About five minutes later, I stiffened in my seat. The scent of werewolf wafted toward me, and my nostrils flared as I spun around to face a guy about my age. He had short black hair, deep brown eyes, and a scruffy face. His nose was a little crooked and even from ten feet away I could see a couple scars on his forehead at the edge of his hair line. I took in a deep breath when I realized what they looked like—claw marks. Besides the scars, he was okay looking, if you were going for the ruggedly handsome look. But honestly, his appearance did nothing for me. I had a mate, even if we weren’t on speaking terms.
His nostrils flared as well, and his wild gaze fell on me. My hackles rose, and my instinct was to defend my territory. This wolf wasn’t a member of my pack and didn’t belong here. I pushed away those thoughts as he strolled over.
“Can I sit down?” he asked politely, his harsh eyes a contrast to his tone.
Since my hands were shaking with anger for some unknown reason, I kept them hidden behind the table on my lap. “No one else is sitting there,” I answered dryly, hoping he didn’t hear the slight growl in my voice.
He sat down and leaned back in the chair, eyeing me with interest. His lip twitched at the corner. “You’re new, aren’t you?”
I narrowed my eyes that I had to concentrate on to keep from turning yellow. “If you mean new to Creekford, then no, I’ve lived here all my life.”
He smirked, resting his elbow on the back of his chair. “No.” He shook his head, his eyes never leaving me. “That’s not what I meant.”
All I did was shrug. There was no way I was going to be the first to bring up the W word.
“So who’s your mate?” he asked nodding to the right side of my neck. I furrowed my brow, not knowing what he was talking about. “Your mark.”
That was odd because since I turned into a werewolf, the scratch that had been there had healed. “What are you talking about? I have no mark.” Damn, where was a reflective surface when you needed one? Was the scratch back? It wasn’t there this morning.
“You do. It’s healed, but male werewolves will take one look at your neck, smell his scent, and run the other way. I’m fighting it right now.”
Wow, that was sort of cool, in a controlling werewolf kind of way, but I would never admit having those thoughts to anyone. I was still in denial. Werewolves may exist, but I certainly wasn’t one. “Why are you fighting it? Why not run?”
“Because I’m new in town and didn’t expect there to be others like me.”
“Like you how? Eighteen year olds?”
Again he smirked, this time adding an eye roll. “Nineteen actually, but you know what I mean.”
I just grunted in answer. “What do you want?”
“Just to talk. What’s your name?”
I tilted my head, refusing to answer his question. “What’s yours?”
He smiled, showing white teeth and a sparkle in his eyes. “Adrian.”
“Why are you here in Creekford, Adrian?” A shrill scream rang out in the crowded shop, Adrian and I took defensive positions, our bodies tensed, and our fists clenched. We were ready to fight…until we laid eyes on the source of the scream. A baby was reaching a hand out to her mother, she wanted more frozen yogurt.
I relaxed in my seat, breathing a sigh of relief. I grinned at Adrian as he did the same.
After a few seconds, he answered my question. “I lived in my last town for over five years, and it was time to move on.” He drummed his long fingers against the table top.
“And where was that?” I asked as I dug my spoon into the cold peanut buttery chocolate in my bowl.
“A small town called Brownridge in Vermont.”
I didn’t recognize the name of the town, but I had been to Vermont a few times skiing with my family. Always for work events, it was the only time they pretended to be parents.
“Who are you staying with?” I asked him as I played with my spoon, making designs in my frozen yogurt.
He cocked a brow. “I’m renting a room at a boarding house.” He paused when a waitress came to take his order. He chose chocolate chunk. When she left to fetch his yogurt, he turned back to me. “Is the inquisition over?” There was no aggression in his voice, just curiosity. His face was blank as he waited for my answer.
I smiled, even though I tried not to. “Do you know a girl like you named Charlotte?” I couldn’t help feel that it was no coincidence that another werewolf just happened to be in Creekford around the same time Charlotte had taken us.
Both brows rose now. “Like me? You mean nineteen?” He wore a lopsided grin, which made a laugh sneak out of my month.
I pressed my lips together and waited, not willing to let it go. I needed to know whether or not he knew her. I’m not exactly sure what I would do with this information, but it was good to have.
“Do you think every nineteen year old knows each other?” he asked, and I nodded. He chuckled. “You are new.”
“And you’re not?”
He shrugged. “Probably not, compared to you. It’s been ten years. I’ve had to move twice.”
My mind went blank. I didn’t want to talk about werewolf stuff, and it was getting harder to pretend we weren’t discussing exactly that. “What do you do here? Do you have a job?”
“I don’t have one yet. But I have money saved. And my parents left me some when they died.”
I was suddenly worried that he had something to with their deaths. After all, many of his kind were killers. “How did they die?” I asked with my eyes narrowed.
He chuckled darkly. “Oh, you think that because of what I am.” He paused glaring at me. “What you are, means I killed them?” His voice was rising. I glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention to us. The only person looking our way was a little girl with big brown eyes and a tiny brown ponytail sticking up on the top of her head. And since she looked about two, I guessed we were in no danger of exposure.
I shrugged, hoping to convey indifference. “All I asked was how they died. Why do you sound defensive?”
He ran his hand through his dark hair and sighed raggedly. “They were murdered because of me. Someone found out what I was and tried to have me killed. They stood in front of me protecting me, fighting them off to give me time to run. I hated leaving them, but they begged.” His voice was rough with emotion, and I found myself feeling sorry for him.
I swallowed a lump that had formed after imagining how horrible it must have felt leaving them to die. “I’m sorry.”
He blinked, sitting up in his chair and glanced down at his dessert as the waitress set it on the table. He scooped up a big helping and took a bite. When he swallowed, he glanced at me. “Thanks.”
I nodded, at a loss for words.
“So what do you do, on full moon nights?” he whispered. “Is there a large forest where humans won’t be in danger?”
I stilled, wondering why he worried. “Have you ever…” I trailed off, unable to finish asking the question that I’ve been burning to ask since he sat down.
His face hardened. “Once. My creator wanted it. But guilt haunted me afterward. So I never took a life again, and I left him soon after.” He sighed looking up at me. “Have you?”
So much for not speaking about werewolves. “No, it’s only been a week.”
His eyes went wide, and his mouth hung open in shock. “A week? I’m surprised that your mate allows you to go out alone. Or your creator. Unless they are one in the same?”
I couldn’t tell him the truth. Despite everything, I still loved Nate. And sitting here with another guy was making me see how much I missed him. I shook my head. “No, it wasn’t him. I was kidnapped, and it was done then. I’m away from him because we had a disagreement. I know I should be learning how to do this, but I’m trying to hold onto my humanity.” I whispered the last word, hoping no one would hear. “I’ve been hiding out in my childhood bedroom, wishing that I had never met any nineteen year olds.” I glanced up at him through my lashes.
I knew all of this from hearing what Nate had gone through, but it sounded different somehow, coming from someone who didn’t care about me or my loved ones. He was just stating a fact. It had to be done, pure and simple. I looked down at my fingers that were now curled together in my lap, feeling embarrassed for my behavior. My friends just wanted to help me with this transition, and I had been fighting them tooth and nail. I was acting like a child. But even though I knew I was doing it, I just couldn’t seem to help myself. I couldn’t get past what Nate had done.
“Why don’t you show me where there’s a forest. I need a place to go on full moon nights, where there won’t be any people around. And we can go out for your first real run.”
It wouldn’t be my first time—that was with Nate. I was so new and emotional, that I barely remembered it. I found myself looking up at him and smiling. “Okay. And by the way, my name is Megan.”
Chapter Fifteen
The Shunned Riley
“Damn it, Nate, you have to do something,” Lauren yelled, storming into the cottage. Joe and Nate had been discussing Charlotte when they heard a car pull up, and then they watched as Lauren barreled inside, slamming the door behind her. The wooden frame rattled in complaint. “Megan has gone to the dark side.”
A slow steady burn began in Nate’s chest, and he knew it was panic. He worried about Megan constantly. She should be here with him so he could protect, help, and love her.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, standing up, his fists clenched, his body rigid and ready for action. If Megan needed him, nothing could keep him away.
Lauren threw her bag down on the sofa, and her cell phone rolled out and fell between two cushions. She didn’t notice as she glanced quickly at Joe who was staring at her intensely. When her face heated, she turned to Nate. She shook her head, appearing to gather her thoughts. “I found her having yogurt at La Crème with Mandy.”
Nate was waiting for the horrible part to come, but she stopped talking and glared at him. “Is that it?”
Joe started to laugh until Lauren silenced him with a mere look.
She scowled. “Megan’s been hiding away from her life in her old room, and now I find her with Mandy planning a fun day with the old gang.” Her arms were flying wildly in front of her, further evidence of her frustration.
Nate wondered if Lauren’s reaction was because of her recent transition to becoming a werewolf. He couldn’t decide if she was too wrapped in his problems because she was avoiding her own, or if it was a side effect to the changes in her body. She seemed much more upset over Megan and Nate’s situation than she would have been before. Regardless of the reason, she had a point.
Megan had told him that she was much happier now that her old friends were out of her life. Her sudden change definitely didn’t sound right. But unfortunately, who Megan spent time with wasn’t their top priority at the moment. Finding Charlotte was. With one of her minions in town, they were certain to find her once and for all. He and Joe were working together. For now, their common goal was to find Charlotte, and then they’d decide what to do with her.
“Lauren, I’m sure she’s fine,” Nate finally said.
“Aren’t you going to go see her?”
“Because she was having frozen yogurt with Mandy?” He shook his head. “I’m not interfering in her life. She asked me for space, and I’m going to respect that.” He hadn’t even watched her in his wolf form—that would have been just as wrong.
Lauren sighed, falling into the sofa. She noticed the phone and picked it up, stuffing it back into her bag. “What about the full moon? Shouldn’t she be getting used to her new life?” She asked, playing with the tassels hanging from the zipper of her purse.
Nate sat back down in the arm chair stretching out his jean clad legs in front of him. “Yes, of course she should, but we can’t force her. I betrayed her, and it will take her time to forgive me. I showed her how to change on the island, and I know she’s eating, so everything should be okay.”
“How do you know she’s eating?” Lauren asked, ignoring the longing looks she was getting from Joe.
“I’ve been talking to Mona. Mona said she’s eating so much she’s afraid she has a tapeworm.” Nate couldn’t help the smile on his lips. Despite how crazy his life was right now, that one piece of information made him happy. Megan could ignore him, but she couldn’t ignore the wolf. If she starved it, someone could get hurt, and she wouldn’t be able to live with herself.
Lauren cocked her head at Nate, and Joe ignored him altogether as he stared at his mate. It was obvious to Nate how much Joe wanted Lauren, and he knew how his friend felt. Nate felt like half a being without Megan. “So, you do care?” Lauren crossed her arms over her chest.
Nate’s jaw locked, and his eyes went cold as he stared at his cousin. “You know I do. But what I did to her was unforgivable. She wants space. I’m going to give it to her. But I’m also going to protect her any way I can because I love her.”
Lauren leaned back into the plush sofa and let out a frustrated breath. “If you ask me, both of you are acting like stubborn children.”
Nate’s expression softened. “Well, nobody asked you.” He glanced at Joe who was yet again staring openly at Lauren. “And I wouldn’t talk. You have something you’re avoiding too.”
Lauren’s eyes widened and her face turned a bright shade of crimson.
The air felt charged as Lauren glanced at Joe. Nate had the sudden urge to go for a drive.
“Well, I have some errands to attend to,” Nate said, standing up. “Joe, we can continue our conversation later.” Joseph never once tore his gaze from his mate, ignoring Nate altogether.
He grabbed his leather jacket and slipped out of the door, quietly.
Nate didn’t have a destination in mind when he left the cottage—the only thing he could think of was Megan. Her beautiful green eyes haunted his days and nights. They were there every time he slept, even when he blinked. He was empty without her, but he couldn’t go back on his word. She asked for time, and he wouldn’t back away from his promise. He knew in his heart that she loved him. He just hoped she could forgive him eventually.
He fought the desire to go to her house. Instead, he found himself at the back woods on the other end of his family’s property where he and Lauren had chased the intruding werewolf the night before. The air was colder now that November had begun. The odd snowflake was falling on the grass and disappearing. The white stuff was coming down so sporadically that he barely noticed it. It was too frigid for a full on snowfall, but it didn’t stop a few flakes from trickling down from the clouds.
Again, he sniffed the area, and the scent stopped at the road. There were no clues in the nearby gravel or grass, so why was he just staring at the space hoping to catch something? He was determined to find Charlotte and make her pay for what she had done. It may not have been her werewolf bite that turned Megan, but she had intended to. She made Lauren suffer along with turning her into something she felt she had to hide from her family
His mind wandered briefly to his cottage and wondered how Joe was faring. He hoped Lauren would tell him that she forgave him. It would ease his mind a little if his best friends were happy. If he couldn’t be, they should be.
He was feeling restless; the overwhelming urge to see his mate was smothering him, and the need to avenge Megan for what had happened to her consumed his thoughts. But how could he do that when Nate was the one that had ruined her life? He’d just have to focus all of his revenge on Charlotte. It wasn’t like she didn’t deserve it. She had kidnapped and terrorized both Megan and L
auren and ruined countless lives in the past. Yes, she deserved to die, and he was the one who intended to make that happen.
The only way to find her was to search for that werewolf. Even if he had to comb the whole city for his smell, he wouldn’t give up until he caught his prey.
With this new mission giving him focus, he climbed into his car and headed to the city limits where it was most likely to find a trail.
Ten minutes later, he was parking in the restaurant and hotel district. He walked north on Main and then up to Cross Street. Since it was a weekday, the streets were not that busy. People were living their lives indoors, out of the cold weather, either at work or school. Even still, there were a few people walking quickly, heading somewhere bundled in their warm coats.
The streets were filled with all kinds of smells—food, garbage, perfume. But the scent he was after was not among them. He wasn’t discouraged though; he’d find his prey. After wandering around the area for about an hour, he finally caught what he was searching for. He found the scent right outside of a barbeque restaurant called Sticky Fingers. Luckily, there was a bench about ten feet away where he could wait. He sat with his legs casually spread out in front of him against the wooden bench. To a bystander, he appeared to be a young eighteen year old relaxing on a cold November day. His pale blond hair was longer than he typically wore it, and a faint breeze blew it into his eyes that were focused on the restaurant door. Despite his posture, he was anything but relaxed. He’d wait here all day in order to catch that werewolf.
After ten minutes, Nate got impatient and decided to investigate. As he pushed through the restaurant door, he smelled more than just the juicy, tender meat and spices. He also caught two more werewolf scents—all of them, he recognized from the island.
“Good afternoon, table for one?” A petite brunette asked with a sincere smile. Her hair was pulled back, and she was wearing a black and white uniform.
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