Shadow of the Moon (2 page)

ONE

Almost three weeks later

“Here you go,” I said, smiling brightly as I handed the cute guy at the counter his mug of hot apple cider.

“Thanks…” He leaned forward, read the name tag pinned to my red sweater, and winked. “Hayden.”

I hadn’t bothered with a fake name. It wouldn’t have gained me anything. If the Dark Guardians were searching for me, they’d use my scent—not my name—to locate me. It was the reason that I hadn’t changed the color or style of my sandy blond hair. I wore it pulled back when I was at work, but otherwise I left it to flow past my shoulders. No disguise would fool my kind. Even perfumes wouldn’t cover up the essence of my true scent. And wolves with human minds were the best trackers in the world. I was taking the tactic that hiding in plain sight was my best defense. In truth, my only defense.

“You’ve got the most unusual eyes,” he continued. “They remind me of caramel.”

They
were
rather distinct. Not dark enough to be brown, not quite hazel. Caramel was as good a description as any. “Thanks,” I said. He was cute but not really my type—being a full human and all.

“Where do you go to school?” he asked.

It was the most frequently asked question, quickly followed by what’s your major, then do you have a boyfriend. My answer was always the same corny line that one of the other workers, Lisa, had suggested I use: If I told you, then I’d have to kill you. I hoped my flirty smile would soften the blow of brushing him off.

It must have worked. He didn’t seem at all offended, because he laughed as I gave him change. But his next words alerted me that, unfortunately, he hadn’t quite gotten the true message.

“Hey, come on,” he cajoled. “Maybe we go to the same school.”

Since I’d graduated midyear from an all-girls boarding school, I doubted it.

“Sorry,” I lied, “but our boss docks our pay if we’re caught flirting.” He didn’t. Spike was cool, but this was the quickest way to avoid getting caught in the flirtation net. I’d been in Athena for almost three weeks, and it was unlikely that I’d stay. I wasn’t interested in a short-term relationship—and certainly not one with a Static. It could lead to nothing except trouble. Besides, my kind mated for life. We searched for the one and only, simply weren’t drawn to the temporary. Due to my genetic makeup, I didn’t find Statics all that sexy. They might look like us, but below the surface they were so plain. I peered around him. “Next.”

Cute-stuff got the message and shouldered his way through the crowd, stopping to flirt with a girl who was waiting in line. I hoped he had more luck connecting with her. He seemed nice, but he just wasn’t my type.

As a skinny guy took his place at the front of the line and lifted his gaze to the menu posted on the wall behind me, I refrained from rolling my eyes. Things would move so much more quickly if people used their time in line to study the menu and decide what they wanted
before
they got to me. But most stood there talking about the awesome slopes or powder or tomorrow’s forecast.

Business was always brisk at twilight, as the sun descended beyond the snow-covered mountains, forcing the skiers to abandon the slopes. People crowded the front of the counter, trying to get their hot beverages—coffee, chocolate, tea, cider—to warm themselves. The din of their laughter and voices drowned out our snow tunes playlist, which repeated constantly to remind people how cold it was outside and tempt them into ordering the Bigfoot-sized mugs. I relished the fact that all these people didn’t bother me. They almost filled me with a sense of calm, because I couldn’t
feel
their deepest fears or yearnings. The only emotions cascading through me were mine.

The door opened, just as it had dozens of times that day, but for some reason, this time it drew my attention. Drew everyone’s, as there was a collective holding of breath for just a heartbeat before the din started again. It wasn’t the door so much as the guy striding through it. Tall, dark, and handsome was a cliché, but it fit him perfectly. My heart stuttered. I recognized him immediately.

Daniel Foster. A Shifter. A Dark Guardian.

Crap. What the hell was he doing here?

Until he’d walked in, I hadn’t been aware of any Shifters in the area. It bothered me that I hadn’t known he was at the resort until I saw him. I’d never tested the full limits of my ability, but I knew I could easily sense a Shifter’s emotions if he was within a block or so of where I was. If his emotions were ratcheted up to the extreme like Justin’s had been the night he died, I could sense him farther away than that. So I should have felt Daniel’s presence before he strode through that door. I should have known he was nearby so I could have run. Why had he taken me by surprise? Did he have the ability to shut down his emotions? Even now that I could see him, I couldn’t tap into what he was feeling. I was as bothered by that fact as I was by his presence—which I was fairly certain didn’t bode well for me.

I didn’t know much about Daniel. He’d joined our pack only last summer. I’d seen him a couple of times from a distance when I’d visited Wolford last June. But I hadn’t paid a great deal of attention to him. I figured he could have his choice of mate, and I’d never been on any Shifter’s Girl Most Likely to Be Asked Out list.

He wore a black, quilted down jacket that he hadn’t bothered to zip, so his dark-gray sweater beneath it was visible. His black hair was cropped short. His facial features were rugged, chiseled as though they’d been carved from the roughest granite. In the middle of winter he was deeply tanned—like any self-respecting guy who lived for the outdoors. The stubble shadowing his strong jaw gave him a dangerous edge.

Other guys hanging around in the Hot Brew Café were unshaven, too. Athena was one of the most popular winter vacation resorts in the state, and few people dressed up for it. But none of them looked as though they had the ability—or desire—to defend their territory. Daniel gave off the aura that he marked it and would willingly take down anyone who crossed the line into what he considered his. He was not someone to mess with.

Even his eyes—the most amazing, mesmerizing green, like emeralds—were those of a competent hunter. He simply stood there, his well-toned body so still, so very still, the way a predator waits for the precise moment to pounce on its prey. His only movement was his gaze slowly scanning the shop. Then it locked with mine and I was hit with a quivering sense of dread.

Within his eyes, I saw recognition and triumph—but I didn’t
feel
them. But more important, I realized
I
was his prey. Just as I’d feared,
I
was the reason he was here.

He ambled over to the far end of the counter where there were stools—all occupied. He came to a stop behind the one in the corner. The buff guy sitting on it gave a little startled jump as though someone had given him a wedgie. He glanced back over his shoulder at Daniel, then grabbed his coffee cup and slunk away. Daniel’s power of intimidation without confrontation was incredible, but deeply unsettling because I still couldn’t tap into his emotions—even with his increasing nearness. I should have felt
something
.

I forced myself to break the spell, to snap my attention away from Daniel and back to the guy who’d been studying the menu. After taking his order, I turned to the preparation counter, where we kept all the essentials for the beverages we provided. I focused on my task. Two scoops of chocolate powder. A dab of marshmallow cream. Hot water from the spigot. Stir briskly. I watched the contents swirling, melting.
Focus. Focus. Don’t look around. Don’t let him know you’re aware that he’s watching you.

But I
was
acutely aware of him watching me, the way an animal in the forest knows it’s been targeted. The hairs on the nape of my neck prickled and rose, sending an icy shimmer skittering along my spine. I handed the mug of chocolate to the customer and took his money.

In spite of my best efforts not to, I slid my gaze to the side. Daniel sat unmoving, his eyes lasering in on me. He was the storm, the thunder and lightning that turned the blue sky to gray. Not literally, of course. Metaphorically. But if ever there was a guy who emanated danger, he was it.

“Hey, Hayden—”

I nearly jumped out of my skin when Lisa placed her hand lightly on my shoulder. Her short-cropped black hair stood at various angles as if she’d just crawled out of bed. Black kohl lined her cobalt-blue eyes. She had a diamond stud in the side of her nose. I’d pegged her as harsh and radical when I’d first met her. But she was actually sweet and fun. The closest thing I had to a friend. Best of all, like everyone else here, she kept her emotions to herself.

“I noticed you and hot guy seemed to connect,” she said. “I’ll handle the to-go orders if you want to wait on him.”

Lisa had been taking care of the customers who were seated at the counter and at tables. I took an order for a mint chocolate and a mint chocolate mocha from a tall guy who had his arm slung around a short girl’s shoulders. Even before I turned to the preparation area to begin mixing the drinks, he’d planted his lips on hers.

“That’s okay, I’m busy here,” I muttered to Lisa.

Her eyes widened as though she thought I was a total loser not to jump at this opportunity. “Did you not see the way he looked at you? And he is apparently alone.
Hello?
This might be your chance to do something besides curl up with a book at night.”

I
liked
curling up with a good book. Lisa tended to curl up with any available guy after work.

“I don’t want to break my routine,” I said, working to keep my voice flat. I turned the milk frother on, focusing on my work, and trying to drown out Lisa’s cajoling. I took a deep breath, confused by my own feelings. I was slightly grateful to know the elders cared enough to send someone to find me and bothered by the fact that he’d succeeded in finding me. Panic made my voice want to warble. I hated it. With the milk sufficiently frothy, I shut off the machine. “If you want him, go for it,” I told Lisa.

“Seriously?”

“Sure.”

She grinned, her blue eyes sparkling. She bounced as though she had springs in her shoes. Sometimes it wore me out to watch her. Where did she get so much energy? She was a freshman at college, working here over winter break. This resort was a popular retreat for college students—whether to play or work. I’d created a fictitious background that resembled everyone else’s true story. I was a university student looking for work during winter break. When the students left, I’d probably move on as well.

Spike had hired me without asking for references. Maybe I had an honest face. Or maybe he’d been desperate for the help since students had arrived en masse to enjoy the slopes. Because he was dependent on seasonal employees, and most of the ones he hired didn’t live in the town, he provided rooms in a couple of condos he owned. Lisa and I lived in the same one, our bedrooms across the hall from each other. It was the reason we’d become close. We saw a lot of each other.

“Wish me luck,” she said with a wink. “I so want a winter romance, and he looks like the type to give a girl a good time.”

Funny how she saw him as a good time, and I viewed him as a journey straight back to hell. It was possible that he was here to enjoy the slopes, but judging by the way he was watching me, I had a feeling he was here to convince me to return to Wolford.

I handed the drinks to Romeo and Juliet. Three giggling girls who were eyeing Daniel as though he were their favorite flavor of chocolate shouldered their way to the front and breathlessly gave me their order: a white, a dark, and a milk hot chocolate.

As I turned back to the preparation counter, I glanced surreptitiously over to where Lisa was talking with Daniel. She was leaning on the counter as though she intended to take up residence there. Not that I could blame her. He had magnetic eyes and a wicked grin, the kind that made me want to join him in a smile. But I resisted the temptation. I didn’t trust his appearance or the fact that I couldn’t feel his emotions. Why was he blocking them?
How
was he blocking them?

Beyond the floor-to-ceiling plate-glass windows that provided an unobstructed view of the main street with its quaint shops and the towering snow-covered mountains in the background, the purple and blue shadows of twilight were descending. The crescent moon was already rising, yet still faint, giving it a ghostly, ominous appearance. A chill swept through me.

Wiggling her eyebrows, Lisa walked back toward me. “He ordered a chunky chocolate. You know what that means. And I’m so tempted to put my theory to the test with that guy. Did you see his killer grin?”

Lisa had a theory that the more chocolatey a guy liked his hot chocolate, the better he kissed. If nothing else, she reasoned that he’d taste great. Daniel was the Big Bad Wolf, and she didn’t even know it. His bottom lip was full and would provide such a nice cushion for mine. I wanted to kick myself for even wondering what his kisses might be like, because I suspected he was trouble.

“Apparently, though,” Lisa continued, her brow furrowing, “what he really wants is you. He says you’re friends, that you’ve been expecting him?” She ended her statement on a high note, questioning what he’d told her, wanting me to confirm or deny it.

Fear spiked inside me. He
was
here for me. The elders had probably sent him. I knew they wanted me to be at Wolford when I experienced my first full moon. And while legend said that I needed to go through my first transformation with a mate, I couldn’t risk someone else’s life if the harvester kept his promise and came for me. But I couldn’t explain any of that to Lisa, so I simply lied. “Never seen him before in my life.”

I carried the steaming mugs over to the three girls. As they paid, I said, “See that guy at the end of the counter?”

“He’s a little hard to miss,” White Chocolate said. “Even with that heavy jacket on, you can tell he’s all muscle. And that face. He belongs on a Calvin Klein billboard.”