Page 144 of Stormbreaker

Another flash of Spark sears across the landscape, and we both look up as a few drops of rain begin to fall.

“We should get back,” he says, pushing off me and taking my hand. “Before anyone notices we’re gone.”

I nod, though even that feels uncertain. Rook literally knocked the wind out of me, and I’m having a hard time catching my breath. He leans in, cupping my neck and consuming me again, fast and hard.

One last kiss stolen under an amethyst sky.

“We really need to go.” He pulls me more insistently.

Then we head back, stumbling onto the subway like our limbs have given up. We find a spot near the window before the train hurtles us back to the heart of the city.

We’re about halfway home when it stops at a busy station, passengers filtering in and out. To my right sits a market, still bustling with life despite the waning hour. I’ve always maintained a tepid fascination with the vast variety of wares available underground, though I haven’t explored the markets much.

My gaze snags on a Hollow sitting against a pillar. It takes me a moment to process her face. It’s the same woman I recognized months ago. The one who reminded me of my former nanny.

I lean closer, squinting through the glass. She takes a sip from a water bottle in her hand before wiping her mouth in a gesture that is so familiar.

She looks over, and our eyes meet with another flicker of recognition.

Suddenly, I’m moving. “Poet?” Rook asks. “Where are you going?”

I shove off the train, sensing Rook behind me as I push through the crowd. I lose sight of the woman as I’m jostled left and right, but I keep fighting against the tide.

After we emerge, I locate the pillar, but the woman is gone. I spin around and around, finding only a nondescript sea of people in every direction I look.

“Poet?” Rook asks. “What’s going on?”

I shake my head. “I don’t know. I thought I saw someone I recognize.”

“Who?” he asks.

I exhale a breath, suddenly feeling silly. “I’m not sure,” I say, understanding how unbelievable that sounds, but he doesn’t press the matter.

“Okay,” he says. “Do you want to keep looking?”

I take another glance at our surroundings and decide I imagined the entire thing. “No. We should get back.”

“You’re sure.”

“Yeah, I was mistaken.”

He nods reluctantly and leads me back to the platform, where we wait for the next train to arrive. We return to our room without being spotted and take turns changing in the bathroom. When Rook comes out, he’s wearing only his pajama bottoms.

My cheeks flush as I think about our night. I have a feeling that’s going to happen a lot.

He must be harboring similar thoughts because he gives me a warm look that sends shivers down my spine.

“Everything okay?” he asks, probably wondering why I’m just standing in the middle of the room.

“I was wondering . . .” I fiddle with the hem of my tank top. “If you wanted to sleep next to me tonight?”

Again, I can’t fathom what possessed me to say that.

He smiles slowly as he approaches and places a finger under my chin. He searches my face, and I can’t determine what I read in his expression. Does he regret what we did? Am I being too much?

“Never mind,” I say, pulling away. “That was silly.”

“No,” he says, reaching down to lace my fingers with his. “It’s not silly. It’s just . . . I don’t want to make any assumptions about what this is between us, but there are some things you should know about me before we get any closer.”