Shadow Phantoms - H.P. Mallory Page 0,32

needed was a note from the principal sent to my dad. Not that he would show up to lecture me or anything. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen him. Instead, he’d send a formal letter on formal paper, bemoaning my bad attitude and spelling out for me the bleak future I could look forward to if I didn’t excel in my studies.

Well, fuck you, dad.

I reached the waiting area outside my lecture hall with two minutes to spare.

There was a puddle near the closest bench. Water dripped from a hole in the vaulted ceiling. I sidestepped the slick spot, nearly bumping into the unattended mop bucket. Looking down, I noticed one of my shoes was untied. Most everyone was already seated in class, but I had some time to spare. I knelt to one knee, tied my right shoe and tucked the laces.

I stood up at the same time that I stepped forward and slammed into the side of a large, solid body. My books crashed to the floor. The worksheets I’d stuck between the pages went flying off in different directions. Amid the scattered debris, I looked up and locked eyes with the handsome man from the principal’s office. I remembered he had a strange name before I remembered precisely what it was.

Stone!

He looked down, startled, his thick brows furrowed a bit on his gorgeous face. There was an effortless charm to the way he carried himself. With his flowing golden brown hair and strong, chiseled face, Stone had the sort of timeless beauty that normally only exists in a Rembrandt painting.

He wore a tweed jacket over a blue cashmere sweater.

The sight of Stone’s vivid blue eyes took my breath away. I had to remind myself to inhale, hoping he read the expression on my face as surprise and not the admiration it was.

Then, feeling embarrassment claiming my cheeks, I looked straight down and started to drop to my knee, hoping to gather my books into a pile on the ground, but Stone stopped me with a strong hand on my arm.

“No, Emma,” he said, kindness in his sunny blue gaze. “Please, allow me.”

I was surprised he remembered my name and watched as he knelt on the ground and gathered my books. So many different shades of light touched his hair. It looked incredibly soft from above. The drape of his shoulder-length waves cast a shadow over his face, bringing out the strong line of his chin.

I felt a bit useless just standing there, so I dropped down beside him, sliding my papers into a sloppy pile.

Stone shifted toward me, and a musky scent with a hint of cinnamon wafted in my direction. I started to lean toward him, but caught myself at the last moment. Something in his scent was just... intoxicating, somehow.

Pull yourself together, Emma! I thought. You don’t even know this guy. And you’re acting like a total idiot!

Still, I found my eyes following the trail of exposed skin to the collar of his shirt. He picked up a textbook and turned toward me. I averted my gaze just in time, looking to the door that led into the lecture hall.

I can’t believe he’s in this class! I thought, almost giddy. Wonder what Tarkington will make of him...

The old coot tended to chew up and spit out new students like old gristle, but Stone didn’t seem easily intimidated; in fact, he seemed more like a Roman gladiator. Tarkington had nothing on him.

“Here you are.”

Stone handed me my books as he stood up. I glanced up, smiling gratefully. “Thanks.”

Stone smiled warmly down at me and that was when I realized he towered over me by at least a head. Maybe more. He scratched the sun-kissed stubble on his chin.

“My pleasure,” he said.

His voice had the neat precision of a native English speaker, but there was a worldly undercurrent to his words. It was the voice of someone who had traveled the world and been touched by the dialects of a great many places.

I tucked a strand of wavy, blond hair behind my ears. I suddenly wished I’d done more than run a brush through it that morning. I checked the clock on the wall outside the class. It was time.

“We should get going,” I started. “I really don’t want to be late again. I’ve been in the principal’s office enough this week.”

Stone handed me the last of the papers on the floor and chuckled. “That makes two of us. But I must confess, while I