Riley's Secret (A Moon's Glow Novel # 1) (9 page)

“Megan, Mona told me you gave away my old clothes to
some worthless charity. You had no right to do that without my permission. Why
do you do these things? I swear you just want to provoke me. You’re constantly
causing me pain.” Her hands twittered up to her head and she closed her eyes as
if she was suddenly in enormous agony. “Great, now because of your behavior, I
have a migraine.”

If the earth would open up, I would have gladly jumped
in.

Nate turned around. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Banks, but it’s
not Megan’s fault. I’m in charge of that worthless charity. She donated the
clothes and made a lot of women happy. I think you should be proud of her for
thinking of it.”

My mother’s mouth fell open. No one spoke to her that
way. My feelings for him only deepened. She stared at him, not knowing what to
say. Her hand moved from her head down to her chest.

He turned to Mona. “I would stay and help clean up,
but I think I’ll take Megan where she’s appreciated.”

Mona smiled at him and nodded. “Don’t worry, I can
handle it,” she assured him with a wink.

Nate took my hand and led me past my mother, whose
mouth was still hanging open in surprise.

Once we were back inside my bedroom, Nate returned to
the armchair he had vacated earlier. I started pacing back and forth in front
of him. “Ugh… she drives me crazy. I am so sorry she said that. You have to
know I don’t agree with her, right?”

“Of course I know that. I’ve seen the look on your
face when you’re working with the residents. You enjoy helping them, I can
tell.”

Was it just last week he was scowling at me? Now he
had defended me twice in one day. It was a change I could get used to. As I
watched him, I couldn’t help but let my mind wander.
God he’s cute
. His
sun-kissed blond hair was a little long and I had the sudden urge to run my
fingers through it. “What’s with your hand?” I asked, noticing that the nails
on his right hand seemed to be long and pointy. I had never noticed that
before.

He looked down and then jumped up, holding his hand
behind his back. “What time is it?” he asked in a panicked voice.

I turned around to glance my clock radio. “Eight
o’clock. Uh-oh… are you late?” I asked, turning back around to face him. But he
was gone, the chair was empty and I was alone in my room.

Unwanted

The patio doors were wide open. I rushed over and
looked out. Nobody was there.
What the heck?
I stepped outside to look
for his car and it was gone too.

Inside my room I took out the paperwork that Julia had
given me. On it was Nate’s cell number? “Hello,” he answered roughly after I
dialed.

“Are you all right? Where did you go?”

“I’m not feeling well, I’m sorry. See you tomorrow.”
Click
.

The more I got to know him the more I realized he was
sweet, caring, protective—and also sometimes very strange.

I was restless and confused after Nate left. Homework
couldn’t hold my thoughts, so I gave up and headed outside to relax on my
favorite lounge chair. Despite the chill, the evening was quiet and peaceful. I
curled up with a blanket and stared up at the stars. A hint of lilac floated in
the air. I lay there for a while listening to the sounds of the night, the loud
call of the whippoorwill, the chirping of the crickets and the croaking of
frogs from the pond at the back of the house. With all of these sounds
surrounding me how could I feel lonely?

I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I
remembered was opening my eyes, feeling dazed. I glanced around wondering where
I was and when the cool night air touched my skin, it came back to me. I had
come out onto the patio earlier to enjoy the evening. I sat up, about to go
inside, when I noticed something yellow in the cedar bushes about ten feet from
my chair. I stared at it, trying to figure out what it was. When my eyes
adjusted to the dim light, I saw the outline of what looked to be a very large
wolf. I jumped back, the chill of fear prickling down my spine while I kept my
eyes glued to it. Thinking my sudden movement would cause it to either run away
or pounce, I prepared for some kind of action. But nothing happened. It made no
move to hurt me; it just looked at me with an intense gaze. I was afraid to
move again. I could barely breathe.

I turned around slowly when I heard a noise in my
room. When I turned back, the wolf was gone.

“Megan?” I heard Mona call. I stood up, gathering my
blanket and rushed inside.

“Hey, I was just outside on the patio.” I made no
mention of the wolf as I laid the blanket down on the chair. I wasn’t entirely
sure that it wasn’t a dream.

She leaned against my pillows, getting comfortable on
the bed. “Tell me all about Nate. He’s so good-looking and very sweet. If only
I were a few years younger I would give you a run for your money.”

I laughed at her use of the word
few
as I sat
down on the chair Nate had occupied earlier. Once I was comfy, I told her about
last Friday night and all that had taken place since then.

“Those little punks. How dare they threaten you? I’ll
show those jerks who not to mess with.” The fire in her eyes told me she meant
every word.

“Mona, don’t worry, Nate’s protecting me. And I’ll
figure a way to get them off my back.”

She stood up and walked over to me. “Fine, I’ll stay
out of it.
For now
. But if they threaten you again, they’ll have me to
deal with.” She leaned over and kissed the top of my head; she smelled of gardenias.
“That boy is a keeper. Don’t let him slip away.”

“I know, but he’s told me that he doesn’t date.”

“Ha…I saw the look on his face when he watched you.
Don’t worry; you’ll have him in no time.” She turned around and headed for the
door and with a wink she was gone.

I slid my oversized cheerleading T-shirt over my head
before crawling under my duvet. Closing my eyes, I pictured Nate sitting in my
chair smiling at me. I fell asleep with his image in my mind, forgetting all of
my troubles.

The morning sun shone through Ben’s cherry trees as I
sat under them waiting for Nate. Although, I wasn’t even sure if he’d make it
after what happened last night.

I glanced at my watch and saw that if he didn’t arrive
soon, I’d be late for school. Just as I was about to give up, I heard the roar
of an engine coming over the hill of the long driveway. The sun glared off the
car’s black paint as it came into view. I shielded my eyes with my hand as he
pulled up beside me.

He had the top down on his car. He was wearing black
sunglasses and a black V-neck T-shirt. Looking dangerous, he lowered his
glasses to reveal his deep blue eyes. “You coming or what?” he asked, pulling his
sunglasses back up.

I smiled and hopped into the passenger side. “Did my
mother scare you off last night?” I asked. “Because I would understand if she
did.” I settled in and threw my school bag behind my seat.

“No, of course not. I told you I was sick.” He looked
straight ahead as he spoke, not even a glance in my direction. He seemed
different, the coolness back in his voice. The only thing that was missing was
the scowl.

“Where did you go?”

“Home.”

“Where is that?”

He looked at me, narrowing his eyes. “What’s with all
the questions?”

“I just realized I don’t know anything about you.”

Turning to face the road again, he said, “You don’t
need to. I told you I don’t date.”

Those words crushed me. After our time together
yesterday and last night, I thought he was warming up toward me. Apparently I
was wrong. I stopped asking questions and watched the houses zooming by. My
mood had suddenly darkened.

After he parked in the full lot, he walked me to my
locker without speaking. I tried not to notice all the attention we were
attracting. I could feel the stares of our schoolmates as we made our way into
the building and down the crowded halls.

When he walked away, Lauren appeared in front of me. I
hadn’t even noticed her. “Hi Megan, was that Nate I just saw with you?”

I frowned at her, suddenly suspicious. Why was she so
interested in my being with Nate? The obvious reason could only be a crush,
like most other girls that had thoughts about the elusive Nate Green, myself
included. “Yes. Why?”

“Oh, I was just wondering. Are you two dating?”

Again I wondered why she cared. Her expression held no
jealousy, just genuine curiosity. I wasn’t sure if I should, but I decided I
needed to talk to someone about him. And I no longer had any friends. “No, I
thought we might. He said he would protect me. I’m in a bit of a situation
since the fire. Do you know what’s going on?” I asked and she nodded. “Well,
yesterday the people behind the fire slashed my tires. He took me home and
stayed for a while. We had fun together. He even defended me against my
irritating mother, but then he disappeared. One minute he was there, the next
he was gone. This morning he was his old distant self. He left me at my locker
without walking me to my class like he said he would. I get mixed messages with
him.” My voice took on my frustration and I heard the slight whine in it.

Her eyebrows creased with concern. “I say, you don’t
let him back off. If he tries to push you away, push back harder. What’s the
worst that can happen?”

“He could reject me.”

She looked thoughtful, a small smile on her face. “He
could. But he might feel the same way. Maybe he’s just scared.”

Nate Green scared
? I found that hard to believe, but I was thankful to
be able to talk this through with someone. “Thank you, Lauren. It’s nice to
have a friend to talk to. I’m in a bit of a situation with mine.” I knew I was
being cryptic, but she didn’t seem curious at all.

“Anytime, Megan. And if you need someone to sit with
at lunch, you can join me and my friends.”

“Thanks. I may take you up on that sometime.”

She walked away as I headed to my first class. I was
about to step through the door when Brandon grabbed my arm. I lifted my other
arm as if to punch him.

He let go of me, holding his hands up in front of him.
“Don’t worry, I just want to talk.”

I backed away from him, looking around for his loser
friends.

“I’m alone and I’m sorry about yesterday.” His eyes
looked sincere, but after yesterday, I couldn’t trust him.

“What do you want?”

“I’m worried about you. Are you dating Nate Green?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“He’s dangerous, Megan. You should stay away from
him.”

I rolled my eyes. “Please, he’s the one protecting me
from you guys.”

“I’m sorry, but I get a weird vibe from him. Be
careful.” He gazed at me with genuine concern before turning away and
disappearing in the crowded hallway.

I went into class confused about everything that was
going on. My life had turned upside down almost overnight.

At lunchtime I decided to take Lauren’s advice. Nate
and I sat across from each other. He ignored me while he ate his burger.

“I know how much you like to eat, so I brought you a
piece of pizza.” I tossed the slice on his tray. I had actually bought my lunch
today. When I was waiting in line with Nate, I decided to buy him something as
a thank-you for helping me yesterday.

He smiled slightly, but didn’t look up. “Thanks. I’m
sorry if I gave you the wrong idea last night, but you shouldn’t be hanging out
with me. I’m not good for you.”

“That’s the second time I’ve heard that today.”

He looked up surprised. “Who else said it?”

“Brandon told me I shouldn’t hang out with you and
that you were dangerous. Isn’t that funny coming from him?”

He stared coldly at me. “He’s right.”

“No, he’s not.” I took a bite of my sandwich.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked, avoiding my eyes.

“No. He apologized, warned me about you and then
left.”

“And yet you’re here.”

“I’m not going to listen to him. Don’t you remember
what he did yesterday? I do. And besides, you told me to eat with you.” I held
my sandwich out in front of me, pulling some of the crust off and dropping it
onto my napkin.

“I know, but it doesn’t have to be me. Just as long as
you’re with
someone,
you’ll be fine. Did Lauren talk to you today?”

“Yes, why?”

“I saw the two of you. What did she say?”

“She just said hi.”

It was obvious he didn’t believe me, but he stayed
silent. When the bell rang, I stood up and stared at him, waiting. I thought he
was going to walk me to class. Apparently, he changed his mind. He didn’t look
at me as he crumpled his burger wrapper and stuffed it inside his fry
container. He seemed to be avoiding eye contact on purpose.