by J.J. Bonds
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“Hey, Keegan.”
“Aye,” he returns, not bothering to look up from the mare he’s grooming. I remind myself that he has no reason to think I’m any different from the other students at Crossroads. No different than those who treat him like a second-class citizen and mock his very existence because he wasn’t born a vampire.
“I’m Katia. I’m a friend of Shaye’s,” I say, trying again. “She asked me to bring you a message.”
He drops the brush he’s holding and turns slowly to study me, rubbing the horse soothingly. With his free hand Keegan pushes his braided hair back from his face, looking me in the eye for the first time.
It’s obvious why Shaye likes him. Once you get past his gentle demeanor, there are only good looks left to enjoy. His chocolaty skin is beautiful; his black eyes so deep that it’s like looking into the abyss. A girl could get lost in eyes like that. His shirt is open revealing a Celtic knot tattoo on his chest. Intrigued, I see that the tattoo is offset by a myriad of long, sweeping scars and wonder how Keegan got them. Although beautiful in a grotesque way, they’re the kind of marks that would prevent him from ever passing as a pureblood, even if a DNA test wouldn’t betray his true heritage.
“Shaye told me what you did at the maze,” he says, breaking the silence. I jerk my eyes away from his bare chest and back to his face, embarrassment flushing my cheeks.
“Yeah, well, sometimes I have trouble staying out of my own way.” I don’t expect him to understand.
“You said you have a message from Shaye? You’ve seen her?” he asks anxiously. Keegan wears his pain openly, the hurt in his eyes unmasked. It’s clear he wants to be with her. Being stuck out here in the stables must be torture. Knowing that he can’t be there to hold and comfort Shaye when she needs him most can’t be easy.
“She doesn’t want you to worry about her.”
“How is she really?” he asks, abandoning the horse and closing the gap between us. I’m not wild about him being in my personal space, but it’s not threatening. If anything, it’s desperate.
“Honestly? She’s been better, but she’s going to be okay. Shaye’s tougher than she looks. She’ll be back on her feet in a few days.” I don’t know if it’s true or not, but his worry isn’t helping Shaye. I’m just glad he doesn’t have her knack for ferreting out a lie.
Keegan’s relief is overwhelming. “Thank you.”
“Can I give you some advice?” I ask, not waiting for a response. “You need to be stronger for her. The last thing Shaye needs to be doing is worrying about you and how you’re holding up. She needs every bit of her energy to fight this thing.”
I can see he’s offended by my directness, but I don’t care. What I’ve said is true. Sometimes the truth hurts. I should know.
He laughs then, catching me off guard. “You’re a real piece of work. Must be why Shaye likes you.”
“I’ll consider that a compliment. She’s got good taste from what I’ve seen. Anyway, I’ve gotta run. I have a meeting in a few minutes, but I’ll be back. I’d like you to teach me to ride if you can find the time.”
“Of course,” he replies. “I’d be glad to do it. Any friend of Shaye’s….”