as he stalks towards me, every inch of him the sexy, primal hunter.
“I should’ve known you had something to do with this,” I say as Cassian pauses directly in front of me. Today, he’s wearing a light blue shirt that makes his onyx skin pop and a pair of dark skinny jeans. His black hair is buzzed once more, accentuating his arresting and chiseled facial features.
He looks fucking good, and he knows it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he says bluntly, but I see his eyes flicker to the violin case.
“I don’t need your charity,” I chide.
At this, his smile slowly expands into an infuriating, teasing wave.
“Is that what this is, baby?”
I make a face. “Don’t call me that.”
Cassian continues to smirk unrepentantly as he remains beside me, his muscular arm brushing against mine with every step we take. He stares at me out of the corner of his eye and offers me a salacious smile. It’s sometimes easy to forget that despite his charms, he’s cruel and capricious. Wicked. The shadows are his best friends, and the night is his domain.
As if he can’t handle the silence anymore, he blurts, “Is it just ‘baby’ that bothers you? Or is it the fact that I gave you a nickname to begin with?”
“Both,” I deadpan as I hurry to my third hour class.
“But what if I want you to be my baby?” he asks nonchalantly, but then winces when he realizes how that sounds. “Oh. That sounded bad.”
“Tell me, Cassian,” I begin. “How many girls have you called ‘baby’ in the last…let’s say…month?”
“The last month?” He throws his head back in laughter. “Only you, baby.”
“Fine.” I clear my throat, dislodging the wrecking ball that wants to take up space there. “In the last…five months?”
His laughter fades, and he offers me his most contrite look. “A few?” It turns into a question.
I whirl towards him, offering him a smile that isn’t all that pleasant. “Being your ‘baby’ isn’t exactly special then, is it?” Before he can think up a reply, I hurry away from him, using my heavy violin case as a physical shield between me and the outside world. Cassian breaks into a jog in order to catch up with me.
“How about sugar tits?” he questions seriously, and I give him a look capable of melting the skin off of most people. “Pterodicktyl,” he suggests.
“That’s bad.”
“Boomer?” He scratches at his chin in consideration. “Yeah. I like that. Baby boomer.”
“Just stop.” I drag a hand down my face, trying my hardest to hide my smile. Why does he have to amuse me so much when I’m still mad at him?
“You can pretend to hate me all you want, baby, but I know you’re charmed.” He places his head on my shoulder, causing my feet to stumble mid-step. His smirk only grows, a mischievous, wicked type of smirk that promises pain and darkness.
“Goodbye, Cassian.” We finally reach my third hour, his head still resting snuggly on my shoulder. I can smell his shampoo, a combination of pine and citrus, as well as the scent of oil.
“I’ll see you later, baby,” he purrs, straightening and snaking an arm around my waist. He pulls me flush against his hard body, smirking down at me.
“Don’t. Call. Me. That,” I snark through gritted teeth. “I’m not your baby.”
“But you are my something,” he croons, not the least bit cowed.
“I’m not your anything.” We’re so close I can see golden flecks dancing in his eyes, almost like the stars taking up residence in an inky black sky. My eyes drift automatically to his pillowy lips, before I quickly come to my senses, lean forward, and bite him on his nose.
“Ow!” He steps away from me, holding his face in horror. “Did you just bite me?”
“Yup. Haven’t you heard?” I lower my gaze to his crotch, where I can see a visible erection tenting his pants. “I bite back this time.”
“Fucking hell, baby. Will you just marry me already?” he begs.
Ignoring him, I hurry through the doorway and move to my usual seat near the middle of the room. Normally, I sit between Elias and Emmett in this class, but today, both of their seats remain empty. I bite my lip, glancing at the clock to make sure I have time before class begins, before pulling out my phone. My finger hovers over Elias’s number that I’ve had in my phone since I saved it when he texted me after the football game. I actually have all of