Shadows

Chapter 7

Unable to remember the last time he had been this close to hyperventilating, which was amazing, since he didn’t really need to breathe, he glanced down at his phone. Again.

The text message from Bethany hadn’t changed in the thirty seconds since he’d last looked. According to the words on his phone, Bethany couldn’t wait for their late lunch date at two. He knew she wasn’t going to bail, especially since they’d talked on the phone every night since Wednesday.

But he was as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

His gaze flickered to the dashboard. Thirty minutes early. Should he go ahead and go in? Get one of those booths near the cranking fireplace? Bethany would like that, he thought, and so he did.

As he waited for her to show, he played a round of FreeCell on his phone. Lost. Played another, and because he kept glancing up every time the chimes above the door rang, he lost another two rounds.

Good God, it was like he’d never been on a date before. If he kept this up, he’d start flickering like the Northern lights. Not good.

When the tinkling sound came again and he looked up, every nerve in his body fired at once.

It was Bethany.

Her warm brown eyes scanned the rock formations in the center of the diner, over the tables, and finally to the booth he’d found by the fireplace. When her gaze met his, she smiled and therefore sucked the marrow right out of his bones…in a totally good way.

Heading straight for their booth, she only had eyes for him. Meaning she didn’t see the college-age guy’s stare follow her. Dawson so didn’t like how the human was staring at Bethany. Like he’d never seen a female before, and Dawson was more than ready to introduce himself. Every territorial instinct in him went off. It took everything for him not to get up and pummel the dude into the old wooden floors.

“Hey,” Bethany said, shrugging off her chunky cardigan. Underneath she wore a black turtleneck that fit her curves. “You haven’t been waiting long, have you?”

Forcing his eyes north, he smiled. “No, I just got here.”

She slid into the booth, tucking her hair behind her ears. He loved that her hair was down, spilling over her shoulders. Looking around the diner, she bit her lower lip. “It’s really cozy in here. I like it. Sort of homey.”

“It’s really nice. Great food.” He cleared his throat, wanting to kick himself. “I’m glad you came.”

Her eyes darted back to his. “Me, too.”

The waitress appeared, saving them from the awkward silence while they placed their drink orders. “Do you come here often?” she asked once the waitress left.

Dawson nodded. “We come about twice a week.”

“Your brother and sister?”

“Yeah, Dee and I come every Thursday, and the three of us come every Wednesday.” He laughed. “It’s kind of bad how often we eat here, actually.”

“Do your parents not cook a lot?”

Ah, a bomb of a question, considering their parents passed away before any of them knew what they looked like. “No, they don’t cook.”

The waitress was back, sliding their glasses across the table. An oven-baked pizza, extra green peppers, light on sauce, was ordered, along with breadsticks.

Bethany fiddled with the straw, folding it into little squares so that it looked like an accordion when she was done. “I swear, my mom lives to bake. Every day I come home, there’re cookies, fresh bread, or some kind of cake.”

An unfamiliar, deep sense of yearning built in his chest. What would it be like to have a mom and dad to go home to? All they had was Matthew, not that he was chopped liver or anything, but he didn’t even live with them. At least not since they were thirteen and deemed mature enough to get by on their own. Matthew probably would have kept them with him forever, but Daemon had needed space of his own.

“That…has to be nice,” he said.

“It is.” She twirled the straw around, knocking the ice cubes against the glass. “She cooks more now, since Dad is gone most of the week and her brother is staying with us. Food is her coping mechanism.”

Remembering what she’d said about the man, he felt for her. Luxen didn’t get sick. Like, ever. “How is he doing?”

“Better. He just looks…worse than how he feels, I think.” A half smile appeared as she watched the ice cubes dance. “I feel bad, because I don’t know what to say to him. Like I barely know him and he’s going through this…life-altering event, and whatever I say just sounds lame.”

“I’m sure he appreciates you just being there.”

“You think?” Hope sparkled in her tone.

“Yeah, I do.” Wanting to reassure her, he reached across the table and placed his hand over her free one.

A shock passed through their hands, and Bethany let out a startled gasp. Looking up, her other hand holding the straw jerked as their eyes met. The glass tipped toward her; the contents ready to make a run for it.

Letting go of her hand, he caught the glass just as it started to fall. A bit of liquid sloshed over the rim as he settled the glass. “Careful,” he murmured.

Bethany stared at him, mouth open.

“What?”

She blinked. “I…I just didn’t see your arm move. One second you were holding my hand and the next you caught my glass.”

Oh. Shit. Sometimes, Dawson just didn’t stop to think. A human probably couldn’t have stopped the glass from kamikaze-ing into her lap. Forcing a grin, he played it off. “I have hella quick reflexes.”

“I can see that,” she murmured, grabbing a napkin and swiping up the mess. “You should play sports…or something.”

Ha. Yeah, that wouldn’t happen. He’d demolish the humans even if he held back. Luckily for him, Bethany seemed to accept his answer and their conversation slipped into the easy chatter that kept them going for hours on the phone. When the pizza arrived, they both dug in. He laughed as she dipped her breadstick in the pizza sauce. It was something both he and Dee did.

And thinking his sister’s name must’ve spooked her up, because the chimes went off and he felt a familiar presence. Eyes glued to the front of the diner, he almost toppled out of the booth when his suspicions were confirmed.

Dee was here. And she wasn’t alone. Adam was with her.

Beth’s brows puckered as she saw his expression. Glancing over her shoulder, she pursed her lips. “That has to be your sister…with your, uh, nice friend.”

Please don’t come back here. Please don’t come back here. “That’s Dee, but that’s not Andrew. That’s his brother, Adam.”

Her head whipped back toward him. “Twins?”

“Triplets like us.” His gaze bounced back to the front of the diner. Aaaaaand his prayers went unanswered. Dee’s gaze locked with his and her eyes went so wide you’d think she was staring at the president of the United States. She made a beeline straight for them, Adam in tow. The string of curses he had going inside his head would’ve made Daemon proud. “I am so sorry. I swear I didn’t invite them.”

Beth’s head cocked to the side. “It’s okay. Don’t worry.”

He wasn’t so much worried about how Dee and Adam would behave. They were totally Team Human, but his sister…God love her, but she was a bit much to take in sometimes.

Dee stopped in front of the table, her forest-green eyes bouncing from Dawson to Bethany. “What a complete surprise to find you here. I had no idea you were coming. If you’d said something, you know, like a decent brother would have, Adam and I could’ve come with. Except now we’re like total stalkers, because you were here first.”

Dee took a deep breath. “And you have company. So we’re totally busting up in your…date? Is it a date or just like two friends hanging out?”

Dawson’s mouth worked but nothing came out as he glanced at Bethany, who kept looking between the two of them, her lips twitching as if she were trying not to smile.

“Ah, lack of answer totally means a date.” Dee grinned as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. Then she swung on Bethany and did another verbal aerobic feat. “So you’re the girl who Dawson stays up talking to half the night? He thinks I don’t know, but I do. Anyway, your name must be Bethany Williams? We haven’t met yet.” She shoved her slender hand out. “I’m Dee.”

Bethany shook her hand. “Nice to meet you…and yeah, I guess I am that girl.”

His sister shook Beth’s hand, which actually shook her entire body, good God. “You’re really pretty. And I can already tell you’re nice, which is good, because Dawson is my favorite brother, and if—”

“Whoa there, girl, slow it down.” Adam placed his hand on Dee’s shoulder. His sympathetic gaze met Dawson’s. “We were just picking up some food.”

Dawson let out a breath of relief.

“Oh, that’s too bad.” Bethany actually sounded sincere. Wow. Most people would’ve collapsed from exhaustion by now. “We could’ve shared a table.”

Dee’s smile was the size of a Volkswagen bus. “I was right! You are nice.” She turned to her brother, brows arching. “Actually, you’re probably too nice for him.”

“Dee,” Adam muttered.

Dawson grinned. “I thought I was your favorite brother.”

“You are. When I want you to be.” She twirled back to Bethany. “Well, we shall leave you guys to your…?”

There was no way out of this one, and Dawson didn’t want to hide what he was doing. Saying the word wouldn’t start a bunch of crap, but considering how everyone already had their suspicions…oh, what the hell.

“It’s a date,” Dawson said. And then he wanted to scream it.

Bethany blushed.

Adam grabbed Dee’s hand, pulling her back toward the counter. He glanced over his shoulder, mouthing, Sorry.

“Well…” Dawson let out a loud sigh, wondering who would stroll through the door next. Daemon? Dear God. “That would be my sister.”

Bethany placed her cheek in her palm and grinned. Her eyes danced. “I like her.”

“Her mouth…is bionic.”

She giggled. “She seems really sweet.”

“And hyper.”

Smacking his arm lightly, she leaned back. “And Adam is way nicer than his brother.”

“A rabid hyena is nicer than Andrew,” he retorted. “When we were kids, he locked me in an old chest once. Left me there for hours.”

“What? Geez, that’s terrible.” There was a pause. “So, back to the fact that there are two sets of triplets in a town the size of a gnat. Odd, right?”

She had no idea. There was a truckload of triplets around this town, but they stayed in the Luxen community deep inside the forest surrounding Seneca Rocks, rarely seen by the human populace. Only one or two of the siblings worked out in the human world. There was safety in numbers and the Elders liked to keep everyone under their thumbs. At least that’s what Daemon believed.

“Our families have been friends for years. When we moved here, so did they.” It was the closest thing to the truth.

Genuine interest flickered in her eyes. She asked about Daemon next. Describing his older brother to Bethany was about as easy as trying to avoid stepping on a landmine in the middle of a war. They were there for over two hours, which gained them a lot of impatient stares from the staff, who probably wanted to free up the table.

When it finally came time to leave, Dawson realized, once again, that he felt reluctant at the thought of their parting. He hung by her car, twirling his keys around a finger. “I had a really good time.”

“I did, too.” Her cheeks were ruddy in the wind. Pretty. She met his eyes, and then her gaze jumped away. “We should do it again.”

“I plan on it.” Dawson wanted to kiss her. Right then. Right there. But instead, he held back and gave her a lame-ass hug like a good guy. “See you tomorrow?”

Dumb question, since they had school tomorrow.

Bethany nodded and then stretched up on the tips of her toes, placing her hand on his chest for support. Stepping into his body, she wrapped one arm around the small of his back. He didn’t dare move. She pressed her lips against his cheek. “Talk to you tonight?”

He lowered his head, inhaling the clean scent of her hair. Being this close to her, he felt like he was in his true form, and he opened his eyes just to make sure he hadn’t flipped his glow switch.

“Of course,” he murmured, running his hand up her arm, fingers brushing the small hand pressed against his chest. A shiver rolled through her body and into his, causing him to tense up. “What are we doing tonight, again?”

She laughed, slipping free from his embrace. “You’re calling me.”

Dawson took a step toward her, chin lowering. The way her flush deepened had him wanting to touch her again. “Yeah, that’s right.”

“Good.” She kept backing up, until she was on the other side of her car, opening the door. “Because I really don’t think I can go to sleep without hearing your voice now.”

Dawson’s thoughts scattered. All he could do was stand there and watch her drive away. And only when he was sure she couldn’t see him, he let his lips split into a smile so wide it’d put Dee’s to shame.

Turning on his heel, he started toward his Jetta and then came to a sudden stop. The small hairs on the back of his neck rose, and it had nothing to do with the wind.

Someone was watching him.

Dawson scanned the parking lot in the waning light. The place was crowded, full of trucks and other obscenely large vehicles. One stood out.

A black Expedition with heavily tinted windows was parked toward the back, engine running.

Anger rose in him so quickly he almost lost his hold. And wouldn’t his stalkers like that? A Luxen doing the Full Monty right in front of humans. Freaking DOD. Dawson was accustomed to them checking in, which really meant stalking them. Today was really no different. Except they had seen him with Bethany, and as he pivoted around and headed back to his car, it took everything in him not to walk over to that truck and light their asses up.

…

Three days later and Bethany was still floating from Sunday. Corny as hell, but she was floating like there were clouds on her feet. Arriving late to her locker before lunch, she stood in the empty hall, switching out books. The grin on her face was inked on, going nowhere. Her manic happiness had a name and—

“Hey there,” Dawson said, his breath warming her ear.

Squeaking, she spun and dropped her book. Clasping a hand over her chest, she stared at Dawson wide-eyed. “How…how in the world? I didn’t even hear you.”

He picked up the book and handed it over, then leaned against the locker beside her, giving a lopsided shrug. “I’m quiet.”

Quiet didn’t even cover it. A mouse sneezed in these halls and it echoed. She shoved the book in her bag. Then it hit her. “What are you doing in the hall?”

A lazy grin appeared. “Going to lunch.”

“Wait. Don’t you have class now?”

He leaned in, breathing the same air as her, causing her breath to catch. That damn half grin did funny things to her. They’d gone to the diner again on Tuesday, parting ways without a kiss — a real kiss. But when his forehead touched hers, she really believed he was going to kiss her, right in the hall.

Bethany was totally okay with that.

“I have study hall,” he said, tilting his head just a little to the side, lining up their mouths. “And I charmed my way out of class. I wanted to see you.”

“You charmed your way?” Her eyes drifted shut. “How’d you do that?”

“I’ll never tell my secrets. You know better than that.” Dawson pulled back, capturing her free hand. Feeling like what she wanted—needed—had just been taken from her, she glared at him. His grin spread. “I wanted to have lunch with you.”

More than flattered, she let him pull her down the hall…away from the cafeteria, it appeared. “Hey, where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.” He pulled her to his side, draping a heavy arm over her shoulders. The length of his body was fit against hers like it was made to be.

“Are we leaving campus?”

“Yep.”

“Are we going to get in trouble?”

He stopped, turning her in his arms. They were almost chest to chest, his arm still around her shoulders. “Questions, questions, Bethany. Trust me. You won’t get in trouble with me.”

She arched a brow. “Because of your charmer skills, huh?”

“Exactly.” He grinned.

Dawson continued on and she went with him, imagining what her mom would do if they got caught and the school called her. Mandatory pregnancy tests were in her future. She glanced at Dawson and decided it was worth it.

As they went out the back doors, she expected an alarm to sound and the rent-a-cop to come running at breakneck speed. When that didn’t happen and their feet hit pavement, she started to relax.

Dawson let go of her hand, picking up the pace as he dug his keys out of his pocket. “Where I want to take you is two blocks down. We can drive if you want.” He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes starting at the top of her head and drifting all the way to her toes.

Geez, when he looked at her like that, did he expect her to be able to communicate? She was mush now, useless mush.

His smile tipped higher, as if he knew what he was doing to her. “It’s kind of too cold for you.”

“What about you?”

He faced the front, flipping those keys around. “I’m fine. This is your world, though.”

She smiled at his back. “It is kind of co—” Her words ended in a startled shriek as her foot hit a thick patch of ice that hadn’t thawed. Before she knew it, her arms were flailing as she sought to keep her balance.

Not going to happen.

In those teeny, tiny seconds, she’d resigned herself to cracking her skull wide open in front of Dawson. An ambulance would need to be called. Mom would find out. Dad would get summoned from work. She’d be grounded, with a concussion. Or worse.

Warm arms surrounded her, catching her a half second before she went splat. And there she remained, suspended in air, her hair brushing the slick asphalt. Dawson’s face was inches from hers, eyes closed in concentration, face tight and grim.

Bethany couldn’t even speak around her shock. Dawson had been several feet ahead. For him to get to her so quickly was mind-boggling.

Breathless, she stared up at him and swallowed hard. “Okay. You have the reflexes of a cat on steroids.”

“Yeah,” he said, sounding almost as out of breath as she was. “You okay?”

Wetting her lips, she nodded and then realized he couldn’t see that. “Yes, I’m fine.”

Slowly straightening, he had her back on her feet before he released her. His eyes opened, and Bethany couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The irises were still a beautiful green, but the pupils…the pupils were white.

Without realizing it, she took a step forward. “Dawson…”

He blinked and his eyes were normal. “Yeah?”

Shaking her head, she didn’t know if her mind was messing with her or what. Pupils couldn’t be white. And he was fast — like Olympic gold medalist fast. And quiet, too. Quiet as a ghost on a weight loss program. And his friend could melt ping-pong balls…