Moonlight

so he usually wore sunglasses, but he wasn’t wearing any now, and I was left unprotected from his prying stare.

“We were chasing down the jaguar who killed Gabe, and there was some unexpected gun play.”

He frowned. “The jaguar shot Aren?”

“One of them did.” I didn’t realize my slip until it was out already of my mouth.

“There was more than one?” Anger flashed in his eyes. “Have you told Malcolm about this?”

“No.” I shook my head. “I didn’t want to worry him. Aren and I have it under control.”

“This is not under control. Not even close.” Jason crossed his arms over his chest, making it obvious he’d been working out lately. “If you don’t tell him, I will. It’s the full moon tonight, Adam. We’ve got to be on alert, especially if the jaguars have guns.”

“I’m not stupid.” He was starting to piss me off. “I’ll tell him.”

“When?”

“Back off, Jason.” I didn’t like being pressured, and it seemed like every part of my life wanted a piece of me. I didn’t need to be threatened by anyone, least of all the wolf in front of me. “I’m not a pup, and I outrank you.”

His fists clenched, and my eyes narrowed. Part of me wanted him to take a swing. A good fistfight might help ease all the pent up frustration brewing in my chest. But Jason let his hands drop to his sides.

“We’ll be vulnerable tonight if you don’t do the right thing, Adam. I don’t know what you’re hiding, but it can’t be worth risking the Pack.” He started to walk away and added under his breath, “We already lost Gabe.”

I tackled him then. We hit the ground so hard I saw stars for a minute, but a minute was all I had before Jason was wrestling to get on top of me. All the anger, worry, and frustration of the past two weeks exploded into physical form with every hit. He got his hands down on the dirt and pulled his knees in, I punched his stomach as he pushed up from the ground, and he returned fire with his elbow. I felt one of my ribs crunch as I rolled off of him. He started to get to his feet, but I snagged one leg and yanked him back to the ground. Before we could grapple anymore, Luke pulled me back.

“Stop!”

I stepped back, glaring at Jason.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Jason spat.

“Nothing until you started getting in my face with your hotter-than-horseshit attitude.”

“My attitude?” Jason pointed at his own chest, and then shook his head. “You know what? Fuck you, Adam. I’m done with this. I’m going to go check on Aren’s ankle, and I’m outta here.”

I stared at him as he walked up to the house, getting a little satisfaction that he was covered in dirt. Asshole.

When he vanished into the house I turned and found Luke staring right at me. “What?”

“I don’t know, but you’re acting crazy,” he said.

I started to open my mouth to deny it, then closed it again and shook my head. “I have a lot on my mind, and I don’t need Jason reminding me that Gabe’s dead. I’ll never forget that, and it pisses me off he thinks I might.”

“Tonight’s the full moon.”

“I know.” Apparently Luke was eager to change the subject. Suited me just fine.

“Are you going to change with the Pack?”

“Yeah, I am.” I nodded and glanced at the barn. “But then I’m probably going to have to leave for a while. I need you to take care of the horses for me.”

Luke followed my gaze and nodded. “Sure. When will you be back?”

I stared at the dirt, felt like dirt. “I’m not sure yet. Could be a while though.”

His brow furrowed. “What? Why?”

“You saw what happened with Jason. I’m wound too tight right now. I need to figure out how to make things right again.”

“Did you break up with the lady I saw the other night?”

I knew I had to lie to him now. When did I get to be such a spineless shit? I sighed and ran my fingers back through my now dusty hair.

“Her name is Lana.”

He smiled a little. “Pretty name.”

“Yeah.” I nodded. “Gorgeous lady, too.”

“I didn’t really see much of her before she took off. So is she your girlfriend like Teri was?”

I knew I should lie, but it felt so good to finally be telling someone about Lana without having them tell me she’s wrong for me. I looked him in the eyes. “She’s nothing like Teri. I’m in love with Lana.”

Luke’s eyes widened before he buried his surprise and rolled his shoulders back. “So when do we get to meet her?”

“I don’t know.” I hated sinking back into the lying sack of shit, but I didn’t know what else to do. I couldn’t tell him I wasn’t coming back. “I hope soon.”

“Are you leaving with her?”

“Yeah, but that’s just between us. Aren and Malcolm don’t need to know, okay?”

Luke lowered his eyes. I knew he didn’t like it. I was asking too much of him and his loyalty. He’d crack under my father’s pressure, but I’d be long gone by then. I reached out and gripped his shoulder.

“Let me be the one to tell them, all right? I don’t want them to hear it from someone else.”

He nodded. “I can do that.”

I pulled him in and gave him a firm hug. “Thanks Luke.”

Jason was coming out of the house as I was going in. He didn’t make eye contact and started to go around me.

“Hey, Jason?”

He stopped and finally looked at me but he didn’t say anything.

“I’m sorry.” Then I added, “I was an asshole.”

He nodded. “A raging asshole.”

“I’ve got a lot on my mind. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

“Whatever is going on with you and Aren, we’re family, remember? We take care of our own.”

“I know.” I started to smile. “Sorry I confused it with beating the crap out of our own.”

“Hey, you didn’t even leave a mark.” Jason started to grin. “I could have taken you if I wanted to.”

I held out my hand, and he reached out to clasp my forearm. “Thanks for taking care of Aren.”

Jason nodded, his hair falling over his eyes. “Tell Malcolm about the jaguars.”

“I will.”

But I would leave out the jaguar who mattered most. The one I was about run away with, leaving the Pack behind for good.

Chapter Thirty-Three Lana

I drove aimlessly until I finally ran out of tears. Numbness filled the gaping hole, dulling the ache of knowing I was leaving the only man I’d ever really loved. I knew it was for the best in the long run, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. I should have been looking for a place to hide. Sasha was still somewhere, searching for me. But it was hard to give a crap about tomorrow when I knew Adam wouldn’t be a part of it. My heart hurt so badly it felt like it might burn out of my chest.

I pulled into a coffee shop and borrowed their Wi-Fi connection, checking email, and calculating my PayPal balance. Any mundane task I could dredge up became of utmost importance. I needed to take my mind off of the time clicking away, each minute bringing me closer to leaving. My red-eye flight was due to take off out of Reno at ten p.m. I figured I’d drop off the Jeep with the note at Adam’s around eight p.m. and catch a cab to the airport.