Awake at Dawn (Shadow Falls #2)(58)

Another sweep of the room and Kylie found Derek. He leaned against a wall, arms crossed, watching her. A slow smile widened his lips. Something in his smile told her he could really use some company.

She gave the room a quick check to see how many individuals could either smell her hormones or read her emotions. They were everywhere.

What to do? What to do?

She glanced back at Derek, remembered how good it had felt when he'd held her those few minutes in the office, and she thought ... what the hell. She started walking toward him.

"Wanna go eat pizza in the moonlight?" Derek whispered in her ear when she stopped in front of him.

Standing this close, she could smell his freshly showered skin. A vision of what he'd looked like standing in the buff wearing only a few water droplets filled her mind. She blinked the vision away.

"Is that like dancing in the moonlight? It's supposed to be seductive."

She smiled and then bit her tongue. Why was it when she got within three feet of him, all she could think about was ... him?

He grinned. "It could be. With the right person. And the right pizza."

He laughed. "Hey, I'm hungry."

They got themselves two slices each of pizza and a couple of drinks and walked out of the dining hall.

"I know the perfect place," he said as they left the chatter of voices and the air-conditioning behind in the dining hall. The night air was warm and smooth. He pointed to the two large, white rocking chairs at the front of the office. She followed him. She was just about to sit down when the phone in her pocket chimed.

Sitting her drink down, she balanced her plate in one hand and pulled out her phone to check the number. She frowned when she saw her dad's number and she hit the off button.

"Who was it?" Derek moved the second rocker over so they faced each other.

"My dad ... I mean, my stepdad," she corrected herself.

"You still aren't talking to him?" Derek sat down and picked up a piece of pepperoni pizza and took a big bite.

"Nooooo." She stuffed her phone back in her pocket and dropped down in her rocker. Their knees touched and it felt nice.

"Why not?" Derek asked between bites of pizza.

Kylie stared at him. "Why would I want to talk to him?" She positioned the plate in her lap.

He finished chewing and swallowed. "Because you care about him.

Because up until the shit hit the fan with your parents' marriage, he was a pretty good dad." He held up his finger. "You're the one that told me that."

"Yeah, but I didn't tell you to use it against me." She picked up the slice of pizza and stared down at the oozing cheese. Her mouth watered and her stomach grumbled. Thankfully, she was finally hungry. For a while there, she thought the blood had ruined her for eating regular food.

"I'm not using it against you." He took a sip of his drink. "I'm just ... trying to help. Because when you saw it was his number, your emotions went all lonely and sad. I felt them all the way to my gut. Maybe if you talked to him, you wouldn't have to feel that anymore."

"He cheated on my mom." She fought back the slight annoyance she felt toward Derek and took a small bite of pizza. The spicy sauce along with the gooey cheese made her taste buds jump up and down.

"That's just it," Derek said, taking another bite of his slice. "He cheated on your mom. Not you."

Kylie swallowed the pizza and frowned. "Why does everyone keep saying that as if his infidelity didn't affect me? It broke their marriage up. Nothing is the same for me anymore."

Derek studied her over the rim of his drink and started his rocker moving. "Maybe if you spoke with him, some of it would be the same. The relationship between you and him could be the same."

She dropped her pizza back on her plate, frustration chasing away her first sign of hunger in days. "You know, for a guy who won't even think about talking to his dad, you're a fine one to talk. I mean, you had a detective find your dad, and you still won't even contact him."

His jaw tightened. "And your point?"

She narrowed her own eyes and steadied her stare at him. "My point is, back off, okay?"

Derek scraped his feet on the porch, brought his rocker to a fast halt, and stared at her. "How far back do you want me to go? I'm already scared to even talk to you in public. Isn't that far enough?" Frustration filled his voice, but it was the hurt in his eyes that made her see reason.

Why was she being such a B with an itch? "I'm sorry." Kylie said. "I shouldn't have snapped at you. And I don't mean that you can't ever talk to me in public. I just ... I'm just ... I'm so moody." Kylie remembered what Holiday had said about the mood swings in werewolves before the full moon. Was that why she was acting this way? She looked up at the dark navy sky and focused on what almost appeared to be a full moon. Come Monday she'd know, wouldn't she? When she glanced back at Derek, he'd continued eating. Not that he looked all that happy. He wouldn't even look at her. Her thoughts shifted from what might happen on Monday to the anger that had just passed between them.

"Hey," she said to get his attention.

When he looked up, his discontent showed more on his face.

"I'm really sorry," she said again.

He dropped what was left of his pizza back on his plate. "You shouldn't be," he muttered, and used the back of his hand to wipe his mouth. He closed his eyes for a second. "You're right. I wouldn't want you trying to tell me I needed to call my father. It's just..."