Page 4 of The Banshee and the Warlock

"Then it's a good thing we're supposed to do the essay assignment together." He flashes me a charming smile that makes something within me react even though it has to reason to.

"You might be terrible company in the library," I point out. "Maybe you chew loudly, or insist on cracking the spines of books."

"Are those the standards that you're measuring terrible at?" He seems to be teasing, but I don't know him well enough to be sure.

"In the library, yes."

"Then you will be glad to know that I don't like to eat in the library, and I've never knowingly cracked the spine of a book," he responds.

"But you have unknowingly?"

"I can't answer that, or I would have knowingly cracked the spine." He grins at me.

A small laugh escapes me in response. "Then I think you will be an acceptable study partner," I respond.

"An excellent decision for you to make considering we're stuck together now."

"Only because you butted into a conversation that wasn't yours to comment on." I check the front to make sure our professor isn't paying us any attention.

"If you didn't want the response, you shouldn't have said it out loud."

"That might not have helped. For all I know, you could be a mind-reader."

He raises an eyebrow. "I'm not sure I'd enjoy that very much."

"Oh?"

"People can be judgy."

My cheeks flame red.

"Worried about what you're thinking about?" he asks, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

I push a stray strand of hair behind my ear. "It's not what you think it is."

"You don't know what I think," he points out. "Unless you're trying to tell me that you're a mind-reader."

"All right, class," Professor Fairburn calls, cutting off our conversation. "If you get out your textbooks, we'll start with the exercise on page thirty-two."

Panic fills me as I realise I don't have a textbook.

"Here, you can share mine," Cethin says, sliding his book in between us.

"So you are a mind-reader," I mutter.

He chuckles. "Your face is just very easy to read." He leans closer. "And that includes what you were thinking when we were introduced." The low, inviting tone makes me think he's telling the truth about that.

I swallow hard. I'm not supposed to be thinking of anyone like that, especially when I don't know them.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I murmur.

"Of course you don't." A satisfied smile flits over his face, and his ears perk up to go along with it, as if they're responding to his amusement. It makes me like them even more.

I ignore him, choosing to focus on the task at hand instead. But it's nearly impossible to with how close the two of us are sitting. No matter how I move, I can sense him. It's almost as if we're connected in a way that I'm not with anyone else.

I shake my head, hoping to rid myself of some of the delusion. I have no idea what's causing it, but there's no doubt that it's all in my head. And I'm only feeling this way because it's my first day of Potions class and I have so much pressure on myself to do well.

And I refuse to accept otherwise.