“Hi,” Samantha said as she opened her front door and let me inside. “Hey,” I said as I shoved my hands in my jeans pockets and stood looking at her in the living room. “I never slept with Rosco,” she said suddenly and I sat down. “I didn’t think you did,” I said to her. “Then why are you mad at me?” she asked. “I’m not mad at you, I’m beyond pissed off with Rosco,” I said to her. “Okay, I just wanted to clear the air with you,” she said as she sat down opposite me. “Why?” I asked her. “I shouldn’t like you but I do. You’ve just been nice to me,” she said and couldn’t meet my eyes. “You like me?” I asked her and she gave a soft laugh. “Yes, but you also scare me,” she said and I could feel the honesty in her words. “You don’t ever have to be afraid of me,” I said to her and she looked up. “You’re scarier than Mac or Jett,” she said. “What happened with you and Rosco?” I asked her. “My parents had just left and I was alone, my sister was never here so I went to a party with
“Morning sweet cheeks,” Jett said loudly as he jumped out of the truck and opened the front door for Sam as she waited on the porch for us. “Morning,” she said as she frowned at Jett and climbed inside the truck. Things were a little awkward between us after that kiss because we’d both responded to it. If I hadn’t left last night I’m not sure what would’ve happened but I knew it was too soon. We didn’t talk on the way to school and I wasn’t sure what to say anyway. “Give us a minute,” I said as we parked in the parking lot and I turned to look at Mac and Jett. “No fornicating on school grounds,” Jett said as Mac smacked him behind his head and laughed as they climbed out. I smiled as I turned back and looked at Sam. She was looking down, toying with the fraying material of her backpack. She was nervous, I could tell and she wiped her hands on her jeans. “About last night…” I began to say as her eyes met mine. “It was a mistake right,” she said. “What? You think it was a mistake
The rest of what Damon had to tell me wasn’t good either. Almost all of the Enforcers in the clowder had been called out on assignment. Random attacks on different packs, lairs and clowders had increased. The Council had found evidence of hunters at work and the Enforcers were hunting them. “Who are you?” a man said and I turned around slowly to look at him. “Who are you?” I asked him. “This is my house so you’d better start talking before I call the cops,” he said. “I’m a friend of Sam’s,” I said to him and then stuck my hand out, “Griffin Woods.” “Friend or boyfriend?” he asked me. “Boyfriend,” I said to him. “And do you regularly spend the night with my daughter?” he asked. “I couldn’t leave her alone after last night,” I said to him. “Dad?” Samantha asked as she stood behind him. “Hey honey,” he said with a smile as he turned around and grabbed her in a hug. “What are you doing here?” she asked. “What do you mean? We live here,” he said as if they had gone away for the
“When am I meeting your parents?” she asked me about two weeks after our pizza night. Her father still looked me up and down when I picked her up but her mother was really nice to me and Samantha was happy. I was happy, even Mac and Jett noticed it and gave me endless shit that I was in love. The truth is, I was. “We can all go out to dinner,” I suggested. “Really dinner? Are you that ashamed to take me to your house?” she asked. “No, of course not. It’s just… complicated,” I said. “How is it complicated?” she asked me. “We just lead a different lifestyle and people can be judgmental,” I said to her not knowing how to explain it to her. “I lived in a house with no food and no heating until you came along, I think I’m the last person to judge,” she said and I smiled as I looked at her. “And what if I told you we weren’t like normal families?” I asked. “I’d say your secrets would be safe with me like mine have been with you and that I know who you are, deep down inside, and that
“Relax,” I said to Samantha as I parked the truck in front of the packhouse. We’d be having dinner in our private dining room with just the family, meaning, Archer, Kat, Mac, Connor, Sandra and Jett. “I’m suddenly very nervous, what if they don’t like me?” she asked and I laughed. “They’ll love you,” I said as I climbed out and then opened the door for her. She took my hand and I led her up the patio steps and into the packhouse. Damon had asked the clowder not to crowd the house that night since I’d be bringing a human to dinner. The house was quiet and empty and I smiled as Samantha looked around. “Wow,” she said as I led her up the stairs. “Everyone’s waiting in the dining room,” I said to her as I started off down the hall to our private quarters on the top floor. “I’m ready,” she said as she took a deep breath and I opened the dining room doors. “Hey everyone, this is Samantha,” I said as everyone’s heads turned to us and we were met with instant silence. “Hi,” Sam said fr
I didn’t hear from Sam for the rest of that weekend but I also didn’t reach out to her. She had heard everything, it was her move now. Even though it was unfair to even think about it she had a choice to make and I’d never given her any reason to doubt me.“There’s a party tonight,” Jett said as he sauntered into my bedroom after dinner.“Since when do we go to parties?” I asked him.“Since Beth told me all about how Travis’s parties work,” he said and grinned at me.“Beth talks to you?” I asked him.“Is it that hard to believe?” he asked me.“What does Beth say?” I asked.“Beth has a lot to say. The party starts out normally, then a girl gets chosen at the party, her drink is spiked and she’s taken downstairs by a group, always the same group, Travis being their leader, the girl’s undressed and raped, they all take turns and they videotape it all,” Jett said.“Doesn’t explain why they all keep quiet,” I said to him.“They take pictures which they show her afterward, it looks bad, lik
Nobody talked about the fire on Monday at school, but the whole atmosphere had shifted. Nobody looked at us in fear anymore and it seemed that for the time being that the preps had entered exile. Nobody greeted them and nobody paid them any attention. It was as if everyone knew what had happened at that party.“What did I miss?” Samantha asked me as she joined me at my locker.“The Travis Morris reign of terror is over,” Jett said and grinned.“How?” she asked with wide eyes.“We burned his barn down,” he said and laughed at the shock on Sam’s face.“Accidentally,” I said and Mac gave me a look.“Yeah, accidentally,” he said.The rest of the day and even the week was the same. Travis and Rosco had no more power at school, even the teachers treated them differently and for once high school became a safe haven once more. We tried harder too, went to class and stayed out of trouble.During the week I only saw Sam at school, for some reason her father didn’t approve of our relationship an
Eight years later ...I kept my eyes closed for a few more seconds as my mind cleared from the fog of sleep and turned on my side as I finally opened them. It was still early, almost five am. I swung my legs over the edge of the mattress and sat on the edge of the bed as I rubbed my hand over my face.I got up and pulled a pair of sweatpants on and pulled the hoodie over my head. Downstairs I made coffee for myself as the dull thud of my headache started throbbing in my temples. I drank to forget, I drank to sleep and not to dream, it worked mostly, but during the day, nothing could stop the memories.The kettle boiled and I was snapped back to reality. I hated how certain memories just popped up and took me back to a time when life was simpler, easier and a time when I used to be a good person.“I’m going out,” I said loudly, not expecting him to answer me, he never did.Every morning at five am I went out into the surrounding wilderness that was my backyard. I lived in a house on th