book almost tumbling to the ground, it’s me. I lose my footing, causing my knees to skid along the concrete. I let out a hiss of pain, my eyes slamming shut against the burning of my flesh. My kneecaps may be battered, but at least my book is safe.
“Hey! Watch it!”
My breath leaves me in a sharp gasp, and my body tenses at the sound of the voice I’d know anywhere. I feel someone crouch beside me, and when I glance up through the curtain of hair that’s shielding most of my face from view, my breath lodges in my throat.
Endymion Black.
He’s kneeling in front of me, peering through my dark strands, as those bright green eyes study me. “You all right?”
Forcing a thick swallow, I’m afraid my violently pounding heart is so loud he can hear it. Perspiration beads along my forehead, and when I brush my hair away from my face to get a better look at him, my stomach dips. He’s handsome. So incredibly handsome. It quite literally takes my breath away.
Suddenly remembering he asked me a question, I nod my head slowly. His brows draw together, and the muscle in his jaw flexes as though he’s suddenly angry. He looks around us, glaring at the assholes in the distance who knocked me over.
“You sure?”
“Y-eah,” I whisper. My mouth is painfully dry. The saliva feels like sandpaper as it goes down. He places his hand between us and helps me to my feet. The second I place my hand in his, I feel a tremor wrack my body. Lightning slithers down my spine, damn near electrocuting me.
My knees ache a little when I stand upright, and he must sense it. His gaze homes in on my exposed knees, and he frowns. “You’re bleeding. Fucking assholes.”
Warmth settles in my cheeks, and I avert my gaze, unable to look at him for too long without feeling like I’m in a cartoon and have hearts floating above my head. I can feel his piercing gaze in the depths of my soul. I tighten my grip on the book in my arms, and he takes notice.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a mythology book.”
“Pretty big book for a little thing like you.”
Fighting to tamp down my shy smile, I lift my shoulder in a noncommittal shrug. “It’s interesting. I don’t mind carrying it around.”
He smiles then, and hell, it leaves a permanent mark on my soul. It etches itself into every fiber of my being until the very end of time. Endymion jerks his head over his shoulder. “C’mon, I’ll walk with you. Maybe this time you won’t get trampled.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, so I don’t grin like a lunatic as I step in stride beside him. We walk in silence for a little while until he asks me more about the book.
“So what is it you like about mythology?”
I shrug. “The stories, I guess. The ability to believe in higher beings. Shooting for the stars, you name it.”
He grins. “My mom’s family was the same way. Hell, it was why she named me Endymion.”
“I like it. Your name, I mean. I think it suits you.”
He raises a brow. “How so?”
“He was a handsome shepherd, and you’re…” I trail off, the words getting caught in my throat when I realize what I almost let slip. He knows, though, because he chuckles. The sound is warm and deep, and it travels through me in waves.
I suddenly have the urge to reach for my necklace. I grasp it, rubbing my thumb along the silver to breathe past my nervousness.
“It’s a nice necklace. I take it you like the moon?”
My gaze shoots to his. “How can you tell?”
His lips twitch as if he’s fighting a smirk. “The necklace. Your shirt. The design on your backpack. Kinda gave it all away.”
I smile, despite myself. I forgot about all that. Not many people ask why I dress the way I do or why I’m so obsessed with the moon. No one has ever truly cared. Until now.
“I do like it. The moon. My name…my name belonged to the moon goddess. Guess I’ve just always been a little obsessed.”
“Ah. Yeah. That makes sense. What did this goddess do?”
I want to tell him. It’s on the tip of my tongue to say she drove the moon across the sky and fell in love with a handsome shepherd by the name of Endymion, but I don’t say that. I don’t get the chance to because I’m suddenly nudged from the