Page 32 of Bewitched By the Phantom
I drop my hand back down and nod, dropping it for now. But the mask starts to ache in my mind. Something’s off. Maybe he has a massive birthmark or something he’s hiding. I wouldn’t care. Whatever he’s hiding, it won’t matter.
My phone rings and I groan. “That’s probably Claudia.” I dig around in the sheets until I find it, but it’s only spam. I hit the reject button and realize I have another message from yesterday. I click it open. It’s from the Phantom and I must have missed it when I got distracted by Erik.
I look forward to seeing your next performance.
That’s all it says. I debate on whether I should answer or not. The Phantom has been kind of off lately, too. Part of me suspects that Erik and the Phantom are the same. The moment that reminder trickles in my mind, my eyes shoot over to where his phone sits on the bedside table. He’s watching me with a lazy smile as I look at my phone.
I could reply to this message and see if Erik’s phone lights up. That would be all the confirmation I need, right? And if it doesn’t light up, then I was wrong and it doesn’t matter.
My fingers fly over the letters.I know who you are. I hit send.
Holding my breath, I count to three, watching Erik’s phone closely.
“What are you doing?” he asks.
His phone lights up and my eyes widen. I drop my phone in surprise. “You’re him.”
Erik’s smile fades. “Who?”
“This whole time, it’s been you,” I rasp, pulling away from him. “You’re the Phantom.”
His eyes darken. “Angel?—”
“Don’t do that,” I snarl. “You . . .that’s how you know so much about me!”
“No,” he shakes his head. “That’s not how I know.”
“Then how?” I climb from the bed and start pulling on my clothing. I’d suspected it was him but to have it confirmed? I feel . . . used. I don’t know. I feel as if this whole thing has been planned all along. “You’ve been stalking me.”
“No,” he argues. “I’ve been loving you.”
“That makes it weirder!” I snarl. I finish getting dressed and glare at him. “Why? Why go through all this trouble?”
He holds out his hand but I stare at it like it’s a snake. Sighing, he grabs a pair of pants and jerks them on before standing before me. He tips up my chin, forcing me to look up at him.
“You needed me, angel. Your soul called to me and I came.” His thumb rubs my skin and sends a jolt of pleasure through my body. “I will always come.”
His eyes flash unnaturally and the shadows seem to curl around his shoulders.
“What are you?” I ask, confused. My heart tells me to trust him, to embrace him fully, but my mind is wary of him. There are too many strange coincidences for things to be left the way they are.
“Yours,” he answers. “Only yours.”
The temptation to tell him he doesn’t know me is strong, but that would be a lie. He does know me. The Phantom does.And clearly, Erik is interested in going further than an online mentorship. This man is the reason I didn’t quit. He’s the reason I’ve kept my sanity. Hell, in part, he’s the reason I’m even here. And he’s my competition. And yet, here he is, professing his love for me.
I don’t understand why he wouldn’t just tell me the moment I arrived.
He knows everything about me. Everything. But . . . I don’t even know what his face looks like. Suddenly, not knowing what his face looks like makes my chest hurt.
“Take off the mask,” I say, staring at him.
His hand drops from my chin. “No.”
“Take it off,” I growl, my anger getting the better of me. I need to see. I have to.
“We’ve already discussed this?—”
“That was before I knew who you really were,” I spit. “You know every detail about my life. I confided in you about every little thing. How can you stand there and refuse to show me your face?”
