Page 105 of Lured By Shadows

I tilted my head, meeting his eyes with a new awareness.

Maybe I couldn’t hurt him with my hands. That much felt obvious.

But emotionally? That was another story entirely.

I let the thought settle quietly and didn’t give it a voice.

Instead, I turned back toward Anna, who still sat as though time bent around her rather than the other way around. She lifted her teacup with unhurried grace, her eyes drifting over the photos laid out before her as if savoring each one.

“Anna, this was so fun,” I called, genuine warmth rising into my voice. “I can’t wait to do it again.”

Her gaze lifted, soft and dreamy.

“Next time, we must include Eunice. She adores you.” She raised her hand in an elegant wave. “Until next time, delicate flower.”

The nickname didn’t feel condescending. It felt… kind.

I waved back, smiling too wide to care, then left the photos with her and turned toward the stairs, a bounce in my step as I hummed softly without realizing it. Culver fell into stride beside me, of course, as if proximity to me was the most natural place for him to be. His steps were measured and quiet, like they followed some invisible blueprint.

“Do you even know where you’re wandering off to?” he asked lightly, his eyes tracking me with quiet amusement.

I froze mid-step, embarrassment blooming fast and hot.

Clearing my throat with a small “A-hem,” I grabbed the railing like it might point me in the right direction. “No. I was just… happy. I got a little distracted.”

He smiled but didn’t comment, and somehow the lack of commentary felt reassuring. He had a way of pulling me back gently, never making me feel foolish for letting my thoughts run ahead of me.

“Adorably so, my little lamb,” he murmured. “Your hand, if you will.”

“Stop doing that,” I grumbled, but my fingers slid into his palm anyway, instinct overriding common sense. The contact sparked, like a live wire humming beneath my skin.

“I bask in your flustered expression with pride,” he whispered, brushing a loose strand of hair away from my face with tenderness.

I twisted the hem of my shirt between my fingers, trying to hold myself together as that vulnerability edged closer.

“Culver,” I said, forcing the words out before they could dissolve entirely. “I guess we don’t have a title for what we are.” I swallowed hard. “So can I get with someone—"

His hand covered my mouth again.

“No.” The word came out low and strained.

His grip tightened around my hand, his expression twisting into something painfully close to desperation. “No one else. Please… I beg you.”

Shock raced down my spine as his chilled palm pressed against my lips, my brows shooting up because damn, he was actually begging. Not barking orders like I might’ve expected, but pleading in a raw, unguarded way.

When he lifted his hand, I exhaled shakily, watching him wrestle whatever storm was raging inside him back into submission. His jaw was tight, his eyes darker than before.

“Does the thought of—” I started, then stopped when his gaze flickered with warning. I recalibrated. “Is it really that bad?”

“Terribly so,” he muttered, breathing like the idea physically hurt him.

I tugged at our joined hands, forcing a sliver of levity into the moment. “Well, if I can’t, then you can’t either. Fair is fair.”

His gaze didn’t waver. He held me there patiently, like the answer had already been decided long before I’d asked the question.

“There is no one else,” he admitted with quiet confidence.

Then, with obscene gentleness that made my chest ache, he lifted the strand of hair he’d tucked earlier and pressed a kiss to it before letting it fall back against my cheek.