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61ef03c
|
"Screw caution," Tori said. "I'm outta here." We looked at her. "Well, I am. As long as someone comes with me." We kept looking at her. She sighed. "Fine, but when everything goes to hell, just remember, I get to blame you guys, because I wanted to leave right away."
|
|
kelley
chloe
tori
reckoning
derek
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
7fc3fe4
|
He wet a paper towel, and took my chin, lifting and wiping my face. He picked up my hand and started cleaning it. I leaned down, trying to see his face. He kept scrubbing. I had a few cuts and scrapes, and I was only flecked with blood, but I kept my mouth shut and let him clean. As he did, I tried to check out how badly he was hurt. His scraped cheeks were pitted with gravel. His nose was bloodied. Broken? One eye was already darkening. Was that blood in the corner? His lip was cut and swollen. Were any teeth loose? MIssing? I couldn't help it. His injuries obviously needed more attention than mine, but here was no sense saying anything until he was done. Finally, when he seemed to have scrubbed off every fleck of blood--and a few layers of skin--I said, He sighed, like now I was the one fussing too much
|
|
fussing
chloe
derek
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
bf3ec8e
|
I grabbed her by the waist and swung her around to face me. As I bent, I closed my eyes ... and kissed air as she ducked out of my grasp. I opened my eyes to see her dancing backward along the path. I made a noise in my throat. she said. I lunged. She backed away. I let out another growl and crossed my arms. She grinned, blue eyes dancing. She wheeled and ran. As I went after her, adrenaline pumped through me, like liquid fire. There was nothing quite like a chase, and one that ended with this reward was the best chase of all.
|
|
chloe
derek
tease
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
dbaa8b8
|
She shrugged. She glanced over her shoulder. I thought she was talking to me. Then Derek stepped into the doorway. she said to me. She aimed a pointed look his way.
|
|
chloe
derek
maya
rescue
strangers
home
running
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
155490c
|
When I finished, Dr. Fellows said, She lowered her voice. I said. Her brows shot up to meet her hairline. Tori smirked and leaned back onto her pillow. Tori said. Dr. Fellows shot her a look, which Tori met with a cool gaze. Tori said,
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|
influence
dr-fellows
corey
chloe
tori
derek
persuade
maya
lie
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
80e7f70
|
I looked over at the others. Obviously Ash and I didn't. Daniel, Hayley, and Corey said they'd be fine. Chloe hoped she would--she had gymnastics training. Mr. Bae joked that it would be his first time in a couple of decades. Derek said nothing. Chloe said. She turned to us. Derek said. Chloe put her hands on her hips.
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|
decoy
tree-climbing
chloe
derek
maya
werewolves
kill
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
7efed65
|
I whispered down. Chloe said. Derek tried to stop her. She said it made sense for her to be in the trees with me in case of a ground attack, and that convinced him. Not that it mattered, I think--she'd have done what she wanted. She obviously didn't take his crap. Still, it would drive me crazy, constantly needing to remind my boyfriend that I could handle myself just fine. My brother was bad enough.
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|
stop-her
take-his-crap
chloe
derek
maya
|
Kelley Armstrong |
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faac71b
|
he repeated. I didn't answer. He shook his head. I rolled my eyes.
|
|
watch-my-back
chloe
tori
simon
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
94d7069
|
After a few moments of silence, he said, He moved down to the end of the couch, though there'd already been plenty of room. He put his arm along the back. He tried for a smile and didn't really manage it, but my heart still did a little flip. He's sorry, Chloe. He really is a sweet guy. Don't be a bitch about this. And don't screw it up. Just go over there. Give him a chance and, in no time, you'll forget everything else. And that's exactly why I stayed in my chair. I didn't want to forget everything else, or the next thing I knew, he'd be back on that roof, putting his life in danger. I said finally. He asked the question innocently enough, but his gaze dipped slightly. He looked up, confused.
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|
sorry-for
chloe
derek
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
2794e23
|
She pointed at the text as if it was a piece of rotten meat. I said. I picked the book up and double checked the title, to make sure I hadn't misidentified the subject. I said. I looked up to see she'd already left the room. Simon pointed at the text, grinned and faked a yawn. I said, striding after her.
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|
humor
chloe
derek
simon
physics
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
57c11f7
|
Her eyes widened in panic. I paused. She smiled. She blushed and lifted on her tiptoes to kiss me.
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|
chloe
derek
sweet
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
0cae166
|
She shrugged for a word. I blurted, then felt my cheeks heat. She reclined on her bed.
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|
brooding-spot
chloe
tori
nice
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
18c45ef
|
Not exactly true. I'd briefly met the ghost of one, but he hadn't been much help. A moment of silence as she studied me through the mirror. my stutter fell away. She drove for a minute, the silence heavy. Then her gaze rose to the mirror again, meeting mine. she whispered, staring at me. Hearing her words and seeing her expression, I knew Derek had been right last night. I'd just done something worse than raising the dead--I'd confirmed her worst fears about us.
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|
raising-the-dead
chloe
summoning
margaret
blame
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
6fddd0d
|
Simon was smiling as he said it, but Derek glanced away with a gruff Simon lowered himself on my other side, so close he brushed against me, hand resting on mine. Derek said. I said.
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|
chloe
derek
jealous
simon
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
95db7da
|
I called. No answer. I took a few more steps, then called a little louder, A branch snapped in the woods. I pictured Derek, in the middle of a Change, unable to respond, and hurried toward the forest's edge. The noise stopped and I paused at the end of the path leading in, peering into the dark woods, listening. Another snap. Something like a groan. I stepped in. It took only a few paces for the morning light to fade and darkness to envelop me. I jumped as he rounded a corner down the path. I didn't need full daylight to see the expression on his face at all to know I was in trouble, just the set of his shoulders and he long strides as he bore down on me. I began. I lifted my hands.
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|
looking-for
chloe
derek
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
d5d7c72
|
We ran to the others--it was clear Derek wasn't accepting a leisurely stroll. I took the lead so this huge guy wouldn't come barreling down on them. That wasn't the way anyone needed to wake up. It was still chaos. Derek barked orders. Chloe tried to calm him. When he didn't listen, I snapped that he wasn't helping matters. He snapped back. Ash jumped to my defense, snarling like an alley cat. Daniel intervened to mediate. Derek turned on him. Corey rushed to Daniel's side, fists ready. Rafe braced to join in if a fight broke out. It was fun.
|
|
ordering
snapped
chloe
derek
maya
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
e07394a
|
I used to think that once we started going out, Derek would change. When I admitted that to Tori, she nearly laughed herself into an aneurysm and gave me a lecture on the stupidity of expecting to change a guy. Maybe I didn't have her dating experience, but I knew you didn't go out with someone because you thought you'd change him. That wasn't what I'd meant. I liked Derek the way he was. I'd just hoped getting closer would mean landing on the sharp side of his tongue less often.
|
|
chloe
tori
derek
dating
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
7266480
|
He pushed to his feet, wobbly, still adjusting to his new center of gravity. He gingerly moved one forepaw, then the next, one rear paw, then the other. He picked up the pace, but still slow as he circled the clearing. A snort, like he'd figured it out, and he broke into a lope, stumbled and plowed muzzle-first into the undergrowth. I stifled a laugh, but not very well. and he glowered at me. He snorted and turned fast. When I fell back, he gave a growling chuckle. He lunged again. This time I stood my ground and he checked his leap at the last second...and toppled sideways. I didn't hide my laugh that time. He twisted fast, grabbed my pajama leg and wrenched, and down I went. He growled a chuckle. I fingered an imaginary tear in my pant leg. He walked over for a better look. I tried to grab his foreleg, but he darted out of my reach and tore across the clearing.
|
|
exercise
teasing-banter
chloe
derek
run
wolf
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
6494da4
|
Derek stopped short. I smacked into his back--not for the first time, since he insisted on walking in front of me. I'd been tripping on his heels and mumbling apologies the whole way. When I'd slow down to let him get farther ahead, he'd snap at me to keep up. Simon said. He was behind me--sticking to the curbside, walking as close as Derek. While normally I wouldn't complain about Simon being so close, I had the weird sensation of being blocked in. As we started forward again, I tried dropping back with Tori, who lagged behind, but Simon put his finger on my elbow and steered me back into place. I said. Tori said.
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|
chloe
derek
simon
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
233f0da
|
I glanced in the first open door and stopped short. Desks. Four tiny desks. A wall of faded posters of alphabet animals. A blackboard, still showing the ghost of numbers. I blinked, certain I was seeing wrong. Derek nudged my legs, telling me to get moving. I looked at him, and I looked at the classroom. This was where Derek had grown up. Four tiny desks. Four little boys. Four young werewolves. For a second, I could see them--three boys working at the three clustered desks, Derek alone at the fourth, pushed slightly away, hunched over his work, trying to ignore the others. Derek nudged me again, whining softly, and I looked down to see him eyeing the room, every hair on his neck on end, anxious to get away from this place.
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|
lab
chloe
derek
werewolves
childhood
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
871c944
|
I looked at Liam. He choked on a laugh.
|
|
chloe
liam
ghost
dead
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
1cbc2a5
|
He moved into the moonlight. That was no accident. He wanted me to see his eyes burning with fever, his skin flushed, hair sweat soaked. He wanted me to say, leap out of bed, and insist on going outside with him, help him through it, a I had the last two times. I looked at him and I lay back down. He stepped froward. I sat up, swung my legs out of bed, and stood. He breathed a sigh of relief. I walked to the window. A spark of panic ignited in his eyes. After how he'd treated me today, I should have said But i didn't. Couldn't. It took everything I had to just crawl back into bed.
|
|
chloe
punish
derek
restraint
mean
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
1e917b4
|
Chloe. Always Chloe with him and his brother. I know I sound like a whiny brat when I complain, but I think I have a good reason. I'd just discovered that I was a witch and my mother was a bitch--the murderous kind. I was now on the run with three kids who didn't want me along. No matter how hard I tried to keep up and help out, the guys only cared about Chloe. If I ran in front of this bus to push her to safety, they'd race to her side to see if she was okay. Probably give me crap for bruising her when I shoved her out of the way.
|
|
chloe
tori
derek
simon
complain
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
26055d8
|
"A hand touched my shoulder, shaking me. I was back on the bus. It was dark and warm and I just wanted to sleep, but Chloe kept shaking my shoulder. she whispered.
|
|
sleep
chloe
tori
told
derek
changing
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
e749d31
|
Nate said. Brad slapped another photo on the table. A smiling teenage girl with blue eyes and blond hair streaked with red. Carter grunted. They looked surprised. The cute smiling girl definitely did not seem like a romantic match for the scowling brute in the other photos. But Brad had done enough surveillance to be sure of his facts. Carter's face screwed up. Theo said. Nate said. Carter said, still eying the photo. Nate said.
|
|
cains
chloe
carter
derek
nate
|
Kelley Armstrong |
|
8414ee8
|
Tori said. Derek said. Tori waved her injured palm. She rolled her eyes. I said. She gave me a wan smile.
|
|
chloe
count-on
tori
derek
injured
|
Kelley Armstrong |