Page 15 of Radiant Shadows

“Oh, you know, enjoying the delightful weather,” I replied sarcastically—it was frigid and damp out here, the bench I was sitting on freezing cold even through my layers.

He laughed at my comment and sat beside me, even though I answered whether he could or not. Oh well, a little company wouldn’t be so bad.

“So, do you have my clothes?” I asked with no shortage of sass. “Or do you prefer wearing them yourself?”

“Whoa, someone’s extra feisty today,” he said with a smirk. “They’re back at my apartment. Since you didn’t give me your number, I had no way of reaching out to you to deliver them.”

“Well, since you’re so good at running into me, you should just carry them with you everywhere,” I said, ignoring his bait. “I’m sure we’ll run into each other again.”

“I hope so. Though I’d prefer to run into you on purpose some time.” He gave me a flirtatious look, and if I weren’t in my current love triangle prolapse, it probably would’ve worked.

I sighed. “Look, you seem like a nice guy, but I’m just not interested in anything romantic at the moment.”

“Are you sure about that?” he asked, his eyes sparking with a dark heat. “I’m sure I can make it worth your while.”

He lifted his hand to push my hair over my shoulder and leaned toward my neck, and with my painfully slow reflexes, I shoved at his chest before his lips brushed my skin.

“What the hell are you doing?” I snapped, scooting away from him on the bench and keeping my hands held up defensively between us.

He smiled like I was playing hard to get. “Just a little nibble. I thought you, of all people, would appreciate a little love bite.”

Panic flared in my chest, the memory of the vampire attacking me flashing in my mind like a nuclear explosion.

“Arr ma’at,” I blurted, a faint green light pulsing out from my palms and disappearing into Adam’s chest as the truth spell went into effect.

“What was that?” he asked, shaking his head and blinking several times.

“I’ll ask the questions,” I declared, narrowing my eyes at him. “Who are you really?”

“An Initiate,” Adam replied, then paled, his eyes widening.

Initiate.I’d heard that word before... Julian’s roommate. He said she was an Initiate.

“As in a vampire Initiate?” I hissed.

“Yes,” he answered automatically, then winced. “Shit. What did you do to me?”

“Why do you keep following me?” I demanded, ignoring his question.

“I’ve been sent by Hadrian to spy on Julian.” He snarled in frustration, jumping off the bench and clenching his fists at his sides. “Seriously, what the hell did you do to me?”

Fear gripped my heart anew. If Hadrian was having someone spy on Julian, that meant he suspected Julian. What would he do if he found out about Julian’s double agent status?

“So why bother with me?” I asked.

“You’re working with him on something,” he said, the words forcing themselves out through clenched teeth. “I wanted to find out what that was. And you’re hot. Two birds and all that.” He shrugged, which looked really awkward with all his muscles tight with restraint.

I glared at him. “You’re disgusting."

His face scrunched in concentration. “You’re a witch, aren’t you? There was a green light right now when you said that foreign word thingy.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck.How did I keep getting myself into these situations? I had to protect Julian.

“How do I get you to leave Julian and me alone?”

Adam shrugged again, his muscles relaxing as he seemed to accept that the cat was out of the bag. “I don’t think you can. I’ve got orders direct from Hadrian to report everything I find, which I fully intend to do. He’ll reward me, and when I become a vampire, you can be my little toy instead.”

“I’m no one’s toy,” I seethed, even as my pulse was pounding from this information.

---