She turned to look at Sebastian, lying on the bed. He was shirtless, and even in the dim light the old whip weals across his back were visible. She had always been fascinated by Shadowhunters but had never thought she would find one whose personality she could stand for more than five minutes, until Sebastian.
"What are you staring at?" he said, not looking over his shoulder. She sat back in her chair and finger brushed her hair.
"Nothing." He turned to look at her and smiled. There was no humor, no malice, no anything in it. 'It might as well have been a robot smiling,' she thought dryly, and no sooner than a tiny smile curved her lips he was there, hovering over her.
"What's so funny, Maia?" he breathed. Maia's eyes widened slightly. His breath tasted like peppermint. She leaned back, trying to move away from him subtly. It didn't work; he chuckled and went over to the dresser. She bit her lip.
"So what do you think of me?" Sebastian asked suddenly. "I can't be a friend, or more than one," he added. "Those Nephilim and that insane Daylighter have made sure of that. You probably hate me, because of my father and what he did to you, but also because of what I've done to your friends." She sucked in a breath through her teeth.
"I…. well, I don't hate you. I've been with you for a little bit now, and I don't think we're that close, but… well, you know. You're not that easy to warm up to." He stopped pulling out clothes and stared at her in surprise.
"Me? Maia, I've given you every convenience I possibly can, under the circumstances. You've been allowed to leave-"
"Under demonic guard," she muttered. He shot her a glance.