Waken (The Woods of Everod Book 1) Page 9

  Just as suddenly as he’s pulled me to a stop, he lets go. I twist around, but Tristan blocks him, shielding me from them. Tristan speaks, I hear his deep voice, see his mouth moving, but I have no comprehension of his words. My mom launches herself at us-

  “Janie?”

  My eyes flew open and I grasped at my chest in a useless attempt to slow my heart.

  “Are you okay? You look terrified.”

  Tristan’s voice pushed through the haze and I focused my eyes on him. Elin, the trees, the sunlight were all gone. I was back in the artificial night. Safe. And Tristan was staring at me as if I’d gone crazy.

  “Sorry, I was just trying to imagine what Lisa would do.” I tried to give a little laugh, but it come out as more of a pant.

  “Don’t worry,” he said, giving me a quick hug. “It wouldn’t be anywhere near as bad as what you must have been thinking.”

  “I hope not. So, what’s with the red lights?” I asked, trying to sound normal.

  “Lisa worked at a theater once and said she wanted a place to remember the people she knew.” He flipped a couple of switches and the stars disappeared as the red light flooded the room again. “You want to hang out tomorrow morning?”

  “Yeah.” Quivering butterflies danced through my chest.

  “Great we can hit the gym before I gotta do some stuff for my dad.”

  “Great.” Because every girl wants the object of her lust to see her all sweaty and smelly.

  Chapter 10

  Seven in the morning was not a natural time to wake up, especially during summer break. Maybe it was the way he smiled at me, or the sparkling blue of his eyes, but for some inexplicable reason I’d agreed to meet Tristan at the gym early the next morning.

  He was waiting for me at the entry and I couldn’t stop the smile from forming as my skin broke out in goose bumps, an occurrence that was becoming a familiar sign that he was near.

  “Ready for some jujitsu?” He grinned as we went inside.

  “Jujitsu?”

  “It’s a martial arts fighting technique,” he said and launched into a detailed definition.

  “I think I’ll just stick to the treadmill.” I could hear his chuckle as I left him at the edge of the mat. I hopped on the treadmill and gave Lisa a wave when she looked up from the magazine she was reading behind the counter.

  The constant thud of my feet on the machine produced a soothing repetitiveness to focus on. Or at least it would have if I’d been able to get the questions racing through my mind under control. With each pounding beat, a new one came to me. The book of wolf stories. Rachel’s warning. Tristan’s tattoo. The strange tingling I had every time he was near. The visions and dreams of Elin that seemed more real with each one. The scar on my back Tristan described as a wolf. And most of all Samara’s story about the Lycan.

  Obviously, the people around town had some weird obsession with the story. Who was I kidding? They had a weird obsession with what amounted to werewolves. And I was on the verge of going along with it for the sake of a hot guy and a few friends. I shook my head trying to clear the thoughts away. I was being ridiculous. Werewolves weren’t real, despite the freaky wolf that had started stalking me.

  Over at the mat, Tristan and Justin were doing some kind of wrestling and poor Justin looked like he was losing. Kyle stood off to the side, occasionally stopping them to point something out or demonstrate a move. Eventually, they stopped and Tristan gave me a quick wave as he headed into the men’s locker room. I stopped the treadmill and went to the ladies’ room.

  With my hair in a messy knot on the top of my head and the locker room lights glaringly unfriendly, I looked a sweaty disaster. Turning slightly, I looked at the reflection of my back. The shirt covered the mark. I wasn’t normally self-conscious, but after the way Tristan had reacted to it, I hesitated exposing it. A wolf. I’d never noticed it having such a specific shape. Could he have been seeing it as he wanted?

  I tugged my shirt off and looked in the mirror again. He was right. The deep purple marking was shaped identically to the etching of the Wolf from my necklace. That was definitely new. Shaking my head, I turned away and headed to the shower. The stall was tight, but the steaming hot water was worth the tricky maneuvering.

  Ten minutes later, I stepped out and wrapped myself in my towel. The gym provided towels, but I loved the big beach towels I’d bought in Galveston a couple years back. The door creaked open and then Lisa appeared around the corner.

  “You still alive?” she asked.

  “Have I been that long?”

  “No, I just don’t think Tristan’s ever had to wait for anyone before. It’ll do him some good.”

  She turned to leave, but the image of the mark on my back had me asking, “Hey, can I ask a favor?”

  “Sure anything for my man’s sister.”

  “I’ve got a birthmark on my back and I think it may have changed shape. I don’t want to freak Tim or Justin out. Justin’s mom had treatment for skin cancer a few years ago.”

  “No prob,” she said, all joking gone from her voice. “What makes you think it changed shape?”

  “Well, Tristan saw it the other day and mentioned it looked like something totally different than what I’d always been told. When I looked I wasn’t sure if I was just being paranoid.”

  I pulled my hair over my shoulder and turned my back to her. She sucked in a breath. “What?” I asked anxiously. Was it worse than I’d thought?

  “You,” she cleared her throat, “you said Tristan saw this?”

  “Yeah, the other day in the library. He said it looked like a wolf. What do you think?”

  “No, not a wolf. It kind of looks like…well, it doesn’t really look like anything. I don’t know maybe a butterfly? Or the top half of a heart? I wouldn’t worry about it being skin cancer. Isn’t that usually moles or changes in normal skin tone? I guess if you’re really worried you should see the doctor down in Telluride or Montrose.”

  “There’s no doctor in town?”

  “No need. We’re all pretty healthy up here.” She passed me my shirt, avoiding my gaze.

  “I guess I’m just over reacting.”

  “Maybe you should keep it covered just in case,” she suggested before quickly leaving the room.

  “Thanks!” I called out as the door swung shut behind her.

  I twisted around, trying to see the mark in the mirror. From the part I could see, Lisa was right. As funny as it sounded, I was relieved to know I was just going crazy.

  When I left the change room, Tristan and Lisa were huddled a few steps from the front entrance talking in hushed voices. Curiosity had me quietly scooting closer.

  “What are you doing, Tristan? Is that why you’ve been going out with her?” Lisa asked.

  “No, I like her. It has nothing to do with-” he looked over his shoulder and cut off his words when he saw me. I flushed at being caught eavesdropping. I walked over and he took my hand, ignoring Lisa’s narrowed eyes and pursed lips. “Come on. We can wait for Justin outside.”

  Lisa reached out and grabbed Tristan’s arm, stopping us. “Tristan, you have to tell the others. And if it’s true, we have to prepare and she needs to know everything.”

  “I don’t need your advice, Lisa.”

  “I know that, but I’m giving it anyways. I don’t want anyone to get hurt and you know that’s what will happen if he finds out.”

  “I will. Just...give me some time.”

  She nodded and let go of him. He pulled me out into the parking lot. I opened my mouth to question him, but he stopped me with a raised hand.

  “I know. I need to tell you some stuff, but not yet. Give me a few days to sort some things out and then I’ll tell you everything you need to know, okay?”

  “Why wait?”

  “Because I need to talk to the others.”

  “The others? That sounds kind of ominous. Is this like some scary movie where everyone’s a ghost?”

  He chuckled and t
he tension eased from his shoulders. Whatever he had to tell me couldn’t be that bad. Apart from the standoff with Rachel, everyone in town had been friendly and, from what I could tell, fairly normal.

  “My folks called another family meeting tonight, but do you want to go see a movie tomorrow?” he asked as we made our way to Justin’s car.

  “I’d like that.” I squeezed his hand. Maybe I’d be able to get a few answers out of him, without everyone staring at us through the windows.

  Tristan dropped our bags on the ground and hopped up to sit on the hood of the car.

  Sitting on the rusty hood, he pulled me between his legs and rested his forearms on my shoulders. I put my hands on his thighs, feeling the defined muscles that bunched beneath his jeans. Experimenting, I ran my palms up and down relishing his strength, until he jerked and his hands covered mine, holding them still. His eyes were an icy fire, and I gave him a flirty innocent smile, which he promptly kissed away.

  “Not on my car!” Justin shouted from behind us. “Get a room if you’re going to do that.” He paused. “Forget that. Nobody should be doing…that, with Janie.”

  “Gee, thanks.” I pulled away from Tristan and swatted Justin’s arm.

  “What?” He dodged my next blow. “You’re my sister. You’re never supposed to do that.”

  “Right. I’ll remember that the next time you go on a date.”

  “That’s different. I’m a guy.” He grinned and even though I knew he was just teasing, my ire rose.

  “Dude, I think you should let this one go,” Tristan said, his eyes crinkled with amusement.

  “Yeah, you’re probably right. There just no reasoning with her.” He jumped out of the path of my swinging arm and ran around the car, quickly getting in and locking the door. I tried my handle, but it was locked. I glared at him through the window.

  “Open the door, Justin.”

  “Not until you promise not to hit me.”

  “I promise,” I swore through clenched teeth.

  He flicked the lock and I leaned in, grabbed a chunk of arm hair and tugged it firmly.

  “Ow! Damn, that hurt.” He rubbed his arm, examining the small bald patch that now adorned his arm. “You promised,” he pouted.

  “I promised not to hit. That was a pinch,” I defended myself as I climbed into the car and shut the door.

  Tristan tapped on the window and I rolled it down. He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss. “See you tomorrow night.” Then he was gone.

  I rolled the window up, using one hand to roll it manually and the other flat against the pane helping it to slide up.

  “Wow.”

  I looked at Justin. “What?”

  “It’s just weird seeing you with a guy.” He shook his head. “I guess I never think of you like that.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like a girl.” He grinned.

  “Thanks!” This time I did slug him.

  “Hey, you’re my sister. I don’t even like the idea of you dating anyone, let alone someone like Tristan.”

  “What do you mean someone like Tristan?” My brow furrowed in confusion.

  “He’s a nice guy,” he said quickly, “but he’s just...”

  “Out of my league?”

  “Not what I meant. It’s just he’s dated a lot of girls around town and people talk about him and Rachel like it’s just a matter of time before they’re back together. I don’t want to see you get hurt.” He glanced at me, checking my response.

  “Thanks for worrying.” I mussed his hair then gave his head a playful shove, breaking the seriousness of the mood.

  The next night, I stared into my closet. I hadn’t moved for over five minutes. I’d already pulled on the black miniskirt and deep blue shirt. I knew it was cute and so…not me, but the girl in me though was smart enough to know that a skirt like that would grab a guy’s attention. I was past wondering what to wear. No, I was paralyzed by the thoughts running through my head.

  What should I say? What should I do? God, I didn’t know how to talk to guys. The only other guy I’d ever had a real conversation with was Justin, and he didn’t count since he’s my brother. Spending time with Tristan at the diner or at the park was one thing. This was a date.

  What would he expect? Justin had laughed about a few of his dates, expecting way more than first base on the first date. I felt myself blush, knowing that I’d probably be begging Tristan to go to past a little kiss if our night at the park was any indication.

  Having a girl friend to talk to would have made this so much easier. If only Rachel...well, if she hadn’t wanted Tristan, too. The thought pushed me out of my trance and I grabbed my purse, a seldom-used gift from Tim, and shut my bedroom door behind me on my way downstairs.

  A surprised cough came from the hall behind me. I turned to see Justin looking at me with amazement splashed across his face.

  “Do I pass?” I asked with raised arms.

  “Don’t you think you should put on some pants? It’s kinda cool out tonight. Some cold front I think.” Rolling my eyes, I scowled at his attempt to act the protective brother. “Has dad seen you yet?”

  “No. Do I really look that bad?”

  “You look great, Janie. I just didn’t expect you to get all dressed up and stuff.”

  “I’m going on a date. Shouldn’t I dress up?” Doubts assailed me.

  “Wow! What happened to my little girl?” Tim said, coming into the hall from the kitchen.

  “I’m almost eighteen, long past the little girl stage.”

  “Hate to be the one to tell you, sis, but you’re never gonna be anything other than little,” Justin joked as he threw an arm around my shoulder.

  He dragged me beside him to the living room, and pushed me onto the couch before sitting in the love seat across from me. Tim wandered in and leaned against the wall, smiling at the two of us.

  “Dad, don’t you think you should have a talk with Janie about the birds and the bees?” Justin asked with a huge grin smeared across his face.

  I groaned in embarrassment. Justin was enjoying this too much.

  “Oh no, you go right ahead.” Tim waved his hand at Justin motioning him on.

  I closed my eyes, wishing they would stop and at the same time, thanking God Tristan wasn’t there to witness the two of them teasing me into mortification.

  “Well, you see it’s like this. If he tries to touch you, hit him, then call me and I’ll beat the shit out of him.”

  “Justin-”

  “No, it’s okay, really I won’t mind at all.”

  “Should I get my camera?” Tim broke in with a grin, egging Justin on in my torment.

  “Tim! Don’t encourage him!”

  He laughed at my expression, “I’m sorry, Janie. We’re done.”

  “Don’t worry, a bunch of us are heading up to Montrose to see a new action movie. So, I’ll keep an eye on him just in case.”

  Tim dragged Justin out of the room before I could turn violent, leaving me to pace while constantly checking the clock. At exactly five-thirty, the doorbell rang and I raced for the door, determined not to give Justin the opportunity to continue his fun.

  I pulled open the door in a rush.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Hey, you look beautiful.” His eyes roamed over me, pausing on my bare legs. I was right about the skirt.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled, lowering my head. I reached behind the door to the closet and grabbed my cardigan.

  “Do you want me to come in? Maybe talk with your dad?”

  “No! Tim’s threatened to pull out his camera. It’s better if we escape quickly.”

  A silly grin spread across his face, crinkling his eyes. “I don’t mind pictures.”

  “Don’t you start, too.”

  “All right, let’s go then. But don’t say I didn’t give you a chance. We could have shown that picture to our grandkids.”

  Heat filled my cheeks. Was he joking? Didn’t he know that girls take that kind o
f thing seriously? I didn’t have a chance to dwell on it. He grabbed my hand and led me to a massive truck with an Andersen Carpentry logo along the side.

  “Seth is driving up to Montrose too with a bunch of friends, so it made more sense for him to use my car and for us to take Dad’s truck. You don’t mind do you?”

  “No.” I wondered if Rachel would have minded. Probably. The truck was kind of beat up. A few years back it would have been impressive, now it was just a typical work truck.

  The drive to the movie theater was long. I sat with my hands folded in my lap, picking at the hem of my skirt. I wanted to reach over, to run my hand along the length of his thigh, but I lacked the courage to close the distance.

  Sitting in the theater wasn’t any better. The first part of the movie flew by. Some generic romantic comedy that didn’t hold my attention at all. I was too aware of his warm body only inches from mine.

  The tingles gliding along my skin began to burn and the more I tried to ignore the effect he was having on me the stronger they grew. Finally, I couldn’t stand it. I slid my hand to the edge of the armrest, gently brushing his arm. Before I could pull back, he had my fingers locked between his. The sensation was beyond anything I’d prepared myself for.

  A sharp stab of pleasure hit my stomach and it felt like every little butterfly that had been spinning a dance inside me was released, filling the space around us with their fluttering, masking the sound of my thundering heart. I turned to look at him and he was watching me, his eyes almost black in the darkness. One side of his mouth tilted up, yet his expression was intense, like he was trying to memorizing me.

  “Are you enjoying the movie?” he asked softly.

  “Oh, yeah sure.” Did I even know what it was about? Just some insipid girl falling in love at first sight with a completely unattainable guy. During the first part, I’d tried to pick up some pointers, but the girl was incapable of making rational decisions, jumping to conclusions, which seemed to be leading to some kind of misunderstanding.