Riley's Secret (A Moon's Glow Novel # 1) (13 page)

“Shh, it’s me,” said a very familiar, deep voice.

I squinted to see the face in the darkness. “Nate?” When
he nodded, I shoved him away. “What are you doing? You scared me half to
death.”

He took a step back and under the small light from the
bar, I could see him more clearly. He was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans—he
was obviously the guy Lily had seen. “What are you doing here?”

“I was about to ask you the same question. I told you
not to come here, remember?”

Okay, now I was mad. I was getting used to him bossing
me around, but now he was following me.

“You have no right to tell me what to do.” I shoved
his shoulder, but his expression was unfazed.

He glared at me. “Have you forgotten about your
trouble with the football team? What if Shane shows up?”

“I know them. They wouldn’t set foot in this area.
Besides, I can handle myself.” I shoved past him, intending to stomp away, but
he grabbed my arm. His fingers were warm as they wrapped around my skin.

“Come on, I’ m taking you home.”

That was my limit. My parents didn’t even tell me what
to do. I stomped on his foot and he loosened his grip enough that I was able to
pull my arm free. I didn’t see his response to that because I was rushing
through the crowd trying to get to the table before he caught up to me. Halfway
there I turned around to see if I’d lost him. He was gone. All I saw was a sea
of teenage faces that I didn’t recognize. I looked at the back corner where he
had shoved me. It was empty. I couldn’t see him, but I knew he hadn’t left the
bar, I could feel him here, watching me.

“There you are. We were getting worried,” Lily said as
I sat down between her and Lauren. Someone had pulled some more chairs over so
no one had to share.

“I went back to the washroom,” I lied smoothly. It was
a talent I learned from my father the
lawyer
and my mother the
socialite
.

A slow song came on. The good-looking singer swayed
back and forth, making eyes at the girls standing in front of the stage.

“Come on, Lily, you owe me a dance, remember.” Eddie
stood up, holding his hand out for her. She took it with a big grin on her
face. I watched them walk together to the dance floor. Eddie looked like a
giant compared to Lily. There was more than just their height that stood out. He
was broad in the shoulders with a dark complexion and black hair, while she was
very petite with pale blond hair.

“They’re cute together, don’t you think?” Lauren commented,
leaning into me.

“Yeah, they are. Where were you, by the way? Lily and
I looked everywhere.”

“I was in the washroom. You must have just missed me.
Are you having fun?”

“I am actually. I’ve never been to a place like this.”
I looked around the room at the couples dancing. Lily was smiling at something
Eddie was whispering in her ear. Allison was dancing again, but this time with
a different guy. “What happen to Marty?” I asked Lauren

“He had to leave, but it never takes Ally long to find
a new dance partner.”

When the song ended, the band started playing another
slow song. “Come on, Megan. You owe me a dance.” Danny was standing in front of
me holding his hand out, mimicking Eddie.

I looked to Lauren for help. “Go, I’ll be fine here.”

I narrowed my eyes at her as I stood up to follow
Danny. I heard Lauren giggle as I walked away.

Rejected Again

I placed my hands on Danny’s shoulders, keeping as far
away from him as possible without looking rude. He smelled of sweat, strong
cologne and beer.

“Why don’t I take you out sometime? I’ve never been
with a rich chick.”

So tempting.
“No thanks,” I said flatly.

He pulled back to look at me, his eyes showing just a
touch of anger. “What? Am I not good enough for you?”

“I didn’t say that, but you didn’t even talk to me
until you heard my last name. And you’ve made it clear that you’re only
interested in my money.” I started to pull away, but his arms tightened around
my back. His fingers dug into my skin.

“I know you think you’re better than everyone because
you have money. But I know you’re just some poor little rich girl getting her
kicks slumming with the rest of us.”

I stiffened. His words stung even though I knew they
weren’t true. “Please let me go.” I tried again to get away, but his grip was
too tight. I moved my hands down to push against his shoulders. He was
unmovable as he leered at me.

“May I cut in?” a deep voice suddenly asked.

We looked up to see Nate scowling at Danny.

“Sorry, man, we’re kind of busy here.” Danny’s cold
eyes barely shifted away from me.

“Megan?” Nate asked, obviously hoping I wouldn’t push
him away this time. I nodded silently. Nate grabbed Danny’s arm, yanking it
from my back. “I believe the lady asked you to stop.” His voice was a low
growl.

Danny’s eyes widened. He swung his fist at Nate’s
face, but Nate blocked it with his hand and held it. The way Danny’s eyes
widened with pain told me that Nate was squeezing his hand hard. When he let
go, Danny lowered his eyes, mumbled something I couldn’t understand and rushed
away.

Nate held out his hand and bowed slightly. “May I have
this dance?”

I nodded, at a loss for words.

His arms rested on my lower back while I wrapped my
arms around his shoulders, leaning in as close as I could. He smelled of pine
and leather, an odd combination, but I couldn’t help but take another deep
breath, enjoying his strange scent.

His eyes met mine, his lips turning up into a knowing
grin. I turned my head into his shoulder, suddenly embarrassed that I had been
caught sniffing him. “
Now
will you let me take you home?” His voice was
void of his usual harshness, replaced by a soft, concerned whisper.

I lifted my head to look him in the eyes. “Aren’t you
going to say I told you so?” I smiled, not wanting to argue with him.

“No, I’m not. I just want to keep you safe.”

“Why?”

“I just do. Remember our deal from earlier. You said
you’d let me help you.”

“Yes, I remember. But I knew Shane wouldn’t be here.”
The song ended, replaced by a fast one. Most of the couples left the dance
floor, except us. We remained swaying slowly regardless of the speed of the
song. His body was snug against mine and I didn’t want to fight or talk
anymore. I just wanted to lean my head against his shoulder and feel the warmth
of his arms around me.

I expected him to argue with me, to make me leave with
him. Instead, his arms tightened around my waist with his head resting against
mine. The rest of the room seemed to disappear until it was just the two of us.
I didn’t hear the music or the low buzz of voices from the couples dancing
around us, just the pounding of our hearts and his slow breathing. When the
next song ended, he looked into my eyes and leaned down. I lifted my head and
closed my eyes waiting for his lips to touch mine. I could sense him just
inches from me, his breath hot against my skin, but then he pulled back.

I opened my eyes and saw that his face was void of emotion.
“The song’s over. I’ll take you home.”

Disappointment clenched inside me like a fist, almost
causing physical pain. My eyes stung from yet another rejection. I couldn’t
believe I had let myself get carried away,
again
. How many times could
my heart break from one person?

I pulled away from him. If I didn’t, I knew the tears
that were threatening to fall would erupt at any moment. And I wasn’t going to
let him see me cry. “I don’t need you.” My voice shook as I turned away,
rushing to the table.

Everyone was there except Danny. Lauren was sitting
beside a guy with auburn hair, a ripped T-shirt and a nose ring. Ally sat
beside Eddie and Lily was on the other side.

“You two looked cozy,” Allison remarked with a smirk,
her arms folded in front of her. She clearly thought I was lying earlier.

I ignored her comment and gazed down at Lauren. “Can
we go?”

Her smile vanished as she saw my face and then her
eyes shifted behind me.

“It’s fine, I’ll take her home.” Nate appeared out of
nowhere.

“Hey, boss man, what are you doing here?” Eddie stood
up and held out his hand. Nate smiled slightly, but otherwise ignored him.

Lauren took my hand, staring coldly at Nate. “I think
you’ve done enough.” She turned her head. “Come on, guys, it’s time to go.”
Then without waiting for Lily and Allison, she pulled me toward the exit.

“Megan,” Nate called. I turned around to see his face
full of regret. “I’m sorry.” But as soon as the words were out, his blank mask
returned and he turned his back on me.

Lauren led me out of the bar and to the car without
any questions. Once inside she said, “I’m sorry, Megan, he’s a jerk.”

I sat in the front seat beside her, looking out into
the deserted parking lot. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

She nodded and started the car. Not long after, the
back doors opened, Allison and Lily climbed in.

“What the hell—”

“Don’t,” Lauren interrupted Allison with only one word
and the car was suddenly quiet.

The rest of the way home Lily prattled on about Eddie
and how good a dancer he was and how sweet he was. It helped to get my mind off
of Nate. Lauren dropped the other girls off at Allison’s, a nice middle-class
gray stone home in a quiet subdivision. They stood outside of her house and
waved as we drove away.

“Do you feel like some company?” Lauren asked halfway
to my house.

I almost said no, but the idea of finally being able
to talk about Nate was something I couldn’t turn down. And Lauren struck me as
the kind of person I could open up to. Was I just a glutton for punishment or
did he really like me, like I thought? I wasn’t one to throw myself at someone
who wasn’t interested. Nate was just so confusing. I just wished I could walk
away and be done with it. But every time I looked at his face and into his deep
blue eyes, I was drawn to him. And I was sure he felt the same way until every
time we came close, he pulled away. My heart couldn’t take much more rejection.

Lauren drove me home and I invited her to stay over.
We stayed up half the night talking. She was a really good listener and oddly
comforting. At one point the tears did fall. She handed me a tissue and
listened, telling me what a jackass Nate was.

By morning, I had a new best friend and I felt much
better. It was surprising how much talking to someone actually helped. She made
me see that just being friends with Nate was good enough. Like me, she was sure
Nate was interested, but there had to be a reason why he was holding back. “I
know it’s hard, Megan, but just be patient. He’ll come around eventually. Guys
are slow. Just go at his speed and maybe he’ll surprise you.”

She left shortly after and instead of heading to the
shelter, I decided to stay home. I wasn’t ready to face him, at least not yet.

That night, as I was shoving my homework in my bag
getting ready for the morning, the phone rang. It was Nate. I almost didn’t
answer, but he was just so hard to resist. “What do you want?” I asked coldly.

“I’m sorry,” he said for the second time. “I wanted to
see if you were okay.”

“I’m fine.” I hated to hear my own voice soften. I
wanted to be mad at him.

“About last night—”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Are you still going to let me help you? Do we still
have a deal?”

Why couldn’t I resist him? What was this pull I felt
towards him? “Yes,” I whispered.

“Good, I’ll see you at school. Good night, Megan.”

“Good night.”

The next day and for the rest of the school week, Nate
was civil toward me. He walked me to and from classes, protecting me from the
big, bad football boys. I chose to eat lunch with Lauren and her friends, since
I wasn’t sure whether or not he would brush me off even though he said he
wouldn’t.

At lunch on Wednesday, Lily, Allison and I stood in
line for food. Lauren was late but told us not to wait for her.

“What’s this, Megan? Scraping the bottom of the barrel
for friends, I see?” Jenny stood in front of me, with an embarrassed Mandy standing
behind her looking away. Jenny smiled and gave Allison and Lily the same look
she gave a waiter when she found a hair in her salad. “You’re welcome to come
back to us, we forgive you.”

My eyes widened in shock. “You forgive me?” I asked in
disbelief. She nodded as if she were some sort of saint. “For what? Keeping
your secret? Not telling anyone that your boyfriend threatened me, slashed my
tires and tried to run me down with his car?” She blinked at me, her smile fading.
“I wouldn’t come back to you guys if you were the last people on earth. I
finally have friends who I trust and have fun with. These two girls may not
have a lot of money. But they like me for who I am and not because my daddy’s
the boss. I know you hung out with me so your father could get in with my dad.
And just so you know, I only tolerated
you
because Mandy wanted to get
close to Chris.”