Page 54 of The City Of Fractured Memory

I scoff, a sarcastic smile spreading across my face. “Trying to use them to flirt with me, are you?”

“Why? Is it working?”

My smile drops and I swallow thickly.

“Yeah, I thought so,” he smirks.

“Get. Off. Me,” I hiss through my teeth, and he chews his lip before finally leaning back a little, loosening his hold on me slightly.

“You sure? For a minute, it looked like you were enjoying yourself.”

Before I can argue back something flashes in his eyes and his attention shoots to the wall behind me.

“Why do you keep doing that?” I snap, the tension between us shattering.

“What?” he frowns, his gaze returning to mine.

“Looking over my shoulder all the time. That must be the tenth time I’ve seen you do it.”

My Shadow presses in, his presence overwhelming my senses.

He knows.

The voice echoes inside my head and my breath catches.

No he doesn’t, don’t be ridiculous, I think back at him, but amusement that’s not my own floods my senses.

You know exactly what he’s looking at.

I start picking at my nails as anxiety tiptoes its way up my spine and I grit my teeth hard, trying to school my features into neutrality as I silently argue with the damn thing.

You’re just a figment of my imagination, there’s no way he can–

“Who are you talking to, Miss Wren?”

My blood turns to ice in my veins, and my heart skips a beat. Riven is watching me intently with a slight frown, like he can hear every word going on in my head.

Impossible.

I told you…

How? Surely he can’t read minds, no mortal can.

The corner of his lip curls slightly in a half smirk as he tilts his head, staring at me with those piercing eyes. “You’re not alone, are you? Who can you see, Octavia?”

“No one, you’re being ridiculous,” I scoff, trying my best to sound like my heart doesn’t feel like it’s going to burst out of my chest.

“You’re lying, again.”

I feign innocence, shrugging as nonchalantly as I can. His expression softens when I refuse to answer, my pulse hammering as he regards me in that intense way of his.

“I’m not your enemy, Miss Wren.”

“How could you not be after everything you’ve done?” I snap. “I know what you did to Xavier–”

“That weasel had it coming, believe me,” he growls.

“How could he possibly–”