Page 69 of Symphony for Lies

“What?” He shut his book and let it fall onto the piano lid. “It’s refreshing. I’m constantly surrounded by people who talk a lot but say absolutely nothing.”

I hummed in understanding, flipping through a passage on musical codes. Before I could go back to reading, Zane’s fingers brushed against mine.With a swift, fluid motion, he closed my book, too.

His hands were warm and large, with veins tracing subtly over his knuckles, a silent testament to the restrained strength beneath his skin.

A slow, electric pulse spread through me like static in the air before a storm.

“Why are you helping decode these notes?”

I hesitated.

Why was I?

Because I felt like I had to, or did I want to prove something?

Spencer believed my theory. He didn’t have to, but he did. And because of that, I had to see it through. That was reason enough.

“Amelia?” Zane’s voice was suddenly close to my ear.

I tensed as he leaned in, his breath ghosting over my skin and his fingers grazing my forehead lightly.

“Sorry, I just… I think I’m doing it because I was asked to,” I murmured, shifting slightly to create space between us. “And, of course, I want the poisonings and murders to stop.”

I moved another inch away.

There was a faint creak of shifting weight beneath me.

I frowned, adjusting my posture again when the bench snapped.

My balance tipped. And suddenly, I was falling.

A startled gasp left my lips, and in the next breath, Zane was falling with me.

Heat. Weight. The solid press of muscle.

I hit the ground, but the impact barely registered because Zane was right there, his body covering mine, pinning me down.

My breath hitched.

His chest rose and fell against mine, his dark hair falling messily over his forehead, lips slightly parted.

It took me a moment to process what had happened.

The broken wooden legs of the bench lay scattered beneath us, but that wasn’t the problem.

No. The real issue was the way Zane was looking at me.

Like he wasn’t thinking about getting up. Like he was thinking about something else.

I blinked rapidly.

We needed to get up. Right away.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” I swallowed. “I’m fine.” I pushed at his chest, attempting to create some distance between us. His body was solid, warm, and unmovable.“Could you, um, get off me?”

He didn’t move.

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