Rise of the Moon (Moonlit Series Book 1) (12 page)

“Thanks for the ride home, Shayne.”

“I’m sorry the evening didn’t go as planned.”

I met his gaze for the first time since we’d left the theatre. “Me, too.”

With that, I closed the door and headed to the gate, where Shadow eagerly waited. I unhitched it, stepped inside, and closed it behind me once more. Shayne sat in the driveway until I’d reached my door. The dog was enthusiastically trying to lick my arms, which didn’t feel much better than the state they were already in.

“Whoa, what happened to you?” Sophie said as she walked into the front hall.

I kicked off my shoes, heading for the stairs immediately. “None of your goddamn business.”

“Holy, I was just asking. You don’t need to be a bitch about it,” she muttered.

I ignored her as I headed for the bathroom, with keen intentions on taking a shower. My second one within a four hour time span.

Stupid Cole.

Stupid Philip.

Stupid Shayne.

*              *              *

“Shayne’s an idiot,” Maddie reassured me on Monday as we walked along the football field towards Kristy, Maegan and Chantelle. “Of course Cole knocked Philip’s hand on purpose. Because he’s a dick. There’re no ifs, ands, or buts about it.”

“Thanks,” I told her, glad that if there was only one person to take my side, it was her. Though, on the other hand, Jason had been helpful this morning when he realized I’d been deliberately avoiding Philip.

“So you really think it’s over?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” I shrugged, watching a soccer ball roll across our paths. I glanced at Maddie, who made no move to get it, before fetching it myself. I kicked it back to the kids in the middle of the field, occupying their lunch by shooting between two pylons. I joined back up with Maddie, who’d waited patiently for me. “I liked Shayne. But I don’t think I could fall in love with him.”

“And you know this just because he wouldn’t take your side?” she looked at me questionably. “Besides, we’re young and we’re beautiful. We dream of the happily ever after, but we don’t believe we’ll find it on the first try. It’s not about falling in love; it’s pretending that that’s what we’re feeling.”

“Maddie –the philosopher,” I said, spanning my hands out in front of me. “You could make headlines. Or write books.”

“You’re the one that’s good at English.”

“I’m also good at music, but you don’t see me becoming part of an orchestra.”

“Well played,” she nodded, waving at the girls who, today, sat on the bleachers. She dropped her bag on the ground, grabbing a seat.

“How was your date?” Maegan asked.

I shrugged in response, almost ready to turn around and leave. I loved my friends, but there was a reason I’d kept it quiet. Maybe my relationships would always be jinxed after a few too many people caught on. It really never failed. Except Evan –though who’s to say it went well there, too.

“What happened?” Kristy asked.

“We went to the movies, I got pop spilled down my back and we went home,” I summed it up.

“Did you guys at least reschedule?” she pressed on.

“Uh, no, I don’t know if I’ll go on another date with Shayne.”

“But he was so nice,” Kristy frowned.

“You met him?” Maddie asked, her brow furrowing as she quickly processed what was going on.

“I mean, he sounded so nice,” Kristy cringed, shooting an apologetic look my way.

“You let her meet him before I did?” Maddie turned on me.

“Not on purpose,” I said. “We all just kind of ran into each other?”

“Friday night, Kristy was working –you would have purposefully had to go into Mr. Smooth to see her.”

“Shayne wanted a smoothie, and I just figured he should have the best in town.”

“As your best friend, I just… I just thought I would be the one to meet him first. I’m glad that that all means nothing to you,” she picked up her bag and began walking away.

“Thanks, Kristy,” I scowled at her before following Maddie. Kristy again murmured her apologies.

“Just leave me be,” Maddie said when I grabbed her arm.

“Let me explain,” I told her.

“Explain what? That you’d rather anyone else meet the guy you’re interested in, but you specifically tell me that you don’t want him to meet me? As if I’m going to even
attempt
to take the guy you’re interested in, Evelyn. I would never do that to you.”

“I know, it’s just –”

“Just what?”

“This is stupid,” I changed the subject. “Why does it even matter when I’m no longer going to pursue Shayne?”

“It matters,” she told me firmly.

“So you’re going to act like we’re in grade seven?” I called her out on her bullshit.

“You know what? I am,” Maddie said. “So… suck it!”

“Then have fun ignoring me for a few weeks!” I threw up my hands, fed up with just about everything.

“I will!”

I watched her stomp off all the way to the doors to the school, half-expecting the entire time for her to turn around and come back, wrap her arm around my shoulder and we’d laugh about it. But Maddie was immensely stubborn. I would be the one that would have to apologize to smooth things over –but this was a petty fight. She was being childish. I’d wait a week before I said anything to her.

When I glanced back over my shoulder at the group, Kristy was mouthing her apologies.

It’d be a day or two before I spoke to her, too.

Chapter 15: Shayne

“What do you know about two guys named Cole and Philip?” were the first words that left my mouth when I entered the ice cream parlour just past noon.

“Not you, too,” Harry let loose a throaty groan. His teeth were flat in comparison to mine, and the fangs only came out by will, or by a flurry of emotions, usually anger and frustration. Harry had always had great control over his emotions; I had not been able to withdraw my incisors since Evangeline had died in my arms. The only sign I was restless, despite my seemingly calm veneer.

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve had werewolves coming in and asking about them.”

“Werewolves?” I asked.

He sighed, “Yeah. Apparently the foxes have challenged them in one way or another –I try to stay out of it.”

“Foxes?”

“Cole and Philip –two of three fox shape shifters in town. I… may have forgotten to let you know how big of a supernatural hotspot this town is.”

“That aside,” I said slowly. “What are the chances that the two of them would purposefully spill a drink on Evelyn and claim it to be an accident?”

“High, I guess. What happened?”

“They spilt a drink on her and claimed it to be an accident,” I repeated slowly.

“On your date?”

“Just as the movie was about to start. It ruined a fantastic evening, and when I sided with the Philip fellow, she got upset.”

“Shitty,” Harry gave me a sympathetic look.

“I haven’t spoken to her since,” I added.

“Well, that explains the mood she was in yesterday,” he responded. “Is she ignoring your messages?”

“I haven’t messaged her.”

“What?”

“I haven’t messaged her,” I sighed as I repeated the words. Harry was seemingly slow to process things today.

“You know she’s not going to just forgive you if you leave it as is, right?” he held a hand to his head. “And the werewolves… I really thought you were going to be putting your all into this, Shayne.”

“That’s the thing, Harry,” I said. What about these werewolves? “She looks like the Evangeline I remember –she really does. But something just doesn’t… feel right.”

“Well you need to get your emotions in check quickly. You either want her or you don’t, but I’m telling you it’s dangerous to just sit and do nothing. One of the werewolves in town is trying to claim her as his mate.”

“Is that another thing you forgot to tell me?” I snorted.

“I only found out myself last week,” he responded, crossing his arms. “Don’t reprimand me, Shayne. I didn’t want to put pressure on you –since from what you
have
told me, things had been going well. Until Friday.”

“Until Friday,” I agreed.

“So is she Evangeline or not?”

I exhaled heavily, “I don’t know. I’d like for her to be. The last hundred and sixty-six years wouldn’t be a waste like my father insists they have been.”

“Yeah, well…” Harry’s voice trailed off, unsure of how to respond.

“Tell me more about these werewolves,” I moved on to a subject more comfortable for him. While the idea of reincarnations wasn’t new, it was extremely rare to find one. Harry was, in a way, scared for me. The two of us had known another vampire, Jessenia, who had become obsessed with finding the young slave who had captured her heart in Egypt so many years ago. She lived in the past –and grew insane from it. Eventually, unable to live any longer without him, she drove a stake through her own heart.

“The Eastern Canadian Pack moved south,” he shrugged. “The only thing I know is that the foxes are rubbing them the wrong way and they suspect that Evelyn may have something to do with it. I’m a little doubtful, and I think they’re just worried about people abusing what’s ‘theirs.’ The foxes, essentially, are just known bullies around here. It doesn’t stop at ‘just Evelyn.’”

“Interesting.”

“You think she might have something to do with it?” he asked.

“I don’t know, but I also don’t believe in coincidences. Especially from foxes. Remember Clem in seventy-two?”

“How could I forget? But she was an old fox. These are young foxes. I don’t expect their mission to be anything as drastic as an assassination mission,” he chuckled. “Besides –Clem was one of a kind. A little nutty, but that might have been because it was the seventies.”

“That’s true,” I agreed. “So the foxes aren’t a threat?”

“I wouldn’t think so –but I’m letting the werewolves think it’s a potential. The whole lot of them are very arrogant, instilling a little worry will be good for them. And a little goose-chase never harmed anyone.”

“Except maybe the foxes.”

“Nah. They’re leaving at the end of the school year. Or so Philip’s told me. And out of the three of them, he’s the only one I would actually listen to,” Harry said.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you for the talk, Harry,” I said, beginning to excuse myself. “Tell Lizzy I say hi.”

“Of course,” he said. “Tell James to stop in sometime –I’ll give him a free treat.”

“I will,” I told him before departing.

I shielded my eyes as I left the ice cream parlour. It was hot outside, but pleasant. There had been a time I had wished the legends to be true, that we would burst into flame or dust when sunlight touched our skin. Ten years spent sitting in the sun, watching my skin turn bright red, only to return to normal the instant the sun set.

I really should message Evelyn to apologize. Perhaps even call her, which still seemed more respectable even in the technological age. However, I was about to embark on a two week-long trip to Europe for an anniversary and to spend time with my mother. It would have to wait.

Besides, what could really happen in that time period?

Chapter 16: Blake

“Hey!”

I heard Evelyn’s voice before I saw her. When I did spot her, I was a little surprised to see that she had sought me out at my locker. I almost didn’t believe it, since she spent her fair share of time tactfully avoiding me. Though, I doubt she’d admit it.

“Hey,” she repeated when she grew nearer. There was that increased heart rate again. I exchanged a look with Jason, who just shrugged in response.

“Changed your mind about a date with me?”

“What?” she instantly wrinkled her nose and brow in response. Jason just laughed. “No. I was hoping to hitch a ride home. I’m, uh, kind of avoiding Maddie –and she takes the bus home.”

“In exchange, I want that date,” I told her.

“What happened to just enjoying my company?” her shoulders dropped as she exhaled. “Fine, I’ll find someone –”

“He’s kidding,” Jason cut in. “We’re more than happy to drive you home.”

“Thank you,” she smiled, as if knowing that the age-old move would work the whole time.

“I got to get to class,” Jason told her. “But I’ll catch up with the two of you afterwards.”

“Sounds good. I’m going to head to the library to get my English homework done,” she said.

“I’ll come with you,” I offered. My locker was still open, so I waited for her cue to grab my things.

“Well… okay.”

Jason brushed his wrist over his mouth to keep from laughing as he walked away. Evelyn glanced at him as he left, then looked at me, watching as I clicked the lock into place. I gestured with my head for us to walk, and she nodded; a silent conversation. Her arm brushed mine every once in a while, and I wondered if it sent the same shivers down her spine as it did mine.

“How far did you get in class?” she asked as we entered the library. A class was being held there on the computers, but we found an empty table on the other side of the room.

“I only have five questions left,” I replied.

“Same.”

“Which five didn’t you do yet?” I asked, opening up my notebook.

“The last five?” she raised an eyebrow. “Did you do them out of order?”

“I do the ones with minimal thinking first,” I answered. “So I haven’t done four, seven, nine, twelve and thirteen… because I would have had to go through the chapter to find the answer.” That wasn’t necessarily true. They just required more than a sentence answers that I hadn’t felt like writing out in class.

“Oh, right –you don’t like to read,” she nodded.

“It’s not that I don’t like to read. There’re just a million things I could be doing instead,” I shrugged, grabbing the novel we were reading in class and finding the chapter we were on.

“Well, I tell you what. You give me the answers to eleven, fourteen and fifteen, and I’ll give you the answers to four, seven and nine.”

“Deal,” I told her.

I let her copy my work, watching as she pushed the same strand of hair back over her ear several times as she leaned over the table. I wondered why she didn’t pin it back –but I enjoyed the small gesture all the same.

“Stop it,” she told me. “Reread the chapter and figure out the answers for twelve and thirteen.”

“Are you going to copy those, too?” I grinned.

“I might,” she shrugged.

“Cheater,” I laughed.

“I’m just giving you the privilege of saving me time,” she smiled in return.

“The answers I have to copy are longer than the answers you have to copy,” I pointed out.

“Fine,” she sighed. “I’ll find the answers to twelve and thirteen. Just give me two seconds.”

I waited patiently, looking around the library so I wouldn’t bother her. I wasn’t surprised to see people staring at the two of us. She was, after all, gorgeous. Though, I had to wonder if I was biased because she was my mate. But I think I’d feel honoured to have her sitting beside me, even if that weren’t the case.

“There,” she said, pushing both notebooks my way. “Copy anything as you see fit. I’ll find the answers to twelve and thirteen, Mr. Lazy.”

“I wouldn’t call myself lazy,” I responded as I admired her hand writing. It was a scrawl, really, a mixture between cursive and printing. Easy to read, though, and very neat. Every once in a while there was a word that looked like it was a font on a computer, a glimpse of perfection.

“Then what would you call yourself?”

“I’m the opposite of lazy. I’m a fighter. I’m persistent.”

She rolled her eyes, but nodded anyway.

“And you?” I stilled my pen, wanting to see her face when she answered. Her eyes moved between me and the book several times as she thought. Her lips pursed together before she answered, her eyes locking on mine. “I don’t know. Predictable?”

“You? Predictable?” I snorted.

“Believe me –everyone says it. Know me long enough and you’ll be able to guess my next move.”

“Do you ever deliberately throw people off?” I asked.

“More than a few times,” she smiled.

I finished writing down her answers, using my own words, and set my pen down. Leaning back in my seat I sighed loudly. “Aren’t you done yet?”

“Oh, shut up,” she muttered. “You’ve been hogging my notebook.”

“Then tell me the answer.”

“You could find your own answers.”

“I could,” I agreed. But I didn’t move to pick up my book again, and she didn’t reprimand me. For a moment, I allow myself to close my eyes and just listen to the scratching of her pen on the paper. It used to take a certain level of conscious effort to ignore all the other noises, but with her beside me all the sounds of fingers on keyboards and pages turning dissolve until all I’m left with is her steady breathing and the sound of that pen. And it’s beautiful.

The pen stops, and I hear her chair creak. A page turn and silence. Then the pen is active once more.

“Done,” she murmurs softly. When I opened my eyes, she pushed her notebook back towards me, lifting the book back up to her face to read while I paraphrased her words. 

She didn’t turn a single page as I wrote.

When I finished, I closed both of our notebooks and leaned on the table. “Now what?”

“What do you mean?”

“We still have an hour left before Jason gets out of class,” I replied, glancing at my watch. “Did you want to go somewhere? Do anything? Have a sixty minute date?”

She laughed, “You just don’t give up.”

“I told you –persistent.”

“If I go on this sixty minute date with you, will you leave well enough alone?” she asked.

“With pleasure,” I grinned.

“Sixty minutes isn’t a long time. But try to keep it as interesting as possible. Your date, you have to keep me entertained.”

“Easy. Then rate my date. If I score above a seven, you have to go on a proper date with me. One that takes all evening.”

She scrunched her nose and said, “How about if you score an eight?”

“Deal,” I said, holding out my hand.

She shook on it; “The clock starts now.”

“Then let’s get going,” I got to my feet, picking up her things and mine. She followed closely behind me as we left the library, making the short trip to my locker to drop off our things.

“Hey –my things,” she argued as I closed my locker.

“No time to put them in your locker,” I shrugged as I pulled my keys out of my pocket. “Now, let’s get to my truck.”

“Where are we going?”

“The grocery store. Think we can squeeze a picnic into an hour?”

“If you think you can, then let’s go. It’s no secret that I’m always hungry,” she replied, keeping up with my fast pace walk as we headed down the hall.

“A girl after my own heart,” I grinned.

We reached my truck quickly, and soon enough we were on our way.

“Birthday?” I asked her.

“What?” she looked at me.

“This is a date –so I’m going to ask as many questions as I can to find out as much as I can about you. Birthday?”

“February second,” she responded. “You?”

“August second,” I smiled widely.

“You’re lying,” she said.

“Nope. We were born six months apart from each other,” I chuckled.

“Hmm,” she said.

“Colour?”

“Don’t have one,” she shrugged.

“I lean towards green,” I told her. “Favourite movie of all time?”

“Like, movie I can watch over and over again?” She thought for a moment, “I want to say any Mark Wahlberg movie, but mainly
Shooter
.”

“Unexpected, but good choice. I like most superhero movies. X-men are my ultimate favourite.”

“And let’s face it, Hugh Jackman is just so dreamy,” she added.

“To die for,” I said dryly. But she laughed.

We reached the supermarket, and the two of us leapt out of the truck.

“Favourite stuffed animal as a child?” I asked.

“I believe I used to have this mouse –but I lost it on an errand run with my mother. I think I was four –I remember being so upset. After that, I had a small leopard stuffed animal.”

“Did you name them?”

“You know what? I don’t think I did,” she said. “What about Blake? Did Mr. Tough guy have an animal he cried over when it couldn’t be found?”

“I did, actually,” I answered. We grabbed a basket on our way into the store. Trying not to smile like a fool was hard. This was good. This felt natural. She had to feel it to. The extraordinary sense of ‘just right.’ Just like Goldilocks. “Oddly enough, it was a cat. Mr. Whiskers.”

“Mr. Whiskers,” she repeated slowly. “Somehow I don’t believe you.”

“It’s true. Though I couldn’t say my ‘S’s, so it was ‘Withkerth.”

“How long did that last?”

“Until the first kid bullied me,” I said. “I worked really hard to articulate my ‘S’s after that.”

“And you’re doing really well,” she teased.

“Bully or bullied?” I asked, since we were on the topic.

“Sometimes one, sometimes the other,” she watched as I grabbed two bananas and a medium container of already cut watermelon in the produce section. “The thing about being a kid is that you don’t realize the long term effects.”

“Fair enough,” I nodded. I quickly made a list in my head of all the things I thought we would need. Maybe some yogurt. Cookies were a must. But if we were getting cookies, we should get milk. They did, after all, have those small cartons.

“You said you were bullied for your speech impediment. But what about after that?”

“I haven’t changed much over the years. I mind my own business.”

“Well, if you emitted the same energy you do around the school, I bet that wasn’t too hard.”

I was quiet for a moment as we entered the dairy section. I did grab the yogurt and milk carton, which earned me a funny look from her. Finally, I said, “You still get that one kid –sometimes several –that try to, and I quote, ‘put you in your place.’ Not that it worked on me, but it worked on Kaya, and, to some degree, on Jason. And then I would have to stick up for them.”

“Jason seems to be able to hold his own,” she said.

“He can… now,” I grinned.

“I like Jason. He’s like the brother I’ve never had.”

“And me?” I dared myself to ask.

She lifted her shoulders, and then let them fall. “I’m still deciding.”

“Which just makes this date all the more worthwhile,” I said, happy when she smiled.

“What kind of cookies?” I asked as we headed down the aisle.

“If that’s what the milk is for… Oreos. Hands down.”

“Oreos it is… All that’s left to do is go and pay and we’re all set for our picnic.”

“We’re really doing this?” she laughed. She wrinkled her nose as she did so, and I found that adorable.

“You doubted me?”

“Not for a second,” she followed behind me.

She let me pay, though I had expected her to convince me to go Dutch.

“Your date –your money,” she told me with another shrug. But I was fine with that. If anything, I was happy. We drove back to the school, we walked to the park, and we found a picnic table to sit at. At first, I counted the giggles, to reassure myself that she was having a good time. But it was so easy to lose count.

Knowing that she was my mate was one thing. Getting to know her was a completely different matter, and one that everyone should be blessed with. I knew she was amazing, but the number of facial expressions that she had, how quickly she could go from laughing to scolding me for double dipping a cookie in that carton of milk –I was flabbergasted. I didn’t know I could love her more than I already did.

And I did love her. She was so easy to open up to, and her every move was captivating. It was overwhelming, the feelings I felt for her. In a way, it was scary. I hadn’t expected to be as consumed by her presence in my life as I was.

I wanted to tell her everything and anything. At the same time, I didn’t want to tell her my past, and why I truly was the way I was. My twin brother, Keegan, and I had once fought for attention, and eventually I just let him have it. He had been the suck up, the pride and joy of Carlos’s father and the elder Pack members. But Carlos, Michael and Noah had seen through him.