Page 54 of Shadow

This couldn’t possibly get worse.

“Okay, maybe I remember some of it.”

His eyes locked on mine, and I was surprised he hadn’t barked at me for holding his gaze. It was safer than looking at his chest again, because that would definitely send my heartbeat into overdrive.

Suddenly, his hand shot out from beneath the covers and grabbed mine. The unexpected movement startled me so much that I jumped, half slipping off the bed. In the process, I lost my balance.

While sitting.

Oh, God, it can get worse,I thought, flailing as I planted my free hand against the mattress in an attempt to steady myself.

He caught my other hand as well, stabilizing me while pushing me upright until our faces were mere inches apart. His piercing eyes locked on mine.

“Beast has a problem with you.”

I blinked, momentarily dumbfounded. “That’s the most romantic thing a man has ever said to me.”

A faint twitch at the corner of his lips betrayed him, hinting at a suppressed smile. “You need to hang out with better men.”

The air between us felt charged. We were so close we were practically sharing the same breath. His eyes darkened, the blue deepening until they were almost black.

“Your eyes just changed,” I said, unable to hide my fascination.

“That’s not the only thing that’s changed.” His voice dropped, and I felt something pressing against my hip.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out what he meant.

Heat flooded my face, and I pushed away, giving myself some space. He let me, but there was a flicker of frustration in his expression.

“Why aren’t you training?” he asked, his tone edging toward irritation.

I met his question with a shrug, unbothered. “I gave Boot the slip by ducking in here with the doctor for pain relief.”

His eyes narrowed slightly, his lips curling back into a smirk. “Maybe I’ll give Boot the day off and take care of your training myself.”

“You don’t look like you can walk, let alone train anyone,” I countered. “I’ll find Boot and be a good little girl.”

His brow arched, and there was a knowing gleam in his gaze. “Somehow,good little girldoesn’t suit you. Axel was only half right. Beast has your number, too.”

I tried to brush off his words, but they struck a nerve. He wasn’t wrong. I had always been an open book, easily read by those who cared to try.

“You talk about Beast like he’s a separate entity,” I said, tilting my head, curiosity overriding my usual caution. “Are you one and the same, or is he like a split personality that takes over?”

To my surprise, he answered. “We’re trained to separate the two in our heads. Once we grow into our Beast, our human side leads but allows him full rein when needed. Controlling both sides takes time.”

His words hung in the air, their weight sinking into me as I tried to process what it must have felt like to live with such a dichotomy.

If he was in the mood to answer questions, I might as well take the leap. “Help us. Fight with us. I’ll do everything I can to keep the Federation in check and make sure they keep their promises so you don’t feel betrayed again.”

His eyes hardened, and his jaw tightened. “Feelings have nothing to do with it.We werebetrayed. They didn’t stumble into their actions. They set out to imprison and study us. Thatwas their intent from the start. It will never happen again because if it does, we’ll kill every human who tries.”

The sharpness of his words stung, and I felt the weight of the atrocities my government had committed against the Shadow Warriors.

“You’re right, and I’m sorry.” The apology came straight from my heart, unprompted by obligation. It wasn’t a scripted sentiment but a genuine regret for what the Federation had done to them.

“You’ve apologized,” he said.

“That apology was for them,” I clarified softly. “This one is for me. And for my father,” I added, the words catching slightly in my throat. “My dad didn’t trust our government either. Now that I know about the hellhounds, and that he may have known the truth, I understand why he felt the way he did.”

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