girl_coming_out_of_shell

ZOE BELL PART 83

He ushered me through the room, gripping my upper arm to keep me in his command, and doors opened before us without him even touching the doorknobs. I kept my curiosities to myself and wished someone would tell me what was going on. There was seriously something eerie about these guys. Doors opening on their own accord, making people have headaches, what else was coming?

"Do you really have to grip me so tightly?" I was beginning to feel the circulation in my arms cut off. He loosened his grip ever so slightly, but it wasn’t enough for my discomfort to go away.

"Don’t complain. I could have one of these other guys take care of you and you would be in a lot worse condition." He shook me a little bit to make his point clear, but I still glared at him as he dragged me along.

We finally reached a room that looked more like a five star hotel suite than an average bedroom. The man holding me shut the door behind us, but not before I seen two guys station themselves like guards outside the door. I was about to question that when I was pulled me farther into the room and tossed onto the bed.

"What are you doing?" Panic was rising inside me, and I really just wanted to go home. He closed the curtains on all of the windows, and locked the door before answering me.

"This is where you’ll be staying until lover boy comes to rescue you. Understand? Gerald will be stopping by in a couple of hours to question you on a few things and I can’t promise that you’ll be perfectly safe in his presence. I can normally keep him calm, but there’s no questioning that he could blow his top in a matter of seconds and cause you severe head discomfort."

His words weren’t soothing me like I wished they would, and I was starting to hyperventilate. He noticed this before I did and was by my side with a glass of water, rubbing small circles on my back to calm me. He told me to think about things that were happy and take deep breaths.

"Are you a doctor or something?" I asked, feeling a bit better. I could breathe normally and for some reason, his hands on my back were making me happier than I should have been in this situation.

"No, I just go through this a lot. I know how to keep people calm." He stopped rubbing my back and I felt my happiness slip away from me.

"Can you please tell me why I’m here?" I sipped a little of the water and felt it’s cool, refreshing pureness slide down my dry throat. I hadn’t noticed how parched I was and instantly downed the rest of what was left in the glass. I wished I had more when he handed me another one.

"As bait to get the wolves into our territory so we can negotiate a situation we need them for." His eyes told me he wasn’t going to reveal anymore information and I knew it would be hopeless for me to keep questioning.

"Do they know where I am?"

He shook his head no.

"So how are they going to find me?"

He grinned. "Subtle hints are being left for them. If they figure it out, that’s the end of your journey here. So the longer it takes for them to figure it out, the longer you’ll be staying here."

"So what am I supposed to be doing here while I wait? Are you going to torture me?" I suddenly had images of myself being tied and gagged to some pole in a dungeon atmosphere. But if that’s what they were going to do, they would have done it already, right?

"As soon as I figure out Gerald’s schedule, I can answer specifically. But for the most part you will just stay in here."

There were a few moments of silence that made me feel like sleeping. I put my glass of water on the bedside table and looked around the room to give my eyes and mind something to do. There was a large living area with an enormous television set that was connected to the wall. Plush, velvet seats were lined in front of it with a glorious, crystal blue rug under an intricately carved glass coffee table.

"So why am I here? I’m not Steve’s girlfriend. He’s the one in charge."

He shrugged. "His girlfriend isn’t as enjoyable as you are. And I’m sure that your blood tastes better than hers. That’s also why you were the one with all the headaches."

"What! How does that have anything to do with the taste of my blood?"

"I’ll let Gerald speak with you about that. But for now, you need to sleep."

He touched my forehead and I slumped farther down the bed in sudden dizziness.

"Wait! What’s your name?" My mouth didn’t form the words the way I wanted them to, but I think he understood what I was saying since I watched as his mouth formed the name, ‘Sage’. I fell into a black sleep, and didn’t dream anything for three hours.

ZOE BELL PART 82

I hurried out to the car where my mom was waiting for me, and we decided to go into town and shop before we went to Olive Garden for lunch. I felt a little guilty about it, but I quickly sent Mason a text and he told me I would be fine. I assumed he would send in some reinforcements in the area so that I wasn’t completely defenseless.

I had a good time with my mom. We chatted about everything there was to chat about. We even had fun in the mall while looking for a new pair of shoes for her. She liked having me there so that she could have a second opinion on whatever it was she was going to get. I was her fashion guru in ways I suppose. We both walked out of Dillard’s with new boots. I was excited to wear them in the fall for school.

The skin on the back of my neck was tingling as we walked into Olive Garden to wait for a table. I looked around, but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. I put a smile on for my mom and hoped that nothing would spike her suspicions with me. I didn’t want to tell her that we were in a potential danger zone without one of the boys with us. She didn’t notice my behavior change and was bubbly as she ordered her food. I didn’t think my stomach could handle more than a salad, but I ordered a half plate of chicken fettuccini.

My neck felt normal by the time our lunch came, and light conversation was flowing between us. I must have just been imagining things. There’s nothing here that’s going to hurt me. I need to just stay calm and get back home with my mom before anything happens.

Just when I thought all was going great, a black SUV pulls into the parking space next to my mom as we’re walking out of Olive Garden. I can breathe again when a nice looking couple get out and don’t so much as glance at us as they walk into the restaurant. I pull myself together for my mom and ignore the fact that the SUV was even in existence when I reach for the handle on my door. I should have known better.

I was pulled from behind and dragged into the backseat of the SUV. There were at least six guys in the car with me, and they were restraining me. The driver was out of the parking lot before my mother even knew I had been taken! I was screaming and yelling at them, I even got a good punch on one of them, but with them being vampires he didn’t even flinch. I was surprised they hadn’t gagged me with a rag or something. That is, until I felt something sharp pierce the side of my neck and I slumped to the floor. I was unable to move or talk.

I was still conscious, for some reason, and everyone was staring at me. Some with shock and others with comical grins on their faces. I tried moving my mouth for a remark on their staring, but I couldn’t find the muscles in my face to make that even possible. One of them reached down and pulled me up to the seat. He strapped me in place and put his arm around my shoulders to keep my head from falling forward. Tears stung my eyes, but I couldn’t let myself cry like this. They couldn’t see how weak I was.

"Don’t do anything rash, Zoe," said the driver. I glared at the back of his head as best as I could and he burst into laughter. He knew very well that I couldn’t move. "Don’t worry. You’ll have that pretty face back in progress withing the hour."

Within the hour it was. I recognized the way to Las Vegas, and even though the speed limit was 75, we were going 100 mph! I really wanted some cops to turn up, but none ever did. We made it to Las Vegas in less than 45 minutes, and I was beginning to feel my face tingle as if my nerves had been asleep.

I shrugged whoever’s arm was around me off and the driver winked at me. I figured my best bet right now was silence. Just watch my surroundings and see if there was any possible way I could find to make my escape. There wasn’t, of course, and then I couldn’t see anything at all. I felt the sensation of going downwards, and I realized we must be driving down through a tunnel. There was pure darkness as we drove through the tunnel, and I was feeling slightly claustrophobic as the darkness enveloped me. Not even the car’s headlights were on, but I knew that if all my reading up on vampires was true, they didn’t need any sort of light to see in this blackness.

We came to a stop, and a light ahead was gradually growing as a garage door slid up. We drove through the door to find a parking lot with several of the black SUVs in perfectly lined rows. I was latched onto by my upper arms as we parked and I was pulled out of the car.

Another man came to stand in front of me and he had an extremely amused grin on his face. "Are you going to come quietly?" He held up a long strip of silver duct tape and I quickly nodded. I could only imagine the pain that I would experience when someone yanked that off of me. He laughed and motioned for my ‘bodyguards’ to move aside.

They hesitated, but the look on his face meant business. They let go of me and he slid his arm around my waist. I had half a mind to slap him, but I knew duct tape wouldn’t be my only worries if I did. He led me to the elevator and we all piled into the small squared room that dropped us down three levels before it opened to reveal a brightly lit foyer.

"You okay?" Mason put his arm around me.

"Y-yeah. I’m just confused with all of this. I want to just be able to relax with you."

I knew that he wanted the same thing. "I hope things will calm down soon. They usually do for a little while before they come up with ne bargains for us."

I sighed. I wanted to know what this feud was all about. It might ease my worries! Then again, it could increase them too.

"Should we just nix the truck?" Cliff asked, sounding a little worried.

"Are you going to buy me a new one?" Mason’s jaw clenched and I heard his teeth grinding together in anger.

"I think you can make a sacrifice for the team and I’m just that Steve will reward you with a new one."

"I think he’ll be able to understand that I don’t want to drive the only thing my dad left me off the road to it’s death."

"Please don’t drive your truck off the road Mase. I don’t want to die!"

"You wouldn’t die, Zoe. I would jump out with you before we crashed and we would run to our hideout to escape Adrian and his crew."

I breathed a sigh of relief, but I still didn’t want him to drive his truck off the road. I’ve never heard him mention his dad before, but if this truck is from him, then I know it means a lot to him.

"We’ll go to my house and jump out and run after my car is safely parked." we were in Hurricane now, and a few sharp turns and we were parked in front of Mason’s house. He grabbed me around the waist and he ran around to the back of the house. We ran to the kiddie playground that was in the very corner of his yard that I had never noticed before until now.

I didn’t have time to question why we were going down the slide, because we were swallowed up by a big black hole at the bottom of the slide. We slid and slid until we fell out of the ceiling of their underground hideout. He moved us out of the way, just in time for Cliff and Abbie to fall after us.

"Can’t they follow us still?" Abbie cried, falling to the floor from being unstable.

They both chuckled. "You can only get through if you have a tail from our tribe." I felt something furry slide up my arm and Mason’s tail brushed my nose. I jumped and smacked it away as he laughed.

"We should just stay here for the rest of our lives." Cliff lounged on the couch and sighed.

"Someone wold eventually come and ruin your perfect laziness," Abbie said.

"That would be now." Steve appeared out of the darkness and Cliff groaned.

"I don’t know where they came from," Mason started. "I had my mind stretched for them, and all of a sudden they were right on top of us!"

"I know. I don’t know what happened either, but I don’t want anyone leaving the area unless they are better guarded in numbers. Understand?"

Mason nodded. "And someone needs to fix Cliff’s brain."

Steve snorted. "What did he do today?"

"Hey!" Cliff threw his shoe at Steve and he caught it without even looking.

"He wanted me to drive my truck off the road because we were boxed in by all their SUVs!"

"Brain damage!" Steve chucked the shoe back at Cliff. "Why would you even suggest that? You would never drive your car off the road like that!"

"I would if I had to!" Cliff stood up[ and was in Steve’s face, yelling.

"Calm down Cliff. They’re only joking. Stay out of his face before you both lost your tempers!" Abbie pushed Cliff away from Steve and he pulled her into one of the rooms, away fro m Steve and Mason.

‘He needs some anger management help." Steve muttered, he shook hands with Mason, patted my back, and disappeared back into the darkness he came from.

"So what now?" I asked, lacing my fingers with Mason’s.

"I guess I’ll take you home and then I have to put a shift in at the garage."

"Am I allowed to go anywhere? Like with my mom or something?"

He shrugged. "I’d prefer you didn’t, but if you do, take Zane or Zagger with you. And text me so I know where you are. Please."

He kissed me as he pulled me through the darkness of the secret cave.

"I love you. Don’t forget that."

I grinned. "You do the same."

He changed to his wolf form, and lowered down so I could get on his back to ride off into the sunset. Ha! If only! He took me back to my house and I was put to work in helping my mom cook dinner.

"How are you and Mason holding up?" My mom asked me. She raised her eyebrows at me and I shrugged.

"They’re going great. Why do you ask?"

"Just curious. We haven’t chatted in a while like we used to."

I shrugged. "We’ve both been out of the house a lot lately, haven’t we?"

She nodded. "Hit and miss. We should hang out today, maybe go to lunch? Just the two of us? Sound fun?"

I nodded and hugged her, keeping in mind my warning from Mason. I didn’t really want Zane or Zagger coming along on my lunch date with my mom, so maybe I’ll just tell Mason and talk my mom into staying close to home for lunch.

He wasn’t thrilled about it, and we argued over the phone for five minutes before he hung up on me. Tears stung in my eyes and before I could cry, he called me back and apologized and told me he loved me. It was almost comical how much he was groveling right now. I assured him that he was forgiven and had to tell him that I didn’t need him to come over to prove he was sorry.  

"Next time you go to see Amber, I want to go with you."

"I won’t be seeing her anymore, and I told her as much before I left her. You are my one and only, Zoe. Please believe me when I say that."

"With time I might, but you still have to gain my trust back. So keep that in mind."

"I will. Just remember that I really do love you." He knelt down in front of me with both my hands in his. "Please know that."

"I do know that. And I love you in return."

He grinned and hugged me around my waist. "You’re the best, Zoe. I’ll never fail you again for as long as you’ll have me."

Abbie and I had planned to go to the mall today, and since Mason was back in my good graces, the boys came with us to enjoy our company in the world of girls: Dressing Rooms!

We planned to fill our closets with a new college wardrobe, and that is exactly what we did! One matching outfit after another was tried on and added to the growing pile of clothes that the boys were in charge of. My camera was filling up with an enormous amount of stunningness as Mason flashed away for our makeshift fashion show we were putting on for them.

"I don’t understand girls and clothes," Cliff said, looking through the camera while we waited in line at the checkout stand.

"You better learn fast boy!" Abbie kissed his cheek and grinned.

Mason’s arm slid around my waist and he kissed my forehead. "You okay?" he asked, noticing my slight discomfort when he touched my head.

"Yeah, just a bit of a headache. Nothing to worry about." It was my turn for a present from Mother Nature, so I was expecting the headache. I didn’t feel the need to fill him in on that much information though, so I kissed him. That worked in keeping his mind on light subjects.

We ended up going to Starbucks for drinks, and Mason teased me about what happened a week ago here at the mall. I took it light heartedly, but I really needed to sit down. My head was beginning to spin. The boys stood in line while Abbie and I claimed tables for us.

"Are you sure this isn’t one of those freak attacks you used to get?" Abbie asked, worry filling her eyes.

"No, it can’t be. I would have a lot more pounding going on in my head if that was the case."

We still weren’t so sure, so Mason casually checked the perimeter of the store to make sure Adrian and the creepy head guy weren’t around to cause my discomfort.

"I don’t think anyone is here, Zoe. I’m usually one of the first ones that can sense them, five miles away!" Cliff was looking around as he was speaking.

Mason came back with a dead serious look on his face. "What’s wrong?" I immediately asked.

"I’ll tell you in a minute. Let’s go get something to eat."

We had to walk fast to keep up with him, and as soon as we were outside the building, he swung me into his arms and ran to his truck. He set me down so he could unlock the door, and that’s when the trouble started.

We were surrounded by ten of Adrian’s vampire friends, and everyone looked extremely menacing. Mason hid me behind his back, and pushed me against the car.

"We don’t want any trouble. As you can see, I called Gerald off the mind tricks, so let’s just talk like normal people."

I examined my head, and the headache was completely gone. No more spinning. That didn’t meant it couldn’t come back at a moment’s notice though.

"That’s just it, Carter. We’re not normal people, so leave us alone now, or this is going to get ugly." Mason said in a low growl. I wrapped my arms around his waist, and hoped I could do something to keep him from starting the fight that was itching to break out.

I heard Mason’s voice inside my head, telling me to get inside the truck. As if on cue, I heard the door unlock. I didn’t hesitate, and I clambered inside with my bags of clothes. He was in right after me, and Cliff was in with Abbie.

If they weren’t vampires, I’m pretty sure that some of those guys would have possibly died. When Mason put the truck in gear and backed out of the parking space, it felt like we hit twenty speed bumps at 50 mph! I looked back to see the damage done, but they had all disappeared. Or at least that’s what I thought.

Three black SUVs were suddenly behind us, and I heard Mason swear when I told him they were following us.

"What do they want from you guys that makes them follow you like blood hounds?" Abbie asked.

She was sitting on Cliff’s lap, and she almost slammed into the dashboard when Mason swerved onto the freeway entrance ramp.

"Ab, please don’t ask questions right now. I don’t want you put in anymore danger than you already are." Cliff had weary lines on his face, and his eyes were drooping with tiredness.

"Same goes for you." Mason nudged me.

"Well if it concerns our well being, why shouldn’t you tell us what’s going on?"

I was kind of glad Abbie was the one voicing the exact questions that were running through my own mind.

"Because! If they happen to find a way to take you, they’ll torture answers out of you. If you don’t know anything that’s going on, you might be safer."

I looked behind us, ignoring Abbie and Cliff as they argued, and I could clearly see Adrian in the driver’s seat of the SUV directly behind us. He winked at me and I snapped my head back to the front of the car. 

He flung me over his shoulder and carried me up to his bedroom. He dropped me onto his bed and began pacing in tight circles around his room.

"What are you doing? I want to go home!" I got off the bed, only to be pushed back down. "You do know that Gage told me everything, right? So you’ll have a hard time lying to me. Just so you know."

"How does Gage know?" His head snapped to me and I cowered in the look he was giving me. He was furious.

"I don’t know!" I threw a pillow at him and he ignored it as it hit him and fell to the floor. He paced around for an hour before I found myself falling asleep. He didn’t wake me up until my mom started calling him to find out where I was. He said he bought me two more hours, but he didn’t have anything to say to me about our problem. I wasn’t up for my side of the story yet, so I made him take me home.

I avoided everyone for the rest of the night, and most of the next day until Abbie made me eat lunch with her and we chatted about graduation that was seriously only two days away.

The rest of my day flew by, and after school I had an appointment with the school counselor about my attendance to SUU in the fall. The meeting went by quickly, and my next day was so anxiously played out, I don’t even want to relive it.

Graduation day! The day I’ve always dreamed of as a kid. The day you say goodbye to friends that are going off to college. The day I was shedding tears for no reason because every person that hugged me made me feel like I really did accomplish something with my life.

Gage was my escort to the stage since Benz came after Bell, and he probably thought I was a freak for crying on his shoulder after we received our diplomas. I was so emotional and out of my senses that I let Mason pull me into a hug and give me a graduation kiss. There are no words available for how I felt!

Somehow Abbie talked me into going to the graduation party for our last class activity before our Ten Year Reunion. I had my brain back, and I enjoyed a great party with my girl since she made Cliff stay with Mason for most of the night. She knew I needed a girls night just as much as I knew myself. It felt great! And at the end of the night, I promised Mason we would hang out the next day to talk about what would happen to us and our conflicting relationship.

The beginning of a new life begins now. I wake up late Friday morning, the day after graduation, and realize that I am now an official adult. There was nothing that was going to keep me from living my life now. I was going to take full responsibility of my life now. No more teenage drama. That part of my life was going to end. Fast. Time to call Mason. What a joy.

I showered and ate breakfast before I went out back where he had been waiting for me. I gave him a hug and kissed his cheek.

"What’s that for?" He asked, rubbing his cheek where I had kissed him.

"Well do you want me to be a snobby brat and start yelling at you?"

He shook his head no and we sat at the picnic table by the pool. My mother must have felt pity for him, because there was a plate of his favorite cookies with a pitcher of grape juice and two glasses. He stared at me with sincere, burning desire in his eyes. Somehow I knew that no matter what happened today, that we would be together again.

"I do want this to work, so I’m going to listen to what you have to say, and I’m going to believe you unless I have been notified otherwise.

He accepted my offer and told me how he met Amber at a party our Junior year. Even though he was still in love with me, he wanted what any teenage boy wanted, and she was offering it– the diving attention of a pretty girl.

I can faintly remember seeing her at parties with him, now that he mentions it, and I keep my mouth and comments to myself until he tells me that he was falling in love with her.

"What?! You love her?!"

"I did. That was before you finally noticed me and then my love for you returned."

I munched on a cookie as he finished telling me his story. He told me that five months ago, when he started dating me, he broke it off with her and he hadn’t seen her since our latest fiasco.

"Woah, woah, woah. That’s not what Gage told me the other day."

"Gage also told me last night that he might have exaggerated a few things so that you would be angrier with me and seek him for comfort. I was shocked he told me that, but then again, he was drunk."

"How can I believe that?" I scrutinized his face to see if there was anything that would give away his poker face. There wasn’t of course, and he handed me his cell phone with Gage’s number pulled up.

"So what happened last weekend? Why did you go to Arizona where my brother took a picture of you making out with Amber?"

He takes my hand across the table and won’t look me in the eyes. I squeeze his hand for reassurance, and he takes a deep breath before he finally speaks.

"Her dad took some unfair anger out on her, and she needed someone to talk to. She claims I was her only option."

"For two days?"

"Well then she talked me into staying for the party that your brother and Curtis were at as well. I tried calling you to tell you where I was and what I was doing, but she hid my phone battery so I couldn’t use it. For some reason I couldn’t focus enough to change my mind to wolf form, so I couldn’t send you a message through one of the guys either."

His story sounded a little fishy, but I told him I was going to believe him, so that’s what I did. He apologized for making out with Amber, and he swore to me he wasn’t going to do it again. I really hoped he wouldn’t. 

Mason must have known I wasn’t happy with him because he left me alone for the rest of the day. I got home and was thankful for no homework troubles. I could just relax and try and figure out what I was going to do with my problems. This was not an easy thing to accomplish seeing as I had so many serious problems in my wake. I slip my clothes off and slide into a steaming hot, vanilla scented bubble bath. For some reason I make the best decisions with steam floating around me, and the noise of the flowing water conveniently blocking out reality.

I turned the water off when it was up to my neck in depth, and let myself relax into the sweet luxury of hot water. I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I know, the hairs on my arms are sticking up and Mason is sitting on the side of my bathtub, trailing his fingers through my water.

I sink lower into the water, grateful for the shield of bubbles, and glare at him.

"It’s school, are we going to talk now?"

I look down at my hands and wondered how long I was in the tub for. The water was still steaming, but my hands looked like prunes.

"Not with me in the bathtub! How long have you been in here?" I was beginning to feel self conscious with his gaze staring into my eyes.

"Ten minutes. I’ve been trying to probe your dreams." Great, my werewolf boyfriend was trying to spy on me through his ability to enter my dreams. Supposedly it was because we were linked together, but I was far from thinking that this whole ‘marking’ was as serious as everyone is claiming it is.

"So you’re a stalker now, huh?"

He laughs and I feel myself smile. I quickly sober my face and he hands me my robe that was hanging from my bathroom door.

Before I could say anything, he turns around an leaves me to myself so I can get dressed. I wasn’t particularly in a caring mood, so I just slipped on some shorts and a tank top, not even bothering with makeup. I put my hair in a towel to keep the water off my neck, and yank the door open to find Mason grinning at me from my balcony doors.

"What’s funny?" I snap.

"Nothing. Should we go now?" He took a couple steps towards me.

"Where are we going?" I didn’t want to go anywhere. Especially looking like this. Maybe that was why he was smiling.

"I was thinking my house, or the park or something."

"Why can’t we just stay here?"

If he wasn’t trying to win my love back, I’m positive that he would have told me I was stupid for asking such a question in this situation.

"Babe, they can all hear us. I was hoping we could go somewhere in privacy."

I go back in my bathroom and carelessly blow dry my hair. I think about some eyeliner and mascara, but I decide against it when I remember my not caring mood. I pull on a shirt that coincides with my tank top, and go back out to Mason.

"You’re gorgeous. And I truly love you." He pulled me into a hug and kissed me.

I was mad at myself for kissing him back, but that didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the kiss. I pushed him back and cocked an eyebrow at him. He raised his hands in surrender and motioned for me to lead the way. I stomp past my brothers and Curtis in the living room. When I get to Mason’s truck, I get in and slam the door extra hard. He cringes and shakes his head.

"You have to be gentle with my girl, Zo." He starts the truck and begins the journey to his house.

I look at him. "Your girl?"

He grins and nods.

"So what am I, exactly?"

His grin falters. "My girlfriend?"

"Just drive." I sit back and ignore the hand that keeps prodding my leg in an attempt for me to hold his hand. I stare out the window as houses and trees pass by in the familiar route to his house. He’s going 15 over the speed limit and I half hoped a cop would pull out and give him a ticket. He probably would have talked himself out of it though. Faked an injury that would need me to get to the hospital or something.

Trixie wasn’t home when we got to his house, and I secretly wished she was so that I could have had an escape when I didn’t want to hear his crap anymore.

"Do you want anything? Water or food or something?" He pulled me into the kitchen and I sank into a plush dining table chair.

"Water please." He handed me a glass of ice water before I finished my request and sat down across from me with his own glass of water.

"So. . ."

I looked at him and raised my eyebrows. "Yes?"

"Where should we start?"

"Are you serious?" I suddenly lost my temper and was two seconds away from throwing my water in his face. Trixie wouldn’t appreciate the water damage to her furniture though, so I restrained myself. "You were the one so adamant on talking, so you are starting. Not me."

He sighed and looked a little lost. I didn’t care, though, so I stayed quiet in my seat, waiting for him to continue with the bull he was about to dish out to me.

"I love you Zoe, and I know I’ve done things I shouldn’t have, but I can change. I swear it. Will you please just give me another chance?"

"You don’t get it, do you?" I shake my head and slam my water glass on the table. "You lied to me Mason! You cheated on me! Don’t you see that? You hurt me, Mason. I don’t want to be with someone that hurts me. So unless you’re going to prove to me that you can tell the truth, and the whole truth, then I’m leaving."

A hint of a smile appeared on his face from my little tantrum, and I lost it. I threw my water glass at him and ran for the front door. He swore and I heard his footsteps following after me as I ran through the house to get to the door. I seen it and ran as hard as I could to get to it. I almost made it too! He pulled me away right as my hand touched the handle.  

• click to see this quote •

ZOE BELL PART 76

I shake my head. "Well, I’m technically in another relationship, and I’ve already ‘cheated’ on him with my best friend. I shouldn’t make it worse than it already is. . ."

"If you’re with Curtis right now, then you should definitely hang with me. He’s a bad influence and Mason would be much better off if you were to be with me. I’m better for you." He put his arm around my shoulders and leaned in, closer to my face.

"Well, as tempting as that sounds, you wouldn’t be next in line if I was to drop Curtis. So maybe if the second guy screws up I’ll consider you." I put my hand over his mouth, and gently push him away.

"You’re missing out on a great opportunity. They only come around a few times, so if you miss this one, it won’t happen again." He’s giving me a malicious grin and I’m half tempted to slap his face, but that wouldn’t be very nice payment for his information.

"I’m sure it is a once in a lifetime opportunity, but I think I’ll just have to pass on this one. I thank you though for the offer. I really appreciate it. And thank you for your information." I paused my getaway plan, and gently pressed my lips to his for half a second. "Thank you. Really."

"My pleasure. If you need anymore information I’m sure I’ll find a way to get it to you. Trust me."

I grin and get up to leave for lunch. And then I wished I hadn’t. Mason was at the door, waiting for me, and I half wondered if he saw what happened with Gage and I. He didn’t say anything though, and I felt relieved. But then I remembered I was mad at him and caught Gage’s arm as he was walking past us.

"Wanna have lunch at my place today?"

Gage was just as shocked at my request as I was, but he agreed and we left without a second glance at Mason. I knew that Gage’s arm around my shoulders would be enough to make him furious with me though. And that was enough for me!

"Are we really going to your place?" He asked me, once we were in the parking lot. He led me to a raised Ford Bronco that was required him picking me up and placing me inside of it.

"Of course not! You’re taking me to your place so I can hide from him."

He shut my door for me and went around to his side. I was surprised to find the car fairly clean, considering that when I think of Bronco’s I imagine red neck junk littered all over the floor.

"To my place it is!" He fired up the engine and maneuvered it out of the parking lot in an exceptional manner. I knew I would never have been able to drive this thing without hitting something!

"I’m impressed. But then again I shouldn’t be since you have super powers and stuff." He looked at me in confusion. "With you being a werewolf and all?" He raised his eyebrows, still not knowing what I was talking about. "Driving this thing?!"

He laughed. "Ok, I get it now. I thought you were impressed with me going to lunch with you and I had no idea how that had anything to do with me being a werewolf and all."

I shook my head and smiled. "So what are you feeding me?" I asked, feeling my hunger begin to sink in. I hadn’t eaten breakfast, and I was afraid there was going to be some stomach grumbling in a few minutes if I didn’t eat soon.

"I’ll find something suitable for you. I usually just eat whatever I can find, but I’m sure there’s some hot pockets or something that will work." He flashed a grin at me and I rolled my eyes.

We pulled into the driveway of an immaculate home. There were colonial pillars supporting the porch of the house, with beautiful rose bushes placed delicately along the length of the porch. There were trees and flowers scattered tastefully across the lawn, and the pure white home was, in itself, the most gorgeous town home I had ever seen in my life.

I must have had shock written all over my face, because Gage laughed at me and pulled me through the drivers door to the floor. "It’s not the amazing, is it?"

I couldn’t pull myself together for words, so I just followed him into the home. We paused in the foyer before heading for the kitchen. He told me he was listening to see if his parents were home or not.

He motioned for me to sit at the high bar while he searched for some food. The kitchen screamed ‘Personal Chef’. I just knew it! There was no way this kitchen could look the way it did. My suspicions were confirmed when a nice looking woman walked in and asked us what we wanted to eat. Gage looked a little embarrassed, but brushed it away since he didn’t know what to feed me. I didn’t care what I ate, so she got out some chips and salsa while she prepared meat for homemade tacos.

"What are you thinking?" Gage asked, sitting next to me and brushing a strand of hair out of my face.

"Why are you embarrassed about this?" I gestured around the room and he shrugged.

"I just don’t like be associated as the rich kid. I get taken advantage of and thought of in ways that don’t apply to me."

"Like what?" I dipped a chip in the liquid spiciness and crunched it’s delicious flavor, savoring it before I swallowed.

"People just think I’m a stuck up brat since my parents have money and I don’t have financial worries."

"Well you have your own job, don’t you?" The salsa was hotter than I expected, and the only way to keep tears out of my eyes was to keep eating chips.

"Yes, but not very many people know about it."

What difference does it make if people think you’re rich or not? Heck, if I was rich I wouldn’t care what people thought. I would buy whatever I wanted! But looking at his face, I could tell that he really didn’t want to talk about it, so I switched the subject.

• click to see this quote •