Page 2 of A Secret Crush Valentine's

The woman simply blinked at her.

“Well, it’s a really old book,” Julia said.

Her companion nodded. “It belonged to one of my ancestors—my great-grandmother. She was one of its authors.”

“Impressive. Something tells me she was as great as her title.”

The woman’s eyes lit up. “I guess you could say I’m living vicariously through her.”

Julia chuckled. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, anyway. I’m Julia.”

“Daphne.”

“Nice to meet you, Daphne.”

Out of the corner of Julia’s eye, she saw a woman twist around in her seat to face the man with the buzz cut and headphones. Judging from her expression, she was clearly complaining about something the guy didn’t particularly care about.

“…just grooving to my jams,” the man was saying.

The woman’s scowl deepened. “You’re acting like a literal toddler right now.”

“Just let me listen to my music, will you? You’re kinda spoiling my groove.”

“What?”

“Guys like that are jerks,” Julia heard Daphne say. “He’s not going to stop kicking her seat.”

Julia hadn’t even realized he was doing that. “How can you be so sure about that?”

“It’s just who he is.” Daphne closed the book, and Julia caught a brief glimpse of gold lettering across the black cover. “Leopards don’t change their spots. Not even snow leopards.”

“Cripes!”

“I need to use the toilet,” she said, getting to her feet.

Julia could have sworn the woman winked just before she turned and headed for the back of the cabin. She sat, open-mouthed, at the spot where Daphne had been sitting.

How did she know what I am?

She replayed the words in her mind:Not even snow leopards.

No one, not a single living soul in Julia’s life, knew what she was. Well, except her parents, but they didn’t really count. She’d kept the truth about her supernatural nature a secret all her life, no matter how close she got to anyone.

Nothing strange about that. Supernaturals typically hid their true selves from the rest of the world. Most humans weren’t exactly comfortable with the idea that people like Julia existed. Believing supernaturals didn’t exist meant everyone could go on living their daily lives without fear. Julia knew if they ever found out she was a shifter, their reactions would be a lot less like parents at a gender reveal and more along the lines ofDemon! Kill her!

Yeah. Humans were chill like that.

But how in blazes did Daphne know what she was? Something about the woman’s calm demeanor left Julia feeling even more uncomfortable. Should she go after her?

No.

She remained where she sat, trying to steady herself. When Daphne returned from the bathroom, she’d find out what she needed to know.

She turned her gaze yet again to the window, staring out at the expanse of blue sky. Now that she thought about it, maybe it wasn’t so boring after all. She’d always been capable of creating songs or poetry out of the most mundane ideas. A sky so vast was hardly mundane. The same could be said about the elements, like water. Well,ice.She’d penned a few lines this morning before she’d arrived at the airport. The words were still burned into the back of her mind:

Lost beneath the ice, a lover’s silent scream,

Fading echoes of an unrealized dream,

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