Page 67 of Thane's Demon
At that, she smiled. A strange darkness shadowed her silhouette, which I couldn’t make sense of. It was like she knew a secret I was about to discover.
“I’m taking you to your new home,” she said, her grin widening, as if she was enjoying this conversation.
I stared at her, stunned and breathless.
“My… new home?”
Janie nodded.
“Thane’s home,” she corrected, before adding…
“Where you belong.”
27
FUTURE PLANS
The city sped by as I tried to settle my breathing, still feeling the phantom pressure of the man’s arms around me, still hearing the echo of footsteps closing in. Janie sat beside me with a poise that felt worlds away from the panic curling inside my chest. She was silent for most of this inner turmoil, her gaze fixed out the window, her gloved hand resting elegantly in her lap. The contrast between us made something in me tighten, a strange mix of curiosity and something embarrassingly close to jealousy… for entirely different reasons than before. She held confidence that I was in awe of.
I swallowed before speaking.
“How… how do you know Thane?” I asked softly, hating the faint tremor in my own voice.
Janie turned her head, her dark hair shifting like silk across her shoulder as she studied me with calm amusement. The visible corner of her mouth curved into a knowing smile.
“We go way back,” she said lightly.
The words made my stomach clench. I looked down, fiddling with the strap of my bag, unable to hide the insecurity threading through me, but it slipped out before I could stop it.
“Did you two ever… date or something?”
For a moment, Janie simply stared. Then she burst into laughter. Not the mocking kind, but a genuine, surprised laugh that filled the sleek interior of the car with unexpected warmth. She pressed a hand to her stomach as if the absurdity of the idea physically hurt.
“Oh, sweetheart, no,” she said, wiping a tear of amusement from the corner of one eye. “Thane doesn’t date.” She paused, then added with a soft, pointed smile, “Well… not until you came along.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks, and my pulse fluttered wildly against my throat. I tried to hide the small smile pulling at my lips, but Janie caught it anyway.
“So… did you go to school together or something?” I tried again, needing to understand their connection. This time her laugh was softer, more melancholy, as if the truth carried a weight I could not yet grasp. Then she released a sigh.
“Something like that,” she murmured, her tone warm yet evasive.
I waited for her to explain, but when she didn’t, she just left me with more questions than answers. It was as if the more I asked, the more gently she deflected, until I finally realized I couldn’t pry Thane’s secrets out of her any more than I could pry them out of him.
“It’s Thane’s story to tell,” she said at last, her voice dipped in quiet finality. “And trust me, little dreamer… he will tell you. He just needs to believe he is worthy of you first.”
The words stole the air from my lungs. Worthy of me. The idea of Thane, this fierce, powerful, impossible man, seeing himself as unworthy, felt like something I was not equipped to hold. I touched my chest lightly, feeling the ache that bloomed there.
The car slowed.
Janie reached forward, tapping the glass partition to signal the driver. When the vehicle eased to a stop, she turned to me with an expression that was equal parts gentle and firm.
“We’re here.”
I blinked, confused, until she opened her door and stepped out, gesturing for me to follow. I slipped out of the car and looked up at the building before us. It was tall enough to look intimidating, but its exterior was rough around the edges. The brick was weathered, the metal fire escape groaning faintly in the breeze. It looked… tired.Forgotten by the world. Nothing like the pristine skyscraper I lived in.
Janie walked confidently toward a side entrance hidden beneath a sagging awning. She dug into her coat pocket and pulled out a key. The metal glinted faintly under the dim streetlight as she pressed it into my hand.
“This is his, use it,” she said, and I stared down at the key before looking up at her in shock.
