracked one down. Let’s go and get it.” I sprang to my feet, graceful thanks to my wolf. “Is it on Earth? Should I grab a jacket?”
He tilted his head to the side, like he was trying to understand me, but the secret to my success was making sure no one ever did.
“Yes, it’s on Earth, deep in Canada. You will need warmer clothing to counteract your weak frailties.”
I smiled. “You are so right, Shadow. Thanks for always thinking of my wellbeing.”
For some reason, don’t ask me why, I went to clap him on the shoulder as I started to move past. The way I would have done when I was sarcastically joking with Simone. But this wasn’t Simone. This was a god, a Shadow Beast, a demon of the darkest worlds.
Just like with Inky, touching him without permission was a terrible idea, but it was too late to stop. The moment my hand landed on his shoulder, fire shot up through my palm, and my screams rang out through the hall. I’d never felt such intense pain like that, and by the time I wrenched my hand away, I expected to find nothing more than a scorched stump at the end of my arm.
There was not a mark on me, though. “What…” I spluttered. “What the fuck was that?”
He’d touched me when he carried me to this shithole, and I had felt no pain.
Shadow’s giant, giant height returned to just one “giant” as he stepped closer, not looking as pissed off as I’d expected. “No one touches me.”
That was it, his entire explanation. “So you tried to burn me from the inside out?”
He shook his head, curls moving gently with the movement, and I had the most insane urge to reach up and run my hands through them. Like, the fucker had almost broken me a second ago when I’d touched him, but apparently, I was a sucker for pain.
“That’s my power,” he said just as shortly. “If you can’t handle it, don’t step into the fire.”
I snorted. “Right. Gotcha.”
Asshole.
