Page 23 of Forging Darkness

“Let’s go,” he says and gestures for me to follow. Moving with the stealth of a ninja, he pauses at the door, checking over his shoulder to make sure I’m following.

I’m not.

I’m seated in bed, wondering if this is a dream.

Admittedly, if I were dreaming, Steel would most likely be shirtless. I’m not embarrassed to admit—at least to myself—that he’s fit.

His facial features are hardly discernable in the almost pitch darkness, but thanks to my angel-born eyesight, I see the thick slashes on his brow pinch as he waves me over.

Am I really doing this?I ask myself as I slide out of bed in only a tank and sleep shorts.

The answer is yes. Whatever this is, I’m definitely doing it.

I follow Steel as he noiselessly slips out into the hallway. Taking my hand, he pulls me along the corridor without so much as a word.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t intrigued, but after a couple of turns, I lose my patience.

“Where are we going?”

He glances over his shoulder. “You’ll see.”

I grind my molars at the typical Steel response. Why did I even bother asking?

My feet pad soundlessly on the packed carpet as we tread down hallways and around corners. It’s tacky and spongy. Yuck. I wish I’d thrown on some shoes before leaving the room.

Steel stops in front of an unmarked door and fiddles with the handle.

Is he picking a lock? His body blocks my view, but it sure sounds like it.

When the door pops open, he reaches for me again. The callouses on his palms brush against the sensitive nerves in my hand, and I suppress a shiver. I still find the touch of another person’s hand to be incredibly intimate. It probably doesn’t even register with Steel that he’s holding on to me, but I couldn’t be more aware.

Walking over the threshold, I’m hit with a muggy smell that hangs heavy in the air. I taste the chemical tang of it on my tongue.

A rectangular indoor pool, lit only by two underwater lights, stretches out in front of us. The water on the surface is smooth and still as glass.

“Here.” Steel holds out a piece of pink fabric. I instinctively accept what he’s offering before realizing it’s a bikini. “Ash won’t mind.”

My heartbeat pulses in my throat, making it hard to swallow.

I shove the swimwear at Steel, already shaking my head, but he won’t accept it. “I’m not getting in there.”

“Yes, you are. Not knowing how to swim is a liability you can’t afford. They should have taught you at Seraph.” He gestures toward a door on the opposite side of the room. “Go change.”

My stomach flips and butterflies flap a crazy cadence in my lower gut.

“This is happening, even if I have to throw you in there fully clothed.”

I scoff as if he told a bad joke, but I know he’s serious. Proving me right, he makes a move toward me, and I jump away.

“Okay, okay. Hold on.” Taking a deep breath, I eye the pool with a heavy measure of disdain. I really don’t want to do this, yet . . . he’s not wrong. It is dangerous that I don’t have this skill.

He crosses his arms over his chest. “Do I need to count to three?”

“Do I look like a toddler to you?”

Tilting his head he lifts his eyebrows, telling me he thinks I’m acting like one at the moment. I glare back at him, and he holds a finger in the air. “One.”

Shoot.

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