Dark Days (The Childe Series, #2) (17 page)

“Oh that. Well, you see, my dad has already become quite popular with the women in the area. Especially when they found out he’s single,” she giggled.

“Leif! We have guests, please come down and meet them,” Gerard called up the stairway. A loud sound from above caught their attention and they watched as a young man ran down the stairs. “One day if you’re not careful you’re going to break something,” he chastised jokingly.

“Cat, Julie, meet my daredevil brother Leif,” Duffie said dryly, rolling her eyes. Cat and Julie were speechless as their eyes glanced over him. He was tall like his dad and looked sporty in his running shorts and tank top. His hair was bleached blond and his eyes a bluish green. His grin made their hearts beat just a little faster.  Make that a lot faster.

“Hey neighbors,” Leif said with a little wave. “So, who’s Cat, and who’s Julie? No, let me guess,” his British accent sounded like music to their ears. He seemed to think for a minute and then pointed to Cat, “You’re Cat, right?” Cat felt like she had lost her voice. All she could do was nod.

“How did you do that?” Julie asked.

“It’s a secret. Now let’s have some refreshments, we stocked the kitchen yesterday. And thanks to our father, we have plenty of desserts to choose from,” Leif joked, pointing to the dining room.

“Let me apologize for my brother.  His ego sometimes gets the best of him. I hope I can enlist your aid in the matter.”  Duffie’s smile lit up her face as her brother gave her a playful shove.

“I tried to raise them civilized.  But as you can see they still need some work,” Gerard laughed and then the others joined in.

Sitting at the kitchen table, the four became fast friends.  Cat knew that there would be a lot of hearts broken by the pair, as Duffie was as beautiful as her brother was handsome.

“Penny for them, Cat?”  Duffie asked.

“What? Oh, penny for my thoughts? I was just thinking that you two are really going to shake up Astoria High this year.” 

“For a second there, I thought you were wondering how we’re related, if Leif is white and I’m black. No? Well, if you were to ask, it’s complicated,” Duffie replied with a chuckle.

“So, do either of you have a boyfriend?” Leif asked changing the subject.

“I have a lot of friends that are boys,” Cat answered, not knowing why she was being so evasive.
Why didn’t I just say that Ryan was my boyfriend?

Duffie grinned. “I hope you’ll share.”

“Of course,” Cat laughed. “Well, this has been fun, but we have to get going. We should plan something with the rest of our group. They’ll absolutely love you guys.”

“Maybe we could all come over and help you unpack, if you need help?” Julie interjected.

“Sure, maybe,” Duffie answered and Leif gave her a questioning look.

Everyone stood at once, and Julie and Cat were ushered out the door with promises to get together soon. As they were leaving, Gerard waved to them through a wall of boxes that he was busy rummaging through.

The group met in Cat’s bedroom the following evening.  Fridays were typically their hang out day since they all worked at different places most of the summer. Cat and Julie told them about the new neighbors down the street and how neat their British accents were. Matt rolled his eyes at their description of Leif and how every girl in school, whether they were a freshman or a senior, would give him a second and third look.  He seemed to perk up though when he heard that Duffie was beautiful.  To him, she sounded like that Egyptian goddess from his book of mythology, but the name seemed to escape him.

“So I tried out for the football team. I find out the first day of school if I made it or not,” Matt announced to the group.

“You…tried out…for football?” Amanda asked, trying not to laugh out loud.

“What do you mean by that?” he replied, looking offended. Cat nudged Amanda.

“That’s great, Matt! So what position did you try out for?” Cat asked, nudging Amanda again as she was stifling her laughter.

“Well, you really don’t try out for a position. They kind of test you out and see what you’ll be good at, but I don’t care. I just want to be on the team.”

“Aren’t you scared that you might get hurt?” Elle asked. “I see a lot of damage from the sidelines dressed in that panther costume. And let me tell you, it’s dangerous out there, Matt.”

“Yeah, but think of all the girls that will want me if I’m on the football team,” he replied with a grin.

“See, I’m right! He does have an ulterior motive for being on the team,” Amanda stated as she moved away from Cat so she wouldn’t get hit again. 

“Hey Elle, how are those devil spawn that masquerade as the children you baby-sit?” Cat asked, changing the subject.

“They’re not too bad, I guess. They’ve only locked me out of the house twelve times this summer instead of twenty-five like last year.”

“What do you mean they’re not too bad? They almost burned the house down last year!” Amanda interjected.

“What can I say? I just have a way with children I guess. And it pays well,” Elle joked, making everyone laugh.

Later that night, after everyone was asleep, Cat got up and made her way to the bathroom. Trying to tiptoe over her friends, she stumbled, stubbing her toe on her dresser. The ache surged up her leg, and Cat bit her lip to keep from yelling. A sharp pain stabbed at her bottom lip and she realized her fangs had descended.  Closing the bathroom door behind her quietly, she turned on the light to look at herself in the mirror. “Great!” Cat whispered in frustration. “This isn’t good.”