Page 71 of Shadow Caster
It was important to make the distinction, to remind myself that he was off limits. He’d made that clear, and the memory of that conversation made me cringe internally.
I couldn’t allow myself to fall for him. I needed to cut off those feelings and move on.
Lloyd and I had run maintenance on a couple of AM posts, done a sweep, and now it was time to head back and put our feet up for an hour or so.
I studied his profile—aquiline and strong. Being in sector one was a break for him and his troop. They never discussed sector two, or the trial they were working toward, and damn, it was hard not to ask about it. But the vibe around that subject was a clear back-off one.
I was content to fall into the routine we’d established over the last couple of weeks. Being at the barracks was like being in our own little world. It was beginning to feel like a home away from home. It was hard work, but it was paying off because I could fix an AM post in less than five minutes now, even though apparently that was still too long. Go figure.
Vince was doing some checks at another barracks in sector two, so it was just the troop and us newbies.
Lloyd had even allowed me into the inner sanctum of the control room.
Barracks shifts ran over a twenty-four-hour period, so we took turns to sleep. Being a nightblood, I didn’t need as much sleep, so the twins Aidan and Devon, as well as Brady and Harmon were tucked up in their beds while Lloyd, Thomas, Carlo, and I manned the station during daylight hours.
“You’re doing good,” Lloyd said, slowing his pace slightly.
“Thanks.” I slid a glance his way. “You sound surprised.”
He smiled. “That probably sounds chauvinistic, but believe me, the fact you’re a woman isn’t why I’m surprised.”
“Oh?” I had an inkling where this was going, but why make it easy on him?
He cleared his throat and kept his gaze on the misty terrain ahead. “You don’t exactly come across as a hard worker. You skipped lessons, fell asleep in the ones you did attend, and were a bad influence on my sister.”
My instinct was to jump into defensive mode, but I took a breath and mulled over his words. “First two, agreed. I didn’t want to be here, and like fuck was I going to pay attention to shit that I found boring. But I didnotinfluence your sister. Now that I think of it,sheinfluencedme.” I smiled. “If not for her, I don’t think I’d have gone toanylessons.”
He was silent for a long beat. “Point taken. But you do understand my reservations, right? You have a reputation for not giving a fuck.”
Ouch, that hurt. More than it should have, because hadn’t I gone out of my way to cultivate this exact image? I should be pleased I’d succeeded, but for some reason, the fact that he saw me that way pissed me off.
“I give a fuck when I want to. Nightwatch wasn’t my choice. I was coerced and manipulated into being here. Not a great motivator.”
“And outside? The fights? The living in the slums and rubbing your family’s nose in it?”
“Wow, someone’s done their research.”
“Trust me, there was no research required. You were all they talked about at every social gathering. You know they call you the Fallen Justice.”
Another bite into my ego. No wonder my father had been eager to frame me for murder. He wanted to get me under control—not for me but for the family reputation.
“Nice. Real nice. I might adopt that.”
“No.” He stopped and turned to face me. “Don’t. That isn’t who you are. Not anymore. I don’t know what motivated you to be that person, but it’s not the person I see.”
My throat pinched. “What do you see?”
His icy-blue eyes warmed. “I see a woman that gives a damn. I see a woman with heart. I see a fucking shadow knight in the making.”
Damn him, and his words that had me all choked up, and when I got choked up, the defensive mechanism kicked in. Hard.
“Nope.” I brushed past him and continued toward base.
“Nope?” He jogged and caught up. “What do you mean, nope? I just complimented you.”
“You’re not supposed to compliment me. You’re supposed to be an arsehole. Faraday, the stick-in-the-mud.”
He chuckled. “Is that what you think of me?”
