Page 35 of Darkened Wings
Callum had landed on top of me, his face only inches from mine. He immediately pushed up with his hands braced on the ground on either side of me. “I must be heavy.”
Some vixen spirit took over me, and I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him back down. “You’re not heavy at all. Gods, your eyes are entrancing.”
He smiled, but it was when his gaze dipped down to my lips that my heart stammered, and all the butterfly species in the entire world teleported into my belly to dance and flutter. Despite the air of danger that seemed to follow him wherever he went, I was smitten, damned near in love, and my raven pranced inside me at the nearness of this male.
If I didn’t know better, maybe he could be my…
“Okay, everyone, that’s it for today. I hope you all learned something from your partners.”
Callum got up and then offered me his hand. When he pulled me up, he jerked so hard that my body slapped up against his. “Most fun I’ve had in a long time, sweet bird. And you…I’m hooked.” He ran the back of his hand along my cheeks which I knew were red from the heat. “Maybe next time I can show you even more moves.”
Any words I would have in reply stuck in my throat, so I nodded instead. He chuckled and grabbed his bag before leaving me there, unable to move, unable to think while the world spun around me.
Hooked was the right word.
Part of him was embedded in me, and I wasn’t letting go.
Chapter Twenty
As October wound to a close, the school’s first big dance of the year loomed, and it seemed that nobody could talk about anything else. The Ghost Gala would take place of course on Halloween night, but instead of costumes, the appropriate attire was deemed to be gothic elegance, and everyone but me had come from home prepared. Their outfits had either been in their luggage or shipped to the school, and listening to the other girls discussing their plans for their hair and makeup, inviting their friends up to their rooms to see their shoes and accessories reminded me once again that I did not fit in here.
I tried to remind myself that I was achieving my goals at the school. I had food and a warm place to sleep and was studying hard in the hope it would lead to a future where I could provide those necessities of life for myself. And although the classes I had taken so far did not offer any particular skills for day-to-day life, if I ended up back on the street, what I’d learned in Raven Defense would come in handy.
What I’d learned from Callum. More than one of the guys in this place had caught my attention, but I hadn’t been so up-close-and-personal with any of the others. He’d featured prominently in my dreams since that second class, the first one where we got past lecture and down to practice. I kept telling myself that I wasn’t particularly important to him, that he was only helping a raven with more challenges than the average bird.
But since we’d been in so many classes together, I had begun to look forward to seeing him each day. But Monday would not be one of those days. Because not only did we not have classes, either because the school observed Halloween as a holiday or maybe so that the girls could do their hair and makeup, but I would not be attending the dance.
“Why won’t you come?” Astra was getting ready, while I lay on my bed watching. “It will be so much fun.”
I took in her dress with its narrow multicolor stripe. It was not really goth, but it suited her so well. And her shoes were gorgeous black heels at least four inches high. She wore layers of shadow around her eyes that made them glow in the lamplight. And her hair was arranged into a high style, not quite a beehive but close.
“You look amazing, but I think I’ll just chill here tonight. I don’t even have a dress.”
She spun on a heel and blinked at me. “You never said that was why you didn’t want to go. And I’m an idiot for not realizing that was the reason. Gwen, there is a dress closet that anyone can access. It might not be the most beautiful selection, but I bet we can find something you’ll like.”
“No, that isn’t the whole reason, of course. I don’t like dances, and I’m tired, and I don’t have any shoes.”
I should have known that the “closet” would have shoes, too, and that Astra would push aside my other concerns. I was still arguing as we sorted through the rack of formal dresses, but when I laid my hands on the silvery-gray fabric, any protests faded from my lips. Astra came up beside me and laughed. “It’s perfect. Try it on.”
I couldn’t not try it on. It was so beautiful. And as I stood in front of the mirror, turning this way and that, my heart was beating so hard I thought I could see it through the bodice of the dress. “I’m still not sure I should go though. What if I dance goofy and everyone laughs?” What if Callum had a date?
I shouldn’t be thinking that way; it wasn’t as if he’d asked me to go with him or even mentioned the dance. Maybe he had other plans.
“Please come with me,” Astra said finally. “So I don’t have to go alone.”
And that clinched it.
I’d never been in the ballroom before, but when I’d finally been made up and styled to Astra’s satisfaction, feet clad in amore conservative yet still high and sexypair of shoes, I stepped through the door with my friend to find a wonderland. Goth and ghosts were the décor, and most of the students were dressed for the theme. I felt as if I’d stepped into another era. The candles in the chandeliers and wall sconces flickered, and the band on the stage at the front were carrying everyone along in a dream.
They were dancing what I thought might even be a waltz, and no sooner had we entered than Callum appeared from the mob and held out his hand to me. He swept me into the dance, and his lead was so strong and competent, I was even able to keep up. Of course, the next song was something more modern, but I danced with Callum all evening long.
I caught some envious looks from others swirling past us and tried not to preen in their faces, but it was hard. For a few minutes anyway. But then came another slow song, and he gathered me close, and everyone and everything disappeared into smoke. His strong arms encircled me, his hands resting on my lower back.
He bent close to my ear and asked, “Are you having fun, Gwen?”
“So much fun.” We circled the room and passed Astra who was also dancing. The night went way too fast, and before I was ready for it, the band was playing the last song.
“I don’t want this to end,” Callum said, shifting me closer. “But it has to.”
