Riley's Torment, A Moon's Glow Novel #2 (22 page)

Her mouth fell
open, her brows creased in confusion. “Wait,” she held a hand up in
front of her. “I thought you were going to hang out with her all
day.”

I sighed,
looking away from her, back to the TV where now all the girls were
lined up waiting to be picked. “I was only there because Mona told
me to go. She’s getting annoyed with me hiding out here.” I paused
to sneak a glance at her. She was still gaping at me in shock. “I
wanted to leave ten minutes into my visit with Mandy.”

“But why did
you act like you were friends with them again?”

“I don’t know.”
I turned away from her, staring at my lilac duvet. I picked at the
material trying to put into words how I’d been feeling. “Ever since
I got back from the island, I’ve been kind of miserable. And for
some reason, I like to make others that way. I’ve been having a
blast pissing Mona off.”

She stared at
me blankly and then stuck another chip in her mouth. “I think the
changing process has been screwing with our emotions,” she mumbled
while chewing.

I jerked my
head up to gaze at her, relieved that there was a reason for my
snottiness. “Really?”

She nodded, her
face serious. “I’ve been so obsessed with you and Nate. I yelled at
the both of you any chance I got, and I was avoiding my own
issues.”

“Which are
what?” I asked, suddenly feeling guilty for being out of the loop
with her. I used to be the one who she came to when she had
problems. Although I guess I still was—I just stopped
listening.

“Joe.”

“You still
haven’t talked to him?” I grabbed a chip, and took a bite.

Her eyes
brightened as a smile formed. “I did today, thanks to Nate. He was
the one that pointed out that I was obsessed with you guys not
dealing with your issues, even though I was avoiding my own.” She
sighed, sliding down the head board. “He left us alone in the
cottage today, and I finally let Joe talk.”

I reached into
the bag and grabbed a handful of chips, needing a distraction. I
didn’t want to think of him, how he was kind and generous to
others, how he put those he loved before himself, or how his vivid
blue eyes sparkled in the sun. I tried to avoid thoughts of running
my fingers through his shaggy blond hair. The feel of his muscular
arms when they were wrapped around me, making me feel safe. I
blinked back the tears that threatened as I bit into a chip,
focusing on the strong dill taste that burned my tongue leaving
cracks in it. I wiped my eyes roughly and cleared my throat.

“So um…Did you
guys settle things?” My voice broke with emotion, and I could tell
Lauren noticed. Her eyes held sympathy, but thankfully, she didn’t
mention it.

She nodded
before answering. “Yes. He told me he loved me, and that he was
sorry that he waited so long.” She paused and sighed happily. “I
started to object, telling him I had too much to deal with without
adding him to that list. I wanted to wait until I felt better about
becoming a werewolf, and my emotions evened out. But I didn’t get
most of the words out because he yanked me against him, and he
devoured my lips with his.” She sighed, a big grin spread across
her face.

“So, I guess it
was good.” I was happy for her and Joe. Their union was a long time
coming.

“You could say
that.” She laughed, her eyes bright with joy. “I felt it in my
toes. I knew then that I was being stupid. Why put off our
happiness because of what Charlotte did to me? If I continued to do
that, she would get what she wanted, which was for us to suffer. So
I decided to be happy. He’s taking me on a date tonight. I can’t
wait.”

“What about
your dad?” I asked, irritated with myself that we had been back a
week, and I didn’t know this stuff.

“We talked the
other day. I told him I was really upset that he was trying to keep
us apart. I waited for him to yell at me and forbid me to see him,
but he didn’t. He apologized and wished us well.” She took another
chip and took a bite. As she chewed, her eyes brightened.

I gaped at her.
That didn’t make sense. All three of us had been trying to get Will
to change his mind. But he refused, basically telling us to mind
our business. “Are you serious? What changed his mind?”

She shrugged.
“He said that after I went missing for two days, the fear of losing
his daughter made him realize that life was short, and it wasn’t
right to keep me from being happy.”

I reached out
to rest my hand on her knee, feeling a closeness that I hadn’t felt
since we’d been back. “That’s awesome, Lauren.”

She smiled, and
then a crease appeared on her forehead. “Hey.” She leaned up and
twisted on the bed, slapping me on the shoulder. I pulled my hand
back surprised by her move. My shoulder stung a little. She didn’t
realize how strong she was now. “You never finished telling me
about the other werewolf.”

Apprehension
replaced my surprise. “His name is Adrian, and he just moved here.
He said he wanted to be friends, since he didn’t know anyone.”

“And that’s all
there is? He just left after you told him no?”

I winced,
knowing I’d have to tell her the truth. Hiding things was different
from outright lying. “I didn’t actually say no.”

Her eyes went
wide. “What?” She tossed the chip bag to the end of the bed, and
sat in front of me, her legs folded in front of her. “He could be
dangerous. He could be working for Charlotte.” Her voice went up an
octave.

“I asked him
about her, and he denied knowing her.” She opened her mouth to
speak, and I held up my finger to stop her. “I trust him, okay. I
don’t know why, but I do.” I glared at her pointedly, trying to get
her to listen. “When I told him I hadn’t changed since the first
full moon, he talked me into going for a run.”

“He got you to
change into a wolf willingly?” Lauren looked shocked.

I nodded.

“He didn’t hurt
you, did he?”

I shook my
head. “No, he actually told me I needed to change more often, or
I’d put the people I love in danger.” I paused as she watched me
carefully. “He even took me to a gym and started to teach me kick
boxing to protect myself. He said there are a lot of werewolves out
there that like to hurt others, and he wants to train me.”

“Really?” Her
face grew thoughtful. “That’s strange for someone you just
met.”

“I know, but if
he wanted to hurt me, why would he show me how to defend
myself?”

She frowned. “I
don’t know.”

“Why don’t you
come tomorrow? You could use the lessons too.”

She was quiet
while she thought it over. “Okay,” she said. “I’d like to meet him
and make sure he’s being honest with you.”

I was about to
argue and ask why she thought she’d be a better judge of character
than I was. I changed my mind when I realized that it didn’t matter
why she was coming. I wanted her to learn how to fight so she could
feel safe like I did today.

“Great, be here
at eleven,” I said. “We’re going earlier tomorrow. Don’t tell the
guys though.”

She paused, her
brows creased as she thought this through. “Fine, I won’t. But if I
think this guy is dangerous, I’m going to make you tell them. With
Charlotte on the loose, we can’t take any chances,” she explained
as she stood up.

“Deal. But I’m
telling you, I trust him.”

“I’ll see you
tomorrow. I gotta go. Joe and Nate should be back by now.”

“Where were
they?” I asked, only being polite. I wasn’t curious or worried
about him. Really, I wasn’t.

“Nate found the
scent of one of the werewolves from the island, and they followed
it, hoping to find Charlotte.”

Excited
by the idea of not looking over my shoulder worrying about her, I
asked, “Did they find her?”

“I don’t know,
I haven’t heard. But I’ll call you later if they did. If you don’t
hear from me, then you’ll know why.” She handed me the chips and
waved before opening my door and closing it behind her.

The sound
of springs squeaking pulled me from a deep sleep. There was
movement on the bed as someone crawled up the mattress to hover
above me. As I was about to let out the scream that was poised in
my throat, the scent of leather and pine floated towards me.
Instead of screaming, I froze. Why was Nate here in my bed? There
was a reason why we weren’t together, but I just couldn’t remember
it.

When I opened
my eyes, all confusion melted. He was here, just a heartbeat away.
His bright blue eyes were almost black in the darkness of my room.
His tousled hair hung down from his face creating a shadow over his
features. I couldn’t see his intense gaze but I could feel it
boring into me.

“I miss you so
much, Meg.” His voice was just above a whisper, but I could hear
the pain in it. It matched the agony I felt every day I woke up
without him. He brushed my cheek with a finger, and my skin burned
at his touch. “Don’t push me away; I love you so much.” His voice
faded into a whispered plea on the last two words.

My mind was
reeling. I loved this guy more than anything, but there must be a
reason I didn’t want him with me. How could I think clearly with
him so close?

He leaned down
even further, his hot breath caressed my face, and the heat from
his body seeped into mine. “Tell me you still love me, Megan.”

A buzz of
awareness stirred. And as much as my mind screamed not to say the
words, I felt them in my heart and soul. “I love you,” I whispered
softly, my voice deep with emotion.

His eyes were
smoldering as he gazed into mine. His finger moved over my face
slowly, the burn searing a trail along my cheek. His finger stilled
when he reached my mouth. I sucked in a breath when he traced the
tip of his finger over my top, and then bottom lip. When he lifted
his hands to cup my chin, I shivered, knowing what was about to
happen. I missed the feel of his lips on mine, the taste of his
tongue and the feel of his body. I needed, no yearned, for his
kiss. It seemed to take forever for him to lean forward; it felt
like an eternity since I had been wrapped in his strong arms. He
moved closer, his hot breath branding my lips.

“We belong
together,” he whispered, his mouth brushing against mine.

“Megan, get
up!”

A dull ache
throbbed in my chest as I jerked awake, feeling Nate’s absence like
a missing limb.

“Ugh. Go away,”
I grumbled, hoping to fall back to sleep and into Nate’s arms. I
wasn’t sure who woke me up, but all I knew was that I wanted the
dream back. I could be with Nate without the complications of life.
In the dream, I couldn’t remember there was a psycho werewolf
waiting for another chance to terrorize us. In the dream, Nate had
never bitten me and taken away my humanity. In the dream, it was
just us, as we were meant to be.

“You said to be
here at eleven! Now get up.” It was Lauren who had interrupted my
time with fantasy Nate. She slapped my leg and shook the bed. “Come
on Meg, the guy will be here in an hour.”

Reluctantly, I
let go of the idea of returning to my fantasy—my life was waiting.
I sat up slowly, feeling groggy, and slightly confused. Lauren was
sitting on the edge of the bed dressed in a t-shirt and yoga pants.
Her brown suede jacket was slung over her arm.

“Good morning
sunshine,” she said, grinning.

“Why are you so
happy this morning?’ I murmured, rubbing the sleep out of my
eyes.

“I had a good
night.” Elation echoed in her voice. “With Joe.”

All I could
manage was a small smile for her. The dream still hovered in my
mind, and I felt Nate’s loss. I missed him so much. All I wanted to
do was get in my car and run to him, but I couldn’t. How do you
forgive the person who took away your future? I was no longer a
human, and I would no longer age. Could I even have children? There
were so many questions and angry thoughts in my head. I couldn’t be
with him until I figured it all out.

“Where did he
take you?” I asked, pushing away the unwanted thoughts. I climbed
out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom.

“He took me to
dinner and dancing. Then he kissed me when he dropped me off at
home. It was a really great night.”

Even from the
bathroom, I could hear the happiness in her voice, and it was a
welcoming sound. The whole time Nate and I were together, she was
pining for Joe. And now that we were apart, Joe and Lauren were
finally happy. Was there a rule somewhere that all of us couldn’t
be happy at the same time? I emerged from the bathroom, heading for
the closet.

“That’s so
great, Lauren.” A thought popped into my mind as I reached for a
sweatshirt. “I guess they didn’t find Charlotte?”

“No, they
followed the werewolves scent to Riley’s Department Store. It turns
out that one of them is related to us. He’s one of the people that
didn’t take the secret well. Apparently, he wanted to kill Nate
when his father revealed Nate’s secret.”

I gasped and
spun around, the need to protect my mate overwhelmed me.
“What?”

She was sitting
on my bed facing me. “That was twenty years ago, and obviously, the
family turned him away. Little did they know that Charlotte would
find him and turn him into a werewolf. He became what he accused
Nate of being—a monster.”

I couldn’t help
but wince at the word. “Just like us,” I whispered, looking down at
the pale blue hoodie in my hands.

She sat up
straight. “Megan, we are not like her. Do you have an urge to
kill?”

When I shook my
head, she stood up and stepped toward me.

“Stop thinking
of yourself like that. You are the same as you were before you were
turned. A bite doesn’t change that. You are a good person. You
wouldn’t be my friend otherwise.”