Unrequited

Unrequited

Emily Shaffer

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author makes no claims to, but instead acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the word marks mentioned in this work of fiction.

Copyright © 2014 by Emily Shaffer

UNREQUITED by Emily Shaffer

All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America by Swoon Romance. Swoon Romance and its related logo are registered trademarks of Georgia McBride Media Group, LLC.

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Published by Swoon Romance

Cover designed by Morgan Media

Cover © 2014 by Swoon Romance

For my Dad, who tells the best stories,

sings the best songs, and dances like everyone is watching.

I love you.

Unrequited

Emily Shaffer
 

Chapter One

In the town of Belle Ridge, there were doctors, lawyers, and teachers. But there was only one vampire, and he happened to be the high school history teacher.

Will Leighton always loved the start of a new school year. Classes were set to begin the next day, and as he looked around his classroom at the empty chairs, he smiled as he imagined them filled with chattering young people. He always looked forward to catching up with former students and getting to know new ones. The sense of community he felt as a teacher was the only thing that came close to making him feel like he was part of something, like he belonged.

Will was an outsider, and he knew it. No matter how many friends he made or local groups he joined, there was always a thread of solitude running through everything he did. The loneliness had a certain feeling to it. It wasn’t quite sad, or depressing, it was more like he was adrift with nothing he could truly connect to. But on this day, somewhere in his two-hundredth or so year on Earth, Will felt something he never had before: familiarity. Something in himself was being pulled, as though by a magnet, toward a nearby presence. Could it be that after so many years, Will Leighton wasn't alone anymore?

Will had to investigate the source of this sensation, so he walked out of his classroom and down the hallway. As he neared the front office, the feeling became stronger. He was getting close to whoever or whatever it was. Finally, he walked into the office and stood at the empty secretarial station. He could hear voices coming through Principal Moore's door and knew, without a doubt, that one of those voices belonged to someone like him. Nothing could have moved Will from that spot; he would wait all day if he had to.

He picked up a nearby pencil and drummed it against the counter. It felt like all of his nerves were coming to life at once, and he was filled with an anxious energy. As he continued tapping away, Will couldn’t help himself from eavesdropping on the conversation in Principal Moore's office. From his position, he could hear most of what Moore was saying to the newest enrollee at Belle Ridge High.

Usually Will's unique abilities gave him a rare glimpse into the human soul. He could sense innate kindness as well as indiscriminate evil. He could tell when someone was scared and when someone was in love. For a man who had long ago lost his soul, he could feel the spirit of most anyone around. He'd gotten used to this power of discernment, and over the years it had served him well. With time and practice, he had been able to almost completely tune out the feelings of those around him, and only access them when he wanted to. That's why this new person was such a novelty; Will was being invaded, not by feelings, but by a presence, whether he wanted to or not.

***

“Ashton, I think you'll be very happy here at Belle Ridge.” The principal was talking, but Ashton wasn't paying attention to him. Instead, she slumped in her seat, glaring at her parents.

She couldn’t think of a worse moment than sitting in this man's office. Well, there was one worse moment, the moment that brought her here, but she tried to never ever think of it. So instead, she would dwell on this one.

Ashton had begged her parents to let her get her high school equivalency degree. She was already nineteen years old. Her friends had all graduated last year. It had been painful to miss out on her senior year with the people she'd known since childhood. Instead of football games and prom dress shopping, Ashton had spent her senior year at home, feeling confused and alone. Her parents decided to move Ashton and her little brother to Belle Ridge. It was supposed to be a fresh start and a chance for Ashton to finish high school and figure out some way to move forward with her life.

Her parents felt the only way to deal with the uncertain future was to cut ties with the past. Ashton wasn't stupid; she knew she could never go back to the life she used to have. But the thought of letting go of her old hopes and dreams was almost more than she could bear. Even worse, she was sitting in a high school in Belle Ridge, just a few months shy of what should be her twentieth birthday. A twenty year old high school senior? Ashton felt like a joke.

“Nobody has to know anything about you that you don't want them to know,” her mother had told her more times than she could count. She had said it again in the car just before they arrived here today. Maybe she needed to embrace being a blank page. From her current position, a life of anonymity seemed like the best course.

Finally, Ashton returned her attention to Principal Moore. She forced a smile, said the appropriate remarks, and gathered her things. If she had to start school at this place tomorrow, she wanted to go home and enjoy her privacy today.

As she stood, she felt a little bit odd. It must have shown in her face, because her mother grabbed her arm. “Are you all right, honey?”

But, Ashton wasn't sure if she was all right. It was a feeling she hadn't felt before, like there was something close by she needed to find. She had a flash of energy come into her body, a nervous energy that was generating from something outside of her. There was a distinct feeling of familiarity. It was different from the other strange feelings she'd had to figure out over the past year, and this was the first one that hadn't been entirely bad.

She gave her mom a slight smile to let her know she was fine, and walked into the outer office.

***

Principal Moore walked out of the office with three people. They stopped just a few steps from Will. Without any doubt, Will knew exactly which of the three strangers he had been sensing. Being in such close proximity, the feeling became stronger. It was as though his existence had been in a free fall until this moment, and he hadn't even realized it. This young woman standing before him was a touchstone, a grounding force, a constant in an ever-changing sea. She was undoubtedly a citizen of his world; a world he had feared would never be populated beyond himself.

She possessed a regal bearing, and her porcelain face gave away nothing in the way of emotion. She was a complete mystery.

“Mr. Leighton, let me introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Wallace and their daughter, Ashton. Ashton will be joining us as a senior.” Will extended his hand to the elder Wallace’s, but his eyes remained fixed on Ashton.

“Mr. and Mrs. Wallace, Will Leighton, I'm pleased to meet you, and pleased you will be attending Belle Ridge, Ashton.” He tried again to read her as he spoke. He couldn't decipher anything beyond the feeling of familiarity, and no matter how hard he tried, Ashton's emotions were impenetrable.

If he wasn't mistaken, Will thought there was a flicker of recognition in Ashton's eyes. Did she know?

Before he could offer a hand to her, she spoke, her eyes avoiding his.

“Can we leave? I have stuff to do before tomorrow.” She looked at her parents and, before they could answer, walked out of the office and away from Will. The Wallace’s and Principal Moore quickly followed behind Ashton. He may have stood alone in the office, but Will knew for the first time, he wasn’t standing alone in the world.

Chapter Two

“Ashton Louise Wallace, where did you put your manners? Your behavior toward Mr. Moore and that teacher was appalling,” Elaine Wallace said as she followed her daughter into their house.

“Mama, please, I have enough to deal with right now. I don't need you harping on me.” Ashton walked straight to her bedroom and shut the door behind her.
Will Leighton. That was the teacher’s name.

Ashton lay on her bed and stared at the ceiling fan rotating above. She knew she'd been less than polite today, and she knew it was uncalled for, but she didn’t really care. Her parents should just be glad she was willing to go along with their plan to try and do the normal things that she would have been doing before the nightmare of last year happened.

Before last year, everything had been great. She'd rehashed the events so many times in her mind that sometimes she wondered if they had really happened, or if she had made them up. Finally, out of an attempt to somehow gather herself and move on, she'd forced herself to forget everything that had happened that evening. But forgetting wasn't always easy. Her mind, against her own will, went back to the night when the entire course of her life was changed.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Ashton surveyed the scene before her. There were hundreds of people milling about. They were shouting, laughing, and drinking. She had the overwhelming feeling that she and Julia should leave the party, get back in the car, and drive quickly back to their safe little town.

“We’re at a college party. One day we’ll be students here. Besides, it's not like we don't know anyone. Savannah and Maddy are somewhere inside. Let’s go find them.” Julia grabbed Ashton's hand and pulled her toward the raucous crowd.

The girls wound their way through the crowd. Red plastic cups of beer seemed to be coming at them from every direction. Julia, ever the party guest, accepted two cups and thrust one into Ashton's hand.

“Come on, we have to blend in. Even if you don't drink it, just hold it,” she pleaded with Ashton. Being invited to a party at University of Georgia was a big deal.

“Fine.” Ashton sighed and continued to follow Julia through the crowd. She didn't know how Julia had talked her into this. It was Charlie’s fault. If Charlie hadn't broken up with her, they might have been on a date right now. Instead she was at a party she had no business attending.

Julia ran off to dance, and Ashton happily took a seat in a corner. From across the room, she made eye contact with a handsome young man. He smiled and walked toward her. Ashton was nervous as he approached, but also a little relieved someone was rescuing her from feeling like a third wheel to the entire party.

“I don't like seeing you sit here all alone.” He leaned in as he spoke.

“Oh, I'm not alone. My friends are dancing right now.” Ashton pointed to her friends as she shifted nervously in her seat.

“I don't like seeing you without a drink in your hand. What can I get you?” He was still leaning a little too close.

“I could use a Coke if you've got one. I think I've had enough beer,” Ashton lied.