Between classes on Thursday afternoon, Asha drove off campus to grab some lunch and found a small, eclectic shop that sold everything from incense to sombreros. She ran her fingers over the glass countertop and looked at the various handmade jewelry. She stopped when her gaze landed on a leather bracelet entwined with a large silver motorcycle.
“Can I help you?” asked a middle-aged woman.
“Can I see that?” Natasha pointed at the bracelet.
The woman pulled the bracelet out, and Natasha ran her fingers over the polished bike that looked just like Liam’s. The five-strand dark-coffee-colored leather wound around and behind the motorcycle and snapped in the back. It was perfect.
“I’ll take it,” she said.
* * * * *
Later that evening, she and Cara headed out to eat at a local college hangout called The Pit.
They stepped down into the basement of a large brick building to a dark, low-ceiling pizza parlor. The smell of tomato sauce and yeast wafted over everything. A small stand housed a band covering an old rock song.
“Oh hey! There’s Liam.” Cara pulled Natasha forward.
They walked over to his booth, and he looked up. “Ladies.”
He wore a crisp button-down shirt and black slacks. His bracelets were still in place, but his boots had been exchanged for a pair of dress shoes. Even his dark, wavy hair had been slicked back. Natasha had to consciously keep her mouth from falling open. She never would have recognized him.
The bracelet Natasha had gotten was still in her purse. “Cara, do you mind if I talk to Liam for a minute?”
“Nope.” Cara slid into Liam’s booth.
Liam scanned the restaurant. “You want to step outside?”
She nodded.
They walked back up the steps to the street where music and laughter rang out in all directions from the various college eateries.
“You look extra spiffy tonight,” she said.
He rubbed his neck. “Yeah, every once in a while I dress up like a trained monkey and parade around in public.”
She smiled. “You look like a business student now.”
He chuckled and shoved his hands in his pockets. “So, what’s up?”
“I just wanted to say thank you for Dragon Lance. I like it.”
“See, I knew you weren’t a one-genre girl.”
“Yeah, well, you’ve been so helpful in opening my eyes I got you something.”
His brow furrowed. “You didn’t have to do that.”
She opened her purse and dug around inside. “I know, but I saw it and it made me think of you.” Fingers shaking, she grabbed the bracelet and handed it to him.
He looked down at it. Seconds turned into a minute and her heart pounded louder as anxiety knotted her muscles.
“It’s okay if you don’t like it. I just thought—”
His gaze met hers. “I love it.”
Relief bathed her skin. “Really?”
“It’s great. Thanks.”
“Liam?” A tall, leggy brunette in a short, dark skirt and tank top walked up the stairs and linked her arm in his. “Pizza’s ready.”
Natasha’s joy raced out of her faster than a jackrabbit from a wolf.
The brunette looked Natasha up and down, revealing pearly white teeth on her fashion-model face. “Who’s your friend?”
“Asha, this is Deena.”
Deena offered her hand. “Nice to meet you. I so rarely get to meet Liam’s friends.”
Natasha reached out and shook Deena’s hand, resisting the urge to rip the long, slender limb from its socket and beat Deena to death with it.
“Nice to meet you too.” Somehow she managed to remember her mother’s lessons about manners in the face of someone you didn’t like, and she smiled.
Liam’s gaze never left Natasha’s face. “Deena, can you give us a sec?”
Deena squeezed his arm, her eyes sparkling in the neon lights. “Sure, hon. I’ll try to save you a slice.”
“You know what?” Natasha fumbled in her purse and then looked at her phone. “I just remembered I have to be somewhere.”
Liam took a step forward. “Asha—”
“Are you sure?” asked Deena. “We’d love to have you join us.”
Natasha backed away, still smiling. “I am so stupid. I promised someone I’d meet them for this thing, and I completely forgot and now that I look at my phone, I see they texted me so I better go. You can give Cara a ride home, right?”
Liam tracked her as she continued to back up. “Sure.”
“Great.” Natasha continued smiling to the point that she thought her teeth would dry out and her lips would crack. “It was so nice to meet you, Deanna. Liam, I’ll catch you at school or something. Have a wonderful night.”
She turned before they could stop her and jogged across the street. She told herself not to look back. Looking back would show weakness. She needed to be strong. She hopped in her car and started the engine. Hold it together. She put the car in reverse. Just keep smiling until they can’t see you. She pulled out of her spot and tore down the street.
When she looked in the rear window, Liam still stood there.
Liam stared down at the bracelet. No one had ever given him a gift before besides his mother. His chest felt like a thousand bricks had just been piled on top of it.
Deena gave him a peck on the cheek. “I’m gonna go back in with Cara.”
“Yeah, okay.” His voice came out strained and hoarse.
The way Asha had taken off hit him like a sucker punch to the kidneys. He’d not once seen her smile that way. But he had seen a smile very similar on his mom’s face every time she sported a new bruise or cut or black eye. The overconfident smile that said everything was okay when on the inside everything was turning to crap.
He fought the overwhelming urge to hop on his bike and chase her down and explain about Deena, but in the back of his mind he told himself that it was better this way. Asha was a girl with a future. A future filled with big dreams and a better man than he was. It was selfish to try and keep her here. She’d been through enough lately without him dragging her into his solitary, packless life.
He turned back to the pizza joint and fastened the bracelet around his wrist.
She’d bought him a gift.
Chapter Eight
That night when Cara arrived home, Natasha pretended to be asleep. The lingering scent of pizza clung to Cara’s clothes from all the way down the hall. Natasha pressed her pillow over her head in an effort to stave off both the smell and the images of beautiful Deena and handsome Liam together, out on a date. But it didn’t work.
Liam was the kind of guy any female would die to be with. Strong and protective, yet with a gentle and caring heart. There weren’t many guys out there who would help shifters and then actually give them the money he made off of it. Despite what was in his past, he was good. A guy who deserved to be happy. Happy with a beautiful model like Deena, not a recently assaulted, screwed-in-the-head, insecure nut-job like herself. It’d been a month since she’d run for her freedom and still she checked her phone obsessively, thinking her parents would call. Liam deserved better than someone who was always looking to the past. He deserved a woman who wanted to look to the future. Specifically, a future with him.
* * * * *
By the time Natasha’s brain quieted down enough for her to fall asleep, it was four in the morning. She dragged herself from her bed the next day to get to class.
True to his word, Clint asked her if she was coming to the beach party every time he saw her. He never pressured her, just asked. And the closer it got to the full moon, the more the desire to say yes tugged at her.
On Friday afternoon she finally agreed. She thought about texting Liam to give him a heads-up, but he had other things to do and better people
to do them with.
At nine, Cara knocked on her door, a bowl of popcorn in one hand, a DVD case in the other.
“I thought maybe we’d watch a movie.” Cara shook the DVD.
“I’d love to, but I’m going out.” Natasha turned from her mirror, doing the clasp on her necklace.
Cara’s gaze raked up and down Natasha’s body, making her look down at her off-the-shoulder maxi-dress. She’d never worn a maxi dress before, but they were popular in California. “Is it okay?”
“Uhm…yeah, it’s great.”
She rubbed her shoulder where the scars still marred her skin. “Maybe I’ll grab a sweater.”
“Really, you don’t need it. You’re beautiful. Where are you going?”
“A beach party. Clint invited me.”
“Clint?”
Natasha put her dangly blue earrings in and then slipped on her sandals. “Do you want to come?”
“Did you talk to Liam about Clint?” Cara’s eyes were conflicted.
“Yup.”
Cara stood motionless and stared. Natasha’s smile slipped.
“Look, I have to get out of here, just for a bit. Before I came to California, I hadn’t been out of my house for a month. I need to feel the wind on my face. Run down the beach. You understand, right?”
“It’s almost a full moon,” Cara said. “I understand.”
Natasha rubbed her wrist.
“Come with me,” she urged. “We can run on the beach together.”
“No…I…I don’t…I—” Cara turned away and shook her head. “Have fun.”
“Cara?” Natasha watched her friend leave. “Cara?”
Cara disappeared into her room. Natasha went to the door and listened for a moment. “I’ll be home soon and we can watch the movie, okay?”
No sounds came from inside.
After a minute, Natasha returned to her room, picked up her new purse and stuck the pink phone and wallet inside, along with a stack of money. She located her yellow bag and shoved her emergency items inside. After slinging the bag over her shoulder, she walked to her car and put it in the trunk. She touched the plastic on her window and thought of Liam. She bit her lip. She should tell him where she was going. But he hadn’t tried to contact her. It was obvious that his relocation duties were over.
It was time for her to find a new pack.
* * * * *
Natasha pulled into a spot overlooking the beach. The bonfire blazed into the night. A huge group of people danced and milled down below. She opened her door, and music floated all the way up to where she’d parked. It wasn’t hard to distinguish Clint and his crew from the rest. Rock and Buck wrestled while Clint cheered them on.
She descended the steps until her feet slid into the lukewarm sand. The feel of it between her toes made her smile. Her pack had vacationed in Hilton Head, South Carolina every year. Memories of Daniel and Cole playing chicken in the pool, walking the beach with her parents, bonfires on the sand, flooded her. Her smile fell, and she swallowed hard.
“Hey, beautiful!” Clint ran toward her. His surfer blond hair flapped as he ran. He hugged her in his strong, tanned arms. “I thought you were gonna ditch me.”
“I told you I’d come.” She pushed away, but he took her hand.
“Come on, let me introduce you.”
She wanted to remove her fingers but was afraid of hurting his feelings, so she let him lead her along.
There were more than thirty young people on the beach. Most of the males held beers and the females drank from clear plastic cups. Buck and Rock waved at her from where they wrestled. She returned the wave. A pretty redheaded girl stood by, cheering Buck on.
Over the next ten minutes, Clint dragged her around the group introducing everyone by name. She forgot the names as soon as they’d been spoken. When he finished, he leaned in close and asked her if she wanted a drink.
“Water, please, if you have any.”
He led her to a cooler, taking out two waters and handing her one. She opened it and took several large gulps.
“So are all of them your pack mates?”
“Yeah,” he laughed. “A few I’d be okay without, but for the most part, they’re good wolves.”
“I thought there were only a dozen of us on campus.”
“Oh, there are.” He gestured to the group. “Most of these guys go to the state school down the road. Buck actually applied to a bunch of performing arts schools but got his applications in too late for this year so he’s waiting to hear back about next year.”
“Buck? At a performing arts school?”
“Crazy, right? He’s mad talented on the piano. Though you’d never know it from the way he screws around with everything else.”
“I’d love to hear him play.”
“He’s playing next weekend at Pinky’s. You should come.” Clint gulped down his water.
She smiled. “Maybe I will.”
“So, what about you?” he asked. “You planning on staying here for a while or is this just a rest stop on your way to better places?”
“Why would you think this is a rest stop?”
“Because it’s a community college and you seem more of a private school kind of girl.”
“Oh really? And what gives you that impression?”
His eyebrows drew together. “Seriously? You wear Ralph Lauren. Your purse and sunglasses are real, not something you picked up in Chinatown. Your flip-flops alone cost over a hundred dollars, and you take your school work seriously.”
“Wow. That is quite the assessment.”
“Besides, you’re drop-dead gorgeous. Girls like you don’t stay at community colleges, they end up in mansions in Beverly Hills.”
“Well who says I want to end up as someone’s trophy wife?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t say you wanted to.”
“And what about you, Mr. Eighty-five-dollar Shirt, tucked into one-hundred-and-ten-dollar jeans, finished off with two-hundred-dollar shoes. Where do you want to end up?”
“Doesn’t matter where I want to end up. I’ll go where my dad tells me to.”
“So, he gets to make all the decisions for you, huh?”
“Children of Alphas do what they’re told, not what they want.”
Natasha took a long swig of water. That statement was truer than even Clint knew.
“Clint!” one of the females called. “Let’s dip!”
“Come on!” He set their bottles of water on the cooler before running off. Everyone disrobed. Shoes, shorts, skirts and underwear flew onto the beach. Natasha averted her eyes from the scene, and heat flushed her skin at the thought of all the naked bodies getting into the water. Packs got naked together so often that nudity wasn’t a big deal amongst their peers. But Natasha barely knew any of them. Getting naked wasn’t something she was ready to commit to yet.
“Asha!” Clint called, wearing nothing but his boxers. “Come on, girl!”
He dropped his boxers to the sand and she turned away again.
“Don’t you want to swim?” asked a voice close to her ear.
Natasha came face-to-face with a tall male with deep brown eyes looming close, invading her space.
“Not embarrassed by the naked bodies, are you?”
“Not with my own pack.” She tried in vain to remember his name.
“Asha, what’s that short for?” he asked.
His stare made her skin crawl, like a thousand sand crabs trying to bury under it.
“Ashanna.” She swallowed.
“Interesting name. I’ve never heard it before.”
“It was my grandmother’s.” Natasha glanced toward the water. Cindy dunked Clint. No one paid her any attention.
“Where did Clint say you were from again?” he asked.
“He didn’t,�
� she replied. “Would you mind backing up?”
“Why?” He loomed even closer. “Do I make you nervous?”
“She asked you nicely to back off.” Liam stalked toward them. A wash of relief overcame her at the sight. He stopped inches from the male’s face, a good head taller. “I won’t be so polite.”
“Chill. I was just asking her some questions.”
“Shove off, Ron.”
Ron’s eyes narrowed. “Are you challenging me, Liam? You know who my father is.”
“I don’t give an Alpha’s balls who your father is. If you don’t get away from Asha, you’re gonna find out what a steel-tipped boot feels like when it’s planted in your ass.”
“Okay.” Asha rushed forward. She shoved Liam hard, but in the sand lost her traction and almost fell over. “That’s enough. It was just a misunderstanding. Right, Ron?” She rounded on the other male. He and Liam continued to glare at each other, neither wanting to look away first. “Right?” she asked louder.
Ron’s gaze flickered to hers. “Right. A misunderstanding.”
“See? Come on, I’m done anyway.” Her desire for a party deflated flatter than a popped beach ball. Asha tugged on her protector’s arm. He didn’t budge. She tugged harder, leaning backward. “Liam, let’s go!” Liam glanced down at her and his eyes softened. “Please, I want to leave.”
Ron stayed silent. Behind him, several of the swimmers called out to find out what was happening.
Natasha laced her fingers into Liam’s and dragged him toward the stairs.
“Asha!” Clint called. “Asha, where ya goin’?”
Liam moved with her reluctantly.
“Come on, you big ox,” she said.
By the time they reached the steps, his fingers gripped hers tightly, and it was he who dragged her from the beach. She had to run to keep up. When they reached the top of the stairs, she stopped.
“Thanks for the stair-step class.” She tried to catch her breath.
Liam paced, flexing and unflexing his hands. Down below, Clint stood on the sand talking to Ron and several other males.
“Why did you come here?” Liam demanded.
Natasha’s attention whipped in his direction. “Excuse me?”
Promised at the Moon: Shifter Rising, Book 1 Page 6