by Sara Dailey
“But he lied to me. You all did. How am I supposed to react? Y’all are werewolves, for God’s sake.”
Paul put his cup down on the table. “Actually, I’m not a werewolf. Just a regular ol’ guy in love with one. Kinda like you.”
It took a moment for my brain to register that. So, Paul was human? And he was completely okay that his wife and children were supernatural creatures out of a horror movie?
When I didn’t respond, Paul continued. “I’m serious, Teagan. I’m human just like you. I fell in love with Lily a long time ago, and when I found out that she was…uh, different, I had a hard time dealing with it. But then realized I that it didn’t matter. I loved her, and that was all that mattered.”
Alli reached for my hand. “I’m so sorry, Teagan. I know I kind of pressured you to go out with Aiden, but it’s because I wanted you to be happy. And I knew my brother could make you happy. Aiden loves you, Teagan. You have to give him a chance. He needs you, and you need him too. Let him love you. You won’t regret it.”
Let him love me? Aiden did love me. That I couldn’t deny. The way he looked at me, touched me, held me, made me feel whole... No one could fake that. And he’d respected my wishes and left when I was angry at him; he hadn’t tried to pressure or cajole me. He was even getting sick because I wasn’t with him, but he hadn’t wanted that to influence me. At that moment, I knew what I wanted. What I needed. Alli was right: I had to let him love me. Because I loved him back.
She wrapped her arms around me and said, “We can be your family now.”
My heart constricted, and tears filled my eyes. “This is just all too much, Alli. My father… What happened to him, to his…body?”
Alli started sobbing, too, and scooped me up in her arms. “I’m so sorry, Teagan.”
Paul stood and wrapped his arms around the both of us. “Just let us take you home. You’re not alone, honey. You’re not alone.”
65.
Aiden
I woke up early, unable to stop thinking about Teagan. What could I have said differently? Should I have gone back over and come clean, told her exactly what would happen to us if she didn’t accept me? The question had plagued my dreams. And it would be like this every day from now on. I just knew it. I would never stop thinking of her, never stop loving her. Not that I wanted to.
After a long hot shower, I looked in the mirror and could already see what was happening. My eyes were red and my skin pale. My heart literally felt broken.
I couldn’t live this way. I had to fight. Calling and checking in wasn’t enough; I had to go back to her house and fight for her. I had to find a way to both respect her wishes and prove to her that we were better together. Even without the threat of The Fixer, I knew that to be the case.
I dressed quickly and went downstairs. The house was unnaturally quiet. I looked around but couldn’t find anyone. It didn’t matter. I was wasting time. I grabbed my keys and walked out the front door.
“Going to Teagan’s?” Mom asked, startling me. She was dressed and sitting on the porch, drinking a cup of coffee in the cold. She seemed distant, lost in thought as she stared across the compound. “Is that Luke over there?”
I didn’t want to talk about Luke. I wanted to leave, but I needed to make sure Mom was okay first. She didn’t look okay, that was for sure.
“Yeah, that’s Luke,” I said.
He was standing outside his house with Brian’s daughter Scarlett. They looked extremely friendly, and for a moment I thought about Cami, who would clearly be unhappy at what I was seeing. Luke was going to break that girl’s heart. I didn’t think I would have thought about her feelings before I met Teagan.
I watched as Scarlett handed Luke a note, but he didn’t read it right away; he just held it in his hands and watched her get in her car to drive off the estate. It was only when she was gone that he opened the letter, but then his entire face lit up.
I shook my head. What the hell was I doing here spying on Luke? I needed to get to Teagan.
“Mom, are you all right? Where’s Dad?” I asked.
The moment the words left my lips, Dad’s car pulled up. It was Dad, Alli—and Teagan!
I was off the porch and at the car in less than a second. I pulled open the door and tentatively offered her my hand. She looked so fragile, so unsure. I held my breath as she looked at me. It felt like an eternity, but finally she gave me her hand. That was it. That was all I needed. I could wait for the rest.
But she was out of the car and in my arms in a heartbeat, and she wrapped her arms around my neck. I buried my face in her hair. I knew that I could never let her go, and I never would. Never again.
I could hear quiet sobs against my chest, so I held her tighter. We stood there for the longest time, and I barely noticed my dad and mom and Alli going inside to give us privacy. When Teagan finally loosened her hold, I looked down at her beautiful face. I couldn’t find the right words to say, so I did the only thing that conveyed all of what I felt. I kissed her.
They were small tender kisses at first, but I needed more. She was my oxygen, and I had been deprived of her for too long. The kisses became desperate and needy, on both of our sides. Finally she pulled away, and I took a deep breath, bracing myself for what she was about to say.
“A werewolf, huh?”
I nodded my head nervously.
“I’m still mad at you for lying to me. And it’s going to take time for me to get used to all this,” she added.
I gave her a tentative smile. “Does that mean you love me again?”
“I never stopped, Aiden. I was just so scared.”
Upon hearing those words, I felt a huge weight lift off of my shoulders. I wrapped her in my arms again and raised her body up so that we were eye to eye. “I’m sorry that I scared you,” I said. “I’m sorry that things are as crazy as they are, that yesterday was as crazy as it was.”
Her eyes began to tear up again. She didn’t say anything.
“But the important thing is that I love you, Teagan. I will love you always.”
“You’d better,” she teased. “If we’re going to be ‘mates.’ Weird.”
At that word, my heart glowed. I swung her in circles and carried her toward my house. Everything was going to be okay.
“Put me down!” she laughed.
“Never,” I said. “I’m never letting you go again.”
66.
Teagan
Sitting in the living room, surrounded by my new family, I felt completely content for the first time in ages. We’d gathered near the Christmas tree the Wrights put up, and Alli played Santa Claus, passing out presents for each of us. My stack was overflowing, which was crazy. It had never been like that at home.
Aiden wrapped his arm around me and pulled me close. He whispered in my ear, “You’re going to share some of that with me, right?”
I glanced over at Lily, who shrugged. It warmed my heart. The family was overcompensating, but I knew they were doing it because they cared. They all cared, and they were treating me like one of their own. Just like they’d promised. And I had Aiden.
In the last few weeks, so much had happened. Not only had we pulled everything together for exams and finished out the semester, the Wrights had held a proper funeral and burial for my father. I was able to say goodbye, which had made a difference. Though it still hurt, Aiden and Alli were by my side to help me through the pain. The official story had been close to the truth: Peter had come on the estate with him, insane, making crazy allegations and waving a weapon. Peter had killed my father when he balked, and then he was killed by a family attack dog. Brian took care of all the details, including providing the attack dog. The lab work matched our story, and after a couple interviews, the police finally closed the case.
I missed Dad. He might have been an awful father, but he was the only one I’d ever have. And he hadn’t abandoned me. I’d always love him.
I realized I’d soon love the Wrights, too. They’d taken me in
and hadn’t looked back. Neither had I, much. It was clear now that Aiden and I belonged together, whether or not Marcus approved. Every day our feelings grew stronger. It was like we were becoming one unit, one person. Aiden loved me, and I loved him. The family promised to give me rundown of what things would be like, what it meant to be a werewolf, but that didn’t matter. Werewolf Aiden might be, but nothing could change the happiness I felt when I was in his arms. That’s what mattered.
Aiden nudged me gently. “You okay?”
Placing my head on his shoulder, I said, “I’m okay.”
“Just okay?” he teased.
“I couldn’t be happier,” I replied. Because it was true.
67.
Aiden
I couldn’t believe how much my life had changed in the few short months since I moved to Red Ridge: switching schools, finding out that I was a werewolf, the fight with Dylan, the bombshell about Marcus being my biological father, all the pain, all the hardship… Everything was worth it if I got to spend the rest of my life with Teagan. Which I did.
Just as I leaned down to kiss her forehead, the doorbell rang. Dad made his way through the mess of wrapping paper in the living room and opened the door. There stood Marcus with Cade by his side.
Alli rushed over and threw her arms around Cade. “Merry Christmas!” But then she pulled back and saw the worried look on his face. “What’s wrong?”
Marcus entered the house. When he stopped in the foyer I was already standing, but I remained in the living room next to Teagan. Marcus looked from me to Cade and replied, “We have a problem.”
Cade’s grim expression punctuated his father’s statement. I grabbed Teagan’s hand and maneuvered us through the stacks of open presents, my mother following close behind. I pulled Teagan close, knowing that Marcus’s arrival could put a damper on what I had hoped would be a perfect day. She deserved a perfect day.
Everyone stood staring at each other. It made me impatient.
“Well, what is it?”
“Brian called. There is word that a neighboring pack plans to try to overtake us. It’s apparently gotten out that we don’t have an heir, that there’s no second alpha chosen to step up and take control in the event of my demise. This makes us look weak, vulnerable, easy to defeat. It needs to be handled.”
Alli started to say something, but Cade raised his hand. She fell silent.
“I will not endanger this pack because you two can’t get your shit straight,” Marcus continued. “You boys need to figure it out. Fight if you have to, but I need one of you to step up.”
As I turned from Marcus, Cade’s eyes collided with mine. His fists clenched at his sides, and there was fire in his eyes.
“All right, bro,” he said. “Let’s do this.”
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Sara and Staci are native Texans who began writing together about five years ago. After teaching in classrooms next door to one another for several years, they decided it was finally time to try their hand at writing the type of fiction they love: YA paranormal romance. As well as being avid readers, they are close friends, teachers, wives, and proud soccer moms. Circle of Lies is their third young adult novel.
CIRCLE OF LIES
Life has always been easy for Aiden Wright. He’s smart, athletic, funny, and the ladies adore him. But when tragedy strikes, Aiden discovers the truth about who he really is and his whole world comes crashing down around him. Aiden thought that being a teenage werewolf was going to be awesome, but it might just cost him the one girl who could make him whole.
Since her mother’s disappearance, Teagan Rhodes’s life has been littered with her father’s empty beer cans and his hollow promises to change. Convinced that others would only let her down, she keeps everyone at arm’s length—but resisting Aiden’s charm is proving to be more difficult than she thought. Throw in a psychotic werewolf hunter out to terminate the species, and one wrong move, one wrong decision could destroy everything.
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