Dark Side of the Moon (20 page)

I sighed of relief.  I was so glad we didn’t have to use the bathroom in the woods and that we could shower here.  Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad.

More people showed up as London finished with the tent.  Channing and Artemis arrived with their sisters, and set up two tents, I guess one for them and one for their sisters.  London helped his beta finish with the tents, while Artemis and I set up our coolers between our tents.   

As soon as I closed the lid on the cooler, someone tapped on my shoulder.  It was the brunette I’ve seen always with Ricky.  Josie.  Wonder what she wanted.  “Hi,” I hesitantly said.

“Hi.  I’m sorry I haven’t introduced myself to you yet.  It’s…kind of been hard to,” she said, twisting her hands together as she looked away from me.

“Yeah, I know.  I haven’t really made that much of an effort to get to know anyone,” I said to her.

“Well, it’s not that.  Ricky didn’t want me to talk to you.”

I gave her a confused look.  “Really?  Why?”

“She just doesn’t.”

I rolled my eyes.  The girl hated me for a stupid reason.  “Why didn’t she want you talking to me, Josie?”

She glanced at London before looking at me.  “Could we talk somewhere else?”

“Sure.”  I looked at our surroundings.  “I think the only place is the woods.”

She nodded as London asked, “Do you mind if Artemis goes with you, Josie?  She can show Selina the border; we’re pretty close to O’Malley lands, and you need to know where our land ends so you won’t cross onto theirs.”

“I don’t mind,” Josie responded.

After Artemis gave Channing a kiss, we headed off into the woods.  We were silent for a couple minutes, Artemis looking at Josie expectantly.  Josie was a little shorter than me with brown hair and green eyes.  She seemed a little timid, and I wasn’t sure exactly why.

Taking a deep breath first, Josie finally spoke.  “Ricky really does not like you, Selina.”

“I kind of figured because she always gives me nasty looks.  But I have no idea why.  I haven’t done anything to her.”

“She and London were dating before you moved here.  They had been for a couple years,” she explained.  “Ricky thought that London loved her and that they had a future together until you came along.  London practically threw her aside without a second thought after you knew that we’re all wolves.  He hasn’t even spoken to her or apologized for the way he treated her.”

“Well then she should hate London, not me.  I didn’t force him to leave her.”

“Actually, you did, Selina,” Artemis interjected.

I gave her a confused look.

“He knew that you were mates, and that he couldn’t be with Ricky after you learned about us, especially after you knew about why you had body aches,” she told.

“But I didn’t tell him to treat her that way.  That’s all on him.  I have done nothing to Ricky to make her hate me so much.  I didn’t tell London to leave her like he did, or at all.  I didn’t tell him to push her away and pretend she didn’t exist when I went over to his house to have him explain to me what was going on with me.  Sure, I probably would have gotten jealous if he was still with her when he told me that we were mates, but that’s normal, right?  And besides, I am London’s mate and the other alpha of this pack, and I’m going to have to get to know everyone in the pack eventually.  She’s just going to have to get over it sooner or later.”

“I know, Selina,” Josie said.  “She just doesn’t want to accept that you’re in the position she’s been after for years.  She’s wanted to be London’s mate since they started dating, and she still loves him.  I just thought you should know.”

The blood drained from my face.  Ricky still loved London?  We’ve been dating for almost three months now and are mates.  She wouldn’t try to do anything to change that, would she?  I didn’t know much about her, and couldn’t assume that she would try to break us up.

Artemis broke my train of thought.  “Come on, I need to show you the border.  It’s only a few feet away.”

I took a deep breath, and noticed a new smell in the area.  It was faint, but with each step we took, it grew stronger.  If I spent a lot of time around the people of this pack, I’d probably be able to pick up their individual scents at the border.  But London said they were O’Malley’s, the pack Artemis’ family had left.  I had no idea how often London kept in contact with packs in the area, and I wondered if I’d have to do the same.

“This is good enough,” Artemis said, stopping.  “The border is just past that rock,” she said, pointing at a boulder about five feet away.  “Both lands are vast, and this is where they meet.  You can freely go anywhere on London’s land, but if you cross into O’Malley territory, they’re not going to be very happy.  We left because he was becoming very hostile, and I don’t want to think of what he’d do to anyone if we crossed the border, but I can tell you that it won’t be nice or pretty.  They’ll be out patrolling their border on the full moon, too, and we’ll probably smell them if they don’t smell us first.  They know that London comes here every year for his birthday, so I don’t think anything will happen as long as no one crosses either border.  Any questions?”

I shook my head.  I didn’t think I’d ever have a reason to cross onto another pack’s territory, and now I had even more of a reason not to.

“Alright, let’s head back; I’m starving.”

I nodded, but didn’t say anything on the way back to the campsite, still thinking about what Josie had told me about Ricky.

As soon as we broke through the clearing, I looked for London.  He was sitting in a folding chair, a canned drink in one hand, his chin resting on the other.  A mixture of boredom and aggravation was on his face.

Ricky was sitting next to him, talking.

Jealousy hit me like a truck.  Though she was a pack member, she was still his ex and I didn’t like seeing her trying to talk to him.  So, I made my way over to my mate, plastering a smile on my face.

When London saw me, he returned my grin and sat straighter in his chair.  This allowed for me to sit on his lap, and I wrapped my arms around his neck for good measure.  “Hey,” he softly said.  “Know where the border is?”

I nodded.  “Why exactly are we camping so close to the border?”

“Because this is the only campsite in Moonlight Falls that has a bathroom.”

I playfully rolled my eyes and kissed his cheek.  Ricky stood without a word and stalked off toward Josie.  She was just going to have to get over the fact that I was London’s mate, not her, and there was nothing anyone could do to change that.

“So, what are we going to do today?” I asked London.

“Well, everyone’s almost here.  We’ll get dinner started then sit around and talk, I guess.”

A couple people were in the center of the field, where they had made a fire pit in my absence and were trying to light the wood.  My stomach rumbled, and London retrieved a pack of meat from the cooler so we could make hamburgers as soon as the fire was ready.

Since there were a lot of people here, the fire pit was larger than normal—for cooking and for some heat—and we cooked our burgers on a grate with several other people, so we’d all get to eat quicker.  We all sat around the fire, eating our burgers or hotdogs, munching on chips and other junk foods.  It was kind of like lunch, only there were more people and some of their parents were here.  I would have figured that since we had “chaperones” it would be a little awkward, but conversation was actually easy going.  I figured there were more parents that weren’t here and would probably arrive closer to the full moon so they’d be able to run with us.

The longer we stayed out, the colder it became.  And soon, the fire wasn’t enough to keep me warm.  A couple other people had decided to retire for the night, and after snuggling closer to London for warmth, he suggested us heading to bed, too.  After bidding good night to those remaining around the fire, we headed to our tent.

After breaking the record for changing out of my clothes and into my pajamas, London, only in his boxers, crawled into the double sleeping bag, waiting for me.  I quickly joined him, wanting to get warm, and snuggled as close as I could be against him, our legs tangling together, my head tucked under his chin.  I was going to be spending a whole week with him like this, giving me a taste of what it could be like in the future.  I had no idea where we will be a couple months from now, let alone years, but I did know that we would be together.

Pressing a light kiss to his chest, I told him, “I love you, London.”

He returned my kiss to the top of my head.  “I love you, too, Selina.”

That was the last thing I remembered before drifting off to sleep.

Chapter 22

When I woke the next morning, it was because a weight was pressing on my chest.  Opening my eyes, I found dark brown hair immediately in front of me.  London was sleeping on top of me again.  Smiling, I ran my fingers across his back and through his hair, waiting for him to wake as well.

Some time had passed before London finally woke.  Groaning, he shifted his weight to one arm, lifting himself a little off of me.  I kept my arms around him, watching as he yawned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.  When his vision finally focused, he looked at me and smiled.  “Oh, yeah, I can get used to this.”

I returned his grin and lightly slapped his chest.

Instead of responding, he just leaned down to give me a kiss.  I could see what he was getting at; waking up to no body aches was amazing.  And also, we were waking up next to each other, which was nice.  When he went to pull away from me, I tightened my grip on him, keeping him right where he was.

London smiled beneath my lips, and eased his weight off of his arm, resting completely on top of me.  I didn’t mind…until I felt his morning happiness.  When I gasped from the feel of his hardness, London slipped his tongue inside my mouth, gently massaging my tongue.

Then he ground his hips into mine.

I gasped again, and London moved his lips to my cheek before going to my neck.  He was either intentionally or unconsciously rubbing parts of my body that haven’t been explored by another.  And though Ricky could have immediately jumped in bed with him when either of them felt the urge, I wasn’t ready for that part in our relationship yet.

“London,” I said, trying to get his attention, my voice wavering a little.

He lifted his head to look at me, his cheeks pink with arousal.  Breathing heavily, he closed his eyes, and rested his forehead on my shoulder.  He lay like that for a moment before kissing my shoulder and pulling away from me.  “I’m going to go take a shower,” he said, reaching for his bag.

I nodded, practically frozen to the spot.

After he had some clothes and a smaller bag with his bathroom supplies, London slipped out of the tent, leaving the makeshift door open a little.  It took me a moment to move.  I needed to use the bathroom, and could shower later.

Slipping my shoes on, I unzipped the tent, and headed in the same direction as my mate, toothbrush, toothpaste, and brush in tow.  He had just closed the door to the men’s side of the facilities.  No one else was in sight, so they were either all still asleep or just waking up.  I quickly headed to the little building, and relieved myself.  After brushing my teeth and hair, I returned to the tent to dress for the day.

When I exited the tent again, I saw London coming out of the building.  His hair was damp, and a grin formed when he saw me.  After he gave me a kiss, he asked, “Want some breakfast?”

I nodded.  “Do we have any eggs I can scramble?”

“I’m sure someone brought some.  And if we cook it, they will come.”

After London tossed his towel and dirty boxers into our tent, we went in search of something to cook for breakfast.  Someone had brought eggs, sausage, bacon, and frozen pancakes and waffles.  So after London got the fire going, we used the grill from last night to set the cookie sheet we had found to cook our food.  And a couple minutes after everything was cooking, tents unzipped.

After London and I had our plates, someone else took over cooking for a few plates.  A lot of people pitched in to help feed everyone before they themselves ate.  While several conversations went on around me, I just listened, just like I would at the lunch table.

Raff came up to London after he finished eating.  “We’re going to the lake to do some fishing.  Want to come?”

“Sure,” he said before looking at me.

I just shrugged.  I wasn’t thrilled about going fishing, but I could bring my sketchpad.  “I’ll tag along; just let me grab my bag first.”

I quickly headed to our tent to get my art supplies while the guys rounded up their fishing rods.  They also brought a cooler for if they caught any fish, and would find bait by the lake.  I had no idea what those remaining at the campsite were going to do for the day.

London held my hand as we hiked through the woods, helping me over some branches that had fallen.  We were the last to arrive at the lake, the others already digging around for bait in the dirt.  After London gave me a quick kiss, he joined them in looking for worms.

I leaned against a tree while they got dirty, pulling out my supplies.  I was content with drawing random things while they fished.  And every now and then, I found myself sketching London in his various fishing positions.  One of my sketches of him had him as his profile, sitting on the dock with his fishing rod barely clasped in his hands.  He looked so relaxed, and to add more to it, I detailed the dock, added a few ripples in the water, and drew a rough tree line behind him.

As soon as I flipped the page to start another sketch, I heard the guys moving on the deck.  Looking up, I found them to be packing their things, smiles on all of their faces.  I guess they caught a lot.  The guys went on ahead back to the campsite, and London made his way over to me as I packed up.  On our way back to camp, he told me that they had caught enough fish for a little over half of our group to eat lunch.  But we’d have to clean, gut, and descale it first.  I wasn’t having any part of that.

For the rest of the day after lunch, I just sat with London, chatting with some of the people around us.  Artemis and Channing had disappeared, but I noticed Dakota and Diana with a couple other kids their age near the tents.  Everyone gathered around the fire again as the sun set so they could eat dinner, chatting and laughing and having a good time.

After dinner, I grabbed my bathroom supplies and my pajamas and a towel from London’s bag, and ventured to the bathrooms.  Thankfully, the shower’s weren’t communal, and had stalls with closable doors on them.  I hung my clothes and towel on the door, and turned on the water.

I tried to keep my shower short, and after I turned off the water, my heart sank.  Someone had taken my clothes and towel.  Shit, I never heard anyone come in here.  But I only had one guess.

My first thought was to try to call London in here and have him figure it out.  But that would probably give people the idea that we would be mating soon, and as far as I was concerned, we weren’t.  So I tried calling for Artemis.

A moment later, she hesitantly opened the door, giving me a confused look.

“Someone took my clothes and towel, and I have a pretty good idea as to who it was.  Could you go find out where they put my things and why they have a problem with me, please?”

“Sure, Selina.”

She walked back out, and I tried to keep my shivering under control.  I tried to brush my hair to get the moisture out of it so it would dry quicker, but I was getting colder with each passing moment.

When the door opened again, I was surprised that I smelled London.  And he had Ricky with him.  My clothes and towel were laid out over the door.  I immediately took the towel, and dried off.  London’s was angry when he said, “Apologize to her.”

“But, London—” she whined.

“Now, Ricky.”

She scoffed before mumbling, “Sorry.”  I could just imagine her rolling her eyes or crossing her arms over her chest or pouting.  Then, she stamped off, almost slamming the door when she left.

As soon as I was dry, I slipped my pajamas on, and wrapped my hair in the towel so it would dry.  When I came out of the stall, I saw the look of concern on London’s face.  “Let’s get you warmed up, Selina,” he softly said, wrapping an arm around my waist.

Exiting the bathrooms, we headed to our tent.  Some people had already retired for the night, everyone else still talking around the fire.  Ricky was pouting next to the fire, Josie trying to talk her out of it.  She really needed to get over being dumped over something neither she nor London could control.

Once in our tent, I took my towel off, and tried to brush my hair.  London stripped down to his boxers, and crawled into the sleeping bag to watch me.  I was still shivering, and when I joined him, I tried to get as close to him as possible.

“I’m sorry she did that, Selina,” he whispered, holding me tighter to his body.

“As long as she doesn’t do it again.  She needs to get over the fact that we’re mates.”

“Yeah, I know.  Ricky’s really stubborn.”

“It must suck being miserable all the time.  She should try finding a mate.  What did you ever see in her, anyway?”

“She was a different person before you came here, Selina.  And before you came here, I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with her.  But then you came into my life, and you’re much better company than her.”

Good answer
, I thought.  I knew they had a history, had witnessed part of it.  But they both needed to leave that history far in the past because I was London’s future.  And though I was sure that if I officially mated with him, she would leave us alone, I wasn’t ready to be essentially married at seventeen and still in high school.

He’ll just have to settle for bedtime kisses until I was ready.  “Good night, London.  I love you,” I said giving him a quick kiss.

“I love you, too, Selina.”

The next morning, after breakfast, a group of guys went to the lake to fish.  A couple people lounged around with some books.  Another group was getting together to go hiking.  I wanted to go with them, and London tagged along to “make sure I didn’t hurt myself.”  I didn’t mind his reason for going, especially when he pulled me away from the group to press me up against a tree and make out for a good while.

After we returned to the campsite, I saw some people setting up a volleyball net.  Volleyball was the only sport I liked playing, and asked them if it was okay if I joined them.  They all gave me smiles and told me yes, making me happy that they were nice.  I had made it my mission to get to know some of the people in the pack while we were here, and playing games together was a good way, right?

We ended up playing a few games, both teams winning and losing.  Every now and then throughout the games, I caught London staring and smiling at me while he sat with a group of guys.  I tried to not think about him while I was playing because I didn’t need any distractions.

After we finished our volleyball games and ate lunch, the guys decided to play some football.  And when London joined them, it was my turn to watch him play.  Sitting in a camping chair with my sketch pad, I took the opportunity to draw my mate in different positions and settings.  But it was very difficult to draw him because I found myself distracted by watching his body move, getting a glimpse of his chest when his shirt pulled up as he wiped the sweat from his brow, and when he removed his shirt completely.  Needless to say, I didn’t draw much after that happened.

They ended up playing until dinnertime.  After I ate and showered—my clothes not getting stolen this time—I was exhausted.  As soon as London and I climbed into our sleeping bag after I was dry, I was out like a light.

Monday was very similar to Sunday, people hiking or fishing or playing football or volleyball or badminton.  I joined a few of the games, and sketched while London played with his friends.  This was so much better than being in school.

Tuesday morning, a while after we had eaten lunch and hiked for a bit, London asked me, “Want to go swimming in the lake?”

“I didn’t bring a bathing suit.”

“Who said anything about swim suits?”

My eyes widened.  Was he suggesting what I think he was suggesting?  And a more important question, did I really want to be in that much of a compromising position with a bunch of people that could easily happen upon us?

I tried to be stern as I said, “Alright, but that’s all we’re doing.”

He gave me a cocky little grin as he took my hand.  After making a stop by our tents to get some towels, he told Channing to keep everyone away from the lake.  That should help with no one trying to sneak a peek at us.  Was I really going skinny dipping with him?

It took us a while to hike to the lake.  The whole time, London had a grin on his face.  I tried to keep my blush at bay.  We were mates, and sometime in the future we’d take our relationship to the next level, but I was nowhere near ready for that right now.  And I really hope that he remembered our conversation from a month ago.

But when we arrived at the lakeshore, we found a couple guys from the pack fishing there.  London handled it easily, though.  He cleared his throat to get their attention, and said, “You’re needed at the campsite, guys.”

They nodded, and quickly reeled in their lines.  After securing the hooks and grabbing their cooler of either drinks or fish, they headed off into the woods, snickering.  Blush crept onto my cheeks; I didn’t like what must be going through their minds right now.

We waited until we couldn’t hear them anymore before taking our shirts off.  But then I faced a dilemma.  I hadn’t been naked in front of London other than after we shifted back from being wolves.  What in the hell was I doing?