The Vow: Dangerous Suggestions Book 1 (6 page)

I smiled at Dawson’s remark. The scowl
on Mason’s face told me he didn’t appreciate his brother’s
observations. “I will have you know I am a pretty deep guy,” Mason
said, grumpily.

“
Ha!” Dawson said as he
offered Mason a beer. “Your thoughts are about as deep as a kiddie
pool.”

I tried to keep from smiling; it was
obvious Mason was getting annoyed. It was nice to see someone could
annoy Mason. Mason glared at me. “What are you smiling about? You
don’t even have to think half the time. You just order people
around.”

I raised my hands in surrender. “This
has nothing to do with me. I don’t know why you insist on dragging
me into your problems.”

“
What was that whole thing
about? Why did those cops just do what you said, and why don’t you
have a name?” Dawson asked, sounding more curious than
anything.

“
Whoa, that was a lot of
questions for her. She doesn’t really give straight answers,” Mason
said, amused.

I rolled my eyes. “I gave you the
answers; you just didn’t like them,” I countered.

“
Give me the answers,”
Dawson cut in as he sat down on the couch. He sounded serious, like
he really wanted to know.

“
I don’t need a name
because I have no one that would use it. Mason is the first person
I have encountered that my ability doesn’t work on. I am assuming
it is because he is a werewolf instead of human,” I said
simply.

“
So your gift is telling
humans what to do?” Dawson asked, confused.

I shrugged as I walked over to another
painting. “I suppose.”

“
It is really cool. All
she has to do is ask for something or tell them something and they
do it. Her eye does this eye color change thing; then, they just do
whatever she says. She tried to do it to me, but it didn’t work,”
Mason said smugly.

“
So what are you, then?”
Dawson asked, leaning forward. He was watching me intently, like
something exciting was going to happen.

I looked at him, confused. “Why do I
have to be anything?”

“
Here we go,” Mason said
dryly, as he sat back in a chair. “She doesn’t know what she is, so
don’t ask.”

I smiled, shaking my head. “It doesn’t
really matter much to me. I do not think learning my origins will
change how I feel about anything.”

“
What about your mother
and father?” Dawson persisted.

“
Didn’t have either,” I
said simply, as I played with a little metal horse sitting on the
mantle.

“
What? Who raised you,
then?” Dawson asked, sounding even more confused.

“
I told you, all you will
get is a headache trying to figure her out,” Mason said,
amused.

I gave Mason a dirty look. He was
acting like I was some intricate puzzle. I was actually much
simpler than he was. I didn’t have a bunch of complex emotions and
relationships that I had to explain. “I lived with different people
growing up,” I said as I looked at Dawson. He did look perplexed.
“I lived much the same when I was younger as I do now; free of
annoyances,” I said, pointedly, as I looked at Mason.

“
Huh. That is strange,”
Dawson said, thoughtfully.

“
See! Even he thinks you
are strange,” Mason said excitedly, like he’d won a bet.

I’d never said I wasn’t strange. I’d
just said Mason was as strange, if not stranger, than me. “I never
said I wasn’t strange. Although I was completely fine living how I
was, and not knowing how strange,” I said in a matter of fact
tone.

“
Are you saying you wish
you didn’t meet me?” Mason asked, sounding slightly
offended.

I looked at him, confused. He really
knew how to throw things out of context.

“
Coffee is ready; why
don’t we go get you a cup?” Dawson said quickly as he stood. It was
obvious he was trying to deflect the brewing argument.

“
That’s a good idea,” I
said, as I shifted my gaze from Mason to Dawson. I needed coffee.
It seemed like it had been too long since I last had caffeine. My
routine had been ruined by Mason and his friends.

I followed Dawson down the hall toward
the kitchen. Mason didn’t follow. He seemed like he was a little
annoyed, which was probably why he stayed in the living room. My
thoughts went to Mason’s question. Did I regret meeting him? I
wasn’t quite sure. In a way, I guess, I did. My life wasn’t going
to be the same from now on. As much as I hoped to get back to what
I considered a normal life, I doubted I ever would.

“
Do you like cream or
sugar?” Dawson asked, pulling me from my thoughts.

I looked over at him. “Both,” I said,
as I took a seat at the bar. I looked around the room while Dawson
prepared my coffee. The kitchen reminded me of something out of a
movie. It was like the ones that always seemed to be in movies with
big families. The mother would be cooking family meals while the
children ran around. It was a world I only knew from movies. I
wondered if Dawson’s mother liked to cook. Dawson set a cup of
coffee in front of me, and I smiled. “Thank you.”

“
You’re welcome,” he said;
then he turned and opened the fridge. He retrieved another beer,
then walked over and sat down on the stool next to me. “So, Mason
seemed a little upset.”

I shrugged. “He gets upset easily
because he doesn’t understand me.”

Dawson scoffed. “He gets upset because
he is selfish. He can’t see past himself long enough to see anyone
else has needs.”

I smiled slightly. “That may be true.
I don’t regret meeting him. He just has to understand that this is
not my way of life. I am out of my element, and I am not sure if I
like it.”

“
So, because you can’t
control us, you don’t like us?” he asked, confused.

I sighed. “It isn’t that. I just don’t
fit in with you and Mason. I have been alone for so long; it is all
I know, and I am okay with that. He doesn’t understand how I could
be okay with how I lived before I met him.”

“
To be honest, it is a
little confusing to me too,” he said, smiling slightly.

I took a sip of my coffee as I thought
about it. I contemplated whether it was really that confusing. I
supposed to them it would be. They were extremely social creatures.
They lived in packs. They needed the feeling of unity. When Mason
got in serious trouble, the first thing he thought of was getting
back to his brother. I was getting tired of thinking about it all.
I was tired in general. “Do you have a room I can stay in? I am
getting tired.”

He nodded; then stood. “I will show
you.”

“
That would be great. I
was woken up early,” I said, smiling slightly at the memory. My
experience with Mason was definitely exciting at times. I hopped
off the barstool and followed Dawson. He walked up the stairs to
the second floor.

He stopped in front of the first door
on the right. “Everything you need should be in there. If there is
something missing, just let me know,” he said.

He didn’t go in the room; he just
watched me expectantly. I walked past him into the room. It was a
nice room. It wasn’t a luxury hotel room, but it was definitely a
nice room. I could see the doorway to a bathroom, which was nice. I
didn’t want to have to share a bathroom.

“
This is great,” I said,
looking around the room. I turned my attention back to him and
smiled. “I appreciate this.”

He smiled back, looking relieved. He
was acting like he was worried I wouldn’t like the room. “It’s not
a problem. We are both happy to have you here. Have a good night,”
he said, then he pulled the door shut, leaving me alone.

I sighed and sat down on the bed. His
exit was a little abrupt. He seemed like he was nervous around me.
I looked around the room, deciding not to focus on Dawson. The room
was really warm and welcoming. It felt different than the hotel
rooms. Here, I was an actual guest. I didn’t order anyone to let me
stay here. Dawson and Mason welcomed me into their home. It was a
new feeling, and I kind of liked it.

I woke up slowly. The late afternoon
sun was spilling into the room from a slight crack in one of the
curtains. I laid there for a minute, trying to go over everything
that had happened. I still had so many questions. In fact, all I
really had was questions. I was curious about Dawson and his pack.
I was curious about myself as well. I’d learned a great deal about
myself in the two days I was with Mason. I never knew my abilities
had limits, until I met him.

Knowing that I had limits bothered me
a little. I didn’t know why, but Jason’s words were echoing in my
head. I didn’t really know why he was targeting me. My fear was
that it had something to do with my abilities. I was, in a way,
defenseless against werewolves, and I didn’t like it. I was
beginning to think that it might be a good idea for me to stay
around Dawson’s pack and study them. If I could find a way to
overcome werewolves, then I might be able to defend myself against
other supernatural creatures. Maybe I would be able to learn a
little more about myself as well.

My door suddenly opened, startling me
a little. Mason walked in nonchalantly, like it was his room. “Rise
and shine, sleepy head,” he said, amused.

“
You should knock,” I said
dryly, as I sat up.

“
Why? I won’t be able to
accidentally walk in on you naked if I knock,” he said,
grinning.

I rolled my eyes. “You are back in
your pack; go find a female werewolf to bother.”

He sighed in defeat as he plopped down
in a chair not far from the bed. “I have been banned from
interacting with the others until Dawson gives me
permission.”

I smiled slightly. I could tell the
fact that he was banned upset him. I thought it was amusing that he
was even listening to Dawson. I suppose if the punishment for not
listening was being expelled from the pack, he would probably
listen. Mason knew Jason was waiting for him to mess up and lose
his brother’s protection. That was the only way Jason was going to
be able to get to Mason. “I think you will be okay.”

He scoffed. “It isn’t fair. He makes
me look weak.”

“
You are weak in the pack
hierarchy,” I said simply, as I stood.

He scowled. “Really? You don’t have to
be an ass about it.”

I laughed. “It is the truth. I am not
trying to be an ass. You put yourself in the position. Humans have
the same types of hierarchy. Some positions can’t be changed, some
shouldn’t be, and some can be changed. I suppose it is all in a
matter of how you look at things.”

“
You obviously have no
idea how strong Dawson is. Jason didn’t even want to stand against
him unless he had to. Our line has been alpha males since as far
back as we can trace our family history. Dawson just got lucky and
got the good traits,” Mason said, grumpily.

“
Or he wanted it more than
you did. He wanted to be pack leader, so it is what he has put all
his energy into,” I countered.

“
What the hell; are you a
therapist, too?” he asked darkly as he stood.

“
No,” I said, smiling at
his obvious annoyance with me. “I do want to take a shower, though,
so you should go.”

He smiled suddenly, as if he’d just
thought of something amusing. “You don’t have any clothes other
then what you are wearing. Are you going to go naked?” he asked
suggestively.

Before I could chide him for being
ridiculous, Dawson cut in. “No, she isn’t,” he said, as he walked
in the room. He offered me a stack of clothing.

I smiled at Mason’s obvious
disappointment. “Killjoy,” Mason muttered, glaring at Dawson as he
got to his feet. He walked out leaving Dawson and me
alone.

Dawson turned his attention to me. “I
hope there is something you can find to wear in these,” he said
indicating the clothes. “I am sure we can find more clothes for you
later. If you decide to stay, that is,” he said, sounding
hopeful.

“
Of course, this is fine.
Thank you,” I said, as I accepted the clothes from him.

He smiled, slightly relieved. “Once
you’re done, why don’t you come down to dinner?”

Dinner sounded nice. It had been a
while since I had eaten. I didn’t eat as often as humans seemed to,
but after a while I did get hungry, and I was currently hungry. “I
will do that.”

“
Good, I will see you down
there,” he said, and walked out, closing the door behind
him.

I set the clothes on the bed, and
looked though them. The only item that I remotely liked was a
dress. I didn’t usually wear dresses, but I decided I would give it
a try. It was a light yellow, spaghetti strap, summer dress. I
thought it would look good on me. The only problem was a lack of
shoes. I sighed, deciding I would just have to go
without.

I left the clothes on the bed, and
walked to the bathroom. The bathroom was smaller than I was used
to. I started the shower, then looked around while the water
warmed. Everything was different in this house then what I was
accustomed to. I didn’t think it was a bad thing, it was just
different. I liked it; in a way, it was more
comfortable.