Waken (The Woods of Everod Book 1) (10 page)

“Hey,” he said and leaned against the supporting column. “So, did I totally humiliate myself?”

“What?”

“Well, not many guys want a girl to see them lose a fight.”

“No, you guys were amazing. It was like watching a live UFC match.”

“When you left without saying anything I thought you might be mad I hadn’t called.”

“Oh, no. I didn’t really think you would. Call I mean.”

“Why would you think that?”

I shrugged a shoulder, too embarrassed to tell him that guys never called me.

“Well, I planned to, but I got wrapped up in some family stuff.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, turning to look at a small calico cat that meandered into the yard. Winding its way between and around his feet Tristan knelt down and gave it a gentle push, murmuring softly. The cat pierced me with its black eyes before suddenly racing across the street.

“Will you walk with me?” His smile grew hesitant.

I nodded and rose to meet him at the bottom of the steps. Neither of us spoke, only the barking of the neighborhood dogs broke the quiet. His warmth spread from his palm on my back through my entire body. We reached the end of the block and crossed the deserted street to enter the park. Sitting in a swing, I pushed off with my foot, setting myself in motion. As I swayed back and forth, he grabbed the chains of the next swing watching me.

“Do you fight like that often?” I asked.

“The guys around town meet up once a month for a fight day. Today was my first fight, although Kyle’s been up a few times. We’ve been training for a few months.”

I studied his features not finding any evidence of the fight. I’d seen some of the UFC fight that Justin always begged Tim to order on pay-per-view and most of the fighters came out looking pretty rough afterward. He smiled at my scrutiny.

“It always looks worse than it really is.” He looked away and quickly shifted topics. “What’s your favorite fruit?”

“My favorite fruit?” The randomness of the question threw me off. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah, I’m serious. I want to get to know you. What you like, what you don’t like. I want to know…everything.” He let go of his swing and moved in front of me. As I rocked forward, he placed his hands over mine and tugged the chains, drawing me closer to him. “There’s something about you that won’t let me walk away. Maybe it’s the way you duck your head when I look at you, or the wild chase you led me on at the library.”

My breathing faltered at his words. His fingers tightened over mine for just a moment before he continued, “So yeah, I want to know what your favorite movie is, what kind of ice cream you like, how you decide who to talk to. Everything.”

“All right,” I agreed, “But you have to answer all of the same questions.”

“Deal,” he replied.

“Apples.”

“Mango. Song?”

I shook my head. “There’s too many to pick.”

“Come on, you agreed.”

“Okay, I guess
Ho Hey
by The Lumineers.”

“
Sabotage
by the Beastie Boys. Favorite movie?”

“
Gone with the Wind
.”

“
Dracula
.”

I laughed. “Really?”

“What? Bela Lugosi was genius.”

“I just didn’t take you for a vampire kind of guy, that’s all,” I said between giggles.

“You’d be surprised.” His eyes narrowed and, in a horrible Dracula imitation, said, “I vant to suck your blood.”

“You know Bela Lugosi never really said that, right?”

“A girl who knows Lugosi? I think I’m in love.”

I laughed even harder. But my laughter ended abruptly when, with a predatory smile, he jerked the swing and brought his face to within an inch of mine. Our breath mingled between us into a single cloud and I could taste his minty toothpaste in the air. His lips relaxed, and he closed the small gap slowly and pressed his lips to mine.

The park faded away. Mrs. Perkins’s dogs no longer barked ceaselessly and the air turned as hot as a Texas summer day. The pressure was tentative, as if he was giving me a chance to pull away, but I didn’t want tentative or careful. I wanted to get closer, to wrap myself around him, to lose myself in this moment where no one else existed except the two of us. I tried raising my hands, wanting to entangle them in his thick curls and pull him closer, but his hands were locked over mine, refusing to let me go. Gently, he drew away, catching my lower lip between his teeth, tugging slightly before releasing me. He rested his forehead against mine and closed his beautiful blue eyes, hiding his thoughts.

“Ice cream,” he whispered.

“What?” I whispered back, afraid that if I asked too loudly I’d break whatever magical spell was at work and he would disappear, leaving me alone again.

He let go of my hands and I glided backwards, the cool nighttime air rushing to fill the space between us. “Your favorite ice cream,” he said, giving me a gentle push as I rocked forward.

“Amaretto.”

“Vanilla. How do you pick who to talk to?”

“It’s completely random.”

“It’s entirely predetermined.” He smiled crookedly.

“So you believe in fate?” I asked before he could throw another question between us.

He looked at me for a long moment, as if he were debating his answer. “In some cases, yes. But I don’t believe that everything is set in stone.” He pulled me forward for a brief kiss before letting me float away again. “I have to believe that the decisions we make can change our fate.”

I wanted to know what he meant, but he asked the next question. The game continued with us laughing at some of the surprising answers we gave each other. Every burden, every fear, I’d had since I was five was gone, vanquished by this mysterious boy. It wasn’t just the attraction I felt for him physically, it was the way he looked at me when I spoke to him, with his blue eyes that made me believe he wanted me to keep talking; that what I said to him was being absorbed and treasured.

We stayed there in the park telling each other the miniscule details that made us. Part of me had worried the handsome exterior was all there was, that when I got to know him I’d find nothing but an empty smile. Instead, I found someone who smirked rather than belted out laughter, who believed in fate and God and watched basketball faithfully, who liked biology and knew more history than the most dedicated high school student.

“College?” he continued questioning.

“Ugh. Don’t ask that, please.”

“Why n…” His voice faded and he cocked his head to the side, staring at something behind me.

“What’s wrong?”

He didn’t say anything, instead he stopped my swing and grabbed my hand, forcing me to follow him or risk landing on my face. He walked through the park quickly and I stumbled over the uneven ground. I glanced back trying to see what had spurred our sudden departure, but except for a flash of white in the trees, I saw nothing. Finally, he slowed enough for me to catch my footing then tugged my hand again.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. He kept moving, his long strides forcing me to jog beside him. “Did you see something?”

“Kas. He was watching us.”

“The wolf?” Did they really come this far into town?

“Yeah, well. Kas is more than just a wolf.”

“What do you mean?” I asked as we reached the house.

Tristan ignored my question, opening the front door and following me inside. He went to the living room and parted the curtains, searching the yard for something.

“Tristan, what is going on?” My breathing quickened as shivers of fear slithered down my back.

“Nothing. It’s all right.” He turned and met my eyes then sighed deeply. He tried to smile but failed miserably. “I just never thought he’d come near you before...I should go,” he said. “I’m sorry, Janie.”

“Sorry about what?”

“I’m sorry that I can’t explain everything to you. I wish I could, but...not yet.” He shook his head and reached for me. Sliding his hands up my arms, he looped them around my neck, burying his fingers in the hair at my nape. “Just go with me on this, okay? Meet me in front of the cafe tomorrow, eleven o’clock.”

He pressed a quick kiss to my lips and then left out the door before I could say anything else.

Chapter 9

I left the house by ten the next morning, refusing Justin’s offer of a ride. Knowing him, he’d decide to join us for lunch and I wanted to talk to Tristan alone. I needed some kind of explanation for his weird behavior the night before. The walk was shorter than I’d anticipated and I sat on a bench across the street from the diner. I pulled out a book from my bag and tried to focus but my eyes peeked over the top, searching the street then back to the words flowing across the page. They held no meaning. It was a page full of dots, floating absently in front of my eyes. I finally put the book away, refusing to pretend anymore.

Shutting my eyes, I started my meditative breathing. A tingle crawled along my arms and I drew my arms around myself. I should have brought a sweater.

“Hey, Thumper.”

My eyes flew open and there he was, at the end of the bench. Tristan’s lips curved up and I smiled back involuntarily.

“Thumper?” I asked.

“Well, your leg is thumping away about a mile a minute, so I figured it was appropriate.”

Looking down, I realized my leg was frantically bouncing up and down. A nervous habit, I hadn’t even noticed it was moving. I stood, knowing if I stayed seated the thumping would only escalate.

“You’re early,” I said, trying to cover my nerves.

“Maybe, but if I’m early then you’re really early.” He snagged my hand, pulling me towards Trail’s End.

The lunch crowd hadn’t filed in yet. Only a couple of people mingled at a table near the back. The lack of people allowed me to actually take in the atmosphere of the diner. The place had an untouched feel about it, as though nothing had changed since the day it opened, which judging by the decor was sometime in the forties. The tables, covered with white and blue checkered cloths, wobbled with each nudge and sepia pictures covered the walls. I slid into a booth and Tristan settled across from me. It was unnerving the way he stared at me as if trying to read me.

“Why did you go with me to the Grounds? And last night to the park?” he asked.

Was this an attack? Elin had always started like this. Questioning me about something in a way I couldn’t understand. Inevitably, I gave the wrong answer. “What do you mean, why? You asked me. Why did you ask me?”

“I asked you to the Grounds because you looked so lost, like you needed a friend. Rachel had already started to get her claws into you and I didn’t want to see her rip you apart.”

Too late for that.

“The park, well, once you loosened up a bit...” He shrugged his shoulders and dipped his eyes towards the knife he was fiddling with. “I noticed how pretty you looked.”

Was he blushing? My heart clenched as I realized just how off base I’d been. He wasn’t trying to trick me. He was being honest. Could I do the same?

“I went to the Grounds because I’d made a decision to stop being afraid of life.” I swallowed thickly.
Say it
. “And I went with you to the park, because you’re cute.”

Now I was the one blushing. I grabbed the menu and lifted it to shield my face. Tristan reached over and pushed it down enough for our eyes to meet.

“Well, I’m glad you came with me. Both times.”

I lowered the menu back to the table, leaving it open. “Are you going to tell me what happened last night?”

“Kas,” he sighed. “There’s some stuff that I can’t tell you. Not because I don’t want to, but because other people are involved.”

“Does this have something to do with Rachel telling me I should get out of town?”

“When did she say that?” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.

“Yesterday, in the library.”

“What else did she say?”

“Oh, you know, the usual jealous ex-girlfriend stuff. He’s mine, get out of town, you’re dangerous crap.”

“Yeah, that sounds like Rach.” He dropped his gaze for a moment before looking back at me. “The people in Everod are really close knit. No one leaves, no one moves in. Well, except for a few rare cases.”

“What does that have to do with you freaking over this wolf?”

“Kas. He’s not…your typical wolf. I don’t know why he’s interested in you. Not that you aren’t interesting, but...”

“I get it.” I laughed. “He’s a wolf. Maybe he was hungry and I looked tasty.”

My attempt at making light of Kas’s appearance fell flat. Tristan shook his head, seriousness creasing his brow.

“I wish it was that simple.”

Before I could question him further, the waitress arrived. “You having the usual, Tristan?”

“Yeah, but hold the onions.”

She shot him a sly wink and turned to me grinning broadly. “What about you, sugar?”